On the Outskirts of Manhattan

Troy could feel her presence as she attacked colleague after colleague to get into the house. She exonerated careful control; never going too far to actually kill the guards outside the building. She was amazing, from what he could feel. And he understood why everyone wanted her on their side. In an epic battle to the death, he would be on her side.

“My Mommy's here,” Nolan looked up suddenly. Troy's head whipped from the door to the little boy he was locked in a room with. It was a soundproofed room, he didn't expect the child to know his mom was there by hearing.

“How would you know little man? I thought we were playing Mario?” he asked, motioning to the television and the controller in his hand.

Nolan shrugged, “I just know.”

Troy wondered at the possibilities of the little boy. From all of the rumours he had heard about Ava, he understood that Nolan was nothing like she was. Although, he had to give the boy credit for only being three. However, Ava relied on no one. Nolan relied completely and fully upon his mother. He couldn't comprehend taking care of himself for even a few short minutes. Ava took on the world as if it were a toothpick. Nolan seemed to be the toothpick.

Troy concentrated on focusing his senses outside of the tiny room. He recognized the door opening. He recognized shock registering in someone—Ava, the new comer; the powerful one. Then he sensed intense anger. There was yelling, although he couldn't hear it, just sense it. He watched as Nolan flinched and looked at the door.

“Can I go see my Mommy now?” he questioned.

“Not yet little man, she'll come to you. You just play your game,” Troy grinned at the little boy, however his charming smile had no effect on the boy unlike on the ladies. The little boy stood from his chair, set an angry look on his face—one that looked more adorable than angry—and stomped his foot.

“No!” he yelled. “I want to see her NOW!” Tantrums. Troy assumed he should have been prepared for that one as Nolan stomped his little foot and placed his hands on his hips; obviously something he had picked up from his mother.

Troy chuckled, “now, now, Nolan. You can't expect to get what you want with that temper.”

Nolan screamed in frustration before he burst into tears, “I just want my Mommy!” he sobbed out, crumpling to the floor.

Troy looked around and awkwardly sat down beside the boy, patting his back. “There, there...you'll see her soon.”

***

Dawson kept up his quick stride, following Ava's scent. He couldn't quite smell the other scents she was following, but he could pick up hers easily enough. He was strong, powerful and very skilled in what he did, but his nose just didn't seem to do the same thing hers did. However, his nose was very aware of Ava. He had known her for quite some time and had spent most of the last month with her, not to mention his infatuation with the woman. As he contemplated moving more quickly to get to her faster, his ear piece chirped like he expected it would, and he slowed down instead to transform into his human form. He touched his ear to activate the communication. “What's up?”

“Dawson? Where are you headed?” Felix's voice filtered over the ear piece. Obviously they had been watching his tracker. He wasn't in any known location they owned or approved of him going to.

Sighing, Dawson quickly explained the situation they were in. Felix let out a grunt, told him to continue following Ava and that he'd have backup on the way. “And for God's sake, make sure she doesn't get herself killed. I don't even want to think of what Riley will do—not only to you, but to the entire werewolf population—if he loses her.”

Dawson didn't even answer the other man, simply disconnected from the conversation, turned, and resumed his fast-paced journey to Ava. He was supremely pissed at her for disobeying him. But he could never leave her without protection, and Felix's ramblings were only slowing him down.

Dawson's ears perked and his eyes widened once he got to the house. He leapt over a motion sensor and moved swiftly to the safety of bushes closer to the house making him near impossible to see. He noticed Ava at the door, but he knew he had to pay attention to the entire house, although he was surprised to see Carly there. Wasn't she supposed to be at the front desk of the Council's Chambers? Dawson shook his head. No time to dwell on a subordinate's career. While Carly was busy with Ava, Dawson worked up his own strategic plan to get inside the house. He was supremely pissed off at the woman and he would tell her as much, only after they made it out alive. As the women talked, Dawson moved, managing to sneak around the other side of the house. His plan was to go in through the back door—to attack from all sides.

Dawson heard Ava growl at the woman, her anger building. A spy. Carly, the blonde receptionist for the Council Chambers had been a spy. Dawson understood Ava's anger. He knew that Carly had access to all of the Council's information, save for the Councilmen's personal files, and even then he knew that she had ways of acquiring that paperwork easily. He'd seen Riley send her into his rooms for things unattended several times.

As Ava growled again, he listened and felt for her change into wolf form, but it didn't come.

“Now Ava,” Carly spoke as Dawson made it to the other door. His hand touched the cool metal of the doorknob and he moved to twist. It didn't budge. “I want to make it quite clear that we did not kidnap your son. He came with us willingly. How do you think Alexander was treating him?” Carly asked softly, using her manipulation skills to try and persuade Ava into thinking her son had been treated badly. Dawson almost let out a scoff, as if that simple fact would deter a mother in getting back her child.

“Give me back my son,” Ava growled out.

“Ah, ah, ah...” Carly wagged her finger at the woman. “I'm not sure I like that tone of voice. We never said you couldn't have your son. You went ahead and killed all of these innocent men without a thought. You could have just asked,” Carly told her in an overly sweet tone.

Killed? Ava almost looked over at the unconscious bodies surrounding her. Yes, she had incapacitated them, however, they were very much alive still. Choosing to ignore the comment,Ava set her jaw, cleared her throat and spoke clearly, if forcefully. “May I have my son?”

“Of course you can,” Carly grinned. “On one condition.”

“And what's that?” Ava asked forcing herself not to roll her eyes at the insolent woman before her.

“I know you've heard about this rumour that there's going to be a war. It's not just a rumour. And I've read your file, you've attacked and eaten humans before. We want you on our side. With that simple promise, I'll bring your son out—” Carly was cut off by the large growl Ava let out as she lunged at the woman.

Carly took a hasty step back, and Ava felt a jolt of electricity shoot through her body. She had time to register the stun gun in Carly's hand before she collapsed to the ground. Her muscles constricted for all of two seconds before Ava was up and growling at the woman again.

“I will never agree to eat humans,” Ava growled out, panting softly and slowly walking closer to Carly.

“Don't step any closer Ava, I don't have a problem shooting you for real.” She pulled out a shiny black gun from her waistband, pressing the safety off and aiming it squarely at Ava's head.

A slow smile formed on Ava's face, she looked away from the gun and chuckled before looking back at Carly and stepping closer. “I don't believe that your boss would give you permission to kill me. If he wants me, then I'm obviously a powerful asset.” Ava stepped closer and Carly raised her eyebrow, moving her finger off of the side of the gun to hover over the trigger.

“Oh yeah?” Carly asked, “try me.”

Ava let out a chuckle. “Oh, I'm trying,” stepping closer and closer until the gun touched her chest.

“Let me make something perfectly clear to you,” Carly spoke up. “I will not give you your son until you agree to join us. I will not. There is backup coming. Do you want to be in a war Ava? You against everyone else? Do you want to leave your son parent-less?” she asked.

“Let me make something perfectly clear,” Ava stated, pulling the gun from Carly's hands. “I didn't ask for my son. I'm telling you to give him to me.” She emptied the bullet chamber and dropped the gun to the ground. Just as the gun hit the ground, the door in front of her burst open, as men in armoured suits with large guns barrelled through, holding Dawson at gunpoint.

Ava blinked at Dawson, “what are you doing?”

***

As Riley stared at Dawson's tacker on the monitor, he still felt the overwhelming urge to protect Ava. He knew it was stupid because she alone was the most equipped wolf to handle multiple wolves at a time. And Dawson, his most powerful leader was with her—was emotionally attached to her. If anything, Riley knew that Dawson wouldn't let anything happen to her. But still, his heartbeat sped up as images finally flickered onto the screen. He saw Ava step through a door; wolves broken and bloody behind her. But even the image of broken bodies didn't affect Riley. He was relieved that she was still whole and alive.

Felix switched the screen to inside the house. “They're monitoring. Whoever set this up is monitoring the situation. They want to see what's going on as much as we do.”

“Do they have audio?” Riley questioned.

“Yeah, give me a second...” several clicks later and voices filled the room.

“Let me make something perfectly clear. I didn't ask for my son. I'm telling you to give him to me.” The clatter of bullets falling to the ground was heard followed by the clunk of the gun that had been in Ava's hands. A door in front of Ava burst open. It was like a SWAT team was pouring in until Dawson was pulled through the door at gunpoint.

“What are you doing?” Ava asked.

Riley watched as Dawson shrugged, threw his elbow back catching his restrainer in the nose, efficiently breaking it. He spun, kicking the gun out of his hand and moved onto the next heavily armoured man. Riley watched as Carly, his own receptionist, slipped out of the house. The situation had gotten out of hand and she was escaping. Then he watched as Ava's ears perked up in the direction Carly was leaving, but she moved passed all the armed bodies and quickly to a door that Riley hadn't noticed before. She ripped the door off its hinges and stepped through quickly.

“There are no cameras in that room. Sorry.” Felix clicked away at his keyboard, attempting to find a different camera with an angle into the room. But there was no need as a man came flying out of the room, slammed into a wall. Ava stalked out after him, Nolan clinging to her leg and she growled. It was a large, ferocious, “mama bear” type growl and Dawson stopped his actions along with the armoured soldiers to stare at her.

“I will rip every one of you to shreds if you touch him,” she was referring to Nolan who was peaking out around her leg, her hand placed protectively on his head. “We're all leaving. And you're going to let us go.”

Riley watched, intrigued while the soldiers all turned to her, guns up, ready to shoot, and her body slowly transformed. He'd never seen it in another wolf before. He wasn't even entirely sure that the rest of the Council knew he was capable of partially transforming like Ava was in that instant. The nails in her hands grew, her teeth elongated themselves. “Don't aim that at my son.” There was the click of a safety, Ava's hand shot out and shoved her son behind her. It looked like a light tap, but he was shot back into the room behind him. Riley watched as the bullet shot into her and she was thrown back, onto the ground, blood pouring out of her.

Dawson let out a growl as he transformed, unable to keep his wolf contained. He started ripping at the soldiers surrounding him, tossing them aside after he ripped through their protective neck gear and into their jugular.

Riley was gripping his seat. “Do we have people heading to the location?!” he yelled at Felix.

“Yes!” Felix jumped at the severity in his friend's voice. “Yes....they're ten minutes away.”

Riley growled, “make it one.”

He watched suddenly as Ava stood up and he watched the same transformation take over her body that he had seen several times before. She didn't waste time turning into the black beauty that she had become. And she ripped soldiers apart two at a time leaving pieces of them in her wake. In less than two minutes, right when a team of the Council's best fighters showed up, Ava sat in a pool of blood, surrounded by bits and pieces of werewolves.

Riley heard Felix swallow a lump in his throat. “They know,” he told Riley. “They know how dangerous she is now. I couldn't get them offline in time. I'm sorry.”