Author's Note: I know everyone hated the last cliff-hanger. Sorry!

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I jumped up off of the ground and ran toward her. I called out her name, but my voice seemed so far away. The air was knocked out of me when I felt something hard wrap around my waist. I looked down to see Jared had his arm around my stomach, and his other arm was around my throat. Ava's body lied crumpled on the ground, and I couldn't see her move.

"Get off me!" I screamed at Jared as I tried to pry him off of me.

I kicked out behind me and hit Jared's shin. He loosened his grip on me for a second, and I took this opportunity to escape from his grasp.

I ran over to Ava, and got down onto my knees beside her. She was curled up on her one her side. I rolled her onto her back. Ava's blue eyes were barely open. I cupped her face in my hands. She let out a faint moan, and she closed her eyes. Crimson was splattered against her pale skin. I looked down to see that my hands were covered in blood. It must have come from me rolling her over.

"Ava," I said, and I could hear my voice crack. "Ava, please don't fall asleep. Open your eyes."

She managed to open her eyes a sliver before they shut again. She parted her lips to say something, but she was silent.

"Hunter, get up," Dad said.

I took a quick glance over my shoulder to see Dad was leaning up against the car. Jared had his arms crossed over his chest and was watching Ava and I.

"She's dead," Dad said. "Leave her."

"She's not dead," I said. I could feel my eyes and nose burn with tears. "She's alive."

"She'll be dead soon," he said. "If she does not bleed out in a few minutes the wolves will finish her off."

"We're not leaving her here!"

"Are you crying?"

I let go of one side of her face, and wiped my cheeks with the back of my hand. I lowered my head down to her chest. I could hear her shallow breaths.

Jared grabbed the back of my shirt and hauled me up onto my feet. He dragged me back. I dug my heels into the wet grass, and tried pulling him off of me. He turned me around, and pushed me over to the car. Dad was sitting in the driver's seat, and the passenger side door was wide open.

"No!" I shouted. "I'm not going back. Leave me here with her."

Jared didn't say anything as he pushed me back into the passenger seat. He kept his hand on my shoulder. Dad had one hand on the steering wheel, and the other hand had the gun in it.

"I'm not going back to that house," I told him.

"It was for the best," Dad said. "She was a danger to the family."

"She was scared."

"I'm going to find you somebody better. You should be happy."

"I want Ava." My vision became blurry from all of the tears. I blinked and felt them roll down my cheeks. "I love her."

Dad rolled his eyes. Jared let go of my shoulder, and slammed the car door shut. He walked over to the truck. I opened up the door, and I felt Dad press the gun against my temple. I took in a sharp breath.

"Get out of this car and I will kill you," he said. "You're getting out of control. I'm trying to do my best to teach you, but you refuse to learn. I got out of jail, and all I wanted was my family back. You're making this difficult."

I took in a sharp breath, and I looked over at Ava. I could barely see her in the dark, and amongst the tall grass. She could have stopped breathing, and I would not know. She wouldn't want me to go back to that house, but she didn't want me to die. All she ever wanted was for me to stay sane and to get out of the house.

"Can I check on her?" I asked.

"Why?" Dad asked.

"If she is dead we should bury her, shouldn't we?"

Dad let out a deep breath. The lights on the truck lit up, and Jared drove back out onto the dirt road.

"Close the door, Hunter," Dad told me.

I let out a shaky breath, squeezed my eyes closed, and slammed the car door shut. I stayed glued to the window as Dad drove by Ava. She looked the same as I left her, and I didn't know if she was still alive.

Dad didn't say anything to me on the drive back to the house. He stay silent, and I tried my best to weep in silence. It didn't work well as I'd gasp for breath or let out a cry. I looked down at my knees, and didn't look up until Dad had turned the car off.

Jared was climbing up the stairs to the porch and was heading around to the back. Dad groaned in pain as he got out of the car. I followed him as he dragged his injured foot up the stairs and around the porch.

Mom and Leah were sitting at the kitchen table when they came in. They each a mug of tea in front of them and their pajamas on. Jared closed the door behind me and locked it. Leah's eyes grew wide, and she placed a hand on her stomach.

"Where's Ava?" she asked.

A question. I was surprised she dared to ask. She was close with Ava, so she must not have been able to help herself.

"She had to die," Dad said. "We're keeping this family safe."

Mom stood up from the table shaking her head. Her dark hair was tied back in a braid, and she had a bathrobe tied around her.

"No, Jimmy," she said. "Please tell me you didn't. She was such a young girl."

Dad hobbled over to her. He grabbed her wrist and yanked her closer to him.

"I am taking care of this family," he said.

"You said that you'd change. You said that it wouldn't be the same-"

Mom's words were cut off when Dad slapped her across the face. Mom yelped and held her cheek with her hand. Dad grabbed her shoulders and dug his fingers into her.

"Julie, you need to trust me," he said. "Understand?"

"You killed Hunter's girl how-," she said, but then was cut off by another slap.

Dad groaned in pain as he sat down in one of the kitchen chairs. He winced as he pulled his leg up so that he could rest his foot on another chair.

"I don't want to hear it," he said. "Go down into the basement and see if there's crutches anywhere. When you come back, I need help with my foot."

Mom dropped her hand from her face, and I could see the redness blooming on her skin. She nodded her head and went to the basement. Jared sat down beside Leah, and put his hand on her stomach. He ran his hand over her belly. She was staring out into space, and bit down on her lip. Her eyes were glistening with tears, and she was taking in deep breaths to stop herself from erupting in tears,

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Okay," she said quietly.

He took his hand off of her stomach, and ran it through her hair.

"We should get you to bed," he said.

She nodded her head, and he helped her stand up. He kept his arm snaked around her as they walked up to their room. Dad gritted his teeth as he tried to pull his shoe off of his foot. Mom came back into the kitchen with a pair of old wooden crutches. She rested them against the counter, and she went to the bathroom. Jared came back down the stairs alone.

"I'm going to go to bed," I said.

"Don't worry about it, Hunter," Dad said. "I'll go out soon and get you a new girl. She'll be better and you'll see why I had to do this."

I walked past him, and for the stairs. I saw Mom with her arms full of supplies from the bathroom. I hurried up the stairs and right into my room.

I flopped down onto the bed. Ava's scent filled my nose, and it caused my stomach to twist.

How could it be only a couple hours ago that we were tangled together under the sheets?

I rolled over onto the side of the bed that she always slept on. Her scent surrounded me. I pulled the blankets up around me, and I felt like I could still feel her warmth. Now she was lying cold in the grass.

I pulled the blankets up over my head and cried for the rest of the night.