Fractured


 Table of Contents
 
 
 
 Title Page Copyright Dedication -->
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter One
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Two
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Three
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Four
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Five
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Six
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Seven
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Eight
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Nine
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Ten
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Eleven
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Twelve
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Thirteen
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Fourteen
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Fifteen
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Sixteen
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Seventeen
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Eighteen
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Nineteen
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Twenty
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Twenty-One
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Twenty-Two
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Twenty-Three
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Twenty-Four
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Twenty-Five
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Twenty-Six
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Twenty-Seven
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Twenty-Eight
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Twenty-Nine
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Thirty
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Thirty-One
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Thirty-Two
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Thirty-Three
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chapter Thirty-Four
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Epilogue
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Thank You
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 CE Guard Copyright Copyright © 2022 CE Guard All rights reserved. This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means-electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise-without prior written permission of the author, except in cases of a reviewer quoting brief passages in a review. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. Edited by The Atwater Group Cover by Stone Ridge Books Logo by Stone Ridge Books Dedication T o Mom and Dad, You know how hard I've worked to get here, to publish my books and finally be able to say I'm an author. Without you and your everlasting support, I wouldn't have made it to this point. I will always be eternally grateful to have been born your daughter. Thank you for everything you've done to help me achieve my dreams. Love you! Chapter One Avery frowned down at the gouges her fingers had made in the grass. The shape was hauntingly familiar, burned into her very soul from the moment she laid her hands on The Book of Screams. The rune and scythe was the sign of the Reaper. She had asked Mira what the rune meant on their first night with Declan’s pack, and her aunt’s resulting shudder was forever stamped into her memory. Master of Death. Mira’s whispered words had sent chills down her spine, a cursed set of syllables that would haunt her nightmares. Blowing out a breath, Avery scrubbed her hand over the mark, doing her best to wipe it away. She certainly didn’t feel like the Master of Death, though something told her that the title was not meant for the banshees. If she was honest with herself, she didn’t even feel human anymore. Killing Helena and Liana had changed her, corrupted something deep inside. For days, a sense of wrongness had hung over her, suffocating her. She was a murderer now. She had taken not one but two lives, and there had to be repercussions to that. Her punishment was coming; she could feel it stalking her in the darkest parts of her mind. “Penny for your thoughts?” Hunter asked softly, sitting next to her and frowning down at the ruined grass. She sighed heavily and shook her head. “How was patrol?” He searched her face, a muscle jumping in his jaw as he clenched his teeth together. Frustration rolled off him and turned the air thick. There were so many emotions trapped in the chasm that had formed between them since leaving Echo Valley. It was her fault, she knew that, but she couldn’t bring herself to open up to him. If she cracked the surface of her pain,