Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted (Ava and Lucas)

Chapter 28 Ava: Omega? (I)

I'm walking to the bus stop after my evening class, my mind still focused on the lecture. The streetlights flicker overhead, casting long shadows that seem to shift and dance in the corners of my vision. An uneasy feeling prickles at the back of my neck, but I push it aside, chalking it up to my overactive imagination.

Then, without warning, a searing pain explodes at the base of my skull. A strangled yell tears from my throat as my knees buckle, and I crumple to the pavement. Spots dance before my eyes, and for a disorienting moment, the world tilts on its axis.

Ava! Ava, listen to me! Selene's frantic voice cuts through the haze of agony. Get up! You have to run!

A rough hand grips my arm, hauling me upright with a savage jerk. The potent scent of shifter slams into me—musky, feral, and utterly alien. My heart stutters in my chest as a car screeches to a halt beside us.

Fight, Ava! Fight! Selene's command echoes through my mind, her urgency lending me a burst of adrenaline-fueled strength.

I thrash against my assailant's hold, kicking and clawing with everything I have. A guttural snarl rumbles in my ear as he wrestles me toward the waiting vehicle. My nails find purchase, scoring deep gouges along his cheek, but he doesn't relent.

The backseat door flies open, and I'm shoved inside with brutal force. My head cracks against the opposite window, and stars explode across my vision. Rough hands pin me down, the weight of a body trapping me against the cracked leather seats.

"Get off me!" I scream, bucking wildly. "Let me go!"

Hot, rancid breath washes over my face as my assailant leans in close, his features twisted into a savage leer. "Calm down, little wolf," he growls, his voice a deep, grating rasp. "You'll be fine. We'll be mating you soon."

as he buries his face in the crook of my neck, inhaling deeply. Revulsion churns in my gut, and I

my skin. "A rogue wolf, free for the taking. What are you doing, walking alone at night?

says, and

my assailant, my heart thundering in my ears. Every ounce of my training screams at me to fight, to claw and bite and scratch until I'm free,

my

over the roaring panic in my

to the rearview mirror. "Can you smell that? She's about to go into heat." He drags in a deep breath, his nostrils flaring. "Goddamn, that scent is driving me crazy. I fucking knew she wasn't human.

make sense. Female shifters don't go into heat

away, I'm learning that my pack education might not be that great, honestly. In White Peak, it was rare to see a shifter among humans. Here—well, Cedarwood didn't have many before, but lately they're everywhere, and they fit

vomit is strong, and I jerk my head away, only for his teeth to bite into me in punishment. Stupid shifters. They have to be rogues; they smell wrong.

a civilized shifter, either. I cringe as unwanted memories crowd my brain; I don't want to go through that again.

plan, my mind racing even as the brute on top of me nuzzles the crook of my neck with disturbing tenderness.

to wait for an opportunity, to bide my time until they make a mistake. I force my body to go limp, feigning defeat as a whimper escapes my lips. The man

rumbles, his hot breath fanning over my skin. "Just relax and let it happen. You'll enjoy

Please. They're not

wolves get a little

blank even as his calloused hands roam over my body in a mockery of a lover's caress. Rage simmers beneath my skin, scorching