Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted (Ava and Lucas)

Chapter 78 Ava: An Old Enemy

The terror that had gripped me so tightly finally begins to loosen its hold, washed away by the exhilarating rush of my feet pounding against the ground, the world flying past in my periphery.

It's a simple rhythm.

One foot in front of the other.

Vault over an obstacle. Veer to avoid a tree.

The wind against my skin is harsh, like a thousand icy whips snapping against my cheeks. But the pain is almost euphoric.

My feet pound against the forest floor, each step fueling the fire of freedom burning within me.

It's a feeling unlike anything I've ever experienced—raw power, an almost frenetic energy, thrumming through my body with an intensity that steals my breath away. The trees zoom past in blurs of shadow.

I can hear the wolves keeping pace beside me, their breaths ragged growls that harmonize with the frantic beat of my heart. My unnatural speed helps me keep pace. I'm not faster than they are, but I'm far faster than their human forms.

They probably have questions.

I don't know how to answer them.

But, that's for another time. Right now, we need this.

There's no fear now, no uncertainty. Only an overwhelming sense of freedom so pure and intoxicating that I want to lose myself in it forever. I am unleashed, unchained—a force of nature given form.

be truly alive, to embrace what dwells within me. To hell with

thin, and through the gaps I can see the faint glow of distant lights. Civilization. Safety. My throat tightens with a sudden surge of emotion—hope, relief,

shatters the night, closer than before. My heart stutters, but I

Wolves willing to risk their lives by entering enemy

of White Peak.

I pour on

so close. So

the back of my neck. The wolves are gaining, closing

found us. I can tell by how Lucas and Vester crowd into me, teeth bared and hackles

power within me surge, a tidal wave of energy that propels me forward with impossible

a massive force that drives the air from my lungs and sends me tumbling across the uneven ground. I scramble for purchase,

world explodes into snarls and growls, of vicious, inhuman noises torn from the vocal

halt, I'm breathless and disoriented, the world spinning around me. Twigs and leaves cling to my hair, my palms stinging from the impact.

interspersed between the rumbles. Fur and fangs clash in a frenzied melee, a tangle of snarling beasts. Their forms are indistinguishable from one

flesh, saliva flying in glistening arcs. The ground trembles with the force of their collisions, each impact punctuated by deep, guttural growls that reverberate through my bones. The

I catch fleeting glimpses of familiar wolf faces. But they are mere flashes, lost in an

something

wolf emerges from the shadows, its golden eyes locked on me with an intensity that

through my veins mere moments ago has evaporated, leaving me feeling weak and sluggish in its wake. The euphoria of my newfound freedom has been

to someone who can't shift. I've seen him

terrifying than any snarl or growl. The air around him is filled with the energy of barely

last shred of my humanity, reducing me to nothing more than a trembling rabbit

the arrogant smirk that would be curving his lips right now, the wild look in