Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted (Ava and Lucas)

Chapter 369 Ava: Camp

We're about to call it quits and find a spot to camp when something pings the edge of my magical radar.

Of course, I want to go straight there and purify it. But we still have to put up the tent, start a fire, and make dinner, and it's over a mile away.

It's one thing to make myself suffer; it's another to force the others to set up camp in the dark because I want to push our timeline.

The sled slows to a gradual stop, runners creaking against packed snow. That pulse of dark energy beckons, but the practical part of my brain overrides it. Night comes early, and I can always get to it in the morning.

Wiggling out from under the mass of blankets keeping me warm during our run—which has spanned a much larger area than we normally would, with how little corruption we've run into—I grab the flat pack I'd been sitting on for hours.

Vanessa's already unhooked the wolves from the sled, and they shift right there in the snow.

The pack had been wedged beneath me during the ride, keeping their spare clothes from freezing solid. A simple solution, but effective. My body heat combined with the magic flowing through me meant the clothes would be wearable, if not exactly toasty.

"The taint feels different." I stretch my legs, stiff from hours of sitting. "More concentrated."

"All the more reason to rest and prepare properly." Vanessa throws sets of thermal gear at the naked shifters, who get dressed with a speed I cannot replicate. "We don't need you collapsing from exhaustion again."

"I didn't do anything today," I protest. Which is true. Aside from clearing up a few mini clouds we've run into, I've just enjoyed a long-ass ride behind four wolves who've broken trail all day.

They're the ones she should worry about.

But they just shimmy into their clothes, acting as if they've done little more than go for a brisk evening jog.

white in the gathering dusk. No one complains about the cold—we're all too focused on getting camp set up before

laying two tarps across the packed snow. Their efficiency speaks of years of experience; I'm still working on

together to unload, but I'm more of a hindrance than

a

in minutes, poles snapping into place with satisfying clicks. With all of them working

help with the wood stove, fitting the pieces together while Marcus tosses sleeping bags onto the ground behind

tent feels empty, and the break from the

Marcus peers out the tent flap. "Speaking of which—can you sense prey with your magic? Might make

nothing like that." I secure the last piece of the stove. "My magic's not that sensitive. I can sense corruption and dark energy, and sometimes people—especially if I'm attuned to them—but

possible, Grimoire's voice echoes in my mind. But you're nowhere

mental check reveals Selene's absence. Where are

Hunting, comes her reply.

the fire. He deposits them near the stove and disappears back into the growing darkness without a

we'll be warm soon." I arrange the kindling in

in, dropping off a few canvas bags. "The water's frozen,

compliment, but I preen. The first time I had to figure out how to put one of these small metal stoves together, I had no idea what I was doing. The idea of having a fire inside

lighter from his pocket and gets the fire started with practiced ease; even though I can do it with magic, he prefers the old-fashioned way.

of food. She sets up the table with

we waiting to see if they catch anything?" My curiosity takes over as I watch

won't eat until

the stove pops and crackles. A pot of snow sits on top, already beginning to melt. The temperature in the tent rises steadily, enough that I can

me a cutting board, knife, and a bag