Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted (Ava and Lucas)

Chapter 444: Ava: Something's Wrong with Lisa

Lisa's not in Wolf's Landing, but between her guards—and Selene—it isn't hard to find her. She's half a mile south, sitting on a rock as she stares blankly at the ground.

My heart twists at the vacant look in Lisa's eyes. She keeps rubbing at a spot on her thigh, as if it's bothering her. It's the only sign of life in her.

"Lisa?" I keep my voice soft, the way I used to speak to frightened animals at the shelter. "Can you hear me?"

Nothing. Not even a flicker of recognition.

She's been this way since we made her stop walking, Selene says. The guards thought she just needed air at first, but...

I glance at the two shifters standing a respectful distance away. They aren't watching Lisa, but keeping an eye on her surroundings. "How long has she been sitting here?"

"Twenty minutes," the one on the left says, still not glancing toward us. "She kept walking south. We had to physically block her path. We would have kept walking, but she wasn't dressed appropriately."

She's dressed in a warm coat, like we all are, but she's wearing sneakers instead of boots. Her toes are probably soaked and frozen. No wonder her bodyguards thought something was wrong.

They rarely ask us where we're going; they just follow to keep us safe. I wonder how far she would have gotten if her boots were on.

Not far. I noticed something odd about her gait and followed. They did, too.

Selene's assurances make me feel a little better, but there's an ice-cold hand gripping my heart anyway.

My fingers brush Lisa's hand where it works against her thigh. The skin there must be raw by now, but she doesn't react to my touch. Her skin is too cold; she isn't wearing gloves, either.

"We need to get her warm." Kellan's voice is rough with concern as he reaches for her other hand.

Lisa jerks away from him, a full-body flinch that nearly sends her tumbling off the rock. But she still doesn't look up or speak.

he takes a step back. The chill coming from his body is

shift closer, blocking Kellan from her view. "Lisa, you're freezing. Will you come inside with

rubbing speeds up. Her

"Remember me? It's Ava."

I think I see something flicker in her expression. But it's gone before

going to touch your leg now, okay? Just

but she also doesn't pull away when I gently move her hand. The fabric of her pants is worn thin where she's been rubbing, but there's no blood or other signs of

is there

there's something wrong, but my wolf just says, I

voice soft. "Whatever you're

fingers twitch under

cold rock that's probably numbing your butt right now. And I'm not leaving until

keep my voice gentle, tugging her hand. Her fingers are like icicles against mine, but she rises without resistance, falling into step beside me as I urge her in

closer. Lisa's entire body coils tight, and she presses against my side; I flick my hand in his

him to stay away from his own mate, but what can I do? She's not in

Her breath catches,

I hiss at him, hoping he doesn't take my

that silent way alphas and betas do. Lucas nods once, and they both step away. Lisa's bodyguards follow behind in silence, making no attempt to

her other side, Selene says, padding over. She seems

trembling eases slightly as Selene's

Wolf's Landing. Lisa moves

low, though I doubt she's hearing anything right now. "This isn't normal. It must be PTSD. We should get

throat as I catch her, but before I can steady her, she snaps upright. Her head whips around, eyes wide

in our surroundings. "Why are we out here in the middle of nowhere? Oh, hi,