Tangled

C

78 Ava: An Old Enemy

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. Sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ FindNøvᴇl.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

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

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78 Ava: An Old Enemy

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.

My lungs burn with the effort, but I don’t slow. Can’t slow. This is what it means to be truly alive, to embrace what dwells within me. To hell with being human; right now, I am so much more.

tightens with a sudden surge of emotion–hope, relief, gratitude. I’m going to make it. After everything, I’m finally going to escape this

howl shatters the night, closer than before. My heart stutters, but I don’t

13:00 –

418

Ava: An Old

risk their lives

last of the trees falls away, revealing the city of

foot.

pour on even more

So damn close.

chilling resonance that raises the hairs on the back of my neck. The wolves are gaining, closing the

tell by how Lucas and Vester crowd into me, teeth bared and

energy that propels me forward with impossible

that drives the air from my lungs and sends me tumbling across the uneven ground. I

fingernails gorahhling against the dirt

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An Old Enemy

fight to stop my momentum.

growls, of vicious, inhuman noises torn from the

a halt, I’m breathless and disoriented, the world spinning around me. Twigs and leaves cling to my hair, my

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

from vulnerable flesh, -saliva flying in glistening arcs. The ground trembles with the force of their collisions, each impact punctuated by deep, guttural growls

blood.

faces. But they are mere flashes, lost in an instant

Ag

An

rages

I have something far worse to

the earth as a familiar wolf emerges from the shadows, its golden eyes locked on me with an

predator sizing up its prey.

the power that had surged through my veins mere. moments ago has evaporated, leaving me feeling weak and sluggish in its wake. The euphoria of

average–sized wolf, but still menacing to someone who can’t shift. I’ve seen him -hundreds of times through the years. I’d never mistake him for

terrifying than any snarl or growl.

promise of

present.

13.00

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Ava: An Old Enemy

predatory gleam in his wolf–yellow eyes that seems to strip away every last shred of my

as he prowls ever closer. If he were human, I could envision the arrogant smirk that would be