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.

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

closer than before. My heart stutters, but

13:00 –

418

Ava: An Old

beside me. Wolves willing to risk their lives by entering enemy territory

trees falls away, revealing the city of

foot.

laugh escapes me as I pour on even more speed, reveling in

So damn

chilling resonance that raises the hairs on the back of my neck. The wolves are gaining, closing the distance with every second. I can

tell by how Lucas and Vester crowd

surge, a tidal wave of energy that propels me forward with impossible velocity. The city is closer with every

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

fingernails gorahhling against the

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An Old Enemy

to stop my momentum.

and growls, of vicious, inhuman noises torn from the vocal chords of

around me. Twigs and leaves cling to my hair, my palms stinging from the impact. I blink tears from my eyes, struggling to make

and eerie shrieks of pain interspersed between the rumbles. Fur and fangs clash in a frenzied melee, a tangle of snarling beasts. Their forms

from vulnerable 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 scent of earth and rage hangs thick

blood.

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

Ag

Ava An

battle rages on.

I have something far worse to

backward, my hands clawing at the earth as a familiar wolf emerges from the shadows, its golden eyes locked on me with an intensity

predator sizing up

leaving me feeling weak and sluggish in its wake. The euphoria of my newfound

someone who can’t shift. I’ve seen him -hundreds of times through the years. I’d never

with a menacing silence that’s somehow more terrifying than any snarl or growl. The air around him is filled with the

promise of

present.

13.00

<

An

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

could envision the arrogant smirk that would be curving his lips right now, the wild look in his eyes that mirrors that of his wolf so accurately.