Tangled

<79 Ava: Fighting Back

79 Ava: Fighting Back

Todd’s wolf form prowls closer, his hackles bristling with menace. His eyes burn with a feral hunger that sends tremors through me. Anticipation hums in the

air between us.

The tree trunk is rough against my back as I use it for support, forcing my body to its feet. The cool weight of the pocketknife in my hand keeps me centered.

I will not cower.

The mysterious energy from before, that primal force filling my veins, is gone. It’s a fleeting whisper of the past, eluding my grasp no matter how desperately I

search for it.

All I have is my training and the small knife I’d stolen from home.

I flip open the blade with a flick of my thumb, the soft click lost amidst the snarls and growls of the ongoing battle around us. At least, I hope it’s lost. I know wolf hearing is keen, but I don’t know its limitations.

Todd’s lips peel back in a vicious snarl, revealing

13:10

1/7

79 Ava: Fighting Back

yellowed canines. It figures that even his wolf’s teeth

would need some work. His breath had always smelled

like those tuna sandwiches he eats.

He lunges, a blur of ruddy fur and gnashing jaws.

Instinct has me diving to the side, scrabbling for purchase on the uneven ground. He whirls to face me as I roll to my knees, gripping the knife tightly as I swipe at his muzzle. The blade catches a superficial level of skin and fur, drawing a thin line of crimson that only seems to enrage him further.

rips from his throat and I dash to the side, my heart pounding in frantic

my

face. Nausea churns in

fur and flesh.

large adult wolf and an

my lungs as

13:10

2/7

Fighting

my grasp. Stars explode across my vision before it fades,

down on

muzzle inches from my face.

writhe, but his claws are like miniature

unyielding.

of adrenaline–fueled strength, I manage to free one arm and lash out blindly, my nails raking across his muzzle and smacking against

my mark,

rears back with a snort, giving me a moment

to the side, scrambling for the knife

the FindNʘᴠᴇl.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in

get in my way as my fingers scrabble for the knife, its silver blade glinting in the moonlight. I’m bleeding. The scent of my blood mingles with the earthy aroma of the forest

Ava: Fighting Back

Faster, damn it.

lying just moments before. His jaws snap shut

the knife with a white–knuckled grip, I lash out wildly, the blade slicing a shallow gash across his ear, his neck. A guttural yelp rips from his throat as he snaps at my

no escape route. No other weapons. The other wolves are still involved in their own struggles several feet away. How many have set upon us? Too many to count. Did the entire

I can’t worry about

deal

train. I stumble, gasping for air as his claws rake across my abdomen, tearing

Agony.

1417

Fighting Back

hand. I hit something, because blood coats my hilt and my grip slips time and time again.

me to the ground with a wide movement of his head and upper body somehow and I backpedal,

startled scream,

dodge. I

him. My fingers scrabble against the knife as I yank it out and stab again and again, even as he snaps and bites at my face, my shoulders, in between shrieks.

A strangled whine escapes his muzzle before he finally goes limp,

no longer suffocated by his rancid breath.