Tangled

80 Ava: Moonlight and Peace

The stench of blood and death clings to my skin, my clothes, invading my senses with its coppery tang.

Yet the moon spreads its light over my face, blessing me with its ethereal glow. It’s surreal, an entire world away from the violence.

I laugh as my mind wanders into memories of science class. Of planets and space.

The moon truly is an entire world away. Thirty whole worlds, in fact, would fit between here and the bright satellite that decorates our night.

Thanks, Mr. Finnegan. I always did like science.

The dead weight pinning me to the ground and obstructing a lungful of air is yanked off me, just as strong arms encircle me, pulling me upright. Lucas. His human face swims into view, those striking golden

eyes

filled with concern as he looks me over. I can see his lips moving, but his words are muffled, as if

reaching me through a thick fog.

It’s not until his calloused palm cups my cheek that the

13 11

80 Ava Moonlight and Peace

numbness shatters. A strangled cry escapes my lips as agony lances through my abdomen. All my wounds come to life in an instant, informing me of their

presence.

“Ava? Ava, can you hear me?” Lucas’s voice breaks. through the screams of my injuries, his tone laced with

urgency.

Answering is impossible, so I give a weak nod, my gaze flickering to the gruesome scene behind him. Lifeless wolves litter the forest floor, their bodies twisted and mangled.

The price of freedom.

Even knowing that they wouldn’t reciprocate the sentiment, their lives weigh heavy on my soul.

“We need to move,” Lucas says, still supporting me. “Can you walk?”

The world spins with every movement I make, so I just blink at him. I can’t shake my head. If I do, it just might fall off.

Without another word, Lucas scoops me into his arms, cradling me against his bare chest as he rises to his

feet.

BD

Moonlight

croak. “Clothes.”

“No time.”

me holds

missing, and a pang of

Someone who was

abuse.

still

he have a

Family?

Friends?

pups who will wonder why Daddy’s not

and steady against my cheeks, burning and stinging

in

11:

Ava Moonlight and Peace

asked him a question. Pack links are so convenient, and yet I’ve never had access

one.

only person to enter my mind has been Selene, and for a brief moment,

after she appeared, I never had a link with my

dashes through the city naked, followed by wounded wolves. Seeing over his shoulder, I can see the bloody prints left

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

For me.

more than the wounds shrieking in -agony with every jarring step

approach a

shift as they come

swears in frustration as he digs through the backpack he’d carried from the ambush site, hunting for the keys. It takes a minute or two, as

clicks have

13.11

Moonlight and Peace

and Lucas sets me in the

on a pair of pants and hops into the seat beside me, apologizing as

fucking hell, but I

1. it.

be pathetic to whine

their own.

slides into the driver’s seat, fully dressed

shifters learn after a few

to life with all the

of a new

eyes as Lucas drives through the quiet streets. My head lolls against the seat, boneless now that I’m in a safe place. Beside me, one of the unfamiliar shifters rummages through a medical kit, retrieving supplies to tend to my wounds. The

a little fuzzy. I think I might be melting into a puddle of Ava goo, because nothing seems to

sting a little” the

Ava Moonlight and

gentle as he dabs at my face

force myself to remain still, not wanting to make his task any more difficult. Focusing on the astringent scent of alcohol keeps me centered and present, even as

out a low, rumbling growl. Vester growls in return.

eyes on the road, or pull over and let me drive,” he