Filed to story: Tangled in Moonlight Unshifted Novel by Lenaleia
“Not far,” Lucas grunts, his breath coming in harsh pants. “We need to hurry.”
Someone must have asked him a question. Pack links are so convenient, and yet I’ve never had access to one.
The only person to enter my mind has been Selene, and for a brief moment, Clayton’s wolf.
Even after she appeared, I never had a link with my pack.
Lucas dashes through the city naked, followed by wounded wolves. Seeing over his shoulder, I can see the bloody prints left by foot and paw.
They’re injured, and still running.
For me.
My heart aches more than the wounds shrieking in -agony with every jarring step Lucas takes.
He slows as we approach a white SUV, and the other wolves shift as they come to a standstill.
Vester 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 howls rend the air.
The telltale unlocking clicks have them all breathing in relief, and Lucas sets me in the back gently.
Vester throws on a pair of pants and hops into the seat beside me, apologizing as he shoves a shirt against my abdomen, soaking up the blood flowing freely.
It hurts like fucking hell, but I try not to whine about it.
It would be pathetic to whine when they lost one of their own.
Lucas slides into the driver’s seat, fully dressed within secondsa talent most shifters learn after a few naked shiftbacksand the SUV roars to life with all the energy of a new car.
The world blurs in front of my 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 other two ran to a different car, I think.
I can’t really remember anymore. Everything’s a little fuzzy. I think I might be melting into a puddle of Ava goo, because nothing seems to be working right now.
“This might sting a little” the unrecognizable voice
RO Ava Moonlight and Peace warns, his voice gentle as he dabs at my face with an antiseptic wipe.
I hiss, the sensation of sharp prickles and burns intensifying the throbbing ache of my cheeks. Despite the pain, I 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 my mind keeps trying to run away into a hazy white world devoid of sensation.
In the front seat, Lucas lets out a low, rumbling growl. Vester growls in return.
“Keep your eyes on the road, or pull over and let me drive,” he snaps. “You need to get those mating instincts under control.”
-My brows furrow in surprise at Vester’s blunt tone. I’ve never heard anyone speak to an alpha that way. Alpha Renard would have never allowed a subordinate such liberties.
As the nameless shifter continues cleaning my wounds, I study him through halflidded eyes. He moves with a practiced efficiency, his touch gentle yet firm, and I’m struck by the care he takes in tending to me despite our lack of familiarity.
Even in my looseygoosey mental state of the moment, I can appreciate that.
“Thank you,” I murmur, my voice hoarse and strained. Is it mine? It should be. I can feel it coming out of my throat.
He pauses, meeting my gaze with a small, reassuring smile. “You’re welcome. Just try to relax, okay? We’ll have you patched up in no time.”
I nod, but I can’t really feel the action. Maybe I don’t nod.
Exhaustion pulls and tugs at me, cajoling me into oblivion. The adrenaline that had fueled me during the confrontation in the woods faded long ago, leaving me drained and aching in its wake.
As the car continues its journey, I find myself drifting in and out of consciousness, my mind replaying the events of the night in a hazy loop. The sound of howls echoes in my ears, mingling with the metallic scent of blood that still clings to my skin.
Every so often, I startle into consciousness, striking out with my hands in panic. Vester sports a new bruise on his cheek from my overachievement in selfdefense, and the new shifter keeps one eye closed from the irritation in his eye when my nail scratched it.
I apologize both times, but Lucas tells me not to worry about it.
“It’s fine, Ava. Your body’s been under a lot of stress. It’ll take you some time to realize you’re safe,” Vester says with a smile.
Lucas growls again, and Vester snarls, “Fucking drive, Alpha!”
Consciousness is fleeting and unreliable. The gentle vibration of the car is a cadence that lulls me into a state of semiawareness, reality blurring with dreams. I alternate between understanding that I’m safe to fearing that Phoenix has me in his grasp. Sometimes, I can hear Alpha Renard’s cruel words. I even dream of
Sister Miriam.
Suddenly, a voice cuts through the haze, piercing my muddled thoughts with startling clarity. It’s a voice I recognize, though I can’t quite place it. My eyelids flutter open, and I find myself enveloped in a pair of strong arms, cradled against a broad chest.
It feels wrong.
So, not Lucas?
As my vision adjusts, I make out the rugged features of Kellan Ashbourne, Lucas’s beta. His eyes are fixed on me, a mixture of concern and relief etched onto his face.
“Ava,” he says, his voice gentle and soothing, like cool water after on a hot summer day. Ah, I’m poetic in my delirium.
“You’re safe now. We’re taking you to Westwood territory.”
I blink slowly, trying to make sense of his words. The events of the night are a jumbled mess in my mind. “Where are we?”
“In a small city. We’re still on Blackwood territory, and you aren’t safe here. Just bear with me for a moment, okay? You’re badly injured, did you know that?”
I nod. Yes, I hurt. It hurts everywhere. Who wouldn’t know when their body hurts? Oh. Maybe paraplegics.
“Yes. I can move my body,” I say, even as I lay like a limp fish in his arms.
I can, though… I think.
Shit, everything’s hard to keep straight in my mind. I wish Selene was here.
Or Lucas.
Where’s Lucas?
Wasn’t he here?
Kellan seems to sense my confusion. “Alpha is leading the mission, but he’ll be back soon. For now, we need to get you to safety.”
I nod again. This time, I can feel the movement. I must not have nodded before, when I thought I did.
My pain is a little more intense, too.
Kellan shifts my weight carefully, and I realize we’re no longer in the SUV from before. This vehicle is different, its interior stripped down to bare essentials. There are no chairs in the back.
How odd.
Kellan lowers me onto a makeshift bed of blankets where the backseat should be, his movements gentle yet purposeful. I wince as the motion aggravates my injuries.
It really fucking hurts.
I’m definitely not paraplegic.
“Try to rest,” he murmurs, his hand lingering on my arm for a moment. “You’ve been through a lot, but you’re going to be okay.”
I want to ask questions, to understand what’s happening, but the words refuse to form on my lips.
:
Instead, I nod again, my eyelids growing heavy with exhaustion.
Someone climbs in beside me.
“Hello, Luna. My name is Vanessa, and I’m a pack healer. I’m about to administer some medicine to help with your pain and give you a little rest. Can you understand me?”
“Rest,” I murmur, the word appealing to me.
“Yes, some rest. I have to stabilize your injuries. You’ve lost a lot of blood.” There’s a lot of movement around my arm, and something cold. Then a bunch of poking and prodding. “Big pinch,” she warns, and I yelp at the sting that comes just as she warns me.