Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted novel Chapter 79

<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

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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.

A deafening snarl rips from his throat and I dash to the side, my heart pounding in frantic rhythm. The rush of blood overcomes all sound in the area, a static.

thudding in my ears.

-His jaws snap shut inches from my face. Nausea churns in my belly, courtesy of his rancid breath.

I lash out with the knife again, the blade slicing through fur and flesh. A guttural yelp tears from his throat, but his momentum carries him forward,

ramming into me with all the force of a large adult wolf and an entire lifetime of anger issues.

Air whooshes from my lungs as I hit the ground, the

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79 Ava: Fighting Back

knife clattering from my grasp. Stars explode across my vision before it fades, just for a moment.

It all comes back in a rush. I’m pinned beneath Todd’s paws, pressing down on my shoulders with crushing force. His hot breath washes over me in waves of

putrid stench, his muzzle inches from my face.

I thrash and writhe, but his claws are like miniature daggers digging into my skin, immovable and

unyielding.

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

I don’t hit my mark, but it startles him.

He rears back with a snort, giving me a moment of opportunity.

I roll to the side, scrambling for the knife as he lunges

at me again.

Leaves and dirt 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 floor, a sickly metallic tang that pushes me to move faster.

79 Ava: Fighting Back