Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me."

My food goes from delectable to soggy cardboard as my heart drops.

This isn't good. Book, what's happening?

Something's triggered the wards. Every single one. But it's strange; I can't sense anything.

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My chair scrapes against the floor as I bolt up. The wards alarm through my head, discordant and jarring enough to nauseate me. My breakfast sits abandoned as my feet carry me through the door; Elverly shouts something, but my senses are too busy with the racket in my head.

"Luna?" Brett asks, but I'm already running.

They all follow without another word, but my mind's tuned inward, my magic reaching out to the bright beacons of my wards. It isn't like a net that encompasses everything in the area, but direct lines; I wish I had the ability to sense everything like a net right now, though.

That's the thing about power. It's never enough.

"I can't feel what triggered them. Every ward at every site is going off. That can't be possible."

Neither can I, he replies. The magic feels strange. But going to investigate will be dangerous.

Whatever this is—it's clearly part of someone's plan.

"Not investigating isn't really an option, though." We have to know what's happening out there.

Snow whips past my face as I sprint toward my cabin. The familiar path stretches endless before me, my lungs burning with each frozen breath. My guards' footsteps thunder behind me, but I don't slow down.

Selene, I need Vester, Marcus, Greg, and Kellan at my cabin now.

On it. Vester left with Lucas last night, though.

Damn it.

I burst through my cabin door, yanking off my coat as I head straight for my closet. My fingers fumble with the clasps of my tactical gear—the reinforced vest first, then the knife sheaths.

The wards continue their silent screaming in my head, but my magic keeps coming up empty.

There's nothing anywhere that I can sense. It doesn't mean nothing's there; it just means it's beyond my ability to sense it.

"Grim, can you figure anything out yet?"

Nothing concrete. It's like fog.

"Is it the taint?"

No. At least, not that I can tell.

That's what I thought, too.

The door flies open as I strap on my last knife. Kellan stands in the doorway, chest heaving.

"What's happening?" He pushes the door closed, his eyes sharp despite his breathlessness. He's on full alert, already dressed for battle.

"The wards." I check my boot knife. "All of them triggered at once. But we can't find what set them off."

"First things first. You're not going out there." Kellan's grim words halt my movements for only half a second.

"Like hell I'm not." I check my last knife strap. "These are my wards. You won't know what to look for."

"Which is exactly why you need to stay put." He steps forward, radiating all the intimidating aura of an alpha. It isn't as strong as Lucas, or even Selene. But it's enough for me to know he's serious. "Think about it, Ava. Every single ward going off at once? This reeks of a trap."

My fingers pause on the buckle. "Or a large-scale ambush."

"Think about it, Ava. Would they spread their forces that thin? Someone's trying to entice you out of your safety net. I'll send out emergency scouting parties instead."

The logic hits hard, but my instincts scream to protect what's mine. "The pack—"

"Needs their Luna alive and safe." Kellan's eyes soften. "We're trained for this. Let us do what we need to."

But even if they're trained, I already know a harsh truth I don't want to face. If there's something out there, we're going to lose wolves.

I don't want lives on my hands anymore. Never again.

I swallow back frustration. "How far out is Lucas?"

Kellan's jaw tightens. "They wolfed it to cover more ground. They're... farther than I'd like."

A cold knot forms in my stomach. For something like this to happen when he's not in territory… "Can you reach him?"

"No. That's how I know they're out of range."

I can't reach Aurum either, Selene adds, her mental voice tight with worry.

The knot in my stomach turns to ice. "Kellan, check if Vanessa can contact Vester."

He closes his eyes, his face slack as he reaches through the pack bonds for the healer. After a tense moment, his expression darkens. "She can't."

"Try the watch." My voice sounds hollow to my own ears. "Maybe you can reach Lucas that way."

"Already tried before I got here." Kellan shakes his head. "No response."

Fuck.

The door bursts open again. Marcus and Greg fill the doorway, both of them armed to the teeth.

"You're not going anywhere," Marcus announces the moment he crosses the threshold and spots my gear.

Greg nods. "It's safer in camp."

"Kellan already read me the riot act." I tap my tactical vest. "But I'm not taking this off."

"Good." Marcus moves to Kellan's side, both of them pulling out their watches. "No luck on my end either, boss."

"Same. What about you, Greg?" Kellan's voice is tight.

Greg shakes his head. "Nothing."

My fingers drum against my arm as I reach out to my wards again. The racket in my head hasn't ceased—if anything, it's grown stronger. Whatever's out there is still fucking with the wards.

Grim, if I feed you power, can you do a more thorough scan of the wards?

I don't think the scan is the problem.

Kellan's soft muttering with Marcus—they're planning scouting parties and putting out alerts to keep Wolf's Landing on defense—suddenly stops, jerking my attention his way.

His face goes slack, eyes unfocused—the telltale sign of pack communication.

"Stay put." His words are aimed at me as he snaps back to attention. "Don't move from this cabin."

Greg exchanges a look with Marcus, then nods, before darting out the door.

"What's happening?" My heart pounds against my ribs. The air's gotten heavier, their faces colder.

Marcus shakes his head. "There's an incident at the hospital. We'll get it under control."

"What incident?" My voice sharpens immediately. "What's going on, Kellan?"