Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted novel Chapter 353

LUCAS

Five wolf bodies lie on the ground, their blood settled into pools of blood beneath them, frozen now in the snow.

My beta approaches, his face grim. He kneels beside one of the corpses, examining it with a critical eye. "You said they weren’t in their right minds?"

I’ve seen my share of battles, but this was different. The rogues attacked with a ferocity that bordered on madness. "It wasn’t natural. Almost rabid. We didn’t have a chance to communicate."

I stand over the largest of the bodies, frowning. It wasn’t as though we hadn’t tried to bring them in alive. They just had no interest in negotiating. There isn’t much we can do at that point.

Kellan’s voice breaks through my thoughts. "They’re only five miles from the compound."

"They were heading south," I say, watching as Kellan’s shoulders visibly relax. "Not toward the pack."

It’s a small comfort, but I’ll take what I can get. Still, the proximity is unsettling. These rogues could have easily changed course, stumbled upon our territory. They’re too close. We need to tighten our security, make sure we don’t let it happen again.

I crouch down beside one of the bodies, studying it closely. "Maybe we should examine them further. There might be clues—"

Kellan shakes his head, cutting me off. "We don’t have the facilities for that, Lucas. Autopsying random wolves would be a waste of resources we can’t afford right now. What building are we going to take over? We can’t bring dead bodies into the hospital. We don’t have the room there, either."

With winter in full swing and refugees to care for, we can’t spare the time or manpower for an extensive investigation over a few violent wolves. Still, the nagging feeling that we’re missing something crucial gnaws at me.

"What if they were just traumatized?" Kellan suggests after a moment. "Starving, maybe. Could have gone feral."

It’s a reasonable theory. We’ve seen it before—wolves pushed to their limits, reverting to pure instinct. Especially as rogues without a pack. But as I look at the bodies sprawled before us, something doesn’t add up.

"It’s possible," I concede, "but I don’t think that’s it." I gesture to the nearest corpse. "Look at them. They’re young, strong. Their bodies are well-fed. This wasn’t desperation."

"Then why attack without provocation? It doesn’t make sense."

"We’ll never know now."

The finality of my words hangs in the air. Five lives snuffed out, and for what? Such a waste of life.

My gaze falls back to the bodies at our feet. Their eyes are still open, glazed over in death, but I can’t shake the memory of the feral gleam they held during the attack. It was as if something had stripped away their humanity, leaving nothing but raw, uncontrolled aggression.

"What do you want to do with the bodies?" Kellan asks, rising to his feet as he brushes snow off his knees.

It’s a practical question, but one that carries weight. We can’t leave them here, that’s for certain. But disposing of them carelessly could leave a trail right back to us.

"We’ll send a team to take care of it," I decide. "Have them move the bodies several miles out, away from our territory. They’ll have to use a truck. Maybe burn them out there. They don’t deserve to be something’s dinner."

"I’ll get it organized."

It feels as though reports of aggressive rogues have been on the uptick, but why?

The questions pile up in my head, leaving me to second-guess leaving these bodies behind. But we have no technology to help us here. No laboratory to run blood samples. Not even a microscope.

"Kellan," I call out. He turns back to me, eyebrow raised in question. "Once we’ve taken care of this, I want to double our patrols. We can’t afford another surprise like this."

* * *

The sound of the front door opening cuts through the rush of water.

Ava.

I shut off the shower, not bothering to rinse the soap from my body. Water drips down my chest as I grab a towel, hastily wrapping it around my waist. The tile is cold beneath my feet as I stride into the living room.

My mate stands there, snowflakes melting in her golden hair, tied back into a ponytail. Her cheeks are flushed from the cold, blue eyes bright. Something in my chest loosens at the sight of her.

"You didn’t have to cut your shower short," she says, a smile playing at her lips.

I cross the room in three long strides, wrapping my arms around her. She’s so small against me, fitting perfectly into the curve of my body. Honey and vanilla, with that faint hint of orange, surround me, stirring Aurum in the back of my head.

Mate, he breathes, and I can feel his tail wagging.

Ava laughs, the sound brightening my day. "Lucas! You’re getting soap everywhere." She shoves at my chest, but there’s no real force behind it.

I reluctantly let her go, watching as she shrugs off her snow-laden coat.