Page 21 of Sinful Shifters

"I've got this."

He sends water to whip at their feet, snaking around their ankles and holding tight. Eli goes down, but Laurel evades his attack with her magic. Before any of us can blink, she's disappeared, taking Eli with her.

A teleportation spell. I loathe them already.

She isn't the only one who's disappeared in the blink of an eye. So has the rest of the human army, along with General Teller. The air stinks of his teleportation magic.

They've left the vampires behind, skulking in the shadows and fending off attacks. Some of them choose to retreat as well, while others take a last stance. I can feel the strength of our warriors fading, their losses catching up with them, especially without an alpha to lead them.

"Bring me down to the ground," I tell Lucian, tugging on his pressed white collar. "I want to be with the pack."

"As you wish, my darling. Just don't go off on your own."

"I'll do whatever I damn well please," I remind him, "but feel free to join me."

"Always and forever."

As soon as my feet hit the ground, strong arms lift me up and away. I twine my legs around Everett as he scorches me with a kiss. Hands on his shoulders, I lick the rosemary and sea salt taste from his mouth. His chest rumbles against me in a pleased purr.

Two strong fingers curl around my chin, and I turn my face towards Thale, whose coarse bread presses against my mouth as he kiss me as well. Wedged between the two of them, with Lucian's storms and Adar's fury at my back, I couldn't feel safer.

It's a feeling I missed when Eli had me.

"I'm so sorry we ever let you be taken away," Everett says, stroking my cheek with his broad fingertips. "We should've protected you better. If I had known what was coming—"

"You didn't know," I interrupt him, shaking my head. "It all happened so fast. None of you could've known."

My stomach churns, though, because before I was taken, I discovered that the guys were lying to me. They were planning on taking over the packs in this region, but they hadn't told me at all, hadn't even hinted at it. And that lie still tears me apart.

I don't know if I would've been with them if I'd known the truth. The relationship we have now makes me so happy—I feel safe and comfortable with them. But did they earn that comfort, or did they steal it with lies? I can't sort it out in my head. It breaks me that I'll never know for sure.

"What's wrong, Sweetness?" Everett asks, but I'm not ready to tell them what I learned yet, so I shake my head.

Looking around, I search for a distraction. Our battle is still raging on. Thale calls out towards the witches, and they gather in a loose assembly around us. I look for Ali, but there's no sign of her in their midst.

"Sweetness?" Everett asks again.

I pull away from him, closing off a part of my heart, the part that he lied to. My best friend has to be around here somewhere. I look for her, knowing that she's never lied to me or betrayed my trust.

As Thale has the Rhea lead the coven in a spell to fortify our weakened wards, I tug on Lucian's sleeve. "Where's Ali?"

He looks around, frowning, even as he tosses half a dozen vampires into the air and slices them in half with his elemental magic. "I just saw her near the riverbank. She was holding her own against Teller, I'll give her that. All that magic made her stand out—"

All that magic. My heart leaps, and I realize that in my eagerness to return to my pack and my men, I didn't protect my best friend from herself.

She's channeling so much power. More than she's ever had inside her before. It would be so easy for her to burn out.

Running back towards the fray, I shift into my wolf form and search for her.

There are vampires everywhere. Any one of them could have gone for her throat while she was down. I tear through them, dusting them one by one, heading towards the riverbank.

I'm relieved when I pick up her scent trail. Heading towards it, I find her still breathing. My relief is short-lived, though—she's passes out and clammy, her skin sweaty and hot.

Burn out.

I lift my nose and howl, calling to the others. Everett is close behind me, right on my heels in his wolf form. He uses his water magic to help me lift her away from the riverbank and back towards home.

She has to be okay, she has to be. I won't be able to survive if after all this she's just... gone.

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