Page 4 of Sinful Shifters

We cut the vampire numbers down, concentrating on the Mating Circle. But there are more coming.

All the while, I search for her scent. We look for her through the pack bonds, which we now control. But none of us can find her. It's like she disappeared.

She's probably been taken to the other side of those shields,Everett points out, his tone grim.I don't know if we can break through them. I've never seen or known magic like it.

They can't cast magic while they're lit on fire.

Burning the whole army down is exactly what I intend to do. I'm halfway through it, screams of soldiers dying in my ears, when we run into Alpha Morgan as he and his warriors retake the wellspring. With us on their side, they've been able to kill enough vamps and soldiers to defend it.

Caterina.His sides heave with exhaustion, his muzzle drooping.My warriors and I felt her call out for help from the other side of the river.

Rage fuels me as I turn my muzzle that way. Hundreds of vampires and at least a thousand soldiers, many waiting as reinforcements, stand between us and General Teller's encampment.

All of them can burn.

Furious that Rina was stolen, Adar summons his flames and sends them down against the army. He and the other gods join the pack's warriors in wolf form and viciously tear through vampires, meeting up with Alpha Morgan to invade and get her back...

Chapter3

Rina

Blood gushes from the wound. He twists my wrist away, and I yelp, forced to drop the brick.

His pupils are black, his brows drawn together. His fury makes me tremble, and I regret the attack immediately, grimacing as the wound heals in record time.

Dragging me up to my feet, he snarls "You're no Fern."

I'd agree, but I think it'd only make him angrier.

"I'll have to change that." His grip on my wrist is so tight that tears spring to my eyes. "I'm going to make you more than just a "vessel" for her soul. I'll have the witch restore you completely... it's the only way things will berightagain."

I don't like the way that sounds. If it means destroying my memories and personality to make room for hers, then no thanks. But Klaus is determined, pulling me out of the tent towards whatever he has planned for me.

I kick and drag my feet, biting at his hands as he manhandles me. Human soldiers watch with open curiosity, some of them on foot, others standing near tanks and long-range weapons launchers that make my stomach churn. They don't approach us, though, merely watch, openly wearing army insignia.

None of this should be possible. Our treaties should prevent all of it, and our land should've thrown them out by now. Whatever dark magic General Teller is using to make this happen, it frightens me almost as much as Klaus's black, angry eyes.

"Stay here until I get the witch to take care of you." He throws me down at the foot of an evergreen tree scorched of its branches, snarling at me. "Meanwhile, you'll watch as I lead the second wave of attacks."

Tying my arms, wrists, legs, and even ankles up, he promises smugly, "You won't be able to escape this rope. It's spelled. Another thing courtesy of William."

I can feel my wolf whimper and go into hiding as its magic presses against my bare skin. Even my new wolf form isn't strong enough to escape these bonds.

Klaus puts a hand on my cheek, his face suddenly transformed into a soft and loving expression. The quickness with which his mood changes is more frightening than his anger.

"I'm sorry I ever rejected you, my dear Fern," he says, and I resign myself to no longer correcting his madness. "I shouldn't have raked my claws across you when you came to me. I was just so angry... I knew that it was my brother the witches reached out to that night. The thought of you being with him infuriated me. Can you ever forgive me?"

The scars across my chest, long healed, flare with pain at his words. Suddenly I'm back at the night of my Mating Ceremony, opening myself up to the First Alpha, my pack and my mother watching. Finally, I thought, I was going to becomesomeone.

Instead he attacked me. Now he wants to destroy me completely, erase my heart and my soul, all so he can get back a woman who's been dead for centuries.

He's waiting for my answer. I want to spit in his face. But if stabbing him made him angry, defying him further will only make things worse.

So I suppress my anger and force myself to say, "I forgive you, Klaus."

His eyes sparkle. Then he drops his hand from my face, scowling. "Fern never would've called me by my proper name. She had a nickname for me—but you wouldn't know that, would you, imposter?"

He snarls, snapping his jaws in my face like a madman. I turn my head away, cringing, and keep silent.

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