Page 13 of Sinful Shifters

For a moment I'm relieved—until I see that it's Rhett, or Eli, depending on who you're talking to. He feels... different, somehow, and I wonder if maybe his scent has changed now that Teller has "neutered" him. He looks over at me, an expression rippling across his face too fast for me to read.

"I hope you know what you're doing," he tells Klaus.

Klaus snaps, "I do, Eli. So fuck off."

I guess we're all going by our original names these days.

Holding up the potion, Klaus snarls at his brother. "This will give me the stamina I need to keep going until it's all over. Even if she takesdaysto submit. I'll be able to finish it this time around—not like last time."

My stomach couldn't clench further, I thought, until this very moment, when it does.

At this Eli blanches a little. He doesn't even look at me, though, even though I'm the one they're talking about.

"If you're going to do that, then take this one too," he says, taking out another potion. "It was from... my own experience. It's for her."

"What will it do?"

"It'll make it better by numbing her while you... do what must be done." As he hands it over, he tells his brother, "You should love her better this time."

Then he vanishes without even looking at me.

Klaus stalks over to me and immediately shoves the potion in my hand. I feel horrified and sick, full of dread. The thought of being numb to it doesn't exactly make me feel better. Reaching for my pack, I feel only the slightest whisper of their presence, and tremble at how weak they are now.

There's been no sign of Ali. I'm starting to wonder if she could even feel me. Or if she's already dead, her body out there next to Morgan's, a thought that makes me queasy.

Klaus knocks back his potion, grimacing as he swallows it down. "Teller has a terrible sense of taste." Then he rolls his arms back, cracks his neck, and tells me in a low voice, "You should prepare yourself."

My fingers dig into my palms, blood trickling, as I prepare my claws. There's no way I'm going to let this happen without a fight.

But if the fight fails... and I'm sure it will... I don't want to suffer.

So, despite myself, I take a sip of the numbing potion.

Then a whole gulp of it.

Chapter10

Lucian

Some days, my powers come easier than others. Air is always easy, but using our extra powers, like my ability to influence others, can be tricky. Today is one of those days where it feels like the web of influence that comes out of me flows as easily as a breeze.

The warriors we're fighting with aren't used to fighting together. They're from different packs, some are lone wolves, and one has no alpha at all now. So I use my powers to draw them together and influence them.

You're brothers now,I tell them, letting my alpha influence as well as my magic wash over them.Watch each other's backs. Coordinate your attacks, and stay vigilant.

Their heads nod in assent, and they draw together, attacking with more coordination. What was an army of loosely held together wolves becomes something more akin to a pack.

It's enough to keep the attackers from crossing the river much further, but not enough to beat them back. Especially with those shields in the way. Still, we persist, our wolves fierce and ready.

As I tear through a vampire's throat with my teeth and fall to the ground in a waterfall of its dust, I spot a familiar wolf attacking in the crowd. A jet black werewolf with a white crescent star on his forehead and a white-dipped front paw.

The First Alpha. Eli, or Rhett, as he's calling himself. A traitor who helped coordinate this attack.

Shaking the dust off, I summon my wind and go for him.

Behind me and to my right, I can sense Everett making a path for the coven witches to join the fray. To my left, Thale and Adar are distracting the enemy, drawing them away from Ali so they don't notice the little witch in their midst.

But I have eyes for Eli and no one else.

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