Page 25

Marinah

I woke on the cold, hard floor of a small cell. There was nothing but a floor drain to keep my pounding head company. No bed, no blanket, no chair.

A red haze clouded my vision, and instinctively, I checked my arm for the telltale dark hair that meant I’d shifted. My jaw was smooth, too. I’d run my hand over it the moment I stirred. The haze and fog in my head made it hard to think clearly, but the absence of fur on my arm was reassuring. It meant I was still human, and for now, our secret was safe.

As clarity slowly returned, I also noticed my clothes weren’t shredded which was confirmation that I hadn’t shifted and then shifted back.

I sat up and leaned against the wall to steady myself. A faint smile tugged at my lips as I remembered the speckles of blood on General Smyth’s smug face. It had suited him, and I promised myself he’d wear a lot more of it before this was over.

But the smile faded just as quickly.

Kara was dead.

She’d helped me and died because of it. Smyth would pay, and when the time came, his death would be the slowest and most painful I could deliver.

When my legs finally cooperated, I stood and paced the room, taking in every detail. No windows, just a single door locked from the outside. Darkness enveloped the cell, but Shadow Warriors didn’t need light to see.

As I listened closely, the faint sound of jingling keys reached my ears.

I quickly sat with my back against the far wall, pulling my knees to my chest to feign fear. I was afraid for my friends, but I wasn’t afraid for myself.

I was past ready to fight.

The door creaked open, and Daniels stepped inside. His gloating smile ignited tendrils of hatred in my chest.

“You think you’re so smart,” he sneered, “just like your dear old dad.” He strolled closer, his smugness radiating off him in waves. “Your father died because he got in the way. The plan was to take out Greystone, but your father? His death was a fortunate accident, an unexpected bonus for a failed mission.” His laugh was like a sizzling ember on my skin.

I tightened the hold on my knees, burying my face to hide the red haze pulsing behind my eyes.

My blood roared as Ms. Beast did everything she could to break free.

Not yet, I told her silently.

Soon.

Kill, whispered through my head.

Hold.

Daniels’ boots stomped the floor as he came closer.

“Did you screw those animals?” He laughed maniacally, then continued when I didn’t answer. “I bet you did. You and your father probably both screwed them.”

He punctuated his words with a sudden kick to the side of my calf. He was trying to provoke me. I kept my head low and brought my hands up to protect my head. I did everything I could to hold Ms. Beast back. If I looked into Daniels’ eyes, I’d lose the fight.

Lifting my head slightly, I glanced past him.

He’d left the door open.

Why the hell was I holding back? Cowering grated on every last nerve I had.

My shift wasn’t gradual.

Ms. Beast exploded.

The sharp, burning pain was over in an instant. I’d never gone from human to beast this fast and hadn’t been aware I could. But Ms. Beast understood exactly what she was capable of.

My hands and feet morphed into claws, my six-foot frame stretched to over nine feet, and my human face reshaped into a snarling visage with razor-sharp teeth. Shredded clothes fell to the floor as my rage took over.

Daniels’ face contorted into pure terror, and his high-pitched scream sliced through the air like music to my ears.

I grabbed him by the throat with claws that could shear through steel, relishing the horror in his bulging eyes.

“No,” he croaked, his voice barely a whisper. His face turned purple as his scream choked off, replaced by a wet, gargling sound.

“Oh, yes,” I hissed through my fangs.

I snapped my teeth an inch from his face, the razor-sharp sound echoing through the small cell.

Ms. Beast, I murmured into her thoughts, it’s not nice to play with your food.

The tang of blood filled my mouth; human blood, rich and iron tinged. So different from the blood of hellhounds.

Ms. Beast dropped Daniels like a ragdoll, half his throat torn away. She spit out the stringy flesh and I was grateful she hadn’t eaten it.

Door.

We moved to the hallway.

It was empty.

This was clearly the prisoner holding area. My eyes swept the length of the corridor, counting eight cells.

I called out, my Warrior voice guttural but still recognizable.

“Landan. Mila. Skylar.”

A pause.

Then, from the cell directly across the hall, I heard Mila.

“Marinah?” she shouted.

I tried the cell door, and it was locked. I went back to the cell I’d been in. Daniels’ blood was splattered across the gray cement like a macabre Van Gogh painting.

No, we do not play in blood, I told Ms. Beast firmly as she sniffed the air and licked her lips, savoring the tang.

A sharp growl rumbled through my chest, echoing in the confined space.

Keys, I reminded her.

The keys were clutched in Daniels’s lifeless fist. I didn’t waste time getting my claws to cooperate. Shredding his dead hand actually felt good. I pried the keys free, and with one last look at the crimson pool surrounding him, I headed back into the hall.

Sorry, Ms. Beast, we don’t eat humans.

Her soft chuckle rippled through me, sending shivers to my toes. She was playing with me, and I didn’t have the time or patience to figure out where she wanted to take this. Extracting the keys from Daniels was easier than juggling them now. Trying to fit the small metal shapes into Mila’s lock with claws designed to tear through steel was nothing short of infuriating.

“Damn it,” I muttered, dropping the keys for the second time as Ms. Beast’s laughter echoed in my mind.

I sighed inwardly. You know what this means.

Her amusement faded, replaced by calm understanding. We were finally in sync.

My shift back to human was seamless, leaving me naked from the waist up, my shredded shirt hanging in strips past my waist. At least now, my clawless fingers were able to unlock the door.

The moment I opened it, Mila launched herself into my arms, her sobs muffled against my shoulder despite the blood staining me.

“Oh, God, Marinah, I thought you were dead. They tortured Kara. They killed her,” she cried, then looked around before turning back, staring at the blood coating my skin. “What happened? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, and there’s no time to explain,” I said urgently. “We need to get Landan and Skylar out of their cells.”

“We’re here!” Skylar’s voice rang out from farther down the hall.

I took Mila’s hand before she could run toward Skylar’s door. “Don’t panic,” I said, locking eyes with her. “I can keep us safer in beast form.”

Her expression twisted with confusion, but there was no time for explanations.

I pressed the keys into her hand and stepped back. Ms. Beast surged forward, taking control once more, the transformation just as seamless. I’d had no idea I could go back and forth so quickly either, but again, Ms. Beast knew exactly what we were capable of.

To Mila’s credit, she only backed up a few feet during my transformation. Her wide eyes, which seemed like they might pop out of her head, were filled with wonder, not revulsion.

I opened my jaws, letting my deep, raspy voice fill the space. “Meet Ms. Beast. She won’t eat you, I promise.”

Mila closed her mouth with a snap, took a few steady breaths, then let her gaze travel from my clawed feet to my elongated snout. Slowly, she accepted what she was seeing.

“Cool trick, Marinah. You’ll have to teach me sometime.”

With a flippant grin, she spun on her heel and sprinted toward the other cells. “Skylar! Landan! Where are you?” she called, her voice echoing off the cement walls.

“Here,” they both shouted in unison.

Mila rushed to the third cell on the right and unlocked the door. She glanced back at me before her mouth formed a small grin. “Don’t mind my new friend,” she said, jabbing her thumb over her shoulder at me. “She assures me she won’t eat us.”

Shocked green eyes met mine as Skylar stumbled into the hall, looking like she was about to scream loud enough to shake the ceiling.

“If you yell, it’ll hurt my ears,” I said.

“Marinah?” she whispered.

I held out my fur-covered, oversized arms, the edges of my claws gleaming. “In the flesh. Don’t mind the hair. I didn’t have time to shave.”

To my surprise, Skylar ran at me and wrapped her arms tightly around my waist, unable to reach my shoulders. Ms. Beast growled softly in protest, but I ignored her.

“Sorry, I can’t pat your back,” I said. “I might accidentally slice something. Still learning to manage these babies.”

I wiggled my claws, earning a chuckle from Mila.

If I’d known growing several feet taller, sprouting fur, and turning into a walking weapon could be this amusing, I might’ve done it sooner.

When Skylar let go, she grabbed the keys from Mila and dashed across the hall to another cell. She unlocked it and threw the door open before kneeling beside her husband.

He was curled on the floor, his back to us.

The sharp scent of blood hit my nostrils, and my snout twitched at the coppery tang.

Focus, I told her firmly, though part of me couldn’t help wondering if Ms. Beast might secretly be part vampire.

Skylar’s husband groaned as she rolled him onto his back. His face was a mess of swelling, blood, and bruises, but he was alive.

“Landan,” Mila called urgently.

“This one, I’m over here,” came his muffled reply from another cell.

Mila quickly unlocked his door, and he stumbled out, managing to stay on his feet. He sported a black eye, but that was the only visible damage. His wary expression hit me.

“It’s really you?” he asked after Mila hastily made introductions again.

“Yep,” I replied, snapping my jaws. “I clean up nice.”

Landan gave me a quick, uncertain smile before following me into the room where Skylar was crouched beside her husband. He was now upright, leaning heavily against the wall.

“She’s with us,” Skylar assured him when his gaze flickered to me, and he instinctively tried to rise.

“Nice to meet you,” he groaned, slumping back against the wall after the effort.

“That’s enough pleasantries,” I said, stepping closer. “Can you walk? We need to get out of here.”

Skylar helped him to his feet, but the effort was agonizingly slow. He swayed, barely able to stand, and gasped through chipped teeth.

“I’ll be too slow,” he rasped. “Take Skylar and get her out of here. I’ll follow when I can.”

The look on Skylar’s face said there was no way she would leave without him.

I sighed. Warriors, even human ones, made the worst patients.

Without another word, I stepped forward, bent down, and scooped him into my arms, cradling him like a baby.

“The more you fight, the more danger you put us in,” I said when he instinctively struggled. That stopped him cold.

“Don’t worry,” I added with a smirk. “I won’t tell your soldier buddies.”

“I’ll hold you to that,” he muttered.

Despite his injuries, he looped his arms over my shoulders to make carrying him easier. I gave him credit for keeping his discomfort to himself. He had serious injuries that he was trying to hide. I could hear his shallow breathing and suspected more than broken ribs.

I turned to our ragtag group. “There’s a building outside the city wall where you can hide. It’ll be safe there. We’ll head to it after I find my friends.”

My gaze shifted to Harris. “Do you know where they’re keeping the Shadow Warriors?”

He nodded. “I have an idea.” Harris’s weight felt slightly heavier in my arms, and I glanced down, worried he might have passed out. His reply came groggily, his words slurred. “They set up a special holding tank for the Shadow Warriors before you arrived.”

“Did they need our help to fight the hellhounds at all?” I asked.

“No,” he groaned. “They wanted as many Shadow Warriors here as possible. They’ve been luring hellhounds for months, but I don’t know why. Yesterday, they started evacuating personnel from the tunnels. I was taken into custody early this morning and interrogated. It’s... it’s me who betrayed you.”

“Good thing you did,” I said, thinking of Kara’s fate. “They would have killed Skylar if you hadn’t.”

“There’s something bigger going on,” he murmured, before a wet cough erupted, spewing blood across my chest.

I waited for him to speak after the coughing subsided.

“My men, they’re loyal. They’ll fight with the Shadow Warriors against the Federation.”

“Thank you,” I replied, though the pieces of this twisted puzzle still didn’t add up. The Shadow Warriors had never been a threat to the Federation.

Whatever their plan was, there was no time to dwell on it now.

“We need to move,” I said, turning to lead the group.

Harris hung limp in my arms, his labored breathing punctuating the tense silence. Mila, Landan, and Skylar followed closely.

As we approached the end of the corridor, I turned to Landan. “I’m handing him off to you if I need to fight. Be ready.”

“I can fight,” Harris whispered, defiance glimmering faintly in his voice.

I didn’t bother to argue. His injuries were severe, and I couldn’t count on him in this state.

“Were you planning on telling us about your new affinity for facial hair?” Landan asked as we moved down the corridor.

I glanced back at him, feigning innocence. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. My barber shaved me this morning.”

“That’s not bad,” Mila said. “It’s actually super cool. I need to book an appointment with your barber.”

The chuckles rippled through our group, lightening the oppressive weight of our circumstances for just a moment.

Faint footsteps echoed in the distance, and I raised my hand, silencing everyone instantly.

Turning to Landan, I shifted Harris into his arms.

I moved toward the sound.

The faint scent in the air struck Ms. Beast first, and she froze.

Mate.

The realization hit me like a bolt of lightning.

King.

He’d found me.