Danny teetered on the third-floor landing, screeching in soprano and wielding a massive machine gun. He fired. The kickback knocked him on his ass. Two levels below him, Alliance members in their animal forms tore into Tribesmen visibly caught by surprise.
Blood splashed the small window, hindering my view, but enticing my beast to take action. I kicked open the door, protruding my claws and severing the throats of the closest Tribesmen.
Emme raced behind me, using her force to launch several Tribe weres into the cinder block walls, crushing their skulls and killing them instantly. She was a different Emme now, one hell-bent on surviving and vested by fear.
Blue and white lightning bolts slashed through the thick dusty air. I nudged Emme and pointed to the three-story ceiling. Taran levitated in a trance, a cast encasing her arm. Yet it didn’t hinder her. Her eyes blanched to white as she unleashed her fury on the demon children flying overhead. We were showered with their nasty remains. I brushed them off, my focus remaining on finding Shayna.
“Come on, Emme.” I started to run, but Emme didn’t follow. She froze, staring blankly ahead. Something held her attention. At first, I didn’t care enough to see what it was. I grabbed her arm and shook her. “Emme, we have to move now!”
I yanked her along only to stop short when I spotted Aric down the long corridor. His huge gray wolf form advanced deliberately toward me, viciously mutilating everything in his path. Tribesmen attempted to scramble away, only to be ripped into bloody chunks by the wolves directly behind him.
Aric bolted the last few feet and changed. His expression darkened as his gaze swept over my beaten form. Never had he been so fierce.
My initial reaction was to comfort Aric, to assure him I was all right. But my relief at seeing him brought the horrors I’d endured to the forefront of my mind, forcing my words back down and rendering me speechless.
“I thought I’d lost you,” he whispered with barely controlled rage.
I collapsed against Aric’s chest. Except I couldn’t find the peace I sought in his strong embrace. Emme’s loud sobs drew my attention. No matter how much I needed him to comfort me, my sisters needed me more.
Liam held her a few feet away. Taran had descended to the floor. She stroked Emme’s hair, crying hard enough to make her shoulders tremble. Danny and our other wolves, now in human form, gathered around and formed a defensive ring as the bloodshed moved to the rear of the prison.
Taran screamed when she saw me. My battered appearance must have been shocking; even the males jumped back in alarm. Koda gawked at me before kicking the door to death row off its hinges and racing in. He scrambled out seconds later, thunderstruck with dread. “Where’s Shayna?”
“We don’t know.” I took a shaky breath. “Matar, the demon lord, took her to feed to his children.”
The color drained from Koda’s face. Aric squeezed me tighter. “Koda, Gemini, Liam, I’m releasing you from your duties. Find Shayna. Find her now!”
The Warriors changed and took off, Koda leading the way.
Aric kissed my forehead and stepped away. “Stay with the others,” he said in a low voice. “I’ll come back to you when I’m done.”
He stalked toward the large opening in the wall. I didn’t want him to leave. “Aric, where are you going?”
Every muscle and bone on Aric’s broad back stiffened. His voice deepened to a growl. “To kill Matar.” He changed, not bothering to glance back, and disappeared into the darkness.
I peeled the remains of my shirt away from my sports bra and faced the others. “We have to find Shayna. You four finish searching here.” No one moved. “Go! I’ll check the other buildings.”
Bren pointed his finger in my face. “You’ve had the unholy shit beaten out of you. No way am I leaving you alone!”
“They need your nose to pick up Shayna’s scent. If we split up, the search will go faster.” Bren didn’t budge. “Damn it, Bren, there’s no time to waste!”
Bren reluctantly changed back to wolf, roaring as I sped off without them. I barreled through the exit, leaping over the remains of the dead.
Outside, Alliance members and Tribesmen continued to battle. Dark clouds churned overhead and thunder shook the ground as witches cast their deadly curses. Flesh and ash saturated the earth where weres and vampires fought the enemy with fangs, claws, and all the viciousness of preternatural beings. I shoved my way through the maze of bodies, killing when I needed to, but mostly trying to move forward. It wasn’t until I came upon an opening that I stopped.
The Elders’ power and that of Misha’s master, Uri, hit me like a rush of wind, forcing me to stagger back. They, along with Aric and Misha, attacked Matar and the bloodlust vampires protecting him. Yet I feared their combined magic wouldn’t be enough.