“Are you okay?” I lifted Natasha to her feet, shifting back to a man.
“I’m fine. Get my mom out of here, please,” she shouted above the mayhem. “Have Bjørn to take her home now!” Natasha urged, standing on her own while sending a stream of fire toward the woman who had checked if we were lying.
She was trying to escape the cave when the fire reached her, taking over her form.
“I got her back!”André assured me, tossing a light blade to someone else across the room.
The last thing I wanted was to leave Natasha’s side, but I rushed towards her mother.
“It’s me, Anastasia. Hannes,” I announced, crouching beside her and seeing her eyes open, focusing on my face. “Let’s go.”
She weakly reached for me, but I swept her into my arms, running past them and out of the mountain.
“Bjørn!” I bellowed outside, noticing the battle was dwindling almost to an end.
My army wasn’t the only one there anymore. Another assembly of Dracul soldiers had come, with Countess Dariah leading them.
Dante landed next to me then, seeming exhausted. “You, did it?"
“Natasha did. I need Bjørn.”
Glancing toward the battlefield we noticed he and theDark Onewere still fighting each other. They vanished and reappeared, orblinked,in and out every few seconds in different parts of the sand dunes, making it difficult to assess how hurt our friend was or who was winning.
“Get him!” I urged Dante when Anastasia fell unconscious again.
Focusing, he followed Bjørn’s erraticblinkingmovements as he chased and attacked theDark Oneall over the field, suddenly vanishing into the shadows himself.
I had no idea how he did it, but Dante intercepted them, throwing shadow bands around theDark Oneto deter him—if only briefly.
Bjørn’s head snapped toward me suddenly, and heblinkedto my side.
Trying to be gentle, I placed Anastasia in his arms. “Take her to my mom!”
When heblinkedout of there, I turned to rush back into the cave, but my steps faltered.
The Witch’s body was strewn against the mountain’s rocky base. Her brimstone eyes were devoid of life, and the yellow magic leaked from her many wounds like blood onto the sand—worthless, no longer having a vessel to be contained.
From what I knew of Witches, only those who followed the true path, and respected the craft had the honor of joining their sisters and ancestors in spirit after they left this life. This Witch’s soul would be lost forever, her magic wasted.
The scene that greeted me when I entered the cave was the last thing I expected.
Light ropes wrapped around the length of Françoys body, who thrashed on the ground trying to get free. The slashes across his body bleed but he hadn’t been touched by the fire.
Across from him, André had Ryker seized in his grasp, and he was probably a breath away from slashing his throat open with his Vampire claws. They had already empaled Ryker’s neck while he held him clear off the floor, Ryker’s feet dangling in the air. The same ropes that robbed Françoys of freedom, captured his body.
A spiteful growl left Ryker, but it gurgled in his throat when André squeezed.
I knew it was taking every ounce of strength for him not to end the bastard right there and then because I wanted to rip him to pieces too.
Natasha stood before him, her right leg barely holding her weight on the tip of her foot, but she was so focused on her prisoner that I doubted she felt pain at all right now. Her hand ignited, and letting the fire flare to life, she lifted it in front of him, calling his attention toward it.
Seamlessly shifting into the Beast with each stride, I stopped beside her, wrapping an arm around her waist to offset her weight. She instinctively pressed into me.
Coming extra close to Ryker, so he could feel my breath fanning his face, I bared my sharp canines at him, releasing a nightmare-inducing growl.
His body went rigid in response, the fear giving him away, but he glanced at me sideways and growled back, pretending he wasn’t peeing himself right now.
Smirking, I leaned away just a bit, letting the growl extend and click in the back of my throat… the creepy way.
