INTO THE DEN

POV: Hardin

As my squad and I battled our way deeper inside Callum's citadel, the air was filled with smoke and the sounds of injured people breathing heavily. Bodies everywhere, both enemy and ours, littered the ground. The price was already shown to be rather high.

However, we could not and would not be discouraged. Not when we'd finally broken through Callum's warped domain's inner sanctum. Somewhere around here, Jenna was being held captive as his last, ruthless negotiating chip.

Before that filthy creature could inflict whatever tortures his cruel imagination could conjure as "reinforcement" of his demands, we had to get to her.

"This way!" I gave the order with a bark and led the charge toward the big adamantium doors at the far end of a smoke-filled corridor. Callum's conceit would not permit anything less than them to serve as the entrance to his throne room.

Blades leading, two guards erupted from a cross passage. I parried the first's poor attack with scorching speed, fallin