The man was growling with every breath, and Erden's struggles were only making her plight worse. His eyes flashed a brighter hue and then his body began to spasm and swell; bones snapped, cracked and reformed themselves as his skin stretched and a blanket of red-golden fur blossomed from his shoulders, flowing down his arms, back, his backside and down his legs. His head and face grew longer and more sleek; his eyes were bright and hungry.

"No!" Erden said, but her new burst of desperate energy was nothing compared to the strength in Sait's clawed hands. He released his submission hold on her, grabbing her hips hard enough in...