CHAPTER SEVEN: TERRIFIED

Lila POV

 

I stumble through the light, my stomach feeling like a thousand bees are bouncing around in it, and smack hard into the stairs on the other side. I stand, my wolf shaking our head, just as the edge of the old, cracked steps to the portal gives way under my feet.

 

My wolf whines as we fall down the steps, right off a damn cliff of all things. My body smacks across the rock side, sharp pebbles digging into my calves. My wolf tries to dig its claws into the cliffside to stop us. Roots and branches snag in my fur and against my legs as I keep falling, unable to find anything to stop us. I briefly see everything is red and burning right before I crash into something that instantly burns my back.

 

Standing quickly, I move off the tiny pool of lava under me, letting my wolf heal the brief burns. Breathlessly, I take a second to glance around me, and I freeze. My blood runs cold when I realise exactly where I am.

 

The Stormfire Pack.

Also known as—Hell itself.

 

What the hell? I’m not even on Earth anymore.

 

In my horror, I look up at the portal on top of the mountain, wondering why the alpha isn’t right on my heels. He should be able to follow me.

 

This is his frigging pack, after all.

 

Shit. Shit. Shit.

 

My brother once told me Hell was a really beautiful place, but I never quite believed him. How could a place where demons and wolves live be beautiful? Until this second, when I’m staring at all of Hell right in front of me, I never once imagined it was like this. A giant tree has grown from below the city, and its entangled roots stretch everywhere they can. I remember the tree being called the Tree of Ignis.

 

The tree has made winding paths that swirl around the main trunk, lit up with red fire on their edges. Pack homes are also woven into the branches and roots, almost like they are part of the tree. Sharp and steep rocky mountain walls make a circle around the outskirts of the city one of them I’ve just fallen down, which must have one of many portals to Hell on it.

 

No wonder that hurt like a bitch. The fall must be about thirty feet.

 

I didn’t even know there was a portal to Stormfire near my home. In fact, it should be impossible for that portal to even exist. Problem for another time. The Stormfire city surrounds the major part of the ancient and wondrous tree. The looping roots and gnarled vines hold much of the city together. There are tall towers of apartments wrapped in vines and red flowers, like flames, on the edges of the city. Closer to the middle are large stone buildings that seem untouched by the tree itself, and perhaps newer.

 

The tree isn’t the most beautiful and fascinating part of the city. No, it’s the leaves.

 

Burning leaves constantly fall off the branches at the top of the tree. They flutter down and then disappear into nothing but embers before they hit the ground. I stare around in awe at the place I’ve always wanted to come to see.

 

Terrified awe.

 

What the hell am I going to do? I bite my backpack in my mouth a little tighter, wondering what Mum packed inside it for me and if she is still alive. My wolf whines softly, our pain shared between us, threatening to take over the fear we need to focus on. It isn’t safe here. I glance back up at the portal at the top of the massive hill that I’ve just fallen down.

 

victor is going to follow me here soon. He is too powerful for me to fight head-on, and there’s no way I’m going to get away from him in his pack’s territory if he spots me now. I glance back at the tree and Stormfire city resting around it.

 

There’s only really one thing I can do to survive: hide in victor’s pack of millions of Stormfire wolves and make sure he doesn’t find me.

 

He won’t think I’m brave enough to hide in his own pack. Hopefully.

 

At least I won’t stand out in Stormfire, not with my red-furred wolf, as they all appear the same as me—something I’ve always wanted. Just not like this. Except for the white streak of hair, but I can disguise that with a hat or something in human form. Not so much as a wolf. I lean back on my heels and tighten my grip on the backpack before I break out into a run.

 

My wolf bolts across the rocky terrain that seems like it’s on fire, but it does nothing but heat my paws. In fact, I feel warm, but not on fire like I should.

 

“Outside the gates of Hell’s city burn all those who flee and do not belong.”

 

My academy teachers’ words come back to haunt me as I keep running and come to a large river made of clear, crimson water. Sharp rocks sit at the bottom, and a few strange fish swim around them. Let’s hope none of them bite. The current of the river flows fast, and I don’t see a bridge in sight or anywhere I can cross.

 

We’ll have to swim.

 

Feeling my wolf’s reluctance to go into it—and I’m completely in agreement with her—I figure we don’t have a choice. We’re not great at swimming. It was never one of our bonus points at the academy, but there’s no way around it. I pull the backpack tightly into my mouth, knowing I need to hold on firmly to it in the river.

 

We can do this!

 

I dive into the water, and my wolf uses all our strength to swim to the other side. We try not to get pushed too far down by the current, but the river is deeper and bigger than we thought. The water is warm, almost painfully warm, but I try not to focus on it as we swim as fast as we can. Soon, we realise the current is much wilder than we predicted, and suddenly we are being pushed harshly around.

 

My wolf dives underwater, and we bare our teeth, holding the backpack as we push through the current. It directs our path. I know I need to let the current take me and not fight it, even as I can’t see or hear anything but red water.

 

It’s official. Hell sucks, and they even ruined water.