Page 7

“Yes, well with that twisted fucker Morgan after you, I thought it was the safest place around. Especially after declaring his love for you, outside my door not long after meeting you,” Frank replied, making her look shocked.

“Wait, you did?!” she exclaimed looking up at her husband.

“Yes, of course I did,” he replied with ease.

“And you didn’t tell me?” Keira asked, and this time it was aimed at her brother in law.

“Erm, no offense but can we save this little family dispute till after we rescued my girl and saved the world from total ruin?” I suggested, making Lucius comment,

“Oh, I don’t know, I am finding this most entertaining.” At which Amelia elbowed him and warned,

“Not helping, Vampy.”

“I could talk about our sex life if you wish to divert attention.” Frank and Dom both turned to him and shouted at the same time,

“No!”

“NO!” Naturally, Dom’s argument was louder, something that only made Lucius grin harder.

“Then can I suggest that Frank meets us at the encampment once he has retrieved what he needs, so as we can use this time to make a plan,” Lucius said, and I couldn’t agree more, as I was eager to return to hear if there had been any news of Ella.

Dariush nodded, replacing his blade in his sheath before creating a portal back for each of us to use.

This before remaining with Frank in order to get him to Ella’s trailer.

Of course, I had an idea what he was referring to, so knew that it wouldn’t take long. Which was why after a nod from me, I was the first to step back into Hell. A Hell that now held greater meaning for me, as I was literally living my own personal version of it at the moment.

Especially when once we returned, there had indeed been news on Ella and well… it wasn’t fucking good.

“It’s good you’re back,” Koro said the second we walked inside what we had been using as the war room.

As for the camp, it had vastly grown in size.

Because for as far as the eye could see it was an ocean of bodies, transforming the land into a moving entity.

I could also see larger structures had been erected as well as other tents to house the newcomers as we now had thousands join our forces.

Demons of all species, no doubt each led by Kings and Generals that were making battle plans in their own war rooms, ready for the moment we were all to come together.

But as for now, we all walked into the space to find Koro, Clay, Marcus, Tyr and Asher all stood around the center table that still held a map of the Underworld upon it.

“What news has there been?” I asked, my tone eager and verging on desperate.

“Equal parts good and bad I am afraid,” Koro replied calmly, making me grit my teeth as I tried not to bark orders at him, waiting for him to say more. As for Dom, he knew no such patience.

“Tell us.”

“As you no doubt saw, our numbers have increased significantly, and plans are being put into place for the next battle,” Koro said, taking the lead with this information.

“And the bad news?” I asked, looking to each of the men but focusing on Marcus, who for once, didn’t look so cocky, and I was soon to find out why.

“Garmr has been doing the same,” Clay said, making Amelia point out,

“But surely he can’t have as many allies as we do.”

But this was when Marcus stepped up and placed his gloved hands on the table. The permanent red lines on his pale face pulled in strained angles as this time, he wasn’t smiling.

“It’s bad, J.”

“How bad?” I asked, making him point to the mountain we had traveled through when trying to break Ella out the first time.

“Remember all those bones we found.”

“Hard to forget,” I commented dryly.

“Turns out Garmr has been planning this for a long time, as he has been hording the bones of not only his own fallen Hellhounds, but what looks to be the remains of every battle ever fought in Hell since the day he first discovered his niece’s powers.”

My eyes must have bugged out, as even I felt them straining at the news.

“You’re shitting me!” I shouted, as my brain tried to comprehend those types of numbers.

“Gods, but that must be…”

“Hundreds of thousands,” Lucius finished off for Dom, his voice hard and calculated.

“Bill led our spies on a recon mission, they managed to sneak inside the mountain and when they saw what was happening, they reported back to us after seeing Ella herself bring them all back to life. Souls, I will remind you, cannot be fought like those of the living we had not so long ago battled against,” Koro said with a shake of his head.

“And you, do you see any outcome from this?” I asked, looking to Marcus, who let his head hang before raising it to look at me.

“There is only one outcome that brings us victory, a single thread among a woven tapestry that they already consume.”

“Okay, so for those of us in the class that hate riddles, what does that mean exactly?” Keira asked.

“It means we have one shot in a million, that’s what it means, Keira girl,” Lucius replied, a tick in his jaw visible as he spoke.

“Not if we pull on the right thread,” I stated firmly, making all eyes turn to me.

“The plan is to get Ella out and back to herself. We do that, then the war is won before it’s even begun, as without his souls, we will hold greater numbers… right?” I asked, making Koro nod, but it was Tyr who spoke next.

“We will outnumber them, yes. But how are we to get her out, for if memory serves me right, HellBeast, it didn’t go so well the last time?” I wanted to punch him, despite knowing he was right. Which is why instead of regressing to violence, I argued,

“That was because we were unprepared. But now we know what to expect.”

“You mean her trying to murder you?” Tyr added, making me grit my teeth once more and force my fists to uncurl.

“He’s got a point, Jared,” Asher said, making me release a sigh.

“Well, she can’t try and murder me if she’s asleep now, can she? And after last time, we now know that she can be knocked out, all we need to do is get close enough to do that without causing harm,” I told them, gaining a few nods of acceptance. However, the girls of the group didn’t look so sure.

“Then what?” Keira asked.

“Then we bring her back here and…”

“I will do the rest,” Frank added the second he appeared through the entrance, his eyes glowing crimson as he no doubt tried to control the urge to give into his new Hellish side. Then he walked toward the table and said,

“And if a hug from her father doesn’t do it, then this might,” he added as he placed the object he had wanted to retrieve from her trailer in Nelson in the center of the table. The sight of the tiny flecks of snow falling around the howling wolf at the base felt like a sign.

But now the question was…

Was it a sign of life or…

A sign of death?