Fully naked, Tanner asked, “Ready?” At Knox’s nod, the sentinel released his demon. Bones cracked and popped as he shifted shape. Hellhounds were much bigger and more muscular than normal wolves with coal-black fur and blood-red eyes. They were also fast, strong, vicious, and smelled of burning brimstone.
The hellhound shook its head and snorted, probably agitated by the strong scents of motor oil, dirt, grease, and rusted metal. It raked the ground with the claws of its front paw, making Knox think of a bull scraping its hooves on the floor.
“Find Harper,” Knox ordered, urgency in every syllable.
The hellhound snorted again and got moving. They stalked after the hound as it prowled along the dusty road that weaved through rows of cars, cabs, buses, and trucks. Even through the thickening shadows, Knox could see that most of the vehicles were rusted and dented. Some had shattered windshields while others were missing doors or had been stripped of the seats and front wheel.
Knox strained to hear voices, but the only sounds were that of glass crunching beneath their feet and the whistling breeze rattling open doors or raised hoods. “Where are they?” he growled, stepping over a stray sparkplug. “She’s got to be here fucking somewhere.” But all he could see ahead of him were more vehicles, stacks of tires, and a rusted forklift.
They kept on walking for what quickly began to feel like hours. With every moment that passed, his panic grew and his control started to fray around the edges. The longer she was with Crow, the more likely it was that Knox wouldn’t get to her before Crow could kill her. He could be hurting her right now. Chest squeezing at the idea, Knox closed his eyes. The bastard would pay for whatever he did. And he’d pay in blood.
The hellhound came to an abrupt halt. Growled. And then headed east at a fast pace. Adrenalin shot through Knox as they trailed after the hellhound, ready to —
In the distance, a loud, banshee-like screech of fury split the air. Instinct sent Knox charging toward the sound, even as the ground began to shake beneath him, causing the debris at his feet to rattle. Then flames seemed to explode out of the ground bordering a trailer far ahead, making him and the sentinels jerk to a halt. They were high, ferocious, blinding… and all too familiar to Knox.
“The flames of hell,” Levi said in utter shock.
Keenan stumbled backwards, almost tripping over the hellhound. “Holy fuck.”
Larkin gaped. “Knox, what… I mean, did you —”
“I didn’t call them,” Knox told her, breath coming fast.
“Harper called them?” asked Levi.
Apparently so. And just how the fuck did that happen?
Later. He’d work that out later. Now, he needed to get to her. They rushed toward the fire, only stopping when the blistering heat emanating from it became too much for the sentinels to bear. He urged the flames to ease away, but they flickered only slightly. Frowning, he tried again. They still didn’t calm. Instead, they leapt, danced, swayed, and consumed whatever they touched.
Levi raised a hand to shield his reddening face from the searing heat. “Make them die down.”
“I can’t,” clipped Knox. “They won’t answer to me.”
Larkin’s brow pulled together. “Why?”
“Because they’re answering to Harper.” She was the one who’d somehow managed to conjure them and her emotions were, literally, feeding the fire. By the way the fire was raging, so was she.
It hissed. Popped. Spat. Crackled. Sizzled. Snapped. Heat waves shimmered in the air – air that now seemed heavy and thick. Thick with power.
“I have to get to her,” said Knox. He was the only one who could walk through the flames.
“The fire’s starting to spread,” warned Tanner, pulling on his clothes now that he’d shifted once more.
The sentinel was right. The ragged line of the flames moved slowly but steadily closer to them. Metal creaked and glass shattered. Vehicles toppled and crashed onto others. The scent of hot metal and burned rubber filled the air. Hell, the heat itself was melting the cars. It was a good thing the flames of hell didn’t operate like normal fire or there’d be several explosions going on around them, given how much gas was in the yard.
He tensed at what could have been the sound of a male crying out in pain, but Knox couldn’t be sure he’d truly heard it while the fire roared so loudly around them. “I’m going in,” said Knox.
Levi grabbed his arm. “Bury your anger, Knox. Those flames are wild and furious, which means she is too. A demon that out of control can be an extremely dangerous thing. Harper needs you to be calm right now.”
Well aware of that, Knox nodded. He had no chance of easing Harper’s anger if he wasn’t calm himself. And if he didn’t manage to calm her, the flames would keep on blazing and consuming whatever they touched. No pressure. “I’ll bring her back.”
Taking a deep breath, he walked through the shimmering waves of hot air and right into the vivid, glowing tri-colored flames. A scorching, prickling heat engulfed him as the flames lashed and whipped at his skin, but they didn’t scald him; they couldn’t.
The ground itself was so hot, he could feel the baking heat through the soles of his shoes as he walked deeper into the fire, searching for any sign of his mate. All he could see were melting cars and tires being swallowed by the fire. He stepped over a partially consumed forklift, glancing around while his demon frantically urged him to hurry and find her.