Flames of Fury

Magnolia

Ember and I quickly fly up and out of the opening of the sunken cavern. The sun is blinding and the fall air is cool and crisp. I bathe in the fresh air and sun’s rays, delighting in its warmth.

I haven’t flown in over five months and the additional load of the twins quickly drains me of energy. I land unsteadily in the thick vegetation of the forest and take a seat on the nearest boulder to catch my breath.

“You okay, Mags?”

“Yeah, just a little winded.” I laugh weakly. “Do you know where we are?”

“No, I haven’t been to the surface in decades.” She admits sadly. “Do you think you can fly?”

“I can, but not for long. It’s harder to breathe than I expected.”

“That’s normal,” she reassures me and rubs my belly, a small smile grows on her face. “They’ve grown so much and they’re running out of room. Like I said before it could be any time now; a month, a week, a day. It’s hard to say since they’re part wolf.”

I look down at my swollen belly, one of the twins kicks at me and my hand moves unconsciously over the spot to meet them, pressing back against their hand or foot to let them know that I feel them and that I’m here.

I take in a deep breath and exhale forcefully, trying to steady my heart rate and regulate my breathing. I stick my hand out silently requesting her assistance to stand. She grabs hold of my hand and helps hoist me up off the boulder.

“Let’s walk for a bit, then we’ll see about flying.”

The sun is directly above us, making it difficult to tell which direction is which. We ultimately decide to walk in the direction directly away from the rock face that sits behind the cavern’s opening.

I gain a little more energy and a little more speed with every step I take, knowing that each one brings me closer to home.

Home.

A place that only existed in my dreams for the last few months, and sometimes not even then as most dreams turned into nightmares orchestrated by the sociopath of Drow Hollow.

I’m able to glide through the forest for short distances, fueled by the increasing proximity to true freedom. We alternate between walking, jogging, and gliding through the woods, heading west we now realize outrunning the descending sun.

Ember and I don’t speak, and we don’t look back.

Our only mission is to make it to a city or familiar landmark so we can call my brother and get teleported home. My heart flutters with anticipation at seeing my mates again, being in their warm embrace and inhaling their comforting scent. I want to feel their hands on my belly, in awe of the life they put inside me.

We’ve been on the move for hours. My legs are moving on autopilot, I’m afraid that if I stop I won’t have the strength to start back up again. So on and on we go.

A few minutes later I catch the sound of cars, lots of cars moving fast.

“I think there’s a road up ahead. If we follow it we’re sure to reach a town.” I say quietly to Ember.

“Let’s walk from here on.” She suggests, which is a huge relief to me.

We remain in the woods out of sight, but we travel parallel to the road that cuts through the forest. After another 15 minutes or so, the road ends at a gate that leads into a developed property, one that looks similar to the pack grounds of Shadowmoon.

I count only two guards standing by the gate. The way their noses lift up to smell the air doesn’t go unnoticed, it’s a gesture I became exceptionally familiar with after meeting the twins.

They’re wolves.

They’re wolves and they’ve no doubt scented Ember and me. It’s only a matter of time before the guards come looking for us, thinking that we’re rogues that are getting too close to their borders.

I begin to walk towards the forest’s edge, closer to the road and gate when Ember’s hand wraps around my arm pulling me back towards her.

“Mags, what are you doing? They’ll see us!”

“I’m pretty sure they’re wolves, in which case they already know we’re here.” I free myself from her hold and walk the few feet to the edge of the woods and out onto the road in plain view of the guards at the gate.

Ember scurries ahead of me, putting herself between me and the men at the gate. I’m not sure if she’s trying to protect me because she’s never met a wolf before and therefore doesn’t trust them, or if she just thinks that I’m making a mistake.

The two guards quickly take notice of our presence. “You ladies lost? This is private property.” His tone is polite but clearly a warning that we’re not invited to be here.

I step out from behind Ember and square my shoulders. “We’re trying to get to Shadowmoon, if you could point us in the right direction we’ll be on our way.”

I’m hoping they let us go, or better yet offer to give us a ride.

They smell the air again and their eyes go cloudy for a moment. “What business do you have in Shadowmoon?”

“I have family there.” I put a protective hand over my stomach. “Please, we’re just trying to get home.”

The men exchange a quick look before opening the gate. “You’ll need to speak with our Alpha, follow us.”

The guards lead us up the driveway to an idyllic mansion nestled in a large clearing in the middle of the forest. I notice the blurry bodies of wolves running along the woods’ edge, curious of our presence here.

It’s an encouraging sight, I’m counting on this pack to connect us with Shadowmoon — to bring us home.

The mansion is obviously used as their pack house. Inside it has similar amenities as Shadowmoon; there are plenty of sitting areas, games, TVs, and computers. It’s a bit busier than the twins’ packhouse, many younger wolves float around mingling with one another.

A short, plump, older woman comes up to us from around a corner. Her cheeks are rosy red and permanently dimpled from years of smiling. She’s a dumpling of a woman.

“Are these them?” She asks the guards with a tone of surprise.

When the guards confirm that we’re the women they notified her of she swats them each once on the hip with her tea towel.

“Why didn’t you say they looked exhausted, and this one with a baby due any second now by the looks of her.” She tuts at them and then turns her attention to us. “Welcome. I’m Bonnie, but everyone calls me Bunny. Now come with me my poor, sweet dears. Let’s get you cleaned up.”

She links us by the arm and begins to lead us up the stairs.

“Alpha Alec is expecting them.” The guards shout after us.

“He can wait. Give us thirty minutes.” She calls back, not bothering to look at them.

She leads us to a guest room and thankfully thinks better of putting us in separate rooms. Though I’m confident they’ll help us get home, I don’t want Ember to leave my sight.

Once inside the room Bunny unlinks her arms from ours and bee-lines to the bathroom.

She begins fussing over the tub, filling it with water and bubbles.

“Wherever did you two come from? No matter, a nice hot bath for you and then I’ll have supper brought up. You need to rest, no doubt about it.” She speaks at us, working on gathering towels and soaps without actually addressing us eye to eye.

“There we are.” She says with a self-satisfied sigh. “Leave your clothes in the hamper, I’ll see that they’re laundered and one of the girls will be by soon with something fresh for you to wear.”

“You really don’t need to go through all this trouble, if we can just speak to your Alpha we’ll be on our way.”

She pins me with a look I’ve only seen my mother and Accalia be able to pull off. It’s one that means that this isn’t up for discussion.

“Go on now, my dears. We’ll be by in a bit.” She shuffles out of the room with purpose leaving me and Ember to ourselves.

We strip out of our tattered and dirty clothes and throw them in the hamper like she instructed. Ember helps me into the tub before hopping in the shower.

It’s almost overwhelming how something as simple as a bubble bath can feel like such a luxury after being trapped all these months. I wonder if I’m actually dreaming, if this isn’t just another way for Ian to torture me — by allowing me to think that I’m free, that I’m safe, only to rip it all away from me.

Part of me hopes it is a dream, because then Griffin would still be alive.

“Ember.” My voice echoes off the tiles in the large bathroom, and even though I can feel the twins kicking at me from within I still can’t quite let myself fully accept that this isn’t a dream. “Are We dreaming?”

She lets loose a long sigh that rises with the steam and condenses on my skin.

“You don’t need me to tell you, Mags. You know this is real, believe it.”

She’s right. Every time Ian invaded my dreams my hair was long and my pregnant belly was gone, like he couldn’t stand the sight of me carrying any child that wasn’t his. Or maybe it was just another way to try to break me.

I exhale a shaky sigh of relief. This isn’t a dream. We really escaped. Griffin is really dead. And we’re getting closer and closer to home.

I lather myself in bubbles, scrubbing off the dirt and blood on my body, scraping off the memory of being in the hollow, cleansing myself of the last five, awful months.

“Mags?”

Ember is standing next to the tub, dried and fully dressed in a yellow blouse and dark jeans. She regards me quizzically, her tone one of concern.

“Mags, stop, you’re not going to have any skin left.”

An involuntary hiss escapes through my teeth when she grabs onto my arms to help me out of the tub. My arms are bright red and bleeding in spots from scrubbing at the same spot so harshly.

No matter how much I scrubbed it just didn’t feel clean enough, like I couldn’t rid myself of the horrors that have ingrained themselves in my skin.

Washing away Drow Hollow is like washing off a tattoo, no matter how much I scrub it’ll always be there, a permanent stamp of shame on my body constantly reminding me of the greatest mistake of my life.

I’m suddenly nervous; nervous for how my family will react when I come home, nervous to see the twins again after running off without them, after acting like I could do everything on my own.

A brilliant golden light pulls me from my thoughts. I watch the angry, red marks on my arm fade away until they disappear completely as the light washes over my arms.

“You need to stop punishing yourself. You did what you thought was right, you couldn’t have known.” Ember quietly admonishes me.

“No but I should have. I should have waited, Griffin released them that same night. If I had just waited then –”

“Then they’d still be locked up. Your arrival allowed him to get them out, you did free them…and you freed me.”

I scoff, “and killed Griffin.”

“Mags, stop, this isn’t like you. You’re fierce, strong, and confident. Now come on, let’s get you home.”

I squeeze her hand as a sign of my gratitude since the words have gotten lodged in my throat. After she helps me up, I use my heat to dry myself quickly, then change into the gray leggings and sage green maternity tee that was left out for me.

“I’m not going to sit here and wait for her to come back. Let’s go downstairs, find the Alpha, and get out of here.

Ember doesn’t fight me. “Yes, ma’am.” She smirks at me and gives me a playful salute.