He wasn’t.
The ceiling groaned above me. A beam cracked and crashed to the floor behind him, sending up a spray of ash and embers.
Then I heard the scream. It cut through the fire, high, sharp, and full of terror. And that was when I realized I wasn’t just burning down a building full of evil men.
There were girls inside.
Girls like Licia.
Trapped in the same maze of velvet and smoke.
I hadn’t thought about saving anyone else. It had seemed impossible, even if they wanted to be saved. And maybe, deep down, I had assumed they wouldn’t. After what the girls at the theatre had said, I’d assumed the ones in Hel would choose to stay too. That they wouldn’t want saving. That they’d be afraid of freedom. But there’s a difference between leaving them behind… and killing them. I couldn’t be the reason they died.
So I ran.
The hallway was fire, and each step I took sent sparks skittering across the floor. I turned a corner and saw a girl, she was sprinting, barefoot, and guard had a second girl by the hair. He yanked her off her feet, her knees scraping against the floor as she hit the ground hard.
I didn’t hesitate.
I raised my hand, and the guard turned just in time to die. I lifted him off the ground like he weighed nothing and slammed him into the far wall.
He hit the wall hard, crumpled, and didn’t get back up, but the girl scrambled away, vanishing into the firestorm.
I kept moving, chasing the screams, and found a door. Small fists hammered against wood. Voices begged through the flames, as fists hammered hard.
I threw myself at it, but the handle didn’t budge.
“They locked it,” I gasped, slamming my shoulder against the wood. “Theylocked it!”
“Kera, we have to go!” Will’s voice came from behind. I spun around and ran to the dead guard’s body, dropping to my knees. My fingers tore through his pockets, as more smoke stung my eyes, turning everything into shadow and flame.
“There has to be a key,” I rasped. My lungs scraped for air. I couldn’t breathe, but I didn’t stop.
“There’s no time!” Will shouted, coughing hard into his sleeve.
I was killing him. He wouldn’t leave unless I did, but I couldn’t leave the girls to burn. I knew what that felt like. And they were real. Real people with dreams and fears, favorite foods and families who were waiting for them, hoping they’d come home.
And if I did nothing… I’d be the reason they never did.
Will grabbed my arms and tried to pull me back. “The whole building’s coming down!”
“I’m not leaving them!” I screamed.
I ripped free from his grip and hurled myself at the door again. My fists pounded the wood until my knuckles split and blood smeared across the surface.
But the door didn’t move.
The fire was everywhere, a living thing, roaring and bellowing, its breath hot against my skin, my face. And it screamed, like a thousand furious voices howling in my ears. Smoke poured into my mouth, into my nose, searing my throat raw.
It was mine—and it wanted me dead.
Then Will’s arms were around me again, pulling me backward, lifting me off the ground.
“We have to leave!” he shouted. “Now!”
“No—just a second—I can still—”
“Youcan’t!” His voice cracked. “You can’t save everyone!”
