Dragonslayer (Twilight of the Gods Book 3) (3 page)

“I’m not getting cold anything,” she said. “I love Fen with all of my heart. I’m just…having a moment.”

“Yeah, but you’re having it at my house. If I’d known it was going to be like this, I’d have suggested we all just move in together.” She looked stricken, and he rushed to reassure her. “You know I’m kidding. You’re always welcome here, anytime you want to stop by. What’s really going on?”

“Nothing. It’s just…” She stood abruptly. “I should go.”

He straightened, suddenly wary. “Raquel?”

“It’s really nothing. Just something Fen mentioned the other night.”

He didn’t really want to ask, but he had to. If Raquel had set something in motion, he needed to know about it. She didn’t screw everything up, but she did have a habit of jumping into things before examining all the repercussions. “Just spit it out.”

“You know how I like to fix things. To set things right.”

“I know you like to light fuses.”

“Since Fen doesn’t want to have a child who’s a hound, we thought that maybe you might be willing to be the father.”

He stared. When she didn’t start laughing but just stood there looking miserable, he said, “You’ve got to be shitting me.”

Clearly, by her expression, she was not. “It’s just a thought. People keep asking us about babies even though they all know Fen’s sworn never to be a father.”

He sympathized. Older members of the clan asked him the same question, and he wasn’t married. There weren’t many full-blooded Æsir left. Children with Midgardian blood weren’t as closely tied to the fault but, with a few exceptions, possessed no magical abilities. Half of the hunters were of mixed blood already. The number of hounds dwindled with each generation, and most of their witches could do little more than create simple charms. Another generation, maybe two, and there’d be too few Æsir to guard the fault. They’d be forced to seal the portal, abandon the land and merge with another clan. It had been drilled into him from a young age that it was part of his responsibility as a member of the hunt to continue his bloodline. Still…

The image that popped into his head of Raquel sprawled on his bed while Fen sat in a corner eating popcorn made his head hurt. “Fen wants me to…to…” Gods, he couldn’t even finish the sentence.

She waved her hands. “Not that. Just, you know, a donation. We discussed maybe going to a bank, but then I threw that out there. And at first we were like ha-ha but then, when you stop and think about it, it actually makes sense.”

He shook his head. “In which of the nine worlds does that make sense? Because it sure as Hel doesn’t make sense in this one.”

She blinked and then narrowed her eyes, seeming to really look at him for the first time since he’d walked in. “You’re upset.”

“Am I supposed to be flattered?”

She cringed and opened her hand. “I explained it poorly.”

“No, I don’t think you did. I understood you just fine. I think maybe the two of you have lost your ever-loving minds, but your speaking ability is apparently unaffected.”

She hesitated. “So that’s a no?”

He looked up and she took a step back, shoving her hands in her pockets. “We’ll just let you think on that for a while, then.”

“Thanks.”

She stopped edging toward the door and gave him a long, hard look. “How about you? Is everything okay?”

“Other than the fact that the woman who left me at the altar just asked me to father the child she wants to raise with my best man?”

“Other than that.”

And because it was Raquel, who’d already seen him at his worst, he shook his head. “It’s been a rough year. Easy would be good right now. Quiet would be even better. I just want things to be stable until I get my feet under me again.”

She grinned. “Where would be the fun in that?”

Chapter Two

Jacey hadn’t expected to hear from Christian. For one thing, he’d already told her he hadn’t heard anything about missing animals. For another, she didn’t get a lot of phone calls from drop-dead gorgeous men. Or men period, for that matter. Her phone was ringing when she stepped out of the shower, and her first thought upon seeing the local number was that it was the mayor finally calling her back. When she realized it was Christian calling to ask her out to breakfast, she nearly dropped her towel.

It wasn’t a date. He made that clear immediately, explaining that he’d spoken to a friend that morning and had some information that might help with her case. Also, if she wanted to catch the mayor, he usually popped in to the diner for coffee around nine. He gave her landmark directions to help her find Ragnarok, and it had taken her nearly an hour to make it this far. Well, only forty minutes on the road. She’d taken a little extra time to dry her hair and put on makeup. Because a girl could dream, right?

After turning off the three-block-long main street, she snagged a parking spot right in front of the diner, pulled her scarf up over her nose and climbed from the truck. The sidewalk was raised concrete, a couple of feet higher than the surface of the road, and she had to squeeze in between the grille of a pickup truck and the cement in order to reach the stairs. There were a fair number of cars parked outside the diner, but the rest of the street seemed quiet for a Saturday morning. Maybe the weather was keeping everyone home. The roads were mostly clear from last night’s snow, only a little slick, but it was still a chilly, windy day to be out and about.

When she stepped inside the diner, she paused for a second to admire the quaintness of the place. It wasn’t very big, but it was bright and clean, decorated in a retro sort of style. The curving counter and chrome-plated stools looked like they might be original, but everything else appeared to have been updated sometime within the last twenty years. She spotted Christian right away, even though he was sitting in a booth toward the back. Pocketing her mittens, she started down the aisle. Christian glanced up from his menu and smiled at her as she approached. It zipped right through her like an electric current. She'd half hoped it was a trick of the light that had made him seem so attractive in the bar last night. But nope, even here with the obnoxiously bright fluorescent bulbs overhead, he still looked like a long-lost Hemsworth brother. If she’d had any lingering illusions about this being a date, the sight of him would’ve disabused her. Silly to think someone like him might be interested in a tomboy of a girl with carrot-red hair, chapped hands and freckles all over her face.

Sliding onto the bench opposite him, she shrugged free of her coat. “Sorry I’m late.”

“No problem. I thought it might take you a while to make it in with the roads. Do you want coffee?”

At her nod, he signaled for the waitress, and a few seconds later a steaming mug sat in front of her. After the waitress took their orders, Christian leaned back against the red vinyl. He rested one arm on the back of the seat, causing his shirt to cling enticingly to his biceps.

“You found the motel okay?”

“Thanks for the tip,” she said. “It’s a lot nicer inside than it looked from the road. I never would’ve stopped if you hadn’t recommended it. I didn’t expect you to call this morning. You said you had something?”

He shrugged. “A place to start, anyway. A friend of mine who owns a farm just a few miles outside of town had to put down a raccoon that crawled out of the ditch near the mailbox yesterday. It was sick but he didn’t think to have it tested. This morning there was a large dog in the field by his place, also acting strange. He’s worried about rabies.”

“God, I hope not.”

“That bad?”

She brushed her hair from her face. “Not exactly. If rabies is involved, it means more of a hassle than anything. And it doesn’t really explain the reports we received. Animals have been going missing. Just
poof
. Nothing left behind. No one’s called in about an animal acting strangely, and the reports span several weeks. A sick animal wouldn’t have lasted that long.”

“You’re assuming one animal, and that none of the missing pets were infected and ran off.”

“Rabid chickens?”

He raised his brows. “Is that a thing?”

“Nope.” She smiled at the image of foam-beaked chickens that popped into her mind. “At least we have that going for us. Rabies only affects mammals.”

His eyes sparkled with amusement. “So not rabies, then.”

“Oh, I don’t know,” she said. “Maybe also rabies. Animal control here is a mess. The guy I need to talk to just had back surgery, and the county sheriff is supposed to be handling things for him while he’s out.”

“Let me guess, Carl doesn’t want to be covering for him.”

“You know Carl?”

“I do.” Before she could apologize for insulting his friend, he said, “Carl’s planning to retire soon, I think. He’s good at his job but he also wouldn’t be overly enthusiastic about taking on a mess. Sorry if I wasted your time with the rabid dog thing. I thought it might help, and you’d mentioned coming into town.”

“It’s not a waste of time,” she said. “Related to this case or not, I’ll need to check it out. Can I get the name and number for this friend of yours?”

“He said you could stop by anytime today, but I thought maybe I could run you out after breakfast.”

She paused with the mug half raised to her mouth. “I don’t want to inconvenience you like that. My GPS is a piece of crap, but I’ll find the place.”

“It’s no trouble.” He shrugged, drawing her attention to his shoulders again. “I have to stop by there today.”

She glanced out the window, where the snow was beginning to fall. Still light enough not to cover more than the tops of the cars and sidewalks. The forecast said it wouldn’t last past noon, but she didn’t relish the idea of driving around on unfamiliar roads in bad weather with spotty GPS and phone service. But she also wasn’t sure she was ready to climb into a car with him yet either, charming as he was.

“I’ll think about it.”

They made small talk while they waited for their food—the awful weather and her hope that it would let up soon. Where she was from—Des Moines. He’d grown up here. Where she’d gone to school? State. And he dodged that one, which made her think he wasn’t college educated. It made her feel bad that he thought he had to hide that, but there was no way to reassure him that she didn’t care without embarrassing him further. And then eventually the conversation came round, as it always did, to what she did for a living.

“What made you decide to work for the DNR?”

“I interned at one of the state parks my junior year, and after I graduated, they offered me a permanent position. It’s a good place to start, and I had to stick around for a while anyway.”

“Why’s that?”

She hesitated, but only for a moment. His interest seemed genuine, and he was easy to talk to. Smart and funny, and since he was a stranger she was unlikely to ever see again after today anyway, there was no pressure to try and impress him. She worked with a lot of men, but she had a policy of not dating people she worked with. Not that she had much temptation, considering they were mostly older and married. She traveled often, though not far, and didn’t have much of a social life. This was nice, sitting here talking with an attractive man who actually seemed to want to spend time with her.

“My mother was sick. She and my father split up when I was about eight. He moved out to Seattle and she stayed in Des Moines.”

“And you took care of her?”

“Some.” Mostly making sure she had rides to and from doctor’s appointments and filling medications. Cooking and laundry, but those were things she would’ve had to do for herself anyway. “She’s doing better now. She kicked me out of the house last year when she went back to work. She’s dating again. Says that she’s started her life over and it’s past time for me to start mine. I have an interview next week in New York with World Conservation…” She shook her head. “And I don’t know why I’m telling you all this. I’m sorry. I’m rambling.”

“I asked.” He smiled with the boyish kind of charm that doubtless had women throwing themselves at him day and night. “So you’re the person in the department they send out chasing wild geese.”

That was a little too accurate for comfort. She was the low woman on the totem pole. Everyone had to pay their dues, but still, she did get pinned with the shit jobs more often than anyone else. “Something like that.”

“And now that your mother’s all better you’re ready to move on to bigger and better things?”

“Exactly.” She winced, hoping he wouldn’t take that the wrong way. “Not that this isn’t important. It’s just that I went to school because I was interested in working to protect endangered animals. So far this job has been all animal bites and mangy raccoons.”

The man in the table beside them rose with his bill, reminding her of the reason she was here in Ragnarok. “I should really ask around while I’m here.”

“I did that while I was waiting. No one else has had any trouble. Just Aiden. You should talk to him first.”

She nodded and set down her mug. “So, how about you? What’s your story?”

The corner of his mouth quirked up. “You mean, what’s keeping me out here in the sticks?”

“I didn’t—I mean… It’s a nice town.” But tiny and very isolated. Even on a slight acquaintance, Christian seemed too big for a place like this. “Did you grow up here?”

He unfolded his napkin as the waitress arrived with their food. She thought she imagined the shadow that crossed his features, because when he looked up again he was smiling.

“I was born here,” he said. “I don’t plan to ever leave.”

Jacey was sweet, and Christian, despite all of his experience with women, had never really known what to do with sweet. She’d been adorably awkward when he called to ask her for breakfast. There’d been a moment of silence followed by a stammered request for directions. He was pretty sure she’d thought he was asking her on a date, and while that hadn’t been his intention, he found himself wishing that it were the truth. That this was their first date. That Jacey was Æsir and belonged here. That the easy conversation they’d had over breakfast could lead to friendship and maybe something more. Her kindness cut through his defenses like Skimstrok through jötnar hide, and he found himself attracted to her in a way he hadn’t been to anyone for the last year.

Not that he’d get a chance to explore it. Aiden had ordered him to send her on her way without making her suspicious, and it was turning out to be a laughably easy job. He should feel good about that, but he only felt guilty for lying to her. Served him right that the first woman to pique his interest in the last year was one he couldn’t have. Who said the gods didn’t have a sense of humor?

Bill appeared right on cue so Christian could introduce him to Jacey. Bill might shirk his duties at times, but he could also be charming when called to it. Aiden had paid him a personal visit that morning to remind him of those responsibilities, and Bill was at his most charming with Jacey.

Christian sat back in the booth and listened as Bill apologized for not returning Jacey’s calls with the invention a sick mother and a convincing story about hospital visits and bungled medication. Jacey accepted it all without any evident suspicion and handed Bill her card.

“Where would be the best place to start asking around?”

Bill frowned as he pretended to consider the question, and Christian decided to intervene before he got carried away.

“We’re heading out to Aiden’s place next,” he said. “Can you think of anywhere else we might want to stop?”

Bill shook his head. “Not off the top of my head, I can’t. Aiden will know if any of his neighbors have seen or heard anything out of the ordinary. I’ll call a few people too, and get back to you with anything I find out by the end of the day. You’re working through the weekend?”

Jacey nodded. “I need to make sure there’s nothing dangerous out there.”

A few minutes later, they were on their way out to Aiden’s for the conclusion of the little play that would end with Jacey driving out of town. She seemed a little nervous about getting into a car with him, and it took him a minute to figure out why. He was an idiot. Growing up in a town where everyone knew who you were, he wasn’t used to being thought of as a stranger. It was touching that she’d accepted his offer of a ride. She trusted him already. The realization only made him feel shittier about deceiving her.

“Thanks again for doing this,” she said. “It’s above and beyond.”

“No trouble. Aiden would have driven out to the diner, but he had chores.” He nodded toward the back seat, where he had a box of tools he’d borrowed last week. “I had to return a few things anyway. Besides, now I’m curious and I could never pass up a good mystery.”

“Too many detective shows growing up?”

“Scooby Doo. I’m a fan of the classics.”

She laughed. “You’d make an excellent Fred, even if your car is all wrong. Do I get to be Velma or Daphne?”

He glanced at her hair. A vibrant red that reminded him of autumn leaves. Straight and very fine, it caught the light whenever she turned her head. “The red hair is kind of a giveaway, but I always thought Velma was more interesting.”