Heroes (Eirik Book 2) (12 page)

Just to mess with her, I said, “I liked Syr.”

Father laughed, but Mother frowned.

“Which one was that? The annoying one who refused to shift?” she asked.

“That’s Olea, Karle’s sister. Syr is this tall.” I indicated a height with my hand. “Has dimples”—which had reminded me of Celestia’s—“and is an amazing dancer.” I asked her to stand on my feet as we danced, and she loved it.

“The Dwarf girl?” Mother looked at Father for clarification, but he couldn’t contain his amusement. Annoyance flashed across Mother’s face. “Which one was she?” she asked impatiently. She was panicking now. I could hear her whisper furiously to Father. She needed to develop a sense of humor.

“You’re talking about that two-year-old?” she asked. “She wanted to play with my scepter and grabbed my dress with her sticky hands. Apparently, the green gem fascinated her. She kept following me around.”

“Did you assume the role of a good hostess and let her play with it?” I asked, trying to contain the laugh threatening to escape me.

A look of horror crossed her face. “Of course not. I turned it black,” she said without remorse.

“If you had listened to me, you would not have suffered through this party and sticky fingers. I’ll be dividing my time between Midgard and here starting tomorrow.”

Panic crossed Mother’s face. “Why?”

I didn’t dare look at my father. “Because I can deliver a more terrifying blow to the Norns there, not here. Nornsgard is too well hidden.”

“We agreed you’d torch that valley.”

“You suggested it, Mother. I didn’t agree.” She’d assumed I’d follow her instructions. “Give me a chance to do things my way. If my plan doesn’t work, then we’ll discuss other options, including yours.”

She studied me intently. I was sure she’d argue, but she surprised me when she nodded. “Okay. What’s your plan?”

“I can’t talk about it now. You’ll jinx it.” She stared at me with a blank expression. Either she didn’t know what jinx meant or didn’t believe in bad luck.

She glanced at my father. “Did he tell you this great plan of his?”

“No,
dýrr mín
, but I trust him to do the right thing.”

I could always count on my wise and diplomatic father. He whispered something to her. She listened, but she didn’t appear convinced.

“You know you can’t fight them as a dragon in Midgard,” she said.

She wasn’t going to stop until she knew the details of my plans.

“I don’t plan to, but in case it happens, I know how Mortals would spin it, Mother. Conspiracy theorists would claim I was a government experiment gone wrong. Scientists would insist I was a prehistoric creature resembling a dragon. The nerds and geeks would yap about multiverses, a bend in the time and space continuum between the present and a primordial Earth. Only the supernatural world would know a veil had been lifted between the realms. Everyone would believe they were right, and no conclusion would be reached. I got this, Mother. Trust me.”

She dropped the subject even though she still looked worried. We reached the rotunda and found Karle waiting. Was he lost? Father only spared him a glance. Knowing him, he probably knew Karle and I had flown back to the hall together and already had the poor guy under surveillance. Guards posted along the hallway in the guest hall reported everything to my father every few hours.

“What are you doing here?” Mother asked, eyeing Karle as though trying to place him.

“He is my friend,” I said. She looked ready to argue, but Father took her arm and escorted her toward their quarters. I waited until they gone before asking, “What’s going on?”

He glanced at the guards stationed in the rotunda and lowered his voice. “Can we talk, please?”

“Sure.” I didn’t want to take him to my quarters, so I led the way back toward the Throne Room. There wasn’t much to do around the hall except drink, eat, and fight. I wasn’t in the mood to do any one of them. We needed a big screen TV and some video games. “What’s going on?”

“My father would like a moment of your time.”

Sometimes Karle sounded so uptight I wanted to tell him to lighten up. Or maybe the presence of my two shadows had something to do with it. I raised a finger, indicating for the guards to stay back, and followed Karle into the guest hall. They fell back and waited outside when we reached Karle’s family’s designated quarters. Each unit had bedrooms and a sitting area. The larger families like Karle’s were using several units.

Chief Skavnir got up from one of the armchairs when we entered and bowed.

“Thank you for coming, Baldurson,” he said. “Please, sit.”

I wasn’t exactly sure what purpose a cloak served indoors, but it had been a pain every time I sat. I had to deal with sweeping it out of the way or sitting on it. I unclasped mine before sitting down. If Karle and his father thought my actions strange, they didn’t show it. They deftly swept their cloaks out of the way.

“What can I do for you?” I asked.

He moved forward, sat on the edge of the sofa, and rested his elbows on his knees. “I could not bring this up in the hall this evening because of the sensitivity of the subject. My son tells me that you spoke with Angrboda?”

Karle needed to learn discretion.

“Yes. Briefly.”
Before she tried to bite me.
“Why?”

The old man’s mouth moved as though he was trying to speak and his eyes grew shimmery. Damn, he was about to cry. I glanced at Karle.

“What?” I mouthed.

“My father is happy you found her,” Karle said. “He’s trying to say—”

His father gripped his arm and shook his head. “Leave us, Son. I’d like to talk to the young god alone.”

Karle didn’t hesitate. When the door closed behind him, Chief Skavnir squared his shoulders and looked a lot less old. His voice sounded stronger when he spoke.

“It’s been so long we’d despaired she’d never come back. Some even believed she was dead.” He grinned, showing crooked teeth. I didn’t recall if he’d smiled at all the entire evening. “Our chieftess is truly indestructible. I always knew she was alive. That she would return and reunite our clans again. The blood bond never lies. We felt the tug the moment we arrived here in this realm, but it was faint. At first, we thought the tug came from your mother, but when we entered the hall, it wasn’t there. Tonight, it grew stronger.”

“Please, slow down. What’s a blood bond?”

“The bond formed from a dragon kiss. When your grandmother took us in after our father died, she made sure she never lost us again, so she marked us. Not just my sister and me. She marked all the orphans she raised. She swore she would always find us no matter where we were, and we would find her if we were ever lost. And if for some reason she couldn’t, we could always find each other. I saw one of her orphans tonight.” He rolled back the sleeve of his shirt and showed me two scars on his arm. “We all have this mark from the kiss. The blood bond is the strongest kind of bond, and that’s why I was surprised when you refused to bind those you defeated.”

“I didn’t think it was necessary.” I didn’t want loyalty forged by blood, but from his expression, it was the norm. Maybe he could help me find my sister since both of them had been bitten by my crazy granny. “Tell me about the orphans and the bond.”

“After your mother and uncle were taken from her, your grandmother took in abandoned children and raised them. Most were wolf pups, but some were like my sister and me, dragon shifters and raven shifters. We can feel each other’s presence because of the energy she gave us when she bit us. The more gifted of us can follow a thread of energy in a crowded room and find the right person.” He smiled. “Tonight, I noticed a shy girl dressed in strange clothes. She must be one of her recent orphans.”

My stomach dropped. Strange clothes? The only one dressed differently tonight had been Celestia. There was no way he was talking about her.

“What was she wearing?” I asked.

“White pants with holes and a very strange waistcoat. She cannot be from this realm.”

Damn. Celestia. The implication was shocking and unexpected. I jumped to my feet and paced. When had my grandmother bitten her? Did Celestia know?

“I invited her to join us, but she declined and closed the portal. I felt the tug of the blood bond, and I’m sure she felt it too. Most of the orphans disappeared from our village after Angrboda left. Some were babies, but quite a few were older. That was years ago. But tonight, I knew Angrboda was still watching over orphans when I saw the girl. The energy from her was strong, which meant her blood bond was new.”

Crap. This was messed up. First my grandmother trapped her here and then she bit her, binding them together. I tried to remember when it might have happened. There was a period during our fight when she’d hit me with her tail and nearly knocked me out. Or she might have bitten her before I arrived at the cave.

“Is she a guest here? Can I meet with her?”

“No, she’s gone.”

Silence followed as though he was rearranging his thoughts. “When will she be back?”

“Never.” She’d not want to return once she learned about this. First my sister, now Celestia. Just when I’d started to believe that Granny might actually be worth forgiving, I learned something new to make me dislike her. She and I were going to have a long talk when I caught up with her.

“When will you see Angrboda again?” Chief Skavnir asked.

“I don’t know.” Hopefully never. In the mood I was in, I could kill her. I picked up my cloak.

“Maybe if you see her again, you can give her a message from us.”

“What?” I asked, a little impatiently. My mind was on Celestia.

“Tell her the clan needs her and awaits her return. I’ll call a meeting as soon as we arrive in Ironwood Forest. All the clans will work together to get her hall ready.” He shook my hand, completely oblivious to the blow he’d dealt with his words. “Thank you for sharing this great news, Rising Star. Thank you very much.”

Great news? This was terrible news. I had to find a way to fix this, but first, Celestia had to know.

I left and headed straight for my quarters. I was halfway toward the portal when something Chief Skavnir had said registered. Those bitten by my grandmother could always feel each other. Celestia might be the key to finding my sister.

CELESTIA

Sounds woke me up. For a moment, I was disoriented and couldn’t tell where I was. Then I remembered I had slept at Hayden’s. My watch said it was five o’clock. It was too early for someone who’d gone to bed at two after listening to Witches arguing in the other room. We couldn’t hear their discussion, but their voices had droned on and on for hours and kept me awake.

Last night, we’d arrived at Hayden’s apartment to find her mother hosting a mini conference. Twenty to thirty male and female Witches had been scattered around their living room, guzzling coffee and having a heated discussion. I had no idea Tammy knew that many Witches. Interestingly, I hadn’t recognized any of them. I’d assumed they were lone practitioners like us, until I heard them speak and watched how they’d acted.

They’d confirmed the deaths and agreed that the timing and circumstances were suspicious before firmly telling us to stay in the bedroom while they discussed how to deal with the problem. Most covens were divided along racial lines, and members often had similar traditional backgrounds—Afro-Carribeans, Africans, Druids, Celtic, Native American, or various Asiatic cultures. But last night’s group had been diverse, making me reach one conclusion—they were members of the Witches Guild, the organization that foresaw Witches’ activities across the globe. Coven business had always taken precedent over the guild’s, until now. It was very reassuring to know the guild was back.

More sounds came from behind the door again. I glanced at Hayden, but she was fast asleep. She could sleep through a hurricane. Careful not to wake her, I slipped out of the bed and made my way across the room to the door. Now I could hear voices. I opened it and peered outside.

Tammy appeared in my line of vision, and I stiffened. What was she doing up? She wasn’t dressed for bed. In fact, she looked like she was getting ready to go out. She had her dress coat buttoned up, a scarf around her neck, and heels on. I started to push the door when a man came into view. He was dressed in an expensive suit and trench coat.

Who was he? A date? He looked a lot older than her. I didn’t even know Tammy was dating. In fact, I’d never seen her go out with anyone in the four years they’d lived here. Maybe they weren’t leaving. They could have just gotten home. Once again, I started to close the door, but then the lights went out, and I didn’t hear steps coming toward the bedroom.

Okay, I was wrong. They were leaving. I waited for the door to close. Nothing happened. Frowning, I stepped into the hallway and padded toward the living room, my eyes adjusting to the darkness. The magical energy pulsing in the air grew stronger. I peered into the room. They were gone.

Had they used a portal? I didn’t know where the thought had come from, but I scoffed at the idea. Witches didn’t use portals. That would only be possible if the man with her wasn’t a Witch.

I hurried back to the bedroom and got my overnight sling bag, where I’d hidden the cloak. Hayden turned and for a moment, I was sure she’d wake up. I carried the bag back to the living room and pulled out the cloak. I closed my hand around the pin and looked around.

I couldn’t tell whether the Veil had been lifted. There was no portal or remnants of runes in the air. I went to the window and peered outside to see if they were taking her car. My jaw dropped. Lights zipped around downstairs. Then they slowed down.

What the hell? Two people were doing something in the parking lot and the light came from their glowing runes. I opened the door, stepped onto the balcony, and peered down, expecting to see Tammy and the stranger.

One thing about runes was they lit up faces like a Christmas tree, and neither of the two women below was Tammy. I recognized the two Grimnirs from last night—Ginger and Samoan. From the looks of things, they were busy etching runes on the wall of the building.

I opened my mouth to ask why and remembered at the last minute that it was five in the morning and most people were still asleep. I started to turn to enter the house and caught movement from the corner of my eye.

One of them was inside my car?

I wasn’t sure how I reached downstairs so fast. But I was ready for a battle when I opened the back door and stepped outside, the cloak around me, the hood up.

“Grimnirs, there’s a law against graffiti painting in this realm,” I yelled. “Even invisible ones by invisible people.”

The girls stopped before I finished speaking and stared at me with wide eyes, but the one inside my car kept writing.

“You think she can see us?” Ginger asked, a glowing artavus in her hand.

“No. I think she can feel us,” Samoan answered. “Come on. Let’s get done and head to her cousin’s.”

For a moment I was too stupefied to react. My cousin’s? What was this? Rune-fest in Windfall? The guy working on my car was now on the roof. Since he didn’t have my keys to be crawling in and out of my car, he’d probably used a portal.

I marched to my car, yelling, “I’m serious. Get down from there. That’s my car, and I didn’t give anyone permission to mess with it.” Closer now, I could see the runes inside my car. Some of them looked like they’d been around for a while.

“You can really see me?” he asked.

“No, I make a habit of talking to my car. Of course, I can see you.” I realized I was yelling and lowered my voice. “Why are you defacing my car and the building with runes?”

“For your protection,” Samoan said.

“We’re following orders,” Ginger added.

“Whose?”

“Baldurson’s.” The women spoke in unison and moved closer.

I groaned. Who died and made Eirik my protector? At least he could have asked me first. I didn’t need runes. I was a Witch and could feel bad mojo from a mile away.

“Don’t you guys sleep?” I asked, not containing my annoyance.

“We are doing the night shift,” Samoan said.

“How come you can see us now when you couldn’t before?” Ginger asked.

My eyes volleyed between the two girls. Last night, I hadn’t really noticed how young they were. They must have been in their late teens when they’d become Immortal.

“What do you mean before?” I asked.

“Four months ago when we put protection runes on your car,” Samoan said.

“And your home,” Ginger piped.

“Don’t forget the school and her cousin’s place,” the dude on top of my car finished. He’d gone back to etching more runes on my car.

“I swear, you etch one more rune and I will personally go to the goddess and report you. Get down. She and I are pals now, if you haven’t heard. You don’t just rune people’s property without asking their permission.”

A chuckle came from behind me, and I whipped round. Eirik stood a few feet away, hands in the front pockets of his coat, an amused expression on his face. Unlike the others, he didn’t have any runes on, so he was visible, the security light bathing his handsome face.

“Do you know that anyone watching you right now probably thinks you’re a lunatic?” He looked up and sure enough, when I followed is gaze, a few early risers were staring down at us. I groaned.

The twice-divorced Mr. Bufford was Tammy’s next-door neighbor and the owner of a cigarette shop. He was a creep, but he respected Witches. The newly married couple owned a lingerie shop. The wife crossed herself, and her husband didn’t bother to lower his voice as they turned to enter their home.

“I don’t know why we moved to this town. Everyone is…” I didn’t catch the rest of his words, but I was sure the sentence ended with crazy or weird.

Heat crawled up my face. “Mornin’, Mr. Bufford.”

“You okay, Celestia?” He still stood by the rail.

“Oh yes. Just getting rid of critters. They tend to come out in the witching hours while people are still asleep.”

“I might have one hiding in my storage room. Can you stop by later today and take care of it?”

The letch. Tammy had warned us against going to his store.

“I’ll tell Tammy.”

He chuckled and disappeared inside his house.

Eirik studied me with an amused expression. But when his eyes shifted to my legs, I realized I hadn’t bothered with shoes and my pajama top was one of my oversize T-shirts. It reached my upper thighs, covering the skimpy shorts underneath, so to an observer I looked like I was only wearing the T-shirt. It also barely covered the scar from his bite.

Worried he might see it, I adjusted the cloak and got a chuckle for my efforts. I ignored him. The Grimnir on my car was back at it again.

“Down.” I grabbed his foot and pulled, but I might as well have been trying to haul the Rock of Gilbraltar.

He glanced at Eirik.

“Don’t look at him. It’s not his car. It’s mine, and no one asked my permission or checked with me first.”

“This is for your own good, Celestia,” Eirik said. “Granny might soul-nap you again.”

My stomach dropped. “You found her?”

“No, but I have reason to believe she’s in Helheim. Last night, someone at the party felt her presence.” He moved closer. “I’m not the only one concerned about you. If she becomes a threat to you again, my parents want you to stay with us until she’s taken care of.” He studied me. “So ask yourself which one is better. A few protective runes no one can see or a longer stay in Hel?”

Man, he got me. I couldn’t fight his parents and win. And going back to Hel for an indefinite period of time was out of the question. The magic there was too potent. It messed with my head. Last night was it for me.

“We can do protection spells too, you know,” I said. “In fact, the store is protected with spells.”

“Runic magic doesn’t counter your spells. It enhances them.”

I sighed. “Fine. I respect all forms of magic, so your people can do their thing. But next time, I need a heads-up.”

He grinned.

“What’s funny?”

“I like it when you are agreeable. I was so sure you’d hurt my people.” He indicated for the Grimnirs to wind it up. “I think you and I work well together, Dimples.”

“Just because I let you off easily this time doesn’t mean I’ll always agree with you. You got lucky because it’s five in the morning and I’m half-asleep.”

He moved closer and reached out to play with a lock of my hair. “Does that mean I can get you to agree to anything?”

His voice had dropped to a low, husky timbre, and his body seemed to radiate heat. It wrapped around me like a cocoon as he caressed my jawline and moved down the side of my neck while I stood there and let him. His touch was electrifying, and I didn’t want him to stop.

“Invite me upstairs,
stjärna mín,
” he whispered, tracing my collarbone.

“I share a bed with Hayden.”

“Your place is a portal away,” he countered.

I would love to fall asleep in his arms again.

Wait a second.
Was I actually considering inviting Eirik back to my place? He didn’t even belong in my world. Not to mention that my father could have a heart attack if he heard me in my room when he knew I had spent the night at Hayden’s. He might think I was an intruder and burst into my room with his gun cocked. I shook my head, rattling my brain back to common sense from Stupid Land.

“No. I’m going to bed. Alone. You continue playing hero.” I ran back inside the building. As I punched in the combination on the pad to unlock the door, I could feel him watching me. I glanced back.

“Go ahead and run. Just don’t forget I’m faster than you. When the time is right, I’ll catch you.”

“Don’t be too sure about that,” I shot back.

“You will want me to catch you.” He sounded so sure of himself a thrill shot through me.

I opened my mouth to say something scathing, but he shook his head and I stopped, which annoyed the crap out of me. He wasn’t the boss of me.

“Go inside,” he said firmly, straightening. “I’ll see you later today. We need to talk.” He didn’t sound cocky anymore. He sounded worried. I wanted to ask him what was wrong. “Go. I’ll leave once you’re upstairs.”

It wasn’t until I was upstairs, looked out the window, and our eyes met that I realized I’d obeyed him, again. Damn dragon bite was turning me into a lap dog. There was no way I could go through life doing his bidding because of a damn bite. I wondered what
stjärna
meant. I knew
mín
meant my. I hope it meant something nice. Like my kickass Witch.

~*~

EIRIK

Why hadn’t I checked Celestia’s wounds four months ago? She’d had a few abrasions and surgical tape on her foot, and that had been it. I never tried to check the rest of her body for wounds. When had it happened?

My grandmother had said she could call my sister whenever she wanted. The same could be said about Celestia, which was why I hadn’t slept and had used the reapers to run all over Windfall, giving her added protection. It still wasn’t enough. Granny might go after her again, and I wouldn’t be there to save her. She needed to be here with me, where I could keep an eye on her until I found my grandmother. The problem was going to be convincing her to come willingly.