by J. P. Rice
Chapter 21
I went to the outskirts of Pittsburgh to see a guardian angel on the lam. Artoise could know something about the deal for the spear. It was a longshot, but worth the drive.
I got out of my beat-up Jeep and trudged through the snow toward his cave dwelling. Strained sunlight fought through the dark clouds to highlight the milky landscape. Staring straight ahead at the ivory abyss, a swirl of red and green captured my eyes.
After blinking rapidly, it came into focus. I was just as surprised as the first time I’d seen it. A lovely red rose growing out of the snow. With sweet whispers in the wind, it called me by name, and I walked toward it robotically. Finally, I could get to the bottom of how this object was thriving in these conditions.
I got closer and closer until I stood over the flower. Its beautiful defiance brought tears to my eyes. As I dropped to my knees to inspect it, the smell of flint filled my nose and my eyes watered from something in the air. I rubbed my eyelids to sooth my burning eyes, and when I opened them, everything was blurry.
As the landscape came back into focus, the rose had disappeared, but the odor of flint and the eye burning persisted. Where did the rose go? Frustrated, I dug into the snow to see if the rose had gone underground.
My fingertips smashed into something dense, and I shook them around to help with the pain. At the bottom of the holes my fingers had made, I saw shafts of glowing sapphire. Carefully, I dug into the snow again and the sapphire object got bigger.
I dusted some snow away and stared in awe at a glowing sapphire egg bigger than my hand. My inner dragon was doing backflips which gave me a strong indication of what kind of egg this was. How in the hell had dragon eggs ended up buried in snow in Pittsburgh?
My mind immediately returned to the day I’d gotten into a fight with Hera. The black dragons in the sky. But why were these eggs a brilliant sapphire? With no time to waste, I turned to take the egg to my car and hesitated. Was this the only one?
I dug into the snow again and another egg appeared. Then another. And another. By the time I’d finished, thirteen sapphire dragon eggs sat on the snow. I took off my long jacket and gathered all the eggs into it. With all the eggs inside, I carefully folded and pinched the jacket so the eggs wouldn’t fall out.
I held the jacket firmly and hustled back to my Jeep. A bone chilling squawk came from the sky, and I inclined my head in reaction. Two black dragons raced toward the earth as I scrambled to get my fob out of my pocket.
I set down my package and opened the door. With the dragons approaching, I gently placed the eggs on the passenger seat, closed the door and ran over to the driver’s side. I hopped in the car, started the ignition and jammed down the gas pedal.
The tires rotated in place, kicking mud and snow everywhere. A light wisp of smoke plumed up from the front tires, and I started to gain traction. We jetted forward, but the Jeep fishtailed violently. Like a worried mother, my hand shot over to the passenger seat to make sure none of the eggs fell to the floor.
From my rearview mirror, I saw the dragons land and start searching for the eggs, clawing frantically into the snow. A mighty scream that sounded like the T-Rex from Jurassic Park on steroids shook my soul and sent shock waves down my spine.
From the rearview mirror, I saw both dragons lift their heads and spit angry flames into the air. I kept the car steady and sped across the parking lot, then turned right onto the road. With pavement now under my tires, I jammed the gas even harder and it forced my head into the seat.
Being part dragon, I was ashamed that I didn’t know how to take care of a dragon egg or how to get them to hatch. As I drove toward my house, I wondered if they would be safe there. My life was so volatile, people could break into my house at any time. Zeus and Hera were prime examples.
When I went through a list of whom I could trust, there weren’t many names. But the individual that kept coming to the fore was Owen. He didn’t have nearly as many people coming after him and he knew a lot about science to shed light on the subject.
Instead of going to my house, I decided to take them to my feline friend’s house. It worked out perfectly since I had a key to Owen’s and could stop by whenever I wanted. My dragon sense urged me to keep the eggs close and not trust anyone, but I had to fight against it. The dragon inside always wanted me to hoard anything valuable.
I could barely contain myself during the ride because I wanted to jump up and down while screaming and yelling. Perhaps children of my own weren’t in the cards anymore, but I would be proud to raise a family of dragons.
I made it to Owen’s house in record time. We took the eggs into the basement and formed a plan. Owen offered to pick up an incubator to help with the hatching process. We also went over my strategy for saving the spear three times.
I stared at the eggs and felt like I was leaving a piece of my soul at Owen’s house. Despite wanting to tell everyone about the dragon eggs, I needed to keep my lips sealed on this one. Owen had sworn his secrecy, which was as good as gold. I knew he wouldn’t tell anyone. I was worried about myself.
I left Owen’s house and had enough time to stop at home for a few minutes. Then I had to help Mike kidnap Luna. More Cat Cam footage revealed that Tyr would be out most of the day. He had to pickup the spear from someone in Ohio. That gave us enough time to detain Luna and get her to Mike’s house.
Then I just had to shift to look like his girlfriend and crash the deal for the spear.
Chapter 22
I sat in the comfortable passenger seat of Tyr’s black Rolls Royce Wraith as we headed to the deal. The back half of the spear sat on my lap with my hand holding it in place. This one was real. I could feel the energy in the form of lightning pulsing through the object.
I was in the form of Luna and a spitting image at that. The projection app on my phone had worked perfectly. My only worry was that I would slip up on her whiny voice, so I had to focus. My anger toward Tyr was dominating my thoughts. My blood bubbled like a smoking cauldron above a bonfire. I wanted to Hulk Smash him in the nuts so bad that his children would feel it.
I slapped on the Long Island/Nanny accent and asked, “So what’s this all about? Why’dya need to bring me?”
Tyr stared into the rearview mirror as he pulled out onto the highway. “Damn, woman. Your memory is shit. I told you I need to make this deal for both of us. Soon, I’ll be Loki’s right-hand man and we will dwell in a palace in Asgard. The denizens will treat you like a queen. And I don’t know why they want you at the deal.”
Time to see what he really thought about me. “Is ‘at red head lady that stayed at our house gonna be there?”
He snapped, “My house. My house. And hell no. Why would you ask that?”
I rubbed the spear with my thumb. “Oh, I dunno. Cuz I been hearin’ things.”
Tyr passed a car from the right lane and weaved back to the left. He spoke over the roaring engine, “Things? What things have you heard?”
How could I put this that wouldn’t raise suspicion? “Just somethin’ about you rescuin’ her or somethin’ like that.”
“You need to quit snooping on my conversations,” he said and put his right hand on my thigh. “What did I tell you about that?” He squeezed, digging his thumb and fingers into my flesh. It was his lucky day that I didn’t stab him in the neck with the broken end of this spear.
The asshole removed his paw and blathered on, “Besides, I was just tricking her to keep her off the trail. And I didn’t rescue her. I traded a fake of half the spear to Octavius and he agreed to let her go. Stupid werewolf. I played them both. She has no idea either.” He turned his ugly mug to me and smiled.
My blood reached a boiling point. I had to remain calm and stay focused on the big picture. I could kill Tyr some other time. “Don’tcha feel bad about all that subversion?”
He sat up and smiled in the rearview mirror, using his thumbnail to pick something out of his teeth. His blatant disregard for the road made me tense. He kept scraping away and spok
e in a muffled tone, “Not at all. She’d do the same to me. The rare book business can present some strange opportunities like the one tonight.” Thankfully, he focused back on the road.
I held the spear up in front of my chest. “So why’s this spear broken in half?”
“Stupid Loki did that. I’m still not sure why. You know his motto. Midgard rotates without any help, but it is our responsibility to shake it up,” he uttered in a monotone.
What a stupid motto. “So, whatta ya tradin’ this for anyway?”
He growled, “Damn, woman. You ask too many questions. It’s becoming a bad habit that you need to kick. All you need to know is we are trading this half of the spear for a ticket back to Asgard. Be happy with that.”
“But what about that stupid jerk, Odin?” I asked and caught myself as I was veering into Edith Bunker territory, exaggerating each syllable too much. I had to get back to the Long Island style.
“After tonight, if all goes according to plan, I’ll never have to worry about Odin again. It’ll be glorious.” He kissed the fingertips of his right hand and extended his fingers toward me. Like a chef’s finger kiss.
I planned to do my best to prevent his happiness. It was as if every, single, thing about Tyr was an act. From top to bottom, the guy was a fraud. I couldn’t believe I ever had feelings for this scumbag.
“We have to make a quick stop first so that I can prepare for battle,” he said and checked his teeth again in the mirror.
“Battle. What’dya mean?” I asked as my palms dampened with sweat, and I wondered if he was on to me.
“Not real battle. I just have to look like a God for this deal.” He pulled into a church’s half-filled parking lot with about fifteen other cars. Tyr parked in the center and a group of men approached the car.
I squeezed the spear, wondering what the hell was going on. Tyr jumped out of the Rolls and high-fived a few men. I turned the spear to get it through the door and got out of the car but remained near the passenger door. Another group of men approached carrying various components that I didn’t recognize in the dim light.
The men held up pieces of a suit of black armor and positioned themselves around Tyr. As I got a closer look at his friends, it triggered memories. I knew these men from somewhere. One man wiped his mouth on his shoulder and it hit me.
They were the men on the street the day Tyr had saved the choking victim. Of all the low-down dirty rats, this guy was king of the mischief. I knew his Heimlich technique was shit. He’d staged every meeting we’d had. And I’d thought they were random occurrences. What a fool I’d been!
Tyr held his arms out at his sides and his men went to work, covering his body with dark armor and screwing the pieces together with an electric drill to hold them in place. I would have made an Iron Man reference, but Tyr wasn’t worthy of being mentioned in the same breath.
When his men finished, other than the facial protection that resembled a catcher’s mask, Tyr looked like Darth Vader. How fitting.
The man could barely move as he waddled over. “We’re going to ride with Ezekiel to the deal. It’s only a few minutes from here and we can sit in the flatbed of his pickup.”
Sure, why not? “Whateva ya need is fine with me.”
We jumped into the back of the black Ford-F-250 and drove slowly to the meeting spot. A procession of vehicles followed us, and I shaded my eyes from the headlights of the Cadillac Escalade on our tail.
I turned to Tyr, who was lying down because of his armor. “Ain’t cha afraid the cops might show up?”
He spoke through the mask, “We paid them off. Nothing to worry about. I own this town.”
We pulled into the parking lot at Squaw Valley Park. There were already about a dozen cars in the lot, which was strange because it was after dark. There was a pond to our right and two pavilions with picnic tables to the left. Straight ahead, the park merged into a hillside with paths for nature walks. I couldn’t see it, but I could hear a stream of running water in the distance.
I dug my hand into my sleeve and pressed the raven’s eye, alerting the Morrigan that I’d arrived.
Arawn and his crew were waiting under one of the pavilions and they began to line up in front of the structure. This location would be perfect for my plan. I hadn’t known the exact spot in the park at which they were meeting, but this would do just fine. I went over the plan in my head as four more vehicles pulled into the lot, followed by a strange-looking chariot.
A normal single chariot was being pulled by two winged tigers. Her associates got out of their cars and walked over to the woman driver. Tyr cursed as his friends helped him walk over to the woman. I took a few steps closer and realized it was Loki’s wife, Sigyn. And on closer inspection, the carriage was bigger than a normal one-person chariot.
“What are you doing here?” Tyr asked in disgust.
Sigyn spoke in a sharp tone, “Loki sent us to make sure you don’t screw this up. He’s got a lot riding on it.”
“We all do, okay,” said Tyr as he got flustered. “I need to talk to Loki about this blatant disrespect, but that will come later.” He took a few breaths, settling down. “Let’s go do this.”
Tyr waddled over to the pavilion and the rest of his crew followed. I walked next to him with one half of the spear in my hand.
We approached Arawn and Maeve, who had about twenty people behind them huddled under the pavilion. Two giant orcs stood on either side of the former Celtic Gods. They were wearing loincloths and barefoot, but the bitter winter chill bothered them little. Dressed in a see-through dress, Maeve was either aroused or a bit nippy with her headlights set to high beams.
She stared at Tyr like she wanted to eat him. Hell, she could take him for all I cared now. The silent standoff between Tyr and Arawn dragged on for a few moments. Arawn pulled his arm out from under his wolf skin cloak and produced the other half of the spear.
A light blue spark jumped from my piece to his, and a wave of energy ran up my arm. Holy shit, this baby was the real deal. Game on. Tyr yanked the spear from me and faced Arawn again.
Tyr finally spoke, “Where’s the briefcase?”
Arawn narrowed his haunting yellow eyes. “Don’t worry. It’s around here. First, we need to see if this links together.”
Tyr pointed to the spear in his hand. “Did you just see that spark? It’s real.”
Arawn huffed, expelling a huge breath cloud from his nose. “You could have put a spell on both pieces for all I know. We put the pieces together, and then, and only then will you get the briefcase. I know you’re doing this for Loki, the God of Mischief. You aren’t taking me for a ride on this one.”
Tyr snapped and spittle flew from his mouth as he argued, “This is unacceptable. I’ve held up my end and brought the spear. You said you would have the briefcase here.”
Arawn spoke calmly, seemingly in control of the situation, “I do have it here. Just not right here. It could be in a car or in that pond or in those woods up there. You will see it. And only see it. When the spear becomes one.”
Tyr spun around awkwardly, trying to calm down. He pointed in Arawn’s face. “I swear on my name that if you attempt anything funny, I shall kill you on the spot.”
Arawn bit a piece of skin near his thumbnail, turned his head to the side and spit the tiny fragment out. “Bit dramatic don’tcha think? Enough of the pissing contest. Hold out your half. If they join, you can hold on to the entire spear until the briefcase arrives. Actually, I’d prefer if your lady friend held it. I have no reason not to trust her.”
This was playing right into my hands beautifully. The two men awkwardly lined up the broken ends of the spear. Tyr’s armor seemed to make all movement difficult. After a few close swipes, the two ends met, and a lightning bolt shot down from the sky, hitting the spear. Both men dropped the smoking object and took a step back.
When the smoke cleared, the moon and stars shone down on an eight-foot spear lying in the snow in all its magnificence. All the dama
ge it had incurred over the centuries had been erased. It looked as new as the day it had been crafted by Goibniu.
Both men scrambled for the spear, leaning over to grab it. Moe and Curly smacked their heads together, and both men nearly fell to the ground. Tyr swiped it up and staggered backward, straightening his helmet. Both groups began laughing until their respective leaders’ stern looks silenced them.
Tyr and Arawn turned to each other, and the latter said, “Give it to her to hold and I’ll send my man to get the briefcase.”
“What’s your game here? Why do you want her to hold the spear?” Tyr walked over and extended the spear. He whistled twice. I reached out to grab it.
In an instant, I felt the sharpened edge of a cold piece of steel pressed against my neck. Apparently, Tyr had set up a signal to one of his men.
Tyr screamed, “Is she working for you? Did you put her up to something? Why do you want her to hold the spear so badly?”
Arawn remained calm. His crew emerged from the pavilion and flanked his sides. “Because I don’t trust you. You’re a dirty trickster, just like your best friend Loki. I’ve never even met this woman before, giving me no reason to mistrust her.”
He was slightly wrong about that. We had met before.
“Something is going on here,” Tyr said and mused, “No briefcase. You want my girlfriend to hold the spear. Do you want her to die?”
Arawn started to get frustrated and spoke faster, “I’m not sure what is going on here. If you want to hold the spear, then for fuck’s sake, do it. I don’t know you very well, but you seem as though you’re losing your mind.”
“Thanks for the advice, doc. No, see, now that’s exactly what you want me to do. No, I’ll let her hold it so that I can kill anyone who makes a move for the spear.” His associate removed the blade from my neck and I sighed in relief.
Tyr stepped forward and handed me the spear. Arawn snapped his fingers and one of his lackeys ran up from the group on his right.
The man stood in front of Arawn, who said, “The briefcase. Go get it now.” The assistant darted over to the parking lot.