“Don’t you just love magic?” a girl whispered, and I opened my eyes. She was pushing a cart. There was something familiar about her. Her skin was pale and her red hair striking.
“If that’s another dig at people in my realm, Trudy,” Celestia whispered back, “I’ll have you know the majority do just fine without magic.”
What had Celestia told the girl? I’d warned her to watch it or she’d be discovered. I’d reached the conclusion that she was from Earth during this second visit. Pedialyte. Pay her back through PayPal. I couldn’t believe I’d thought she was a soul.
She went to check out the tub while the girl pushed a cart closer to my bed. Earlier when she’d thought I was that damn lamb—the worst insult on top of many—and during the confrontation with my mother, I hadn’t really looked at her. Now, I studied her on the sly.
She wore gray leggings and winter boots, and a sweater that hugged her chest and reached her hips. Her legs were gorgeous. Bet she’d look hot in a mini. She didn’t wear makeup, but she didn’t need it.
I closed my eyes again and focused on Cora, trying to remember her smile, the way her eyes would flash when… when… I couldn’t focus. I was acutely aware of every movement Celestia made. Her voice. Her scent. I’ve always had an amazing ability to sniff out various scents, and that sense had become heightened since I arrived here.
“The room looks better,” the other girl whispered.
“It does,” Celestia said, moving closer to the bed. “And the arrogant someone ate all of my chocolate.”
“You shouldn’t have taken so long with my food,” I said, opening my eyes. Her hair framed her face like a halo. I wanted to reach up and touch it, feel its texture. She grinned, her lips arching upward. The dimples appeared.
“Comfy?” she asked.
“No.” I sat up slowly and pushed the pillows behind me. “A hot bath would have been nice, except a certain someone instructed the entire castle that I shouldn’t have one.”
Pink tinged her cheeks. “That’s because that certain someone happens to be the only expert on everything hypothermia in this frigid realm. Did you drink more Pedialyte?”
“You mean the poisonous liquid that tastes like piss? Yes. I’m on bottle number three.” I looked at the redhead staring at me with wide eyes. “Hey. I’m Eirik. Thanks for helping me a few days ago.”
Her mouth opened and closed several times. Then she nodded, her face pink. I looked down to see if there was anything remotely inappropriate showing, but my buttons were done right and the covers hid the fact that I was yet to put on my pajama pants.
“Quit putting her on the spot,” Celestia scolded. “Around here people think you are, I don’t know, a god.” Celeste picked up the chocolate wrappers and shoved them in her backpack.
“Technically, I am one.”
“Technically”—she lowered her voice and picked up the sports bottles I’d dropped by the bed—“you’ll give me away if you keep using my things and leaving them out in the open.” She shoved them in her backpack.
She had a point. The redhead was still standing at the same spot, her head down. Unless she was deaf, she could hear our conversation. “What’s your name?”
She glanced up and ducked her head shyly. Celestia jumped to her feet as though to go to her and then stopped. I saw why. The girl was growing, her torso, limbs, and head moving in perfect unison, her clothes changing at the same time. In seconds, she was the same giantess who’d come into my room with my mother the last week.
Was she spying for my mother? Chances were she’d told her about my attempted escape and those involved. Rhys and his partner could be on Corpse Strand.
“Did you tell my mother that I tried to escape?”
The giantess’ cheeks grew pink.
“Did you?” I snapped.
“Eirik!”
I heard Celestia’s warning, but I was busy watching the giantess shuffle backward, fear in her eyes. “Out!”
At first, she looked confused.
“Yes, you. Get out.”
Her chin trembled. She turned, ducked her head under the massive door, and disappeared. Celestia stood there for a second, her eyes wide with shock. She recovered quickly.
“I cannot believe you just did that. You are…” She growled. “Jerk.” She raced out of the room and went after the giantess. “Trudy, wait. Please. Trudnir.”
Damn it! I stared at the ceiling and slowly counted backward. I had to know if Rhys was okay. Who could I trust to find out? Celestia stormed back into the room. Without looking at me, she started picking up her things and shoving them in her backpack.
She was the only one I could trust. Everyone else worked for my mother, and I had no idea how to locate my father.
“I’m sorry,” I said.
“I’m not the one you should be apologizing to,” she said without looking up. “That girl was nice to me even though she knows I’m lying about who I am, and you just treated her like she was the devil’s spawn.” She dropped her backpack and moved closer. “After what your mother’s put you through, you should know what it feels like to be under someone else’s thumb.”
“How the hell is she under my thumb? I’m the one lying here recovering from two weeks of torture.”
“Boohoo. You are in a position of power. Your mother is the big kahuna in this realm, so what you do or say matters.”
“She’s spying for my mother and knows the identity of the people who tried to help me escape. She probably told my mother.”
That slowed her down. “Oh.” She chewed on her lower lip for a second, then sighed. “Listen, Eirik. I can call you Eirik and not some royal godliness title, right?”
I glared at her. She was starting to annoy me again.
“Yeah, too bad. Not happening after all I’ve done for you. Let me explain something so even you might understand, Eirik. Trudy is a servant and her loyalty is to your mother. What could she have done if your mother knew about your plans and asked her? Lie for you? I don’t think so. Not everything is about you and your predicament.” She grabbed her backpack and looked around.
She had a point. Trudy owed me nothing and my mother could be cruel. “You need to find Rhys and make sure he’s okay,” I said.
“Oh no. I need to get my ass home. I’m done here.” She grabbed her blanket and coat from the stone bed and shoved them in the backpack, then stood back and closed her eyes. After a few seconds, she cursed and squeezed her eyes tight.
“I’ll find her and apologize,” I said.
“Good.”
“As long as you locate Rhys.”
She opened her eyes and shot death rays my way. The blue in her eyes intensified. “I’m not locating anyone for you, mister. Now, stop talking. I’m trying to concentrate so I can astral project home.”
“It won’t take long. Just find a hall full of Grimnirs. If they are like Valkyries, they’re probably training or eating. He has violet eyes and lots of tattoos.” I knew she didn’t belong here and it was selfish of me to want to keep her, but I didn’t care. I didn’t want her to leave. “This is the last thing I’ll ask you to do for me.”
She sighed. “You don’t need me, Eirik. I’ve done my part, okay? Now, I need to focus or I’ll be trapped—” She frowned. “Violet eyes and tattoos,” she mumbled. “And they’d worn long dusters like Grimnirs. Could he be the same guy? Does he reap with a girl? Pretty? Dark hair?”
“Yes. You’ve seen them?”
“I think so. Back at home. My friend was talking to them by the bleachers at Windfall High, where my cousin’s team was doing drills. She said they’ve visited her store several times. I thought it was strange that she was actually nice to them. Hayden is rarely nice…” She stopped talking and frowned. “What is it?”
She’d finally picked up on my annoyance? I’d never met a girl who talked so much. “It’s nothing. Since you know him, you can easily track him down.”
“No, you went pale just now when I mentioned my frie
nds talking to your violet-eyed reaper and his partner. What are you not telling me?”
Her eyes had grown big, and there was fear in their depth. I wanted to reassure her. No, I wanted to pull her into my arms and tell her everything would be all right, but that would be a lie. If a Grimnir was at her school, they were there to reap someone. Probably someone she knew, and that person would not be one of the players. Raine’s boyfriend liked to get close to those he reaped. If that was also Rhys’ method, her friend Hayden might be the target. Rhys would be able to tell me who he planned to reap.
“You think they were there to reap someone?” Celestia said, the fear in her eyes becoming full-blown panic. “My cousin plays for Windfall High.”
“Grimnirs don’t reap athletes. Valkyries do.”
“Everyone on that field was an athlete, except… me and Hayden,” she whispered. “Oh God. I have to go home. I have to warn her. She’s my only friend,” she whispered, her eyes overly bright. “The only one who understands me and all this.”
Bracing myself against the headboard, I struggled to my feet and wrapped the covers around my waist. “Celestia.”
I doubted she heard me. She clutched her backpack and headed for the door. Her bunny-eared hat dropped on the floor. Her coat followed.
“Celestia.”
Before she cleared the doorway, she disappeared.
Damn it! I stared at where she’d stood seconds ago and cursed again when dizziness washed over me. She’d helped me twice and I was completely useless to help her. Unless I found Rhys. Rhys was the key. But I couldn’t do that without getting my strength back.
I picked up her hat, brought it to my nose, and inhaled. It smelled like her hair. One day, I’d return it to her in person. I shuffled forward and picked up her coat. I smiled as I read the words on the sewn tag.
This coat belongs to Celestia Deveraux. I am a Witch, so return it.
A Witch who had no problem telling the world what she was. What a breath of fresh air. In Kayville, where I grew up, anyone connected to the supernatural world hid it. Imagine if the people knew. Things would be…
Not so simple. Everyone would want to come to Asgard. Chaos would follow.
I pushed her hat inside her coat and debated whether to burn them. She’d said I would pay for them with interest. I was going to miss her smart-ass comments. I hid her things under my pillow. One day, I’d return them to her.
Fighting dizziness, I picked up the last Hershey’s wrappers she’d missed and threw them in the fire. She’d missed half a bag of chocolate I hadn’t eaten. I loved chocolate, although I preferred the crunchy ones. I shoved it under the bed and gave the room a sweeping glance.
There was no sign she’d been in the room. The problem was I might erase the evidence that she had been here, but everything she had done was etched in my memory. Our paths would cross again after I’d completed my training, taken care of the Norns, and found my sister.
CHAPTER 9. BED, BATH, AND HEARTACHE
CELESTIA
I appeared in the same damn cave again.
“Are you kidding me?” I screamed. “My friend needs me. Why do you keep bringing me here?”
The familiar growl came from inside the cave and I jumped. I ignored it, opened my backpack, and fought the urge to throw it across the cave and bawl. Great. Just great. My coat must have fallen out of the bag in Eirik’s room.
Refusing to break down, I pulled out the thermal blanket, wrapped it around my shoulders, gripped my backpack, and started the long trek to the back of the cave. The humming started.
Yeah, you sing away, bitch, because I’m not scared of you. Tell that to my pounding heart and the hollow in my stomach. I wasn’t panicking. I refused to panic. I was pissed.
There was a reason I always landed here. Maybe the magic was thinnest here or maybe the singer was luring me into this cave for some nefarious reasons. I didn’t care. I just wanted to go home to save my friend.
Like last time, I tried to project as I walked toward the cave, but got nowhere. So I listened to the singer. It was definitely a woman, which was only a little comforting. Women in this realm were powerful and mean. The goddess was cruel and sadistic. Trudy was sarcastic.
I slowed down as I got closer to the end of the cave. Like the first time, the humming continued, but grew faint. The fire was there and nothing else.
Furious, I sat by the fire and warmed myself. It wasn’t as cold as the first time, so it didn’t take long before I was warm. I tried again and again, but I still couldn’t astral project home. Hayden needed me and I was stuck in Hel.
An hour crawled by. Hungry, I rummaged through my backpack for something to eat. Damn, I’d forgotten that Eirik had eaten the bag of chocolate. All I had were the stupid wrappers. The thought of drinking the last bottle of electrolyte solution was not appealing. I weighed my options. I had two choices. Stay here and keep trying or head back to Eirik’s place. The humming was still in the background, but the person was keeping her distance.
After a few more failed attempts, I caved and stood.
“Thank you for the fire, and thank you very much for dragging me here against my will again,” I yelled. The humming stopped. “I wish you’d come right out and show yourself, and explain to me what the hell is going on. What are you anyway? A powerful Witch? A giant? Some kind of monster? What do you want from me?”
Silence. The fight drained out of me and I reached for my backpack.
“Please. My friend is in danger and needs me. Will you let me go if I promise to come back?”
The humming started.
“Is that a yes?” Please, let that be a yes. “Thank you. I promise I’ll be back.” I gripped my backpack, closed my eyes, and let the image of my bedroom fill my head. I let the will to rejoin with my body fill me.
When I’d left home, I was lying on my bed with Hayden and Zack keeping an eye on me. I was still standing. I opened one eye, expecting to see them.
What the hell? I was back in the dungeon. Eirik was on top of his bed with his eyes closed. He wore white jersey pajama bottoms. He opened his eyes and sat up.
“Dimples?”
My throat seized up. He struggled to his feet.
“What happened?”
I shook my head.
“Come here.”
My eyes burned and my chest hurt, but I couldn’t move. If he touched me, the tears I was fighting would spill, and I refused to cry in front of him. I was the one doing the helping here, not him. “I want to go home. I tried, but I ended up in this ice cave and it led…”
“You back here. It’s okay.”
“No, it’s not. Hayden needs me and I’m trapped here,” I said, my voice breaking. “I have to find Rhys and talk to him. He cannot reap her.” I didn’t realize he’d moved until he pulled me into his arms. I tried to wiggle out of them, but they tightened. The next second, he was on the bed clasping me firmly to his side, and my head tucked under his chin. I froze. He moved fast, too?
“You are not going anywhere, Dimples,” he said, one leg draped over mine as though to trap me. “Cry. Let it all out. We’ll figure out what to do once you stop.”
“But I have to—”
“Do nothing.”
The dam broke and tears of frustration flowed. I cried, and every time I thought I was going to stop, thoughts of Hayden brought a rush of fresh tears. After a while, I just closed my eyes and shut out the world. I wanted to try to leave, but I was too scared of landing in the cave again.
“Under you go,” Eirik said sometime later, pulling the blanket over me. “I’ll stay on top and use your thermal blanket.”
On a different day, I would have given him grief about that, but I didn’t care. I was thinking about Hayden and Zack and how they must be panicking. Hopefully, they didn’t call Aunt Genevieve. I didn’t get too cold in that cave and I’d made them promise not to call her or Dad unless I was turning blue. Dad was at a conference in New Orleans, until Sunday. I had to get home before
he returned.
~*~
The smell of bread woke me up, and for one moment, I thought I was home. Grams’ baking used to wake me up on Saturdays and Sundays. I inhaled and stretched, then turned my head. The partially open massive door sent memories rushing back and I sat up.
I was in Hel.
Where was Eirik? The white tank shirt he’d worn was on top of the bed. I was in my socks. I scooted to the edge of the bed and looked down. My boots were by the foot of the bed. Eirik must have removed them last night. At least that was all he’d removed. I would have been mortified if he’d undressed me, too.
A cart with breakfast—eggs, bread, a pot of hot beverage, and juice—was by the bed. I lifted the cloth covering the bread. The loaves were warm. There were two mugs, one of them used. Eirik must have eaten and left.
Grunts came from outside the door, and I went to investigate. My eyes widened and I swallowed at the sight that caught my eyes.
A shirtless Eirik was doing push-ups, the same tattoos I’d seen on his mother coiling under his glistening skin. He didn’t have as many as she did, but that pull to reach out and touch his skin was there. Despite his fewer glowing tattoos, the pull was stronger and somehow different from his mother’s. I couldn’t explain it.
Warmth coiled deep in my stomach and my heart did that weird tremble it did yesterday when he had buried his head in my hair. The corded muscles on his back shifted beautifully, his biceps straining with the effort as he pushed and lifted himself up, then down. Funny, I hadn’t noted the thin dust of blond hair on his arms. I never thought manly fuzz would be intriguing. And who would have known the weak man I’d helped yesterday would have such a masculine body with washboard abs?
The urge to close the gap between us and touch him grew. I wanted to run my hand up and down his back. Would the tattoos react? It was obvious they were magical. It was the only explanation for the pull I’d felt toward his mother and now him.
“Morning,” he said without looking in my direction.
Demons (Eirik Book 1) Page 14