by Ellie Mack
“Love you Lena. I hope this is right!” She crossed the fingers on her other hand as Brad held her right hand up waiting on the moonlight.
She barely got the words out of her mouth when Brad sliced across her palm with his pocket knife. As Gabby inahled, her eyes growing large with the sting. Scott grabbed the same hand and slapped it against the stone.
The stone vanished.
Standing on the other side was Lena and her Viking friend. They both rushed out, Lena ran straight into Scotts arms and the Viking falling on Gabby.
” Priset være Odin. Guderne foretrækker mig!” (Praise to Odin, the gods favor me!)
Aella kissed Gabby hard on the lips, lifting her off the ground and twirling her around.
Scott held Lena, kissing her firmly. ”Helena.”
He kissed her again. ”I thought I’d lost you.” He hugged her tightly, then kissed her deeply, passionately.
After an awkward length of time, Brad cleared his throat interrupting the two couples.
Gabby blushed as the Viking set her on her feet. ”Um, hi.” She looked down embarrassed that she had been kissing the stranger.
”Gabby meet Aella, Aella, my sister Gabby.” She then stepped closer to her Viking friend. She leaned in close to his face with a stern expression. ”She is my sister, not a Valkyrie.”
Aella chuckled, his arm around Gabby and tossed his head in Helena’s direction. ”Dim.”
Epilogue: For honor and glory
The problems that lay before you are not as strong as the Ancestors that walk beside you.
-Norse Proverb
The police lay in wait at the bottom of the hill.
Dr. Westergaard brought Inga ashore from his yacht in a motorized raft.
She had been drugged to make her compliant, but she was still trying to fight him. They waited until he began the chants circling her before they moved in.
In the chaos, he managed to escape to his raft and made his way quickly back to his yacht.
Harbor patrol was notified, but he was not captured. Upon researching Dr. Westergaard, they confiscated his computer at the university and found that he had spent his lifetime researching the site, gathering information about it and the stones.
With Aella’s help, the team was able to locate the treasure chamber and unearthed six billion dollars’ worth of gold and other artifacts, including a ship.
Brad worked with Aella to teach him English and decipher his ancient dialect to get the full story of what had happened to the village.
Amidst his meager possessions was a coin purse with ancient coins. When he sold them to the Museum of Denmark, it set him up with a fortune larger than he would have ever imagined in his day.
Brad worked with him to teach him modern mannerisms and slang.
The day before it was time for Lena and her teams to return home, Aella approached Lena.
“You vill kindly help me honor my brothers, no?” He bowed his head, humbling himself in front of her even though he towered over her.
“I would be honored to.” Lena hugged him around his chest. He no longer wore the leather jerkins, or the ragged vest over his dingy shirt. He looked smart in his khaki trousers and navy blue polo. It hugged him in all the right places.
He had shaved his bushy beard, but kept his long hair. Now that she could see beyond the grime, Aella was an incredibly hot man.
Lena asked her core team including Gabby, Scott, Brad, and Joe to accompany them for a tribute to Aella’s family.
The small group walked down the dirt road to where the rune stones stood.
Aella didn’t have their bodies to burn, bury, or send to sea in a boat. He honored them in the only way he knew how.
The group of friends gathered around in a semi-circle. Aella passed around his bowl of amber so that each person could take one.
He asked Scott and Brad if they would help him gather wood. Joe offered to help as well. Lena and Gabby offered, but Aella waved his hands saying no, it wouldn’t be proper.
The girls stood and watched as they build a small pyre in front of the stones. On the top of the pyre, Aella placed his leather vest, which had their clan markings stitched in it from their mother.
He began singing a song he knew in his day. It was beautiful, haunting, and sad. At the end of it, he lifted the torch to the sky.
“Odin. Receive my brothers in Valhalla. There was never more deserving warriors that lived and died.”
He stepped to the pyre lighting it as he spoke, “United by birth, bound by blood.”
He stepped back, his hands clasped in front of him watching. When the pyre was fully engulfed in flames, two crows flew across the field.
He turned to Lena, clasping her hand.
“Helena Eskildson, thank you.” He bowed his head to her. “You are not dim. Still beautiful Valkyrie, just have much to learn.” He presented her with a folded piece of leather bound with string.
“What’s this?”
“Open.” He stood perfectly still.
Lena untied the leather string, and unfolded the soft leather. It was a map. She looked up into his eyes questioningly.
Aella traced the writing with his finger as he spoke,“Atlantis.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Since leaving the corporate world for the title of MOM, Ellie Mack has pursued her writing dreams. This former columnist is using her sassy opinions to shape her writing in novels. She lives near St. Louis, MO with her husband and two daughters. Ellie is a breast cancer survivor and wants to encourage others who are going through this battle.
When she’s not writing she can be found bullet journaling, crocheting, or cooking. You can find her musings on her blog: https://quotidiandose.wordpress.com
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