by Dena Christy
“He’s not working out, is he?” Roger asked, his tone resigned.
“I think your brother is a good kid, and if earnestness was what it takes to make it as an agent with the Order, then he’d be at the top of my list. I’m sorry Roger, I’m going to have to let him go. He doesn’t have the temperament for the job.”
Cadric wished it wasn’t so since Roger fit with the Order perfectly and Cadric had hoped his brother was the same. Perhaps in a few more years, Bern would be more mature and calm, but right now he was too prone to panic and excitement, and those unfortunate traits could get him or someone else killed.
“I know,” Roger said as his shoulders sagged. “At least you gave him a shot. I’ll tell him that things didn’t work out. It would be better for him if he heard it from me.”
“Okay,” Cadric said as he sat back in his chair. “What exactly happened tonight?”
“Bern was patrolling at your place, he found a woman that he thought was dead and brought her in here. He was ordered to wait with her at the morgue until someone came to relieve him. There was trouble locating you and we had to call Hadria in. I was in the morgue talking to Bern when he said he thought he saw her undo the body bag. I didn’t believe him because he had said she was dead and I didn’t think he could have made a mistake about that. We went over to look at her and sure enough, the bag was opened. She opened her eyes, and I took her up to the infirmary right away. It’s a good thing we suggested Nick come in with Hadria. He’s looking after her now.”
“Ok, you can go. Thanks for filling in the blanks, and again I’m sorry things didn’t work out with your brother,” Cadric said as he stood and clapped a hand on Roger’s back. Roger opened the door, and Hadria stood on the other side, her face pale and set in grave lines. Cadric stiffened when he saw her, and disappointment sank through him. “Did she die?”
Hadria shook her head, and she looked at him as if she wanted to tell him something but couldn’t find the words.
“What is it Hadria? Are we going to be overrun with zombies,” Cadric asked, trying to interject humor into the moment, but his joke fell flat when her expression didn’t change. “Hadria, what’s going on? I order you to tell me what has happened.”
His use of the word order seemed to snap her out of whatever fog had held her in its grip.
“The woman who was brought in is still alive, and she’s not a zombie. It’s Nan,” she said.
Cadric reeled back, shock blasting into his body and he had to sag against his desk to keep from falling to the floor. It appeared his dream had been true, and not only had Nan been attacked by wolves, she was here.
* * *
Roger, had placed her in a prone position on a gurney and left when a man who introduced himself as Dr. Johnson came into the room. He stood over her, his fingers gently probing her rapidly healing wounds. She thought she heard him mutter the word remarkable under his breath. She shoved his hands away. His poking and prodding did nothing but irritate her, and it was not like his medicine could help her.
“Please let me help you, you’ve been badly injured. We won’t hurt you here, you’re safe,” he said, his voice a deep rumble.
“How can you tell me I’ll be safe here when you are a child of Fenrir?” she said as she attempted to sit up. Dizziness overtook her, and the doctor’s gentle hands eased her back down.
“Be still. You’ve been through quite an ordeal,” he said and Nan pushed his hands away again. He respected her wishes and held his hands out at his sides. “You call me a child of Fenrir, what is that exactly?”
“You are a werewolf, are you not? You are the same manner of creature as the ones who attacked me earlier.”
“I see. I can tell you that we are all not the same as the savages who attacked you. Some of us are civilized. Now please, you must let me examine you so I’ll know the extent of your wounds and the best way to treat you.”
“I’m fine or at least I will be. Just give me some time and I’ll be fully healed on my own.”
A tall woman walked in and the doctor’s reaction to the sight of her was interesting. It was as if Nan had vanished from the room as his eyes rested solely on her. Nan swallowed past the prickle in her throat when she remembered a time when Baldr had looked at her the same way.
“Bern ran to Cadric’s office saying we had a zombie. Is she one?” the woman said as she stepped further into the room. There was something about her that tickled the back of Nan’s mind, but until she came closer she wouldn’t know what she was.
“She’s not a zombie,” the doctor said with a laugh. “I’m not sure what she is. She’s not human, she’s healing way too fast. She knows I’m a werewolf too, although she called me a child of…”
“Fenrir?” the woman supplied, and she stepped closer to get a better look at Nan.
“Yeah, that’s it. How did you know?”
“She knows because she is one of Odin’s creatures,” Nan said. Their discussion of her as if she was not in the room was getting tiresome. Now that the woman had moved closer she could see exactly what she was, and if she was here, then surely Baldr was here. “You are a valkyrie? I find it very surprising to see you here since your master likes to keep you close.”
“I’m a special case,” the woman said, her tone bordering on disrespect. “And who exactly are you?”
“Do you not know who I am, valkyrie?”
“First, my name is Hadria. Second, I have no idea who you are since your face is covered with dried blood and gore.”
Nan narrowed her eyes, and accepted the warm, wet cloth the doctor held out to her. She used it to wipe her face and felt a small amount of satisfaction when the blood drained from the valkyrie’s face as she recognized her.
“Now Hadria, perhaps you would be so kind as to tell me where my husband is?”
Hadria backed away slowly.
“Hadria, what is it?” the doctor said as he took an alarmed stepped toward her.
“I have to go tell Cadric. Don’t let her leave,” Hadria said as she bolted from the room.
The doctor turned toward her with caution in his eyes. Nan wanted to assure him that she had no intention of hurting him, that in her weakened state she could do no such thing against a healthy werewolf in his prime, but if he couldn’t see that for himself, who was she to enlighten him.
“What are you? I’m assuming Hadria knows, since she bolted out of here to tell Cadric,” he asked as he approached the bed.
“I’m a goddess,” Nan said. He didn’t need to know which one. She wasn’t planning to stay here for much longer. She needed to find her husband.
“That’s why you are healing so fast. I assume you are from Asgard since you knew what Hadria was, and she knows you?”
“Yes, I am from Asgard. Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to leave here,” Nan said as she sat up. Fortunately there was no dizziness this time, and she swung her legs around and over the side of the bed. Her clothing was ruined and hung in tatters on her body. She’d have to do something about that, but not right now. She needed to get out of here and find her husband.
“I’m sorry, you can’t leave yet. Please, I know you are healing well on your own, but surely you want to rest somewhere. You will be very safe here,” he said as he put his hands on her arms and tried to ease her back down. Nan resisted, and he must have seen the futility of trying because he took his hands away.
“Where is here, exactly?”
“You are at the headquarters for the Order of Odin. The head of our cell, Cadric, will be here shortly to speak to you.”
“I don’t care if this Cadric is coming to see me,” Nan said as she got off the bed. The valkyrie was her best chance at finding Baldr, so Nan decided to find her. “Please, you have to understand. I want my husband, I need to find him.”
“Who is your husband? Maybe we can help you find him.”
“Baldr, my husband is Baldr. You can’t help me, you don’t even know who I am, and you don’t know who he is. Although, you seem
close to the valkyrie, perhaps you can find her for me. If anyone will know where to find Baldr, it would be her.”
“How do you know Hadria could find him?”
“She is a handmaiden of Odin. Odin is Baldr’s father. She will know where he is. Please go get her for me,” Nan said as she rested her hip against the bed. She tried to look casual, but the strain of standing so soon after her attack was draining her energy. She didn’t want the doctor to see it, otherwise he’d force her back into the bed and she had no intention of being here much longer.
“She’s on her way to get Cadric. She’ll be back.”
Nan didn’t know who this Cadric person was, and she didn’t care. She was done waiting for the handmaiden to return. She’d find Baldr if she had to walk back to his home. She stood straight and her head swam for a moment. Shaking her head, she forced her feet to move forward, toward the door.
“You need to get back in that bed,” the doctor said as he moved to stand in front of her. His tone was no longer cajoling and had grown firm. Had she been anything other than what she was she might have even obeyed the command in his voice.
“Get out of my way,” she said as she attempted to shove him aside. She was very far from her full strength and felt as weak as a human.
“Please, wait for our leader to come and talk to you,” the doctor said, his voice softening as he tried to reason with her. She was tempted to do as he asked, to crawl back into the bed and rest until she was back to full strength. The part that didn’t want to, the small part of her that was afraid, only wanted to leave this place. She didn’t know where she was and she didn’t know these people. She wanted Baldr.
“Who is your leader and why should I wait for him?” Nan demanded weakly as her legs shook.
“Nan.”
Her head shot toward the door, much too fast and his face and form wavered for a moment. She would recognize his voice anywhere. Baldr. He’d found her, somehow. With him so close, the small bit of strength that had been holding her up vanished, and she sagged toward the floor. The doctor, with his wolf like reflexes, took hold of her and held her upright.
Baldr charged over, and took her from the doctor, scooping her into his arms and placing her back on the bed.
“What are you doing here Nan? You are supposed to be safe in Asgard?”
“Cadric what is going on?” the doctor said behind them. “You two know each other? She says she’s looking for her husband Baldr.”
Baldr sighed and looked over at the doctor. Comprehension dawned on Nan, and she realized he was the one they referred to as Cadric.
“Nick,” Baldr said. “Can you please leave us? I need to talk to my wife.”
Nick looked back and forth between them, nodded his head and left the room. Baldr turned back around to face her, and Nan reached up to put her hand on his cheek, to assure herself that he was real and leaning down to look at her. The contact with his skin, the feel of his whiskers prickling under her palm ignited something inside her. She drew her hand back and let it fly. It made stinging contact with his cheek as the sound of her palm smacking against his face rang out in the otherwise silent room.
Chapter 3
Cadric reached up and stroked his hand over his stinging cheek as his eyes devoured the woman laying in front of him. The sight of her tattered clothes, visible wounds and the blood smeared over her body had him clenching his teeth as his heart pounded in his chest and heat flushed through his body. Whoever had done this to her would pay.
He needed to know everything that had happened to her tonight, but to get her to talk he needed for her to calm down. He could see the anger and resentment burning in her eyes as she glared at him. He blew out a slow breath to calm his pulse.
“I suppose I deserved that,” he said as he drew a chair up beside the bed and sat down.
“You suppose?” she said as she narrowed her eyes. “I shouldn’t be able to see you right now because you’re dead, or at least you’ve been dead to me for a thousand years. What have you been doing, and why don’t they know your name?”
Where should he start? They had little time to get into what he’d been doing because she would be back in Asgard as soon as she could flash. He opted for the abbreviated version so he could question her about her attack.
“My name is Cadric now. I’m the leader of this cell of the Order of Odin.”
“The Order of Odin, is that something you started yourself,” she asked, and he ignored the bitterness in her tone.
“Yes, I started it, when I first came down to earth. Baldr is dead now, Nan. I’m not him anymore.”
“Oh, I’m well aware that Baldr is dead. It must be nice for you, to have a new name and a new life. To turn your back on your family and never look back. Do you know how much we suffered, how much I suffered when you died?”
At the time he’d left, he hadn’t wanted to think about that. He would never have been able to go through with what his father wanted otherwise. He couldn’t think about it now when it was too late to do anything about it. What he could do, and what he would do, was find out what had happened to her and see that the culprits were caught.
“There is no time to get into this, Nan. I’m sorry you were hurt by my leaving, but we have to focus on what happened to you tonight. How did you get here?”
He reached out to take her hand, and she evaded his touch. He couldn’t blame her for doing so, he’d devastated her years ago, and the sight of him was probably hurting her now. If he was kind he’d let her go back to Asgard and put him behind her. But he couldn’t do that until he discovered who had attacked her and why. Seeing her didn’t diminish his need to touch her, to assure himself that she was okay, but he understood why she didn’t want him to touch her and he fought to keep his hands to himself.
“I came the usual way. I flashed here,” she said, her voice laced with sarcasm and she looked at him like he’d lost a few brain cells.
“I realize you flashed here from Asgard. What I meant was, how did you get here, covered in blood,” he asked and she turned her face away. She didn’t appear to want to talk to him about anything other than the grievance she had against him, but she would need to get over that. “Please talk to me. Tell me how you ended up here. I need to know.”
She turned back to him, her face a study of disbelieving anger. “Why? Why would you care?”
“Because you’re my wife,” he said through his teeth, stung that she would question his caring for her. His leaving had nothing to do with not loving her, and in fact, doing what his father had asked had torn him up inside.
“I haven’t been your wife for over a thousand years, so try again.”
“What do you want me to say Nan? That I’m sorry your hurting? I am. Can we get on with this? You were brought here and I need to know why. You are like anyone else who has been attacked and brought here. What happened tonight? Please talk to me, Nan. It’s important.”
He reached and took her hand. She didn’t pull away this time, and while he knew it would take a long time for her anger to dissipate, and that she may very well never forgive what he’d done, at least it was a step in the right direction.
“I left Asgard to find you. I was in the woods, watching your house and I saw you get into your car and leave.”
“I thought I felt someone watching me.”
He remembered the moment before he’d gotten in his car when he felt eyes upon him. If only he’d known it was her, perhaps he could have done something before she’d been attacked. He should have gone with his gut feeling and investigated, but he’d been so intent on out running his dream and the memory of her that he’d fled.
“I was going to go down to your house and wait for you to come back when they ambushed me and I was attacked by Children of Fenrir, about half a dozen of them. I tried to fight them off and struck one with a tree branch. There were too many of them, and they were too strong. I was overcome and let them do what they would hoping they wouldn’t eat me when they finish
ed.”
“Werewolves rarely eat the flesh of their victims,” he said as he tried to block the picture of wolves ripping her apart. He’d already seen it all in his nightmare, and he didn’t need to relive it. “Then what happened?”
“I woke up here, in a plastic bag, the kind they put corpses in. I’m assuming with all the talk of zombies that I was dead for a while. When they realized that I wasn’t I was brought up here, and that woman Hadria recognized me and went to fetch you. And here we are.” She drew her hand away from his and struggled to sit up. He reached out to support her as she levered herself upright. “I don’t want to stay here any longer, Baldr.”
“Cadric,” he said, correcting her about his name, but she didn’t respond. Hearing her call him by the name he’d abandoned along with his family filled him with shame over what he’d put her through, but he supposed feeling that was the least he deserved for the short time she would remain here. “You won’t need to be here for much longer. Once we get you cleaned up, you can go back to Asgard.”
“I’m not going back,” she said, her lips set in a stubborn expression.
“Nan, you’ve seen me and you know I’m not dead. You can go home now,” he said.
“I can’t go back,” she insisted as she swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood up. She swayed slightly, and he reached out to steady her.
“Please Nan, I need to know your safe. I know you don’t believe me, and I can’t blame you for it, but I do. Please Nan, you have to go back to Asgard where you won’t get caught up in something like this again. You were only attacked because you were watching my house, I’m almost sure of it. I have an investigation going on and I think you’ve inadvertently gotten caught in the middle of it. Please you have to go back.”
Cadric turned her to face him. As he looked down at her, he wondered if he could let her go. She looked exactly as he remembered her, and her beauty still took his breath away, just as it had the moment he’d first seen her. He would move heaven and earth to keep her safe, and the safest place for her was in Asgard, away from him.