Carnage: Nate Temple Series Book 14

by Shayne Silvers

  I smiled wider. “Liar.”

  “Just. Shut. Up. Nate,” she whispered, and I felt her body relax even further, seeming to melt into mine. Not in any sexual manner, but in a way that let me know that her rope had been carrying entirely too much weight lately—that it, like mine, was frayed and shredded. That her body was shutting down for a reboot. That this was the first time she’d let down her guard in a long while.

  I caressed her hair, protectively, pulling her closer and inhaling her scent. It smelled so familiar, but I couldn’t place why…

  I let the thought go for later, focusing on the moment.

  Come to think of it, my rope was feeling a lot less frayed, now. I should explore that more.

  But not right now.

  31

  We had finally detached after a good long while lying there together. She’d mentioned something about not wanting to dent her armor further, making my ears burn in embarrassment, before she’d rolled off and sat down beside me. She hadn’t broken contact, though, keeping her thigh pressed up against my shoulder as if for reassurance.

  I’d been careful to maintain that contact as I sat up beside her. We stared out at Niflheim together, the silence serenely deafening. We wanted it that way.

  My thoughts wandered as we stared out at the shifting, deadly mist. Had Kára really been willing to end her career to save me? Even after I’d halted talks of a relationship between us? Although I hardly knew Kára the Valkyrie, on some level I felt I knew her better than anyone. Probably because she’d told Freya that she’d known me for over a decade. That she’d been too much of a coward to admit her true feelings to me, and that serving two masters had been tearing her apart. Technically, she’d been serving three masters—Odin, Freya, and her heart. Who are you, Kára? I thought to myself, studying her from the corner of my eye in hopes of a hint.

  Without more information, it was impossible to guess. Ten years equated to a lot of acquaintances. She knew me too well to be some casual date or hookup from my youth.

  But I doubted she was someone I’d actually dated long-term, either, or else she would have told me how she’d felt while we’d been together. Had she been a close friend, never crossing the rubicon of romance?

  Another obstacle in my mental investigation was that a lot of people I had known over the years had died. A lot. And I didn’t have the emotional strength to dredge up that list and revisit every friend I had lost, reopen every old wound and heartache in hopes that I might find a face that fit. My heart already felt heavy even considering the attempt. And, seeing the sad, haunted look in her dazzling green and blue eyes, my heart sank even lower.

  Perhaps I should take on that review of my past—anything to get the weight off her shoulders. Because she had hinted that the answer was some kind of secret or a promise, so I doubted she was able to tell me herself. I needed to find it on my own.

  In a way, I wanted to find it out on my own, rather than her giving me the truth. Because the moment she told me, I would have only a split-second to react—a split-second where she held her heart in her hands, awaiting my response.

  But I might need time to consider what it meant to me. I wasn’t gullible enough to blindly throw my heart at the first woman who secretly threw hers at my feet. That wasn’t what Aphrodite had taught me. I needed to find my own definition of my heart’s greatest desire.

  Not love someone because they loved me.

  But…it was impossible to deny that Kára was on the fast-track to winning my affection.

  She was hauntingly beautiful, no question. She was obviously wickedly devoted to her values and to me—to her detriment, it seemed. And…that bit bothered me.

  Here I was, searching for my heart’s greatest desire, and Valhallia’s Secret—the Armored Collection—model of the year was willing and eager to swoop down and stand by my side. It felt…too perfect. Like I was being played or being forced into making an emotional decision in a difficult situation. A setup.

  Not that I suspected Kára of deceiving me. On the contrary, I feared she might be the victim even more than I was. Had Aphrodite set us both up? I’d already learned Hermes was playing both sides. Why not Aphrodite? Pun intended, naturally. She’d admitted to wanting to teach Callie a thing or two about her…heart.

  I realized I was studying her but that she hadn’t noticed—too lost in her own thoughts. I frowned as her fiery, dual-colored eyes momentarily shone in a familiar way. For a brief moment, I could have sworn she was Indie’s twin sister, and I felt my heart skip a beat. No…

  Indie? Could it be?

  Kára didn’t act like Indie, though. Sure, there were striking similarities, jokes, insightful conversations and debates, fiery passion, but…

  Indie had gone crazy. I definitely hadn’t loved Indie at the end—when I’d killed her. Power had destroyed the woman I had loved. Or, according to Aphrodite, the woman I had thought I had loved.

  But…what if, upon death, people changed? Maybe they reverted back to their most perfect forms. What if the dark side of Indie had perished when I killed her, and the old Indie had returned as Kára, the Valkyrie?

  Even more confusing was the fact that Indie had technically died twice. Death had helped bring her back as a Grimm. Had that fucked up the space-time continuum? Was Kára the pre-Grimm Indie? What would I do if that was the case?

  I felt a massive headache forming at my temples, so I turned away, troubled.

  I began talking, hoping to change the topic from our unspoken feelings to the more tangible issues at hand. She turned at the sound of my voice, her green and blue eyes arresting me for a moment, forcing me to look away. I caught her up on my recent adventures since I’d last seen her. I told her the main points of my current issue with the Olympians. How I’d been abducted, and that Zeus was playing some game—whether against his own people or me in particular, I wasn’t entirely sure. I showed her the Titan Thorns, explaining how they blocked my powers and how they were the cause of me looking like Peter.

  What I didn’t tell her was obvious—how I was avidly working on removing the manacles, and who was helping me do so. Kára had a trident, after all.

  Upon finishing my talk, we’d agreed to make our way back to the hut. I’d told her about Carl and Yahn, watching her closely to see any flicker of recognition that might narrow down my suspect list for her true identity. She had been genuinely excited to meet these strangers. Then again, I’d probably mentioned them in passing before—over drinks at her bar.

  She used her trident like a walking staff, her hips close to mine as her eyes quested our surroundings with hyperawareness. I smiled, recognizing it as protection. She was guarding me, even as she talked. Her scent was cool and faintly floral, reminding me of fresh growth beneath a heavy snowfall. Of melted snow at the tail-end of winter as the water tumbled down ancient streams.

  As we walked, she told me what she’d been up to, which was a whole lot of nothing important, outside of hunting me down. She downplayed that, not mentioning anything about the talk between her and Freya that I’d witnessed. Had she realized I was the spy? If so, she had an excellent poker face. She also said nothing about her agreement with Odin—being his second eye to watch over me, Freya, and Asgard. Or her relationship with Hugin and Munin.

  * * *

  AS THE HUT came into view, I saw Yahn and Carl sitting together, inspecting something between them. I cocked my head at a new thought. Luckily, I didn’t blurt out the first words that came to mind, or I would’ve had accidentally admitted to spying on her.

  “I hope Alice is alright. Is she still with Freya?” I asked carefully, not bothering to hide my genuine concern. I hadn’t seen her at Yggdrasil with Freya—where she should have been.

  Kára froze, her face instantly paling. “Oh, my god. I didn’t even think of that.”

  My arms pebbled in sudden panic. “What do you mean, Kára?”

  She swallowed, looking as if she was about to vomit. “Freya said you came to collect Alice
,” she whispered in a haunted tone, eyeing me up and down.

  The implication was clear. I didn’t look like Nate Temple. But someone else did.

  “Zeus,” I snarled, my vision throbbing red at the corners. “That motherfucker will pay.”

  Kára knelt apologetically. “Freya said you had returned, but no one else had seen you. Alice wouldn’t have left with anyone other than you, though. Still, I had to verify for myself, because something about it all just seemed wrong. Not even your Horsemen have seen you. That didn’t add up in my mind.” She licked her lips. “When I finally found you, I forgot all about Alice. My relief overcame my concern. I am so, so sorry. Where would Zeus have taken her? Why would he have taken her?” she fired off in a furious, frantic, panicked tone. Because Kára cared about Alice almost as much as I did.

  Her eyes were brimming with despair as she stared up at me, choking out a sob. “Where is Alice, Nate?” she whispered desperately.

  “I…have no idea,” I whispered back. “But you can bet your armored ass I’m going to find out and make him pay. I will make them all pay,” I snarled, pulling her to her feet. “And you’re going to help me. Don’t fall apart on me now, Kára. I need you.”

  She nodded determinedly. “I swear it.”

  Carl and Yahn had noticed us and were staring warily. I grabbed Kára’s hand and tugged her after me. “We’re going to meet my friends, and then we’re going to wreak some havoc.”

  32

  As we neared them, I waved at Carl and Yahn so they wouldn’t do anything stupid with whatever weapons they’d discovered from Grimm Tech. As they stood, I was relieved to see their hands empty.

  “Yahn, Carl, meet Kára.” I took a gamble, choosing my words carefully. “She’s a Valkyrie and a trusted confidante,” I told them. Kára stiffened ever so slightly at my introduction. I hadn’t wanted to say friend—knowing how it had felt to be on the receiving end of that slur—and I’d wanted to subtly get her thinking about her conversation with Freya. Even after the alarming news about Alice, she hadn’t voiced her suspicion that I had been the spy Death had warned them about. She hadn’t even mentioned seeing Death, as a matter of fact.

  Kára had regained her composure and dipped her chin politely—a warrior’s greeting. Healthy respect to let them know she was honored to meet them and, for the time being, would rather not respect them so much that she had to kill them.

  “What is a Valkyrie?” Carl asked curiously, and I remembered that he’d been gone from our world for quite some time. He probably knew, generally, what a Valkyrie was, but Carl loved hearing the gritty details.

  “I scour the fields of the dead and lift up the most honorable to fight another day in Valhalla during Ragnarok. Our version of Armageddon,” she said.

  Carl’s eyes glittered. “How delightful,” he mused with utter sincerity.

  She beamed brightly. “Beats sitting behind a screen all day, I guess. Travel package is nice.”

  Yahn watched her. “You own Buddy Hatchet. The axe throwing bar in East St. Louis.”

  She nodded. “Valkyries make great bartenders, by definition. Most of us spend our free time carousing in Valhalla’s Mead Hall with all the dead heroes waiting for Ragnarok, but I find it depressing to hang out with a bunch of drunks who talk about their past and future glory days twenty-four-seven. Literally. Forever.” I grunted. She made a fair point. She shot me an amused grin. “Heard you ran into another bartending Valkyrie in New Orleans. Same name, even. That’s called a trend,” she said with a smirk. “And a type.”

  “And that’s called profiling,” I said, narrowing my eyes. “We don’t talk about New Orleans,” I added with mock solemnity, “If I had ever been there, of course.” She was talking about Gunnar’s bachelor party and, now that I thought about it, I had met a Valkyrie bartender named Kára there, although she’d pronounced the first vowel in a harsher sound. Huh.

  I wondered if she had intentionally or accidentally given me a hint about her identity. Or if she was just giving me shit. My tinfoil hat grew taller.

  Yahn nodded thoughtfully, turning his attention to me. His eyes were full of questions he no doubt wanted to ask me in private.

  Carl was openly fangirling, even flicking his tongue out in her direction. “You smell like death and cold light. Delightfully macabre. We will be good friends.”

  She arched an eyebrow and smiled, her lips tugging at her cheeks to reveal dimples. “Carl…you’re a fucking riot. Has anyone ever told you that?”

  He pumped out his chest proudly. “Now they have.” He turned towards Yahn, frowning. “She took your place as my second favorite human.”

  Yahn rolled his eyes. “Oh, no,” he said deadpan. “Whatever will I do?”

  Carl narrowed his eyes suspiciously, but he wasn’t well-versed in sarcasm. “Live a life of unfulfillment, naturally,” he finally said. Yahn sighed, sinking his face into his hands, giving up.

  Kára grinned her approval and turned towards Yahn. “I like your heart, dragon.”

  He stiffened, lifting his face. “I prefer to keep my heart where it is, Kára.”

  She smiled. “That was not a threat. I was reading your aura. It is what Valkyries do. I see that you are a brave and honorable man,” she said, dipping her chin respectively.

  He nodded slowly, warily. “What’s your angle in all of this?” he asked.

  She considered his question for a few moments, glancing at me for direction. I gave her nothing, wondering how she would respond. “I do not have an angle, as you put it. I do have interests, and they will more than likely put me at odds with my employer, Odin.”

  I kept my face blank. As long as we gave her no reason—

  “Loki and Fenrir just left,” Carl said, eager to be helpful to his newest friend.

  “That’s quite enough, Carl,” I interrupted in a stern growl.

  Kára studied us with a frown. “I have no interest in Loki or Fenrir. I am not a thoughtless spear to be thrown where I am cast. Valkyries have leeway in the pursuit of our tasks. Discretion is the better part of valor.”

  “Don’t you have some kind of agreement with management?” I asked, wording my question very specifically in hopes she might let something slip. “Duties to be fulfilled in return for your new life?” I asked, indicating her armor.

  “Perhaps,” she said guardedly. “Some things are worth breaking rules for.” Yahn cocked his head thoughtfully. “Those I care about and those I am sworn to protect always take precedence,” she said in a bold, foreboding tone, meeting my eyes levelly. “Always.”

  Because we were having two different conversations. I was digging for secrets, but she thought I was alluding to Alice. Or maybe alluding to her thoughts on me, specifically. Yet…she hadn’t chosen to air that laundry in front of my friends. For her own dignity or mine?

  “Seems like a bad trait for a Valkyrie.”

  She shrugged. “I did not choose this,” she said, sounding slightly haunted. “But it got me what I wanted. Some deals cost more than others. I exploit every loophole I can find. It’s all the freedom I am permitted.” She grunted. “Their oversight is my gain.”

  “You understand that I cannot allow the Aesir to get involved in my mess, right? I have enough gods to worry about at the moment, and I don’t need Odin breathing down my neck because you went rogue. My life is not the only one at stake,” I said, referring to Alice.

  Kára nodded knowingly. “They will not. I have Freya’s blessing.” And that was all she was going to say about it, apparently.

  I knew I could trust her, but I’d really hoped to jostle up a few new answers from her. Kára was well-versed in keeping secrets and holding back any breadcrumbs that might lead to her true identity. Damn her. Begrudgingly, I had to give it to her. She was good.

  I turned to the hut, considering how to delegate duties among my expanding team, and I froze to find Aphrodite standing in the doorway, ten paces away, in full view of everyone. She was leaning against the doorframe, he
r hip cocked in playful laziness, and she was smiling. She had lit candles within the hut, and they illuminated her maddeningly perfect silhouette very, very well. Could anyone else see—

  Yahn sputtered and gawked, jerking his attention towards her with a stunned look on his face. Carl grunted. “Easy, young buck,” he drawled, smirking at Yahn. “She’s not here for you.” Yahn averted his eyes in embarrassment. Aphrodite had a way about her that lit a fuse to a man’s lust, even if his heart was committed elsewhere.

  Carl pointed a warning claw at Aphrodite. “Do better this time, woman. Or else.”

  Aphrodite laughed delightedly, and then crooked a finger at me, beckoning.

  I realized that Kára was frighteningly silent, and I turned to find her idly fingering the blade of a dagger I hadn’t seen her draw. She blinked languidly and then turned to me, arching an inquisitive eyebrow. The reflection of the fire’s light twinkled in her dual-colored eyes, and I couldn’t tell if she was jealous, protective, or…possibly amused?

  “I…um. I have a meeting,” I said lamely, figuring it would cover all my bases.

  She regarded me thoughtfully. “Okay, Nate. Do you need protection at this meeting?”

  My face reddened at the multiple ways that could be taken, primarily the one that included Kára helping me get seduced by Aphrodite. The goddess of sex would be totally fine with such an experiment. And as soon as Kára learned my dilemma was more torture than foreplay, she’d probably help a sister out to really make sure I took the lesson to heart.

  The only thing that would have made it worse was if Carl piped in about Aphrodite being the cure for all STD’s and that protection was not necessary. “No. I should be fine,” I grumbled.

  She continued watching me until I began to squirm. “I will be here when you are…finished. Shout out if you need anything,” she said softly. Then she chuckled at her advice, assuming I’d be shouting out for entirely different reasons. And…