Page 14 of Between Broomsticks and Beating Wings
“You interfered? Why? I’m sure you see horrors every day; it’s your job not to interfere, is it not?” I asked, racking my mind for some tale of a valkyrie saving a mortal. I only needed a moment to realize this situation was, in fact, unheard of.
She straightened her posture, staring off for a moment into the room before she focused back on me and said, “I know you have questions, but I’m not at liberty to answer them all. There are some things mortals simply cannot know.”
Stubborn, self-important valkyrie.
I swallowed my frustration so as not to anger the woman who’d kept me alive. “So you saved my life from the raiders, and I’m not allowed to know why?”
“Precisely,” she said with a swift nod. “I will return you to Stormheim when you’re healed and ready to travel once more. These trips can be quite?—”
“And Tove?” I interrupted, holding him up so she could see who I was referring to.
The woman sighed and tugged at her ear, as if my mere presence exhausted her. “The cat will remain here.”
My head jerked back, and my grip on him tightened. “He will not.”
“Once a spirit passes on, they may not return to Midgard without permission from the gods, and I’ve never heard of them granting permission to a feline,” she said, her curious gaze flicking to my cat.
“Well then, I will stay too.”
“You may not.”
“I will.”
“You can’t.”
“Then take me to a god! I will ask for permission,” I said, my teeth grinding as I spoke to avoid raising my voice.
The woman gawked at me for far longer than what was comfortable. It wasn’t until I took another sip of tea that she cleared her throat.
“Not until you’re healed. You need food, and you look and smell horrid, quite frankly. Do you really think I’d let you step in front of even the weakest of gods in this state?”
I slowly rose, Tove content in my arms. I took in a deep breath—not just to steady my nerves, but also to take a whiff of myself. “Fine. We will do it your way, but let it be known, I won’t leave him.”
“I’ve taken note of this, yes,” she said, standing with a stifled groan. “Now, seeress, what should I call you?”
My blood ran cold. “Seeress?” I looked down at the tea. Themugworttea.
Her grey-blue eyes flared before settling into their relaxed state once more. It was so subtle, I would have missed it had I not been devouring her every move. “I can sense it in you, your power.”
I let her words settle in, taking my time before making my next move. “Please, direct me to the wash bucket. I imagine I have a list of tasks I need to accomplish before meeting with the god of your choosing.”
The valkyrie nodded with satisfaction, beginning to lead me out of the bedchamber. When her back faced me, I stared at her stunning hair looped with gold bands and beads, her position truly hitting me. One of Odin’s valkyries had saved my life. Tove was corporeal. I was in Valhalla.
Sudden awareness washed over me, and I began to wonder if she’d been the light in my visions that my mind had been unable to process, despite all the mugwort I’d consumed. I certainly knew now what all the gold had meant.
I watched the way she walked, confident and demanding. She could end my life before I took my next breath. She could fly me to the darkest depths of the realms if she saw fit—drop me in a land of ice, giants, and soulless creatures.
Tove and I exchanged a look, and I decided then that my sass would have to be tamed. My feet began to slow, and I awkwardly uttered, “And my name… It’s Kari.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
MIRROR, MIRROR
Rune
“Why do you keep bumping into things? Open your eyes, for Valhalla’s sake,” I said, stabilizing a vase that teetered and threatened to tip off the vanity.
“You have far too many mirrors in here. How often does a person really need to stare at themselves?” she said, her eyes glued to the floor, as if nowhere but her feet was safe to look at.
