Page 18 of Between Broomsticks and Beating Wings
I shrugged. “She’ll be going back soon.”
How much could she possibly learn before I took her to Midgard? I didn’t see the harm, especially since she wouldn’t be able to wield seidr of another realm anyway.
“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about.”
I paused and raised a brow at her, encouraging her to continue. She glanced around, but tonight’s feast was underway, and the halls were empty.
“I don’t know why you took her. Well, I know, but I still can’t wrap my head around how you let your intrusive thoughts win. Either way, I know she must mean something to you, and believe it or not, I don’t want bad blood between us.”
“What are you trying to tell me?” I asked.
“I wasn’t straightforward with you earlier.” Bodil's sigh sounded painful. “If you drop her back into her life on Midgard, she will die.”
“What are you talking about? I’m waiting until she heals from her injuries so there’s no reason she?—”
“It’s not just about her injury. It’s about the natural laws of Midgard. She’s tainted from the heavens now, and that doesn’t just go away. Her wounds, while healing here, will cause her downfall upon returning to Midgard.”
“Well what am I supposed to do with her now? She sure as Hel can’t stay here, and I can’t return her to Midgard just for her to meet her death,” I said, my frustration seizing control of my tongue.
“Take her to Helheim before Odin realizes she’s here. Once he finds her, you won’t be given any other option but to return her and let the natural law take its course.”
“You think Hel will feel any differently?” I asked, not imagining the goddess of Hel would be any more forgiving.
“Helheim is far less exclusive,” Bodil said.
“Yeah, for the dead. Hel takes all the souls she can get, but onlyafterthey’ve crossed over,” I said, running my hand down my face and showing weakness to a sister I’d prefer not to. For all I knew, Bodil was just trying to rid herself,and the entire sect, of me. “I can’t believe I’m considering this.”
She flashed me a look that told me she didn’t want to be in my position, and I wondered if she’d ever been tempted to take her human playthings home with her. We both knew what she was up to on the long nights on Midgard. I wondered if tonight she’d give in to temptations or let my failures guide her on a path devoid of depravity. Either way, I let my predicament be a lesson—a warning.
CHAPTER NINE
OCEAN BLUE
Kari
Isank into the bed as soon as Rune left to grab me a scroll, sampling the foods she’d given me. I let my head fall back to the pillow and reveled in the sheer comfort my body experienced despite the oozing hole in my shoulder. In Stormheim, we didn’t have raised beds topped with thick blankets and stuffed with pristine white feathers. I sank into the mattress, wondering how I would ever return to Midgard now that I’d experienced such luxury.
Tove was curled up next to me, purring aggressively. I could feel just how much he missed having a corporeal body and having me beside him in a way he couldn’t just see, but feel too.
The door flew open, and Rune poured into the bedchamber with a scowl that could’ve shattered glass. She closed the door and locked it behind her, running her other hand down her paling face.
“What’s wrong?” I sat up in bed, feeling her angst roll through the room like a thick fog. It would choke me if I didn’t help her manage it soon.
“We need to leave,” Rune said, her voice hard as stone. She pushed herself away from the door and strode to the armoire, murmuring something about Rayna and how she was going to do some rather unpleasant things to Rune for this—whatever “this” was.
“Leave? To go where?” I pushed the tray of food away and scooched to the end of the bed, as if moving closer to the valkyrie would tell me what was going on inside that mind of hers.
She didn’t speak for a moment while she threw her wardrobe doors open, rummaging through her belongings. Tove meowed angrily in Rune’s direction, knowing she was the reason I’d stopped giving him attentive scratches.
She sighed and paused, her hand resting on a shiny shoulder plate. “We’re going to have to put a hold on that little conversation with Odin, seeress. Turns out, he may not be as receptive to your pleas as I initially thought. It’s best we leave Valhalla before he discovers your presence here in his hall.”
“Why the sudden change?” I asked, eying her to see if I could sense any lies in her words.
No lies.But it definitely wasn’t her whole truth. She was holding something back.
“Remember what I said about not being able to tell you everything?”
“Yes, but what if I don’t accept that?”
