Goddess: A Runes Book

by Ednah Walters

  “A dragon.” I turned off the phone, grabbed my books, and hurried toward class. Dev insisted the presence was in my class and refused to leave for three periods. In between classes, he grilled me on Eirik and my biological parents. Just before lunch, he claimed the presence was gone. I had my suspicions about the person responsible.

  The second I stepped out of math class, I spotted several souls in the hallway. They smiled, but didn’t approach me. They often headed upstairs to the bathroom to wait for me. These didn’t look like they wanted my help, so I ignored them. I got a text before I reached the lockers.

  “Come to the mansion for lunch,” her text said.

  The souls followed me upstairs and floated through the wall before I went inside. Usually, they lined up outside and waited until I went ahead of them. I told them there would be no lunch session, and it didn’t seem to bother them. I tried reassuring them that no one was after me, but they just stared. Raine was waiting when I arrived at the mansion, along with Andris, Torin, and Ingrid.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Torin made lunch,” Raine said, hugging me. “I told you we should do lunch.”

  “That was Monday, and you stood me up,” I said and pinched her.

  She pinched me right back. “Just because you are a goddess doesn’t mean you get to abuse me.”

  The others laughed.

  “We added more protection runes around your school after Dev stopped by and told us about something stalking you, Goddess,” Ingrid added. “We’ll see what gets trapped inside.”

  I loved that soul, but he was such a worrywart. “Thanks for the runes, guys. He also left souls on guard duty.” I pointed at Ingrid and snarled, “Stop messing with me, Blondie.”

  “I can’t, Goddess Blondie,” Ingrid said and curtseyed. “Your royal deity-ness.”

  I shook my head. “Clown.”

  “Own your goddess-ship,” Andris whispered, sliding beside me. “You already have the bearing and the fashion sense.” He removed imaginary lint from my top. “Now all you need is the chair. Come sit beside me so I can find ways to replace Echo in your heart. I’ve always wanted a chair.”

  I planted a kiss on his cheek. “You couldn’t handle me, Casanova, and no one can ever replace Echo. How did things go with Jenny?”

  “The bullies were forced to go to the principal and confessed everything after we hacked the diary of the head bitch and posted its contents online. They were expelled after they apologized for what they’d done to Jenny and the others in front of the entire school. I made sure the students had their phones ready, and the apology has gone viral. While you’ve been busy discovering your brother, social media made their apologies and humiliation trend.”

  “The principal expelled legacy children?”

  “Every last one of them. How did he put it? The school had to show the students, the staff, the board, and the alumni that bullying would not be tolerated at McLane Prep. He had no choice because we made an insane donation in Jenny’s name. Her parents have been invited to a gala at the school.”

  “Wow. Awesome.”

  “Thank you.” He grinned and glanced at the others. From their expressions, he’d told them the story. “I told Syn we were awesome. He disagreed. He wanted the principal to resign for not doing his job. I told him we needed the man at that school where we could keep an eye on him. Syn wasn’t happy, but I can be very persuasive. So now I owe him.”

  “Was Jenny happy?”

  “As a clam.”

  “Thanks, Andris. And you too, Torin.” He’d just placed a steaming plate of stir-fry in front of me. I gave him a hug.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  “Yeah. Dev worries too much.” I couldn’t tell them my suspicions.

  “We can hang around the school until we figure out this new threat.”

  “It’s okay. Honestly, I don’t feel threatened at all. Even when Dev mentioned it, I didn’t feel scared.”

  “Ah, noblesse oblige?” Andris said.

  The others laughed while Torin shook his head and went to join Raine. They fed each other. Marriage agreed with them. She glowed. He was content. I wanted what they had, not all this drama with my birth parents.

  “What is noblesse oblige?” I asked.

  “It’s French for nobility doesn’t fear anything,” Andris said. “They boldly face all sorts of danger because it’s in their blood to do so. If you are of a noble birth like Sir Anal over here”—Andris indicated Torin with a nod—“or of godly birth like you, you are invincible.”

  Ingrid flicked water at him. “Don’t listen to him, Cora. Noblesse oblige means there are certain expectations and responsibilities required of you when you are of noble birth. Not feeling threatened has nothing to do with it, which begs the question, what could Dev have felt.”

  I explained about Eirik and Odin’s chair. “He could still be up there watching us. Did you guys know he is a dragon shifter?”

  “A what?” echoed around the kitchen.

  “A dragon shifter,” I said, grinning at the expression on Raine and Ingrid’s faces.

  “That explains it,” Ingrid said and high-fived Raine.

  “Explains what, Freckles?” Torin asked.

  “The muscles.” Raine lifted her arms and flexed hers while Torin scowled.

  “He visited a couple of weeks ago. Raine and I found him asleep on her bed and got an eyeful,” Ingrid said. “I’m not complaining. I was tempted to see if he felt as good as he looked. I mean, the guy is seriously packing.” She kept throwing Torin and Andris side-glances. It was obvious she was deliberately baiting them.

  “An eyeful of what?” Torin growled, and Raine shut him up with a kiss.

  “I wonder if he was the golden dragon we saw flying around Asgard last week,” Andris said. “He even fought with the Einherjar.”

  “What’s that?” I asked.

  “The warriors preparing for Ragnarok,” Andris explained, and I wondered if Goddess Hel had warriors preparing, too. I was starting to wonder about her and how she treated her reapers. Did she mingle with them, or were they like her servants?

  “Do Valkyries mingle with the gods?”

  Andris laughed and explained in detail how life was in Asgard. The more I heard about their interaction with the gods, the more I worried about my future with Echo. If Goddess Hel didn’t encourage interaction between her hall and the Grimnirs’, I’d never see Echo.

  Chapter 6. Celestia Knows

  Echo was waiting by my car when school got out. I studied his face. He smiled. He seemed to be back to his usual self. Since the car was off, I assumed Dev wasn’t around.

  “Are they all waiting for you?” He indicated the souls, and I turned to study them. They no longer hid the fact that they were guarding me.

  “Guarding me. Dev asked them to keep an eye on me.”

  A frown creased Echo’s forehead. “Why would he do that?”

  “He thought I was in danger.”

  “Danger?” Echo was by my side before the words stopped echoing in the air. He cupped my face and searched it. “What danger? Why didn’t he tell me?”

  “It’s nothing. He insisted something powerful was around the school on yesterday, but he couldn’t see it and neither could I. He insisted on hanging around, even when I told him to leave, until he felt the presence disappear. They’ve been hovering since.” I glanced around. “And now they’re leaving. See? You are my hero, and they know it.” I patted Echo’s chest and gave him a big smile. “Let’s go, handsome.”

  I took one step, and he pulled me into his arms.

  “Are you forgetting something?” He didn’t wait for an answer, just kissed me until my head started to spin. He lifted his head and smiled. “I needed that.”

  So did I, but I couldn’t help teasing him. “I thought we were laying off the intimate stuff.”

  “I’m an idiot.”

  “I know.”

  He chuckled and pressed his forehead against mine. “I
cannot stand seeing you hurt.”

  “Good. Then stay glued to me forever. Come on, let’s go.”

  He still palmed my face and didn’t let me go. “Promise me you’ll be careful.”

  “Always.”

  “Even when I’m not there.”

  My smile almost slipped. “You’d better be around, mister, or I’ll come find you.” I waited until he pulled out of the parking lot before I said, “Tell me about Hel’s Hall.”

  “What do you want to know?”

  “Where’s Grimnirs Hall, and how far is it from Eirik’s and his parents’? Do you guys eat together? Party together? Are you guys buddies?”

  He laughed.

  “I mean it. I want to know everything. Does she treat you guys like servants or part of the household? After listening to Andris, I’m scared I’ll never see you when I visit.”

  “Helheim is cold and filled with magic. There are different halls within Hel’s Hall, including Eljudnir—which is the goddess’ hall. There is a Waiting Hall, a Throne Hall, the Guest Halls, Grimnirs Hall, Staff Hall, and Eternal Resting Halls, which some people call Eternal Hall or just Resting Hall.” He talked about Trudy and her family. “Maera is the housekeeper and head of the kitchen. Her staff cooks for everyone, including the goddess’ household. Her husband, Oskrud, ferries damned souls to Corpse Strand, and their oldest daughter Modgud guards the gates with Garm. The goddess and Baldur don’t eat with us, but Eirik does.” Echo chuckled. “He eats all the time. I’m not sure if that’s because the kitchen and Grimnirs Hall is open 24/7 or if he needs to feed his dragon. He works out and spars with us when not practicing with your mother’s warriors. For whatever reason, he bugs me with senseless questions whenever I’m in Ejudnir.”

  “Wait a second. When you talked about a dragon leaving, you meant Eirik.” I grinned. “Ha! So you two are buddies now.”

  “No, we’re not. We went on a few adventures. That’s all. Whenever the goddess throws a party, we are usually invited.” He talked about how Helheim had become a home to all of the Grimnirs. “Your mother treats us like members of her family, Cora. She took Trudy under her wing and treats her like her charge. Trudy and Celestia are tight. Then there’s Jessica, the girl who pretended to be you. Even though she knew from the moment Jessica arrived that she wasn’t you, she didn’t throw her out.”

  He drove slower than usual as he talked about the goddess, a string of emotions playing on his face. They’d known about her missing son and dead daughter, saw how it had changed her, and grieved with her.

  “She feels things deeply and maybe she’s a bit melodramatic like some people I know.” He pressed a kiss on my forehead. “But she is loved by everyone who knows her because she is an amazing person.”

  “How is she melodramatic?”

  “Every year, on your birthday, she covered every painting, mural, and figurine, disappeared into the nursery, and smashed everything. The Golden One was never allowed to enter the room until she was done grieving and putting the nursery back together. She did that for seventeen years, and each time lasted three days to mark when you were born and when you died. Sometimes she started early, so the mourning period lasted longer.”

  Tears filled my eyes.

  Echo kissed my knuckles. “She never made it a decree, but everyone wears black on those days. Staff. Grimnirs. Her guards. No color of any kind. The lights are dimmed, and the noise level in all the halls drops out of respect to her.”

  “That’s not being melodramatic, Echo. That’s grieving.”

  “I know.” He lifted my chin and wiped my cheeks. “Don’t cry.”

  “You are the melodramatic one in this relationship,” I mumbled.

  “I know that, too. She loved you as a baby, Cora, and she will love the woman you’ve become.”

  “You think so?”

  “I know so.” He kissed my cheek. “What else do you want to know?”

  “Eirik’s dragon.”

  “It’s huge.” He shook his head. “You have to see it to appreciate him.”

  “Celestia? What?” I asked when he grinned.

  “The little Druidess is a pint-sized Witch with a mouth and an attitude, but she grows on you.” He talked about the first time they’d met at some club in her hometown because the goddess had sent him to find her. I laughed as he explained her reaction. She sounded like someone I’d enjoy knowing. “I see her as a blend of you and Raine. Like you, she looks delicate on the outside but has an amazing inner strength. Like Raine, she goes headfirst into situations, acting first and thinking about the consequences later, which can drive a person insane.”

  That sounded like him, something I loved about him. He was spontaneous while I tended to weigh the pros and cons before acting. He never regretted his actions before, yet he did regret the way he’d treated Dev. Was this constant worrying about my other family part of the new Echo? Man, I hoped not because I needed him to be his usual cocky self when I visited Helheim.

  He pulled up outside the farmhouse then parked beside Dad’s truck and turned to study me with a serious expression. “It is important that everything at the hall stays the same for everyone, Cora.”

  I nodded. “I get that.”

  “Centuries ago, I forced my brothers and sisters to follow me and they helped turn our Druidic sisters and brothers into Immortals. Because of that, they were kicked out of Asgard and condemned to a lifetime of serving Goddess Hel in Helheim.”

  “I know the story, Echo. I think it’s ridiculous for them to hold a grudge this long.”

  “That’s just it. They’re not angry. We may not be buddies, but like I told you, they’ve found a home in Helheim and are happy. I do not want that to change.”

  I frowned. “You think if they find out we are dating, they’d hate you again?”

  A smile tugged the corner of his mouth. “Every Grimnir knows about my medium girlfriend who helps souls, sweetheart. What they don’t know is your connection with the goddess.”

  “We can tell them the truth when I come to visit.”

  Echo pressed his forehead against mine and sighed. “It’s not them I’m worried about, sweetheart. I don’t know how your mother and father will react to our relationship. If they feel I’ve crossed the line by dating their daughter, they might change how they treat Grimnirs.”

  “Why should they care about our relationship? We fell in love before we knew who I was. And our relationship has nothing to do with the other Grimnirs.”

  Echo leaned back and stroked my arm absentmindedly. “Centuries ago, it was a social taboo for a woman of noble birth to marry beneath her station. You are their daughter, a goddess in your own right. I’m just her reaper. She might have a problem with us being together.”

  I didn’t like this. “Then I don’t want to be her daughter.”

  “You can’t reject who you are. We should not mention anything about us to the goddess right away.”

  This was not what I’d expected to hear after he mentioned taking things slowly. “Are you saying we should hide our relationship from them?”

  “Yes, until we know how she’ll react.”

  So he was more worried about Goddess Hel’s reaction than Baldur’s. “And if she disapproves?”

  “We’ll decide our next move if that happens.”

  “I can’t hide how I feel about you, Echo. We gravitate toward each other when we are in the same room. Only an idiot wouldn’t realize there’s something between us.”

  He smiled. “I’m asking for time, Cora-mia. Time to assess the situation and study your parents. Time for you to get to know them without our relationship being thrown in the middle of things. I don’t want all the Grimnirs to suffer because I didn’t think through my next course of action.”

  Think things through. I was beginning to hate that expression. I wanted my spontaneous Echo back. I understood his concern for his reaper friends, but what about me. Why was he putting them ahead of us? I didn’t know how to pretend I didn’t love him.


  “How do I explain this?” I showed him the ring.

  He swallowed. “That stays.” Did he realize how contradictory his behavior was?

  “Okay.”

  He smiled with approval.

  “If I have to pretend I don’t love you, I’m not going.”

  A scowl replaced his smile. “You are going.”

  “You can’t make me.”

  “You are being childish.”

  “Childish? Really?” I glared at him. “Fine. Let’s go ahead and hide our feelings while you think things through, Echo. If you see me, pretend you don’t know me, and I’ll pretend I don’t know you.”

  “I didn’t mean it like that.”

  “There’s no other way to pretend. We either come clean right off the bat or fake it. If they ask where I got the ring, I’ll tell them a friend gave it to me. A friend, not the man I love.” I slammed the door. He was beside me in a fraction of a second, but my front door opened at the same time and Eirik stepped out. He frowned at us. “Ooh, look! There’s my all powerful dragon brother now. Let’s use him as a guinea pig and see if we can pull off this pretend crap.”

  I waved to Eirik and started toward him when a petite girl in ripped jeans, ankle boots, and a Boho top followed him outside. She had wavy brown hair, piercing blue eyes, and dimples that flashed on her cheeks when she smiled. A feeling of déjà vu washed over me. I knew her. Echo’s hand came to rest on my back, but my focus stayed on Eirik’s girlfriend. Where had I seen her?

  “Celestia?” I asked.

  “Yes, and you are Cora.” She gave me a hug.

  Because I was on the steps and she was on the porch, we were at the same height level. She leaned back, still grinning. For a brief moment, everything faded. Then other images of her superimposed on her grinning face. I shook my head, and the images disappeared. What the hell?

  “It’s so nice to finally meet you,” Celestia said. “Sorry it took us forever to get back. Alfadir insisted on throwing us a going-away party, then Frigg and her court insisted on another. It’s ridiculous how often they party. When we came back to Helheim, one of the guards’ wives was having a difficult pregnancy and I went to stabilize it. I was still working on her when more sick arrived. Before I knew it, I had a roomful of people with ailments their healer couldn’t help. There’s only one healer in Eastern Gjöll Pass, which is a village not far from the hall.”