“Do you know how long it took me to talk after I died? How long it takes any soul to overcome the shock of knowing they are dead and re-master speech?”
Not sure where the conversation was headed, I shook my head.
“About three months. In Asgard, I saw warriors train, drink, and eat for months without uttering a word. They are sorted and sent to Eternal Halls as soon as they get here. It took me less than three months and part of the reason was your mother.” He chuckled. “She was determined to have me as her consort and she doesn’t like waiting. Yet, this soul of yours speaks and does magic?”
“Like I said, Celestia is very special,” I insisted.
“I’m sure there’s a reason for that.” He put his cup down and stood, signaling the end of our meeting. “I’d like to meet her. Your Celestia. I want to see for myself what kind of soul she is.” Before I could come up with an excuse, he waved over Litr. “My son’s things?”
“The duffel bag is in the young god’s room in the basement,” the Dwarf said.
“Good. Rhys dropped off your clothes, so you can stop borrowing mine.”
White wasn’t my style. On the other hand, it was my father’s favorite color. White and gold. His quarter. His clothes. Even the cups and plates were white glazed with a line of gold. I didn’t have to bite the spoon to know it was pure gold.
“Bring Celestia to me, Son. I’ll be here for the next hour.”
~*~
CELESTIA
I saw the time and gulped.
“Crap! I have to go,” I said, gathering the wrappers. An hour had passed since I left the dungeons.
“Go where?”
“Back to Eirik. You told me Grimnirs are nice, right?”
Trudy squinted and made a face. “The ones I know. They are so many, and Mom doesn’t like me hanging around the kitchen. The Idun-Grimnirs are definitely nice. There are only a dozen of them, so it’s easy to remember them. To everyone else, they are old and wrinkled and look the same, but I can tell them apart.” She chuckled. “They are always surprised when I call them by their names.”
Idun-Grimnir. Eirik had said they recruited new Grimnirs. “I didn’t see any gray and wrinkly Grimnirs yesterday.”
“They eat in a private room far from the kitchen so they can discuss business in private. A few Grimnirs eat with them. The ones they’re grooming to become like them. Let’s go. I don’t want your master getting mad at me for keeping you.”
“Eirik is not my master, but he’s likely to get mad at me. He told me to stay put, yet I went to see your mother in the kitchen for a little chat, then came here.”
“Why did you go to see my mama?”
“I was looking for a Grimnir.”
Trudy threw me a weird look. “Describe him.”
“He is tall, with black hair, tattoos, and violet eyes. His name is Rhys.”
“Rhys,” she said at the same time. “He spends so much time with the Idun-Grimnirs I’m sure they’re grooming him. Why do you want to see him? Is Baldurson leaving?” she asked, lowering her voice.
I frowned. “Why would you think that?”
“Because Rhys helped the Asgardian escape.” I stared at her blankly. “Baldurson’s friend. The night I helped him, he would have left this place with Rhys and his partner, but he stayed and his friend left. I think he traded places with his friend.”
Just when I thought I had Eirik figured out, I learned something new about him. “Is there anything that happens in this hall that you don’t know?”
Trudy grinned. “Nope. Rhys will be back by nightfall. He is a regular. That means he sleeps here a lot. Most of the Grimnirs have homes on Earth, so once they drop off their souls they just go back there. Some prefer sleeping here. Rhys is one of them even though he has a place in your realm.”
Nightfall? I was so hoping to be home way before that. “Oh.”
“What is it?”
I heard the concern in her voice, but I wasn’t ready to share certain things with her. She already acted like she knew I was lying about what I was.
“Let’s pick up snacks and drinks from the kitchen.”
Eirik was pacing when we arrived in the dungeon. He still wore his white pants, but he’d put on the shirt he’d slept in. He saw us and stopped, his eyes locked on me with unnerving intensity. I recognized the panic in his eyes. Something had happened to set him off. I opened my mouth to ask him what happened, but he spoke first.
“Where the hell have you been?” he snapped, closing the space between us.
I blinked at the harshness in his voice. “Upstairs.”
“Don’t ever take off like that. In fact, you are not to go anywhere without checking with me first.”
And this was the person I’d been feeling sorry for a few seconds ago? “Aye, aye, your royal godliness, sir,” I shot back, saluting him. “For a second there, I’d forgotten you were my master and I was here to serve you. Next time I’ll ask your permission. And FYI, I tidied up the place, took the breakfast things back to the kitchen, and brought you something to eat.”
He stared at me then the tray as though seeing it for the first time. I expected him to apologize, but all he said was, “Oh. Take it inside and ask Litr to bring fresh bathwater.”
If Trudy weren’t there, the entire contents of the tray would be on his head. Grinding my teeth, I marched inside the room and dropped the tray on the table, the juice sloshing and spilling.
Asshat. If I wouldn’t end up in that cave, I’d leave right now.
“I’m sorry I snapped at you yesterday,” I heard him say to Trudy. “I was taken by surprise when you shifted. Still, that was no excuse.”
She mumbled something I didn’t hear. She probably shrugged it off and gave one of her sweet smiles while blushing. Trudy was nice and forgiving. I wasn’t. He was going to grovel before I forgave him.
I marched to the tub and stared at the bath water. I wasn’t asking Litr to change it. Instead of removing the drainage stopper, I gripped the rim with my left hand and the rim of the wooden bucket with the rinse water and murmured a spell.
The water cleared. I dipped my hand in both tubs. The water was freezing. Good. I stepped back just as Eirik entered the room. I glared at him.
He didn’t meet my eyes. Instead, he stopped by the tub, looked at the clean water, and frowned. I waited. He reached down and dipped his fingers in the water.
“It’s cold.”
That was his concern? I stared at the water and thought up a spell. Frost appeared on the surface. He was going to have a giant ice cube by the time the spell worked its way to the bottom of the tub. I hoped the tub cracked, too.
“I’m sorry for the way I reacted, Dimples. I thought you left,” Eirik said, speaking slowly. “I came down and it was quiet and your things were gone. You don’t need my permission to go anywhere. Just let me know, so I don’t worry. My mother’s guards report everything back to her.”
I hated seeing that haunted look in his eyes because it only made me feel worse. Yes, I’d been gone for too long and even I would have been worried if I were in his shoes, but he wasn’t supposed to need me anymore or worry about me. He was here with his family, however dysfunctional it was. Mine was back in Windfall and I was needed there. I had to keep trying.
“Yeah, well, it still wasn’t cool talking to me like that,” I mumbled and reached for my coat. I was going to give it another go. I shrugged on the coat, and the bunny-eared hat fell on the floor. “Not cool at all.”
“I know. I apologize,” he said.
“I didn’t have to come back here, you know, especially after the detour in the cave.” He scowled, clearly not understanding. I didn’t have time to explain. “But I did to help you, so yeah, you owe me, Eirik Baldurson. Heck, you should be groveling at my feet.”
He groaned. “Will you just accept the damn apology?”
“Hell no. Not with that attitude.”
“You should stop being so snarky when people are around. It c
onfuses them.”
“I’m stuck here, Eirik. I can either cry and indulge in self-pity or cope.” I put the hat on and rummaged inside the backpack for my gloves. “Snarky is my way of coping.”
“Why are you putting on your clothes and carrying that?” he asked, nodding at my backpack, which I was hoisting on my back.
“I’m going home. Unless my aunt called Dad today, he is coming home tomorrow and I want to be there when he arrives. I’m all he has and finding me in a permanent trance would devastate him.”
Eirik’s eyebrows slammed down. “I thought you were going to talk to Rhys.”
“I left a message with Trudy’s mother. I asked him not to reap Hayden,” I explained when Eirik cocked a questioning brow. “I told you I saw him talking to her, right? They’d also visited Tammy’s Cauldron, her mother’s shop. He’s been stalking her.”
His frown deepened. “And your grandmother?”
I sighed. “I would have loved to see her one more time, but I can’t right now. Dad is more important.”
“So I guess this is goodbye?” Eirik asked, his voice low and filled with emotions I didn’t understand.
My throat tightened. “Maybe one day our paths will cross…” I couldn’t finish because my voice shook.
Eirik crossed the space between us and surprised me by pulling me into his arms. I stiffened, but my breath caught and my heart started to race.
“Thank you for coming back to help me,” he whispered. “I didn’t get to say it yesterday, but I owe you just like you said. I know you were teasing, but I mean it. Our paths will cross again, Dimples. I promise you that. I will pay you back for everything you bought just like you said.”
“I was only kidding,” I said, fighting tears. Even with layers of clothing between us, my stupid body reacted to his nearness. I needed space between us. No, I needed realms separating us. I wiggled, silently telling him to let me go.
His arms tightened, his chin dislodging the hat from my head. He buried his face in my hair and his breath fanned my scalp. A shudder rocked my body. I wanted to wrap my arms around his waist and hug him back, but I knew if I did that, I wouldn’t want to let go. Or worse, I’d start to cry. He had way too much pain to deal with, without adding my stupid crush. That was it. A stupid, girly crush.
I squirmed again, trying to create space between us. “I can’t breathe, Eirik. Ease up.”
He squeezed me one last time, then his arms eased. “I’m going to miss you.”
“I’m going to miss you, too,” I wanted to say, but I bit my tongue and stepped away from him. Instead, I picked up my hat from the floor, put it on, and saluted him. “Train hard and try not to piss off your mother too much.”
His lips twitched, but the smile didn’t fully form. I’d yet to see him smile. I’d tried everything, but he’d lost the ability somewhere along the way. Hopefully, he’d find it someday.
“I think she does all the pissing,” he said.
“Then she’s found her match. And if you can, give some of the chocolates to Trudy. She calls it a bribe, but she loves them and she is full of information. Nothing goes on in the halls without her knowledge. Please, let her be your ally. And don’t screw things up between you two by being all godly and arrogant.”
He crossed his arms and frowned. “I’m the least arrogant person I know.”
If he had smiled or smirked, that statement would have been corny.
“And smile. When you scowl, you scare everyone away.”
He scowled.
I shook my head and gave a mock shudder. “Ooh, just like that. Scarier than a gator, and I’m scared witless of those scaly bastards. One more thing.” I went to the tub, gripped the porcelain, and murmured a spell. The ice melted. When I touched the water, it was hot without being scalding. “It’s perfect now. I don’t want to come back and nurse you again.”
I glanced at him one last time and wished I hadn’t. His eyes were begging me to stay, but I couldn’t afford to listen to them. I had to go home. My father needed me more than Eirik did.
Maybe if the projection didn’t work…
No, I wasn’t going to start thinking like this. It was going to work. It had better work. Focusing on my body back at home, I gave Eirik a small wave, gripped the straps of my backpack, and willed myself out of there.
CHAPTER 11. NOT AGAIN
EIRIK
I watched her go, my chest so tight it hurt. I reminded myself that her life was back on Earth and mine was here. Chances of our paths crossing were slim, but I owed her for being here when I needed her.
Stripping, I lowered myself into the warm water and leaned back. Her essence still lingered. All I had to do was close my eyes and I imagined her in the same tub. I swallowed and drifted back to Earth and happy memories. Celestia replaced them. She was a stubborn little thing. Mouthy. Funny. A pain in my ass, yet… I loved sparring with her. She reminded me of everything I loved about Earth. She didn’t care who I was and had no problem calling me out when I acted like a douche.
The water was turning cold when I focused on the present. I had no idea how I was going to explain Celestia’s disappearance to my parents. Lying that she’d rejoined the souls made no sense because I had no idea how the system worked here. Besides, what could my mother do if she found out the truth now? Celestia was gone and I had very little magic to brag about.
My father was right. It was time to come clean and face the consequences.
I stepped out of the tub, grabbed the nearest towel, and dried off. It was the one Celestia had used, and her scent lingered on it. For a moment, I let her scent fill my head with impossible dreams.
No, the feisty little Witch was better off where she was. She didn’t belong in my world. I had my hands full with my mother. Then there was Cora. There was always Cora at the back of my mind.
I wrapped the towel around my waist and studied the water. What was she doing now? Probably reuniting with her father or her friend. What was her name? Hayden. And her cousin, the jock. Damn it! My thoughts had drifted to Celestia, again.
“Okay. Back to business,” I said out loud.
First, I engaged Odin’s rune. It always appeared on my forehead before more, bound to other runes, spread across my body. Odin was my protector and his rune was my first line of defense; my grandmother had drilled that in me the weeks I’d spent in Asgard.
I engaged more runes and watched them appear on my arms. Speed. Healing. Strength. Endurance. Some I had no idea what they did, but I engaged them all. My heart pounded and there was a ringing in my ears. Engaging runes without exhausting their effect was like lighting a fuse. All that power needed an outlet, but I couldn’t stop now. I had to know what runes the Sevilles had used on me when I was a child. If I could figure out what they were and counter their effects, I’d know what they’d blocked.
I touched my back. Nothing.
One by one, I got rid of familiar runes and waited before touching my back. At last, all that remained were unfamiliar ones and Odin’s. I checked my back one more time. Nothing but droplets of sweat. Relief washed over me. I probably had some weird childhood eczema on my back.
I rummaged through the duffle bag, and my hand closed around something hard. I pulled it out. Rhys had brought my camera. I owed the guy one. I threw it on the bed, then retrieved gym clothes—sweats and a long-sleeved top—changed, and left the room. It was time to find the training arena I’d heard the guards talk about.
I was halfway up the stairs when sharp pains shot up my back. I gripped the wall, but my legs gave away and I lost my footing. I engaged pain and speed runes, and managed to stop my downward spiral. The pain receded.
“What the hell was that?”
I reached over my shoulders and touched my upper back, but there was nothing but skin. I touched my lower and mid-back. No bumps.
Something was seriously wrong with me. Instead of going to the arena, I sent one of the guards to get Litr. The servant didn’t look happy, but he left with
a message for my father that I couldn’t make lunch. I stayed close to my room, doing crunches, push-ups, and drills—sprinting up and down the stairs—and waiting for the pain to return.
~*~
CELESTIA
I looked around the cave and growled in anger. This was not happening again. Why did I always land in the same stupid cave?
“Tell me what you want or I’m not leaving this time,” I yelled.
A growl deep in the cave answered me. I started to run toward it, not caring if I slipped. Maybe if I fell and broke something, she would be forced to come out or let me go home. My lungs hurt by the time I reached the fire. The humming was receding.
“Don’t you dare leave again! Who are you, and why do you keep bringing me here?”
The humming stopped.
“I know you can hear me. I don’t belong in your world. My father needs me. I am all he has, so please, let me go home.”
The humming started again.
“No, no, no. Don’t do that. Just answer me. Tell me what you want, and I’ll do it.” The humming continued. “Fine. If you won’t answer me, I’m not leaving.”
I removed my coat, hat, and gloves, and sat by the fire, hating whoever she was. I wanted to cry. Beg her. But my pride wouldn’t let me. I ignored the humming and stared into the flickering flame. Why was she doing this to me? Nothing about my astral projection felt normal. I always went back to my body. Could my powers be weaker, or was the humming woman blocking me with more powerful magic?
My stomach started to growl. I glanced at my watch. It was way past my lunchtime. I should have eaten more pastries before I left. Wait a second. Two hours had passed since I got here? How was that possible?
My eyelids grew heavy. I glanced at my watch again. Two more hours had passed. Okay, this was weird. My first time in Hel, I’d gone home to find that several hours had passed. Since I’d spent less than an hour with Eirik, the cave—or the woman in the cave—must have warped time. My eyes closed. I forced them open.
Demons (Eirik Book 1) Page 17
