Valkyrie Rising

by Ingrid Paulson

  Margit whipped across three lanes of traffic, almost sideswiping a station wagon, and flew up the nearest exit ramp. She sped across the overpass and accelerated onto the freeway in the opposite direction, weaving through traffic like a suspect in a high-speed chase.

  “Where are we going?” I asked, as if it made any difference which town would host our final showdown.

  “Bodahl,” she said, hitting the gas—hard.

  Fifteen minutes later, we pulled into a typical Norwegian fishing village. It skirted the sea, just like Skavøpoll, but instead of a narrow marina hugging the land, Bodahl had a broad pier extending deep into the fjord and disappearing into the darkness.

  Not a single window on the main street through the town cast light out onto the vacant street. It would have felt deserted if not for the rectangles of illumination cast through the trees by the homes on the surrounding hills. But not for long. I could sense Astrid and other Valkyries, speeding closer through the night, energy flooding the shrinking distance between us.

  Margit eased her car into a parking spot in front of the only bar in town. She clicked off the headlights and slid down low enough in her seat that she couldn’t be seen from the road. “The Range Rover must have just driven into town,” Margit whispered as the radio crackled to life again and a deep voice echoed through the car, telling us to hold position. “You’re on your own,” she said. “But we’ll pull the bar’s fire alarm if anyone is in danger.”

  “Right,” I said.

  “I almost forgot. Take this.” She tossed me a small handheld radio. “The range is only one kilometer, but at least we’ll hear what happens inside. Not like there’s much we can do to help if things get ugly.”

  “Thanks.” I slid the radio into my jacket pocket. I was surprised when she met my gaze and nodded in the rearview mirror.

  “Good luck.”

  We had to move fast, before Astrid and crew snatched whoever they were coming for and left. I followed Tuck across the street and into a world of pounding bass. A nightclub like that was honestly the last thing I expected to find in such a seemingly silent small town—and it was packed. Everyone was older than college age and was dressed in the hip, sleek clothes you’d expect in a city, but that were oddly out of place in the middle of nowhere. It had to be the hot spot for every village within fifty miles.

  The moment we entered, a bouncer pounced on us. Before he had a chance to block our path, I looked him right in the eye and shook my head. His pupils widened before taking on a vacant, disinterested glaze as he settled back onto his stool by the door.

  “There’s something I need to tell you,” Tuck said, turning abruptly and grabbing me by both shoulders. He hesitated. The eyes that had been open and warm only moments ago retreated, back to the heavily guarded territory I thought we’d left behind. He was up to something—there was no other explanation for that half smile. “I love you. Whatever happens tonight doesn’t change that. Just don’t forget it. No matter what.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked. He had buried the most important part in a forest of vague statements that unleashed liquid suspicion right into my veins. “This isn’t the time for one of your games, Tuck. This is serious.”

  “I should have just told you. Now I waited too long.” He swore under his breath as he stared off through the crowd. “They’re here. Take this.” He pressed a folded slip of paper into my hand. “It’s Norse. Old school. Back to the Vikings. It represents separation—when a Valkyrie leaves the fold, so to speak. Hilda put it on those necklaces she gave to Kjell and Graham. But you can put it directly on your skin. Preferably in a place they can’t remove without killing you. It’s worked for me, at least. When Astrid crushed that necklace, I did this.” He slid the sleeve of his T-shirt back just enough to reveal a series of crudely inked symbols on his shoulder blade. Like he’d drawn it while looking in a mirror.

  “How do you know all that?” I demanded.

  “It’s complicated,” he said, still avoiding my eyes. “You’ll have to trust me. And if I don’t get the chance to explain, my mother will.”

  “Your mother?” I repeated, utterly astounded, given that his mother had nothing to do with any of this. Knowing Tuck, it was a safe bet he’d only called to let her know when he’d arrived safely. Plus he was talking like we’d never see each other again. “Why wouldn’t you be able to tell me?” I demanded. My heart was pounding so hard, it would have registered on a seismograph. “If you’re planning something stupid, I’ll kill you.”

  “Can’t think of a better way to go.” He cracked a lopsided grin. “You need to just trust me.”

  “You keep saying that.”

  “Because you’re not doing it,” he shot back. “Besides, it’s too late. You have to do what I say or we blow this. It’s our last chance.”

  The fire alarm exploded to life. It took everyone on the dance floor a solid thirty seconds to realize that the shrill screech wasn’t just part of the music. When they did, we were crushed by a surge of bodies rushing toward the door. Tuck’s hand disappeared, but he pushed his way back to me again and pulled us both into a corner sheltered from the mayhem. The crowd churned in panic, jostling and shoving. A pretty girl was shoved to the ground by a brutish boy who would have drooled all over her minutes earlier. Fortunately, another boy pulled her to her feet before she was trampled. There’s nothing like an emergency to show your true colors.

  The sounding of the alarm meant that Astrid was already here. If Margit had had anything to say about it, they wouldn’t have pulled the alarm unless there was no other way to keep everyone safe.

  “Game time.” Tuck pushed the personal locator beacon into my hand. “It’s too dangerous to plant the beacon on one of them. You can put it in their car.”

  He grinned, like he’d just had this stroke of genius. But his mouth curved up at one corner. He was still up to something.

  “Where will you be?” I demanded.

  “You get the dangerous part because you’re faster. I’ll stand guard out front in case they come out. I’ll wait for you there.” He said it like it should have been obvious. Which was step one of the Tucker Halloway bulldozing machine. Either I was being paranoid or Tuck was playing me. What thoughts were spinning behind his unnaturally serene smile?

  Still, Tuck would be out front. Safe. Ultimately, that was all that mattered. While he waited for me, I’d have a golden opportunity to sneak back into the club and confront Astrid. Tuck wouldn’t know a thing about it until it was too late.

  Tuck grabbed my hand and plunged through the crowd, pulling us both through the flow of people. Once outside, I held my breath, eyes searching the road outside for any sign of the Range Rover. People cluttered the sidewalk; girls in clubbing dresses and high heels hugged themselves and shivered in the night air. No one noticed the two of us, huddled together by the door.

  “There,” Tuck said, pointing toward the alley a half block away. The glow of headlights reflected off the asphalt. “Hurry.”

  Astrid assumed no one was capable of an effective counterassault, which made my mission all too easy. I dropped to the ground on the pavement next to the back of the SUV and wedged the tiny transponder up underneath the metal bracket holding the bumper in place. Even a head-on collision wouldn’t pry it loose.

  I straightened, brushing the crusted dirt and oil residue off my fingers and onto my jeans. A rectangle of light on the alley wall marked the club’s back door. I peered into the darkened club. Astrid was there. The connection between us clawed at the corners of my mind, urging me to join her. I would never get another chance like this.

  Tuck would be furious when he realized I wasn’t coming back and that I had my own plan. But I couldn’t let that stop me. This was the only way.

  I pushed the door open and strained my eyes, searching the club. In the corner, half hidden by a row of bar tables, four figures were clustered. My eye was drawn instantly to the tallest, the one with radiant blond hair. Even though her back was
to me, I knew it was her. Astrid.

  She had a stocky boy by the chin and lowered her face to look directly into his eyes. Her companions stood by, hands resting on the weapons I knew were concealed underneath their perfectly tailored jackets. They were standing with their backs to half the room. They had grown too accustomed to not being challenged, which I could use to my advantage.

  Astrid’s graceful movements were fractured by flashes from the strobe light. In those frozen moments, I watched the boy’s eyes change from dark to milky white, just as Tucker Halloway stepped right up behind Astrid. Confidence incarnate. Like he was planning to tap her on the shoulder and ask her for the next dance.

  I was so confused, it took me painfully long to unglue my feet from the floor. Tuck was supposed to be out front. Out of harm’s way. But there he stood, larger than life. I lurched forward. But there was no way I could reach him before Astrid sank her manicured talons into him.

  My stomach slammed into the floor as Astrid reached one arm behind her and grabbed Tucker by the throat without even turning to confirm he was there. Her eyes skimmed the room. Until they found me.

  Suddenly I was running, not really sure what I’d do when I reached her but hoping I’d think of something. I’d forgotten how cold she was, a spider watching the path of a drunken fly bobbing and weaving right into her web.

  Astrid’s lips curled into a snarl. It made her look even more devastating.

  “Still not dead?” She was so cool and calm. Like she was offering us another cup of tea. “Fortunately, I can remedy that oversight. Wait outside,” she told Tucker, setting him down without a second glance. Assuming he was an obedient minion, under her spell.

  But his gray eyes were clear and unclouded.

  “No,” he said, taking a step forward

  Astrid turned and stared at Tuck, genuine surprise in her eyes. “You don’t have permission to speak.”

  “I don’t need it.” He lifted his chin. “You don’t hold much sway over me, Astrid, fascinating as I find you.”

  “I knew there was something strange about you,” she said, tipping her head to the side, examining him like the answers to existence were scrawled all over his face. “Let me guess.” Astrid turned ice-cold eyes on me. “He has family in Brittany.”

  I looked at Tuck, because I was pretty sure that was the region in France where his mother grew up. Then I turned back to Astrid. “So?”

  “Stupid,” Astrid hissed at me. “He’s using you.”

  “No. Never,” Tuck said to me. “I thought they were nuts. My mother’s family. Until all this started happening. My mother was basically raised in a cult. They claim they’re descended from a Celtic goddess, and they are obsessed with stopping the end of the world. As caused by you specifically.” He looked right at Astrid. “I’ll cooperate if you just let Ellie go.”

  “Cooperate?” Astrid made it sound like a dirty little secret. “Why would I have any interest in that? What’s to stop me from killing you right now?”

  “Nothing,” Tuck replied. “But while I don’t know everything about this feud between you and my family, I’ve figured out a couple of things. I know there’s some bad blood between you guys, but I think you should talk to them. Use me as a mediator. Or a bargaining chip. Even if I avoid them, they’ve tried pretty hard over the years to get us back in the flock.”

  “What on earth are you talking about?” Shock made my words come out one at a time, as if they were disconnected rather than a cluster of sounds that formed a sentence.

  “You really didn’t know?” Astrid hissed. She took in my confused expression, and her lips curled into a disgusted snarl. “It’s a disgrace. Hilda forced you to live in ignorance. It endangers us all.”

  I was surprised to realize that most of her anger at the moment was directed at Grandmother rather than at me.

  “His family is our greatest enemy. He tricked you. I imagine he’s been most gratified by your betrayal.”

  It was a lie—instead of crushing my bones, Astrid was going for my heart this time. At least, that’s what I thought until I saw the way Tuck’s eyes were still carefully avoiding mine.

  “Have you lost your mind?” I demanded, wondering why he was playing along with Astrid. There was no way this could end well. “Tell her it’s not true.” But my words faltered as he looked down, away from me.

  “But it is,” Tuck said softly.

  Astrid flashed a triumphant smile and prowled around me in a slow half circle. “You can’t trust anyone, Elsa,” she snarled. “How many times do you need to learn that lesson? Your grandmother. Tucker. Loki. I’m the only one who hasn’t lied to you. And yet you distrust me most.”

  “I didn’t lie.” Tuck stepped toward me, but Astrid shifted between us. I wasn’t stupid enough to think I could get past her if I tried, especially when her companions crept closer, watching my every move. “I just didn’t tell you everything,” he added.

  “A meaningless distinction,” Astrid snarled.

  I hated that I agreed. Now all I could do was wonder what else Tucker was keeping from me.

  Tuck held up both hands, yielding to Astrid even as his eyes finally met mine and he unleashed an explanation that just left me more confused than ever. “I hardly ever see Colette’s weirdo family. Even if the handful of things I picked up from them were useful the last few days. Like how to use a gun. Plus I recognized the symbol on Graham’s necklace once I got a closer look. I—I would have told you all this stuff earlier, Ells, but I still don’t really know what it all means.” He ran one hand through his hair, nervous, as his eyes finally met mine and he flashed his best smile. But for once it wasn’t enough. My heart was a lump of lifeless granite in my chest. This couldn’t be happening. The wonderful, albeit infuriating, boy next door was part of this whole nightmare too.

  “I have a proposal, Astrid,” Tuck said, shifting his gaze to her. “You don’t have to take orders from Odin. There’s another way.”

  “And end up like your ancestor?” Astrid’s words dripped scorn.

  “Just hear me out,” Tuck said.

  “No,” Astrid replied. “I don’t think I will.” The side of her hand crashed down on the back of Tuck’s head so fast, it was over before I even knew what had happened. He crumpled onto the floor. Unconscious.

  I swallowed the scream that filled my lungs. Because it wouldn’t help anything. Tucker had lied—he’d had a secret, just like I’d suspected. Only it was bigger than anything I’d imagined. All the ground I thought we’d covered on this trip disappeared in an instant, leaving a hole in my heart bigger than the hopes I’d harbored all these years. It had all been a lie.

  I pushed the thought aside, because, ultimately, Tucker’s betrayal was just one of my problems. Graham and countless others were still missing, and the clock was ticking down toward Loki’s deadline. Dawn was four hours away.

  “Take him,” Astrid growled, waving her hand at the Valkyrie behind her. She’d been scary before, but nothing prepared me for Astrid in a bad mood. And apparently Tucker had plunged her into a foul one.

  The sight of Tucker being taken away made me realize all at once that no matter how hurt I was, I couldn’t let one more person suffer at Astrid’s hands, especially Tuck.

  I wracked my brain for a way to save him—I couldn’t be left behind this time if I wanted to have any chance of rescuing everyone. I had to convince them to take me too. In a way, Tuck’s painful secrets might actually make it easier to convince them I’d switched sides.

  “I want to come with you,” I said, looking Astrid squarely in the eye. “I want to learn how to be a Valkyrie. Learn to be like you. I can’t—I can’t take any more betrayal.” My voice cracked on the last word, succumbing to the burning skepticism in Astrid’s eyes.

  “Interesting change of heart,” Astrid said. “To what do we owe this stroke of luck?”

  The words were saturated with sarcasm. She wasn’t buying it.

  “First my grandmother lied to me,�
� I said, doing my best to sound bitter. “To keep me from the rest of you. I can feel it, the draw to be with you. It’s like suddenly I found the family I was supposed to be with all along. Then Tucker lied to me.” My voice shook with real emotion. “I can’t trust anyone. Except you. Because, like you said, at least all along you’ve been honest.”

  Astrid’s lips twitched into a flawless smile. It was impossible for teeth to be so straight and white.

  Then she did something even more alarming than snarling or threatening me. She laughed. “You’re a terrible liar,” she said. “That would be lesson number one if I had any reason to train you.”

  “You have a reason to train me,” I said. “I’m strong. And you know it.”

  Astrid stared at me without blinking. Like a lizard. The tension in the set of her shoulders was a potent reminder I was messing with someone who would snap my neck without a second thought. Or even a first one. Yet the words kept on coming. “I’m strong like my grandmother. You need me.”

  “I don’t need anyone. There’s a reason I’m in charge. I’m the best.”

  I could tell it wasn’t working, so I took a deep breath and switched to a more aggressive approach. If nothing else, I could try fighting her again. On the infinitesimally slim chance I could win.

  I relaxed the stranglehold I’d kept on my violent impulses, my Valkyrie side. As soon as I did, it sprang forward, seizing control.

  “You were the best,” I retorted. “Could it be you’re afraid that if you train me, I’ll be better than you?”

  Astrid stepped forward, her voice low and dangerous in my ear. “Do you really want me to kill you?”

  Soft enough that her companions couldn’t hear, I growled, “What if you try and find you can’t anymore?” My voice was terrifying, even to me. A wild animal was unleashed within me, savage and pure. “But that’s not what either of us wants—you admire my strength. I know that’s why you didn’t kill me before. And I need your knowledge.”