“He’s a college student. Unlike you guys, I only date older guys now.” I moved closer to Leigh, forcing her to lean back. “Don’t ever threaten me again, because you have no idea what I’m capable of.” Grinning at their expressions, I left the room.
Andris went with me to Dr. Olsen’s for my Thursday checkup and, once again, stayed in the waiting room with his nose buried in an e-reader. He’d hoped Dad would come to the doctor’s office with me, but it was Mom who hurried into the waiting room.
“We have a meet on Saturday. Is there a way I can participate?”
Dr. Olsen studied the sutured wound and glanced at Mom. “It’s healing well, but I don’t think that’s a good idea. The last thing you need is an infection.”
“I told her the same thing,” Mom piped in.
“The team needs me, Mom. Isn’t there something I can use to cover it? I plan to swim a few races, and like you said, it’s practically healed. No pinkness or swelling. I’ve been taking good care of it. You know, using antibiotic ointment and wiping the area with peroxide.”
The doctor shook his head and exchanged another glance with Mom. “She’s still as stubborn as ever.”
Mom sighed. “She takes after her father. Is there anything she can use?”
“Of course, but you have to be very careful, young lady.”
I left the doctor’s office with hydrocolloid adhesive pads. I was so waiting to have it out with Echo that night, but he didn’t even show up. Or if he did, he must have runed me again.
***
“It’s Friday. Please tell me you’re planning on clubbing or at least throwing a beer bong party in the middle of some vineyard,” Andris said, sliding beside me, his boy toy Roger by his side.
“I have swim practice. Then I plan on going to bed early.”
Andris sighed. “How can someone so hot lead such a boring life?” I was sure he was saying that for his friend’s benefit. “Roger, is there anything happening anywhere tonight?”
Roger shook his head. “Geoff is having a Minecraft tourney at his place.”
Andris chuckled and touched Roger’s cheek. “You know I don’t go for those kinds of games. We need to go out and have some serious fun. How about it, Cora? Pick a place. L. A. Connection or Bill’s Taproom, the new bar on 8th North.”
“Sorry. I have a meet tomorrow morning, so it’s early to bed for me.”
“What? Where?” His eyes narrowed. “How early is this meet? If I have to get out of bed for you, Echo will owe me.”
“Who is Echo?” Roger asked.
“The guy she has a crush on. The reason she’s being Miss Goody Two-Shoes. She doesn’t know that’s not the way to keep someone like Echo interested.”
If a glare could kill, he’d be plant food. “The meet is here, and you don’t have to be there, douchebag. I don’t want you to. And FYI, I don’t have a crush on him,” I added through clenched teeth. “Oh, and your services are not needed this evening either. Go clubbing or partying for all I care.” I exited the building, but Andris was right behind me.
“Wait up, Cora,” he said.
I ignored him.
“Okay, I’ll apologize. Stop stomping like Attila the Hun. Girls are supposed to glide.”
I stopped and turned. “You do know when you piss someone off, you are supposed to apologize, not hurl more insults.”
He raised his hands in mock surrender and smirked.
I cocked my eyebrows. “I’m still waiting for an apology.”
“Which part pissed you off? The crush, Miss Goody Two-Shoes, or keeping a certain Grimnir interested.”
The anger drained out of me. I couldn’t stay mad at him no matter how often he pissed me off. He was cute and had been great the whole week. Besides, I loved his snarkiness. “Forget it.”
“Now I need a hug. Come here.” He extended his hands toward me.
I rolled my eyes and gave him a hug. His hand crept lower. “You touch my butt, Andris, and I’ll knee you so hard your jewels will lodge in your throat.”
Grinning, he stepped back. “Okay, no need to turn me into a eunuch. Come on. I’ll take you to the pool and stick around until you’re safe at home. Again. What time is the meet tomorrow?”
“Early. It’s okay. I’m going with Raine.” Raine had been studying with her Valkyrie instructor after school, so we hadn’t hung out, but she had off today. She caught up with us before we reached my car.
“Roger is waiting for you, Andris,” she said.
“I know. Isn’t he adorable? Are you really babysitting Cora this evening?”
“Babysitting?” Raine and I said at the same time.
Andris took off laughing. “You two be good. Watch out for Grimnirs.”
I was beginning to doubt the “presence of other Grimnirs” story Echo had fed Torin and Andris.
“At least you don’t have to skip class to babysit me,” I told Raine and threw my backpack in the back of my car. She added hers and her oboe then sat in the front passenger seat. I cranked the engine. As I backed out, I almost hit a girl. The soul that had been following me on Monday was walking beside her. He shook his fist at me. “Don’t your man and Andris care about missing classes?”
“Not really. School is about blending in, not learning. Are you excited about tomorrow’s meet?”
“Yep.” I always enjoyed meets. Raine liked to say I was an adrenaline junkie, and she might just be right. It might explain why I was lusting after a certain bad boy. “Can you come with?”
“No way. Even coming with you tonight scares the heck out of me. I don’t know how the others will react to my presence.”
“Oh, please. The way they all came to the hospital after your father’s coma scare should tell you the past doesn’t matter anymore.”
At the next stop, a cold draft filled the car, and I grinned.
Echo.
I turned and groaned with disappointment when I saw the gray-haired soul from school. How did he pull that off? I thought he was attached to the girl I’d seen him with. I studied him in the rearview mirror. He wore an expectant expression.
Why did they always look at me like I was the answer to whatever bugged them? I shivered. And why did they have to be so cold?
“What do you want?” I snapped.
“What?” Raine asked.
“I’m talking to the dead guy, not you,” I said, glaring at the soul through the mirror.
Raine whipped around, her eyes wide. “Where?”
“The soul, Raine.”
She squinted, her eyes darting around.
“Behind me. Can’t you see him?”
She sighed. “No. Why can’t I see them? Everyone does except me.”
“But I thought you wanted to be a Valkyrie.”
“Doesn’t mean I can see souls yet. Mom and Lavania keep saying I will when the time is right. That the Veil opens slowly so we are not overwhelmed by what we see. Yours happened too fast and you, uh…”
“Went crazy,” I finished, not bothered by my stint at the psych house anymore. “I can see why slow is good. Cerebrum overload is a bitch.”
“So what does he look like?” She continued to squint at the soul.
“Old. Graying hair. Potbelly. Wrinkled suit. Andris said it’s cheap.”
“Andris is a fashion snob. What is he doing now?”
“Talking. I still can’t hear the souls.” I peered ahead, trying to find the perfect spot to park. I passed business offices and restaurants. All their parking lots were packed with cars. “I need to park somewhere private. Somewhere no one can see us.”
“First Presbyterian Church.”
First PC was by our school. “That’s way back there.”
“Make a U-turn. It’s secluded, and the parking lot is empty.”
And it didn’t have a cemetery, so no more souls. I made a U-turned and headed back toward school. I studied the soul through the rearview mirror. He seemed harmless. Just an old dead guy.
“Are you going t
o disperse him?” Raine asked.
I would if Echo would appear to lecture me about messing with his charges. Unfortunately, Torin’s words kept ringing in my head. Then there was Mr. C’s advice. I never thought there’d come a day I’d want to be nice to a soul.
“I’m going to show compassion,” I said.
Raine frowned. “What?”
“Crazy, right? But someone I respect told me I needed to change my methods of dealing with them.”
“Echo?”
“Your father.”
“Is that why he called you to the den on Saturday?”
I chuckled at her incredulous tone. I wasn’t planning on telling her about seeing her father in the cafeteria after he’d died. “Yes. He said I should embrace my gift.”
Some gift. More like a curse. I still couldn’t see me embracing it.
I signaled, entered the empty church parking lot, and parked. Blowing out air, I opened the door, stepped out, and waited. The soul followed. Raine opened her door and peered at me from across the hood. Since I was facing the car, if anyone saw me, they’d assume I was talking to her. Heart pounding, I smiled.
“Okay, mister. Tell me what you want,” I said, going for calm and confident. Yeah, like I knew what I was doing. This was crazy.
His mouth opened and closed without making a sound.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t hear you.”
He gestured wildly with his hands, his lips moving fast.
I sighed. “This is ridiculous. I can’t hear a thing or read lips.”
“New souls are like newborns,” Raine whispered. “They don’t know how to express their thoughts or emotions properly. Most of the time, the Valkyries do all the talking and the souls do the following. Valhalla is like any military. They train, eat, and sleep… train, eat, and sleep. Same routine without deviation. No time to think for themselves. The souls left behind often find something familiar and become attached to it.”
No wonder they were attached to buildings and family members. “Or walk around aimlessly as though lost. Okay, I’m going to try again. Listen, sir. I.” I touched my chest. “Help.” I pointed at him. “You.”
He stopped talking, titled his head to the side, and pointed at his chest then me.
“We’re getting somewhere. Yes. I will help you. Tell me what you want.”
He pointed at his chest again then me.
I grinned. “Yes.”
He moved so fast I didn’t realize his intention until our bodies melded. The cold was bone-chilling and smothering. My skin felt clammy and tight. My lungs strained to suck in air, and my sight grew hazy.
“What’s happening, Cora?” Raine screamed.
Her voice echoed as though she was talking through a tunnel. I tried to respond, but I couldn’t open my mouth. I felt light, as though I was floating away. Hands grabbed my arms.
“Cora! Damn it! Talk…”
Raine’s voice faded only to be replaced by another. A man’s voice. The soul’s? Probably. I strained to understand what he was saying. His voice grew loud then faint… loud then faint…
My head hurt, and my chest burned from lack of oxygen. Darkness tried to swallow me, but I fought against it. Fought and fought… until sounds filtered through.
I recognized Andris’ voice then Raine’s and Torin’s. They were arguing.
“Don’t look at me,” Andris snapped. “They wanted to do their female bonding thing and told me to leave.”
“He shouldn’t be here,” Raine whispered.
Who shouldn’t be here? Andris?
“There’s nothing we can do about him now,” Torin said reassuringly.
“That’s right,” a familiar voice said. “You can whine about my presence all you want, but I’m not leaving. Without me, she’d be fighting for her life.”
Echo.
My heart pounding, I opened my eyes. He might have sounded amused, but anger burned in the depth of his golden eyes as he studied me. I grinned.
“And she smiles. What are you doing, doll-face?”
10. Close Encounter
I hated that name. It was probably Maliina’s nickname.
“Checking how comfortable the ground is.” I moved my legs and arms. No broken bones. Raine must have broken my fall. “Very comfy. What are you doing here during the day?”
He squatted beside me, bringing with him raw sensual energy and his tantalizing scent. I wanted to inhale him and soak him in. Then deck him.
“Rescuing you from a soul. Again. Are you okay?” He touched my head.
“Gah, your hand is freezing.” I sat up. “Did you just come back from Hel’s Hall to brag? Or…” I remembered our first meeting. “You knew what they wanted, didn’t you? The first time we met. You knew.”
Echo nodded.
“Does she attract souls, too?”
His eyelids dropped. “I don’t know. Our interaction was limited to… other pastimes. Thank you,” he added, studying me through the canopy of his ridiculously long lashes.
“For what?” Reminding him of Maliina and that all they did was have sex? I hated her.
“For warming my hand,” he said softly, a sexy smile tugging the corner of his lips.
My eyes flew to my hands. I had his trapped between mine, instinctively warming it. I let him go, heat rushing to my face.
“What you did today was very dangerous and reckless, doll-face. Do you know what happens to Mortals who are possessed by a soul?” he asked.
“No, but I’m sure you are going to tell me in excruciating details. And please, don’t call me doll-face.”
“Have you watched Poltergeist?” Echo asked.
“Yeah. So?”
“Poltergeist is nothing compared with real possession. You could easily go crazy, hurt yourself, or worse.”
Wasn’t he the bearer of gloom? And since when did I become so easy? I was supposed to be pissed with him. Instead, my heart pounded with excitement, and the urge to throw myself into his arms threatened to overwhelm me.
“If you’re here to lecture me, then leave. I was trying to help a soul find closure. Something I’m sure you wouldn’t understand. And no more watching over me while I sleep either. You rune me again and I’ll make you sorry in ways you couldn’t possibly imagine.” I was being a total bitch now, but I didn’t care.
“Who said it’s your job to give them closure?” he asked, ignoring the last things I’d said.
“Me, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
Laughter came from my left. My head whipped toward it, and I caught Andris’ smirk. Even Torin was trying hard not to smile. Raine was the only somber one. She looked shaken.
“Your presence is upsetting Raine.” I got up and walked to her. We hugged. “I’m sorry,” I whispered.
“He’s not scaring me. You did. And you shouldn’t be listening to my…” she glanced at Echo. “He is right. You should never do this again.”
“What happened?” I asked.
“You went into a trance. You know, eyes rolling into the back of your head, body shaking. I barely caught you before you fell. Then you started talking in a strange voice. Finally, you blacked out.”
I frowned. I thought I hadn’t blacked out. “How long was I out?”
“About ten minutes.”
That was long. “And, uh, what happened to the soul?”
“I happened,” Echo said, sounding close.
He must have taken it to Hel’s Hall, which would explain his cold hands. I turned around to face him. “You ordered it out of me?”
Echo nodded. “Lucky for you, I knew his name. He had no business possessing you.”
I frowned, hearing the concern underneath the anger, or maybe I wanted to hear it. “He wanted me to pass a message to someone called Clare Bear. Something about a safety deposit box at Key Bank. The password is her name, Clare Bear.” I walked around him to my car, opened the back door, and reached for my folder. It was already open. Weird. I didn’t recall opening it. I sat i
n the back seat with my feet on the ground and started writing down the names and numbers.
“What are you doing?” Raine asked.
I looked up to find the four of them staring at me “Writing down what he told me. I hope I remember everything.”
Raine waved a notebook. “You already wrote them down.”
I stared at the notebook in her hand. The exact same number and words I’d just written were scribbled over and over again on a piece of paper. Some were initials. SDB instead of safety deposit box. KB instead of Key Bank. PW instead of password. The handwriting wasn’t mine. “I did that?”
“You demanded in the weirdest voice that I give you a paper and pen. When I did, you wrote this.” She tapped at the page.
After what Maliina did to me, I should be pissed or maybe even leery of someone using me. Instead, I was excited at the possibility of what I might do with my weird ability. I could actually help someone find closure. Maybe this was what Mr. C had meant—find out what they wanted. The soul had given me a message.
“You can never do this again, Cora,” Raine said. “It’s too dangerous.”
Torin nodded. “Too many Mortals have gone insane from possession. For centuries, powerful high priests and priestesses have cleansed the possessed by ordering the soul to leave. They don’t always succeed.”
“But that means you guys can order them out once I joined with them, right?” I gave them a sweeping glance. Torin’s expression was unreadable. Andris smirked while Raine still looked worried. Knowing her, she was probably blaming her father for this fiasco. The soul had blindsided me. Next time, I’d be prepared. “I mean, Valkyries and Grimnirs are crème de la crème of high priests and priestesses.” I slanted Echo a look. He was frowning, yet his people were priestly. “Right?”
“I think you and I should discuss this privately,” he said slowly.
“That’s not going to happen,” Torin said.
Something lethal and deadly flashed in Echo’s eyes, but his gaze didn’t leave mine. “Stay out of my business, Valkyrie,” he warned softly.
“I told you, you are not using her while we are around,” Torin retorted.
“You don’t matter in the grand scheme of thing, St. James. She does.” Echo grinned and gave me a slow perusal. I was wearing my swim team sweatpants and jacket, but from the heat in his eyes, I might as well be sitting there naked. His voice dropped an octave and became husky. “Besides, ‘using’ is such a misunderstood term.”
Runes #03 - Grimnirs Page 17
