Authors: T. G. Ayer
We hadn't had a proper chance to talk since he arrived. I wasn't sure if he'd had anyone clue him in on what a Warrior's roles and responsibilities were. I reached across the table for his hand. "What do you know so far? About why you are here?"
"We had one of the Warriors come talk to us. Tell us all about the
einherjar
and the Valkyries. Valhalla." Aidan laughed. "None of this is supposed to be real, you know."
I withdrew my hand. "Really? Is that why your decision to terminate was negative?" It was nasty to throw this in his face right now, when I needed his help so much, but hurt overruled a commonsense sales pitch.
He flushed, taking a drink from his goblet to hide his reaction. "Guess you studied the book."
"Yeah. It was certainly interesting reading," I said, my vocal chords strained. Then I thought of something. "Did you leave it behind on purpose?"
He stared at me, eyes clear, and amidst the testosterone-induced din surrounding us, I felt the magnetic pull between us. Felt the attraction that had made me throw caution to the air and open my heart to a guy for the first time. It had only gotten me betrayal and heartache, but here it was again.
He ignored my question and asked one of his own: "When do we leave?" Startled, I glanced at his face, checking if he was serious. Was he really choosing to come with me?
He half-sighed, half-laughed at my reaction. "Don't look at me like that," he said. "What did you think? I'd leave you to go back and find the necklace without me? I have access to records, names of the people involved in the dig, lists of items retrieved. You name it, I can probably access it. You'd be lost without me."
Suddenly it clicked. "Your father?"
Aidan nodded, his face darkening, as if the mere mention of his father pulled a cloud over his emotions.
"Okay," I said. "Let me check with Fen to see how we can arrange this. I'll get a message to you as soon as I know what the deal is."
As I rose from the seat and turned to leave, Aidan grabbed my hand. I ignored the spike of heat that ripped up my arm and the shifting of Hugin's weight on my shoulder, and raised a questioning eyebrow.
"Thank you," said Aidan.
"What for?" I asked, puzzled.
"For retrieving me. It seems right . . . that you were the one to bring me here."
Guilt welled in my throat. Not only had I brought him here to serve the gods, disturbing his rest, but now I was lying to him. Convincing him to come with me to find the necklace without revealing one crucial fact.
Aidan's life hung by the filigree thread of a goddess's trinket.
The jump from Asgard to Craven only took a few seconds, though still accompanied by the usual nauseous twisting in my belly. We materialized in bright moonlight and kept to the shadows as we walked up Elm Wood. The last thing we needed was for Ms. Custer to switch the veranda lights on and for Anna's nosy mother to see us enter the house this late. Who knew what the gossip would be then?
Aidan waited beside the bushes in front of the veranda in full view of the front door. The position was convenient. The veranda light would reach the shadow of the tree and only she would see us.
I ran to the door, stabbed the doorbell with one stiffened finger and sprang back to the shadow of the tree. Inside the darkened house the doorbell chimed, a hollow echo that was a bit on the spooky side. Soon Ms. Custer cracked open the door, staring outside, bleary-eyed and perplexed.
"Mom," I whispered, drawing her attention. Her eyes widened as she saw me, and a smile stretched across her face. A smile that died a quick death. At first, I assumed it was Hugin she'd seen. I'd gotten used to the constant weight of the bird on my shoulder. But her eyes settled instead on Aidan beside me. Concern wrinkled her face. I nodded toward the side of the house, pointing a curved hand in the direction of the backyard. She silently mouthed the word "okay" and closed the door, flicking the light off.
We shuffled in the shadows, keeping to the edges of the house, and made it around to the back without incident. The door opened to reveal Ms. Custer, broom in hand, looking very much like my own personal avenging angel. She stared Aidan down. He hesitated then entered, passing her slowly, having the grace to flush a decent shade of red.
She didn't switch on any lights. Just put the kettle on and drew out cups and plates for tea and cake. The light from the street lamp outside cast a yellow glow through the large windows, enough light for us to get by. The cups and spoons clanked and clattered softly until at last Ms. Custer sat before us, staring from my face to Aidan's.
"What's going on?" she asked, her voice steady. Too steady. Her eyes flicked toward the raven and then back to me.
"We need a place to stay," I said.
"How long?"
Aidan answered, and I wished he hadn't. "Just tonight. We’ll be gone tomorrow," he said. The look Ms. Custer sent him was blistering enough to fry an egg on his forehead.
"You have a lot of explaining to do, young man." She was angry but she still kept her voice low, controlled.
"I'm sorry, Ms. Custer. I know I deceived you. All of you." He looked at me, apologetic, shame-faced, still flushing.
I held my tongue, knowing if I spoke, all that would come out of my mouth was snark. I did plan to tell him how I felt. Soon. But now, sitting in the dark at Ms. Custer's kitchen table, whispering secrets about places and people that just shouldn't exist . . . well, now was not the best time.
I turned to Ms. Custer, who was the one who really needed an explanation. Unsure of how much I should say, I glanced at Hugin, wondering if I should ask his advice, but he avoided my eyes and just stared at Ms. Custer, a message to say I was on my own. Probably not a big enough issue for him to assist with. I decided winging it was my only option.
I took a deep breath and quickly ran through what happened since I'd left her more than a week ago: how Aidan had been left for dead by the stream and how I'd retrieved him, and how we'd been sent back to find the rest of the necklace. I left out the part in which the unpredictable goddess Freya had given me a deadline and Aidan's life hung in the balance.
"Okay." She sipped her tea and stared at its contents as if about to read tealeaves.
The silence was potentially damning.
"If I didn't trust you, Bryn, and if you didn't have a big ol' raven on your shoulder, I'm not sure I'd believe any of this," she said at last. "As long as you stay and leave without drawing attention to yourselves, it's fine by me. But remember, either of you do anything to endanger my kids, and you are out. They don't need any more upsets."
My heart tightened and I asked softly, "How are they?"
"They miss all three of you."
"I wish it could have been different," I said.
And it was the truth. It had been so easy to crave a new life, but when you're handed one straight from ancient mythology, it's a lot harder than just saying thank you and moving on. But given the chance to have things back to the way they were before, I would refuse. New possibilities had opened up for me. The hole left inside me after Joshua's death was easier to bear knowing he was still alive and meant for better things. Meant to make a difference to Midgard in the end. Brody and Aimee too. The part of me that had suffered in enforced silence ever since I'd begun to see the auras no longer suffered. I no longer felt guilty for being unable to stop all those people from dying.
"At least you're still alive." Ms. Custer smiled brightly, clearly searching for the silver lining in our dark and crazy story. I couldn't respond to her without wanting to cry.
Aidan's days were numbered and he didn't know it. And who knew whether Freya would be happy with just taking his life as punishment if I didn't bring her Brisingamen?
"Well, you can have your old rooms back, just keep the blinds down and drapes closed." With that, she rose, rinsed her cup and saucer and placed them on the draining board. She stared out the window at the waning moon, just days past full. Did she see a parallel between that bright white disk and our farfetched tale? She sighed, then said goodnight and went up to bed.
The kitchen door swung back and forth, and I watched her retreating figure through the gap each time it swung into the dining room beyond. At last the door stilled and I looked back at the shining moon. I had a week. That moon's progress would mark the number of days left before I had to return with the necklace. The number of days left of Aidan's life.
***
Uneasy dreams haunted my sleep, and from the looks of Aidan the following morning, he'd been doomed to a similar fate. Dark bruises curved beneath red-rimmed eyes. I'd waited to rise until Izzy and Simon had left for school. It didn't seem right to disturb their routine when I planned on heading out this very morning. Unsure of when we would return, I didn't want to excite the kids, get them thinking we might be sticking around.
Aidan's actions mirrored mine, but he had no idea of the real urgency of this mission. We had breakfast in the kitchen, with Ms. Custer bustling about and serving pancakes and coffee. Hugin perched atop an empty chair while I ate. It was strange. I hadn't spent long in Asgard and yet I'd gotten so used to the routine of the day. Even pancakes tasted different. And Aidan's expression said he'd noticed it too.
"You will want your book then?" Ms. Custer asked. I looked up, expecting her to be speaking to Aidan, but my eyes met hers as she deliberately ignored his right of possession.
I nodded and followed her, grabbing the last pancake from my plate, trailing her upstairs to her nightstand. She fiddled with a small panel, then pulled it forward to reveal a secret drawer. The hiding place was so ingenious that the investigators had missed it when they'd searched the house. She placed it in my hands.
"I read some of it," she said, surprising me "You've inherited a bit of a job, my dear." Then she hugged me tight, and I held on as hard as I could. "Be safe, Bryn. Don't do anything stupid. okay?"
Soon after, we said goodbye and headed out the back way, taking the tree-lined pathways behind the houses and into the woods. Hugin returned to my shoulder, his weight now comfortable and familiar. Hidden beneath the trees, we paused to get our bearings. On the other side of the hill stood a small group of shops—a tourist stop for hunters and trampers on their way into the mountains.
"I'll go down," Aidan said. "Buy a cell phone. Should take me ten minutes tops. Stay right here."
I bristled. He seemed to think he was in charge. But just when I was ready to tell him where to get off, guilt raised its ugly head again and laughed at me. And I shut my mouth. It didn't matter. Let him take the lead. I owed him that much. Besides, we were most certainly not in a battle of wills. I had nothing to prove. Aidan, on the other hand, still had to prove his loyalty.
I stood in the shadow of a large tree and watched him slide down the steep incline toward the road. He crossed to the curio shop and emerged minutes later bearing a small bag. The trip up the hillside took twice as long, and only when he was standing beside me, tearing the plastic off a disposable cellphone, did I let go of my breath.
He rang the bus company, checking to see if we were near any bus routes. We had to avoid public places, where Aidan would be spotted, a dead man still alive, or where I'd be seen, probably with that APB still out on me. A shoulder-borne raven would no doubt attract unwelcome attention, too. Unfortunately, the nearest route went right through the center of the town, so we had to scratch the bus idea.
"Too bad you can't fly," Aidan quipped. His eyes darted to Hugin and back, then widened. "Can you fly?"
"No. I haven't learned that yet, and I'm not so sure I want to. Besides, we would draw a certain amount of attention, you know—a winged woman flying through the air carrying a guy."
Aidan grinned, and in that second I was reminded why I'd let him into my heart so quickly. That cheeky grin and those smiling eyes. I smiled back, and for that moment, everything was right with the world. It would all work out. I had absolutely nothing to worry about. Until he blinked and I blinked and the moment was gone.
"What do we do now?" I said.
"We need a ride out of this town. And a ride under the radar." When I frowned, he added, "We can't be traced. They'll be watching Craven for any suspicious activity in the area, so we can’t make a move while it’s light."
"Guess we have a good wait ahead of us, then?" The sun threw tepid warmth on our head. I raised an eyebrow, wondering where we could possibly hide until nightfall.
"Yes, ma’am. Let me lead you to your lodgings." Aidan beckoned me with a flourish of his hand, leading me into a dense stand of trees. In this isolated part of town we were pretty safe, so I settled on the ground, my seat a cushion of thick autumn leaves.
Along with the cellphone, Aidan had bought a tiny bag of Doritos. He popped the bag and took a handful, then tossed the rest to me. "
Bon appétit.
"
To pass the time, I pulled the leather volume out of my bag. Aidan didn't react. I ignored him, reading and snacking until he fell into a deep sleep. The sun dropped behind the trees, and darkness drew long shadows over the sleepy town. I let him rest, wondering how long it would take for Freya’s curse to begin to wear him down.