me updated on your welfare. Not the same thing. He showed me pictures of you and the Cooper girl. Is she your future mate?”
“Raine? No. She’s my best friend. Cora is the one.”
Disappointment flashed on my father’s face. “The blonde? She has no magic in her. Raine is the one. You could use her to help your mother see the errors of her ways.” He frowned. “Her plans are more dangerous than anything out there.”
“Yeah, avenging her. No one fights the Norns and wins. Raine tried, but they keep coming up with better ways to torment her.” I finished the bread, grabbed my shirt from where I’d left it, and shrugged it on. “I wouldn’t want her fighting my battles.”
“If she were your mate, your battles would be hers. A consort with her powers can be very helpful, just like your grandmother has been to your grandfather. There are so many things he would not have done if it weren’t for her.” He glanced toward the door. “We will discuss this later.” He unbuttoned the heavy coat while barking instructions. “This is what I want you to do. Give me a couple of minutes, then come out and head left. You’ll see a set of stairs heading toward the outer wall of the south tower and the roof. Take it to the ground level. You’ll know it’s the ground level because of the outside-facing windows. Check under the next set of stairs for a secret door. It’s easy to miss, but it’s there. It leads into the east armory. It’s unlocked. Use it. They’ll be waiting for you.”
“They who?”
“Two Grimnirs, a man and a woman. You should recognize the man. Most Grimnirs have tattoos, but this one’s violet eyes make him stand out. That and the fact that he is very discreet. He will help you across the Gjöll then lead you to the cave where Grimnirs create portals. There’s less magic there. Once you are back in Midgard, find your sister and bring her home.”
If he’d reached out and gutted me, I would not have been more shocked. “Sister? What sister?”
He scratched his forehead. “Sorry to break it to you like this. I was planning on telling you about her when you turned eighteen, but you came here.” There was no censure in his voice this time. “The Norns didn’t just take you, Eirik. They took your sister, too, the night she was born and your mother was told she lost the baby. Norns take souls of babies for recycling and they claimed to have taken hers.” Anger flashed in his eyes. “They gave your mother a body to bury. That, coming on top of your disappearance a year before, pushed her over the edge. She’s never been the same. She blames the Norns for doing this to her. I’ve done everything to find your sister—with little success.”
I had a sister. This changed everything. I stopped pacing when something else occurred to me. My father had sent me away.
“Did you do this? Send her away, too?”
“No.” His outrage sounded genuine. “I couldn’t do that to your mother again. I may have sent you away to keep you safe, but your sister was never in any danger. You were. You still are.”
“Obviously. Look where I am.”
My father shook his head. “You are not in danger from your mother. You never were. Someone else wanted to hurt you. She still does.” He moved to the door and looked outside. “One day, I’ll explain. Right now, remember what I told you. Once I leave, go left, head upstairs to the ground floor, and find the door under the stairs leading to the south tower. Rhys and his partner will be waiting for you. They are also the ones who’ve been searching for your sister. They will fill you in on what they’ve found. You’ll need this.” My father removed the heavy coat and put it around my shoulders, then pulled me in for a hug. “Find your sister and bring her home, Son,” he said. “It’s the only thing that will make your mother happy again, and she can stop this nonsense about your training and revenge.”
“She’ll send Grimnirs after me,” I
“Raine? No. She’s my best friend. Cora is the one.”
Disappointment flashed on my father’s face. “The blonde? She has no magic in her. Raine is the one. You could use her to help your mother see the errors of her ways.” He frowned. “Her plans are more dangerous than anything out there.”
“Yeah, avenging her. No one fights the Norns and wins. Raine tried, but they keep coming up with better ways to torment her.” I finished the bread, grabbed my shirt from where I’d left it, and shrugged it on. “I wouldn’t want her fighting my battles.”
“If she were your mate, your battles would be hers. A consort with her powers can be very helpful, just like your grandmother has been to your grandfather. There are so many things he would not have done if it weren’t for her.” He glanced toward the door. “We will discuss this later.” He unbuttoned the heavy coat while barking instructions. “This is what I want you to do. Give me a couple of minutes, then come out and head left. You’ll see a set of stairs heading toward the outer wall of the south tower and the roof. Take it to the ground level. You’ll know it’s the ground level because of the outside-facing windows. Check under the next set of stairs for a secret door. It’s easy to miss, but it’s there. It leads into the east armory. It’s unlocked. Use it. They’ll be waiting for you.”
“They who?”
“Two Grimnirs, a man and a woman. You should recognize the man. Most Grimnirs have tattoos, but this one’s violet eyes make him stand out. That and the fact that he is very discreet. He will help you across the Gjöll then lead you to the cave where Grimnirs create portals. There’s less magic there. Once you are back in Midgard, find your sister and bring her home.”
If he’d reached out and gutted me, I would not have been more shocked. “Sister? What sister?”
He scratched his forehead. “Sorry to break it to you like this. I was planning on telling you about her when you turned eighteen, but you came here.” There was no censure in his voice this time. “The Norns didn’t just take you, Eirik. They took your sister, too, the night she was born and your mother was told she lost the baby. Norns take souls of babies for recycling and they claimed to have taken hers.” Anger flashed in his eyes. “They gave your mother a body to bury. That, coming on top of your disappearance a year before, pushed her over the edge. She’s never been the same. She blames the Norns for doing this to her. I’ve done everything to find your sister—with little success.”
I had a sister. This changed everything. I stopped pacing when something else occurred to me. My father had sent me away.
“Did you do this? Send her away, too?”
“No.” His outrage sounded genuine. “I couldn’t do that to your mother again. I may have sent you away to keep you safe, but your sister was never in any danger. You were. You still are.”
“Obviously. Look where I am.”
My father shook his head. “You are not in danger from your mother. You never were. Someone else wanted to hurt you. She still does.” He moved to the door and looked outside. “One day, I’ll explain. Right now, remember what I told you. Once I leave, go left, head upstairs to the ground floor, and find the door under the stairs leading to the south tower. Rhys and his partner will be waiting for you. They are also the ones who’ve been searching for your sister. They will fill you in on what they’ve found. You’ll need this.” My father removed the heavy coat and put it around my shoulders, then pulled me in for a hug. “Find your sister and bring her home, Son,” he said. “It’s the only thing that will make your mother happy again, and she can stop this nonsense about your training and revenge.”
“She’ll send Grimnirs after me,” I
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