Heroes (Eirik Book 2) (4 page)

Zack and Wes were on their way back when the two Grimnirs entered the club. They approached a table to our right, and for one brief moment, Dreadlocks blurred. When he cleared, his hand was in his pocket. An onlooker could have blamed what happened on a trick of light, but I knew better. I’d seen Eirik pull that move. He’d be by his bed one second and the next by my side. Dreadlocks had used runes to go into hyper-speed, and possibly runed the occupants of the table.

The table cleared, confirming my suspicions, and the Grimnirs took two of the vacated seats.
Damn. Rude much
. Instead of taking seats across from each other, they sat side by side like a couple. Maybe they were gay. They didn’t order drinks. Instead, they sat with their backs to the stage and slouched with bored expressions.

No, there was nothing lover-like about them.

As though they realized I was watching them, they looked at me. I didn’t like the expressions on their faces. Was Eirik with them? I searched the faces of the people at the entrance, my heart tripping and starting to pound. I realized what I was doing, and mentally slapped myself. Stupid heart. It had no business hopping with excitement at the thought of seeing that man.

Eirik was in my past. He was probably leading a charmed life, playing the part meant for him as the perfect son of a god and a goddess, the future leader of the deities, dragon shifter—feared and revered. Chances were he’d also found his sister and reunited his family. With his sister in the hall, his mother would stop being vengeful.

Wait a second. Forget Eirik.
There were two reapers in the club after months of not seeing a single one. Reapers meant one thing—death. Was something about to go down? Should I warn people?

Zack and Wes returned with our drinks—Sprite for me and Diet Coke for Hayden. Wes was a bit pink in the face and took Zack’s seat, which meant my overprotective cousin had gotten his way. He had the nerve to shoot me a triumphant look before he pulled Hayden down on his lap.

Yeah, whatever.
I had more important things to worry about.

My eyes met the Grimnirs’. Dreadlocks was no longer smiling. Part of me wanted to defy the orders Rhys had given me months ago, march across the room, and demand to know what was going on. If there was going to be an accident, I had to know. I could save people. Hell, my cousin was with me. To save him, I’d break all the rules.

Remember the Norns.

Would they really erase my memories if I talked to the reapers? Did it matter if it meant saving lives? Not in my book. Worse, more people crowded the dance floor.

I hated feeling helpless. Hated being so indecisive. Maybe I should start a fire. My spells had gotten better. No, a fire would cause pandemonium. I could just see the pile up. Harbinger of death. Yep, my worst nightmare would come true.

Maybe Sullivan should wave his badge and shut down the place. Sullivan was seated to our left. His boyish face actually blended well with the crowd. I made eye contact and smiled. He raised his drink in acknowledgement. Then the arrival of two women distracted him.

Not just any women. Grimnirs. They all dressed alike—leather pants, dusters, boots, and fingerless gloves.

My eyes flew to Echo and Dreadlocks. More Grimnirs meant bad news. But why target my father’s officer? Time to work my mojo and clear this place. I was cutting off the electrical system to the DJ’s booth and the stage. No electricity to the sound system meant no band playing. The students would leave and get online to bitch about everything.

Here goes nothing.

I closed my eyes and started a spell.

“Would you like to dance, Celestia?” a deep voice asked, and my eyes flew open. I gawked at Echo.

“What?” I had to yell to be heard above the music.

“Would you like to dance?” Man, he didn’t even yell, yet his voice carried around the table. Everyone was staring. If I didn’t already know him, I would be gawking too.

“No, thanks.”

He smiled. Damn. His hotness jumped from zero to infinity.

“You
want
to dance with me, Celestia.” Now it was a statement and a cocky smile accompanied it. The girls at our table went dewy-eyed. Even Hayden. I wanted to punch her.

“She said no, bro,” Zack said, standing. “Get lost.”

Echo extended his hand to me. “This is between Celestia and me, Zack. Sit.”

My jaw dropped. No, he didn’t just talk to my cousin in that condescending tone.

“Do I know you?” Zack asked like he was about to kick some serious ass. If only he knew. He wouldn’t stand a chance against a Grimnir.

Oh, crap
. Wes and the rest of the guys jumped up and moved from their seats. This testosterone showdown was about to turn disastrous. The smirk on Echo’s lips said he’d enjoy humiliating my cousin and his friends for the fun of it. Dreadlocks crossed his arms as though he planned to do nothing.

Sighing, I stood. The girls got up, too. Hayden watched me with narrowed eyes as though mentally saying, “You’ve got some explaining to do.”

“He comes to the store,” I fibbed.

Echo had never come to Tammy’s Cauldron, but Hayden wouldn’t know that. The store might be theirs, but she didn’t serve customers all the time like I did. Half the time she was in the séance room, balancing the books or taking care of online orders from their website. Tammy always said she was lucky to have a math genius and a computer guru for a daughter. Hayden was TC’s accountant. She even did taxes for her family.

“Get lost, punk,” Liam said. “Celestia doesn’t want to dance with you. She’s with him.” He indicated Wes with a wave.

“No, she’s not,” Dreadlocks said. Then he smiled at Zack. “It’s Zack, right? Celestia’s cousin?”

“That’s right.”

Dreadlocks offered his hand. “We are from the Guild. The name is Syn.” He jerked his head to indicate Echo. “He’s Echo. We need Celestia’s help with something. We’ve already spoken with Officer Sullivan, and he’s okayed it.” He glanced at Hayden and flashed those pearly whites. “Hayden, nice to finally meet you.”

Hayden looked confused. I wondered how they knew Zack, Hayden, and Officer Sullivan. Had Eirik and Rhys given them a list of my friends and family? Using the Witches Guild to smooth things over was pure genius. Or lying must have come easily to them since they reaped around the world without people knowing who and what they were.

Once again, Syn went into hyper-speed. When he stopped, everyone was smiling as though they hadn’t wanted to rip each other apart seconds earlier. He even took my chair and bumped fists with Zack and the guys. I didn’t know what runes he had used, but they were scary-potent.

“Come with me. We need to talk,” Echo said.

“I’m not going anywhere with you.”

His eyes acquired a wolfish gleam. “The girl who took on the Ironwood Maiden and the goddess would not be scared to talk to me.”

“I’m not.” And I had the glowing eyes thing down, too. It happened every time I did magic now, so I wasn’t impressed. “What do you want?”

“I’ll explain outside.”

My friends didn’t pay us any attention despite the fact that Echo and I stood right there by the table. Syn was discussing football with the guys, and the women were busy staring at him and drooling. Even Hayden appeared mesmerized.

This was ridiculous. I grabbed my jacket. “This had better be important.”

“It is.”

He led me away from the table. I glanced back, but no one even noticed we’d left. Sullivan was busy talking to the two female Grimnirs. One looked like a Samoan I knew at my school down to the gorgeous mass of curly hair, and the other was a ginger with freckles. Sullivan didn’t even look up.

Some bodyguard.

“He’ll be okay,” Echo said, as though aware of my thoughts, and steered me toward the exit. “We won’t be gone for long. An hour, tops.”

I opened my mouth to ask him what was going on when I saw Giselle Mouton and her coven girls staring at us with open curiosity. On a given day, I would have savored their reaction. Not tonight. When she stood up and started for us, her entourage following her like they were glued to her butt, I grabbed Echo’s arm.

“Okay, let’s go.” I practically dragged him out of the club, which was a major feat. First, he towered over me and had massive muscles, which I was currently feeling under my hold. And second, he didn’t look like a man who’d ever let a woman lead. We almost bumped into the bouncer in my haste to escape the terrible trio and the man apologized to us.

“Who were those three?” Echo asked when we burst into the night air.

“Annoying Witches with way too much money and very little magic. I thought I wasn’t supposed to acknowledge you guys existed, let alone associate with your kind.”

“There’s a change of plans.”

“Says who?” If he said Eirik, I was going to lose it.

“The goddess. She wants to see you.”

I stopped and stared at him with round eyes. Eirik’s mother wanted to see me? “Why?”

“She didn’t explain, and I don’t ask questions when she gives an order.”

I shook my head. “No, I can’t. After last time, I swore never to astral project to your realm.”

“You’re not astral projecting. We are using a portal.”

I stopped. “She wants me to enter her realm as a Mortal?”

“Yep. You’ll be the first one to do so in centuries,” Echo said, steering me toward the fire station. “It is quite an honor.”

“I don’t care. My first visit was traumatic.” I didn’t realize I’d raised my voice until two guys passing by slowed down as though to ask if I was okay, but one look from Echo kept them walking. There were quite a few late arrivals walking toward the club.

Stores in this section of town had beautifully designed porticos, which were perfect for window-shopping without blocking the sidewalk, but Echo found another use for them. He steered me into a secluded entrance and pulled out an artavus.

He moved so fast his hand blurred. I couldn’t see the runes he etched or the portal that formed, but the blast of cold air said he’d created one. I pulled on my jacket, my heart starting to pound with dread and excitement.

Did I want to go back in there? Four months had passed and I still remembered my ordeal and near-death moments in Hel. Then there was Eirik. There was always Eirik and the fact that he’d bitten me. The fact that his bite could have serious consequences worried me. To make matters worse, there was the second bite—his grandmother’s. It didn’t matter how I looked at the situation. They’d marked me, and I was better off staying as far away from Hel as possible.

“Look, Echo. I thought I could do this. I really did, but I can’t go with you.”

“The Golden One said you’d say that,” Echo said.

Eirik’s father also wanted me there? This was strange. “What is he, psychic?”

“The best. He saw his own death.”

Most Witches would kill to be able to see visions about themselves, me included. I chewed on my lower lip, undecided about leaving with Echo. So sure I’d go with him, Echo shrugged off his trench coat and draped it around my shoulders. It smelled of leather and was warm and long. Really long. Before I could thank him, he pressed a glowing artavus into my hand.

“What are you do…?” The words got caught in my throat, my eyes widening. I could see the portal and the icy cave on the other side. “How is this possible?”

“You have magic in you. I connected it with the runic magic on my stillo and the Veil lifted. Now you can see our world.”

“Can I keep the blade?”

“No.”

I sighed. No matter how exciting it was to catch a glimpse of their world, I didn’t belong there. “Tell Baldur and the goddess that I appreciate the invite, but—”

“Eirik needs you, Celestia,” Echo said firmly. “For him, the goddess pulled me from the arms of my woman to find you because she knows I never fail to accomplish a task. Please, just come with me.”

I hesitated.

“Or I’ll carry you into Eljudnir feet first, kicking and screaming. Either way, we are going.”

The threat registered on a subliminal level, but I didn’t focus on it because my stomach had dropped to the freaking soles of my feet. Eirik needed me. I wanted to ask, “What’s wrong with him?” but a sense of urgency coursed through me. Instead, I said, “Okay, let’s go.”

Echo stepped through the portal and pulled out an artavus shaped like a scythe. Runes on his fingers connected with those on the handle, and the weapon grew bigger until it was above his head. The glow from the blade lit the area around him.

I picked up my jaw and snapped my mouth shut. From his amusement at my reaction, this wasn’t the first time someone had reacted like that to the scythe.

“There are gloves in the pockets of the coat,” he said. “It’s colder than usual tonight.”

“Thanks for the coat. And Echo?”

“Yes?”

“If you ever threaten to haul me around like a sack of coal, I’ll forget you are a Grimnir and put a whammy on you to last a century. See how much your lady friend likes you after that.”

Echo laughed, the sound bouncing off the cave walls.

I stepped through the portal into the realm I’d sworn to never revisit.