Dead Silence (24 page)

Then I stopped in my tracks, and stared at the floor wondering for a moment what I was doing. If one of these friends of mine was the traitor then I was signing the death warrant for both my mothers. How had I thought this was a good idea in the first place?

My fingers curled into fists at my sides and I took a deep breath before turning to face the group. "I don't know who the mole is, or if Loki is here listening to what I'm saying." I laughed and looked around at the faces of my closest friends. "I'm also hoping that none of you are Loki in disguise."

When I got five offended glares I raised my hands. "I'm sorry. You have to forgive me. Loki has my mother and if he hears that I am still involved with the efforts to stop him then she's dead."

Aimee and Suri gasped, both putting their hands in front of their mouths in shock. Suri took a step forward, her red hair glinting around her head like a furious sun. "Is there a way we can test each other to find out?" she asked, her furrowed brow making it clear that she'd offer to be tested first.

I shook my head and gave her a grateful smile. "Not that I know of. This location may be good because it was a random selection," I paused and looked at Fen, and for a moment fear rippled across my heart.

What if Fen was really Loki and testing me right now? I met Fen's gaze and he looked right back at me, his eyes clear and unaffected. I saw no sign of Loki in his face, and one thing I'd learned in the last few months was that I had the most uncanny knack of identifying Loki no matter what shape he took.

And that uncanny sense was telling me, in no uncertain terms, that Fen was good. I sighed and rubbed my forehead, deciding it was time to get down to business.

"Where are we at with the transfer of all the delegates?"

"We have them all in Muspell. Steinn is taking care of them at the moment so we have nothing to be concerned about regarding them. They've all been cleared, no Jotunn masquerading as humans." Fen nodded, seeming satisfied with the success of that mission. "Now, what we need to find out is Loki's next move."

Tapping my chin, I said, "I think it has something to do with the Vigrid Plains. When he came to me he said the battlefield is his choice. That he will take the battle to the battleground of his choosing. I can only assume that he means the Vigrid plains will not be the location of the great battle."

"Or he could be trying to lead you astray," said Joshua, pursing his lips as he stared out at the view of the crumbling walls of the palace. The wind had kicked up and brought an icy chill to the cliff-top. We hadn't been prepared for the cold but unprepared was a good thing.

I nodded, considering that option too. "We need to be prepared for both situations." I looked at Fen. "Can we notify all the gods who have already gone to the Vigrid Plains that there is a possibility that they'll need to relocate before the big fight happens?"

Fen nodded, rubbing his chin as a frigid breeze lifted a lock off his shoulder and tossed it at his bearded cheek. "Easy enough to do. They can be at attention and move if we give them the right message."

"Okay. I need to get the word out that I'm no longer involved in the investigations, or in the team's activities in Midgard." Everyone nodded and I continued, "Also, I need you all to be at Aidan's funeral tomorrow. His mother is having a small ceremony but since we were part of his team we should be present."

"We'll be there," Aimee said, her expression determined.

Turning, I took in the view of the valley and everything that had been destroyed in a matter of minutes. "We need to go over those plans again. Check if there's anything in there that could indicate a location for Loki's alternate battleground."

"I'll have a look and let you know, but I think you need to get some rest before you do anything else." Joshua came to me, and grasped my hand. "You don't look well, Bryn. Are you okay?"

I gave a shake of my head, as if the sharp jerk could thrust the tiredness and weakness off me. "I'm not sure what's wrong. Maybe I caught something. I just feel so tired and a little weak." Then I let out a soft laugh. "Maybe all the running around is getting to me."

"Joshua, you get her to bed," said Aimee. Then she realized what she'd said and grinned from ear to ear. Suri giggled at the implication and Fen failed to hide the twitch of his lips.

"So funny, you guys." I rolled my eyes and looked at Joshua who crooked his elbow.

I was about to grab hold of his arm when pain ripped into my abdomen, bringing my nausea to the surface. Spinning away from Joshua's grip, I bent over in time to throw up over the ledge. I spent a few moments retching, all the while feeling the burning, and embarrassing, attention of the group behind me. Joshua was crouched beside me when I looked up and wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. I felt gross but I had little choice. This rocky crag didn't even contain a dead stalk of grass, let alone a patch large enough to wipe off vomit.

Making a disgusted face, as I slowly got to my feet, putting my hand to my head as the world began to tip and tilt.

He touched my forehead and hissed. "Bryn, you're burning up." He glanced back at Fen who gave him a short nod. "Let's get you back to your room and I'll fetch Eir to tend to you."

It took all my strength not to turn back to the ledge for a second bout of retching. I took Joshua's hand hobbled next to him, leaning on him more than I'd ever done before. The journey to my room was a blur and when we finally entered its warmth, I fell straight onto the furs.

Turning over, I saw Joshua ringing the bell to call Turi, but the room was spinning so badly that I fell back onto the pillows and resorted to listening to the ringing in my ears.

Before long, Turi arrived and was wiping my face down with a wet cloth. When she finished, Joshua urged me to sit up again to help me out of my clothes.

He lifted my hand and pulled off my jacket, then gave my black shirt the same treatment. When Turi and Joshua both gasped I forced my eyes to open and stare at them. They were both gaping at me, staring at my bare body.

I was still wearing a thin shift so I didn't need to worry about my modesty, but nudity was the least of my concerns when I caught sight of the skin on my arms and neck.

Dark blue lines streaked out from the palm of my hand, trailing up my arm and all the way to my shoulder, from where they spread down over the skin of my chest. A glance down the front of my shift confirmed that the blue lines were making a jagged path to my abdomen.

What did it mean?

"Bryn, what happened?" Joshua crouched down to inspect the marks, his eyes wide with shock.

"I have no idea. I just started feeling sick an hour or so ago." I shook my head trying to get rid of the dizziness that seemed to be taking me over.

Joshua sighed. "Bryn, from what I'm looking at I think you've been poisoned." He said it so softly I thought I'd misheard him but he was only saying what I'd already begun to suspect.

"But who would do such a thing?" I asked, my mind whirling with possibilities that all led to Loki.

"You know who," said Joshua his lips a tight line.

He shook his head while I remained silent. Then he touched my cheek. "You rest, and I'll fetch Eir. She'll know what's happening to you."

Joshua got to his feet as Turi helped me to lie back, and even before he left the room, I'd slipped into unconsciousness.

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

I felt cool fingers tracing my forehead and forced my eyes to open. The goddess Eir was leaning over me, her eyes dark with worry. I shifted and took a deep breath, then hissed with the pain of inhaling.

Eir sat beside me and gave me a gentle smile. "Bryn, you need to rest."

"What's wrong with me?" I asked, my voice hoarse, my throat so scratchy it hurt. I blinked and felt myself falling back into darkness. Clenching my fingers into fists, I clung desperately to consciousness as energy slowly drained away. Suffering the pain in my throat, I swallowed hard and let my head fall back onto my pillow.

"You have been poisoned." Eir stared down at me, her expression worrying me.

"Poisoned?" I asked, frowning. We'd suspected it but hearing the words from Eir meant it was definite. "By what? And how?"

Eir took my hand in hers, and opened my fingers, laying them flat. Then she pointed to one particular spot on my palm that was inky blue, so dark it was almost black. "Here is where the poison entered your body. Try to remember everything you've touched in the last few hours."

I closed my eyes and scrunched them tight. "I shook hands with the President, I think, and with the British PM. There's too many things. I touched Fen's jacket when we transported. And Joshua, and . . ." Ice sluiced through my veins as I realized there was one other person who I'd touched. A person I'd shaken hands with not too long ago.

Joshua's voice broke through my shocked trance. "What is it? Did you remember something," he asked, coming to crouch beside the bed.

I nodded, feeling like I'd just swallowed a stone, my stomach sickeningly hard. "I think it might have been Loki. We shook hands. I didn't think anything of it. He offered his hand and asked that we shake on our agreement."

"And the bastard poisoned you," said Joshua, his eyes dark green and filled with potent fury.

My gaze shifted to Eir. "Do we know what poison it is? And if there's an antidote?"

She shook her head, and for the first time since I met her she seemed unable to meet my eyes.

I forced myself into a sitting position. "No antidote, huh?" I asked with a self-deprecating smile.

Joshua got to his feet and began to pace, and I watched him until he came to a standstill, then crouched beside the bed again. Before he could say anything the door to my quarters opened, letting Fen, Thor and Frigga into the room. My first thought was that my room was no place to receive the gods.

"What is wrong with her," asked Frigga and while Eir repeated what she'd just told me, I listened, shocked even though I'd heard it before.

"The poison will continue to move through her body until it has taken over. Unless we find an antidote she will die an excruciating death." The finality of her words struck me to the core, but I must have suspected that would be the case as I wasn't completely devastated.

I heard the rattle of my breath, the crackle of the fire that Turi had stoked. Clearing my throat, I said, "Why don't you give me some Mead. It should keep me going until this war is over. Then we can pay attention to my long and excruciating death." Everyone in the room shared worried glances and I laughed softly. "Look, there's no point in sitting and worrying. We may all end up dead on the battlefield before this is over. So for now I think I want to keep going as normal."

Frigga moved to come sit beside me, Eir shifting out of the way to give Odin's wife space. Frigga sank onto the furs beside me. "Bryn, you are too weak." She sounded like she was trying to convince me of something, knowing full well she'd fail.

I shook my head even as the movement made the room spin, and her kind face blur. "I'm weak, yes, but I can still fight better than most warriors. And my wings aren't yet affected. While I have strength in me, I want to be useful." Then I transferred my gaze to Joshua and Fen who stood beside the fireplace opposite the foot of the bed, both glaring at me as the firelight cast dark shadows over their eyes. "I'll rest for a few hours. Then, after Aidan's funeral, I want to make a trip to Midgard. I just need to confirm that my mother is okay, and to get a few warriors to watch the place. I don't think Loki would have left them unattended, but I do want to ensure their safety." Though their hooded expressions remained unchanged, they exchanged a short glanced before both nodding and I suspected it was more because they knew how stubborn I was, as opposed to being in agreement with me.

Then Frigga rose and waved everyone out of the room. A Huldra appeared within moments, carrying a tray bearing a jug of mead and a small metal goblet, her black cow's tail sweeping the floor silently and she laid the tray on the small table beside my bed.

I barely paid attention to the two scowling men in my life as they turned and left, my gaze focused solely on the glass of Mead Frigga poured. She handed it to me with a stern look, and said, "Drink that and get some sleep. We will wake you in time for the funeral. Then we will discuss what your next move will be." I was aware of her tone, one that implied that she'd stop me from going to Midgard if she thought it would endanger my health. So I nodded obediently and drank the Mead, finding myself devastated that I could barely taste the heavenly drink.

When the goddesses left, I slipped into a fitful sleep broken by scenes from a horrific dream.

***

A long time ago, I'd dreamed of a battlefield and of blood soaking into the moist black soil of the Vigrid Plains. But now, I dreamed of rivers of blood coating the streets of a city, of armored Ulfr, Valkyries and
einherjar
fighting sword-to-sword against an invisible force, warriors who dodged blows behind the poles of street-lamps, warriors who crashed into storefront windows and ran around yellow cabs to get to the unseen foe.

A dream that played out to the dreaded sounded of Loki's deeply satisfied laughter.