Mist Revealed (20 page)

He had accomplished the impossible.

Surtr was dead.

Rune let the satisfaction and relief settle in his heart, but he didn’t pause to relish the victory. The crackling of flames reached his ears.

He didn’t bother searching for a path up the cliff. He directed the wind to carry him. At the edge, he stepped off the floor of mist and ran toward the burning home. Storm clouds formed above. Although it was cold enough for snow, rain fell.

By the time he reached the house, the fire had lessened. Mist wrapped his body. He appreciated the layer of protection from his element, but burning alive wouldn’t have stopped him from entering. The mist saved him from having to put the flames out before he touched Cat, though.

He ran across the room. The floorboards creaked. One snapped. His foot gave way through the weakened wood. He pulled it out and made his way to the basement door. The stairs had collapsed. He hopped down.

His gaze zeroed in on the spot where he’d left Cat. The bubble of ice stood exactly as he’d left it, but the woman he loved was gone.

Rune stood there while the flames died around him. He couldn’t tear his gaze from middle of the room. Cat’s clothes lay on the floor, marking where she’d been, but her body had disappeared.

Impossible…yet, undeniable.

He waited for some idea to form as to how to get her back. None came to him. For all his powers, he lacked the one necessary to pull off the feat.

A wave of his hand, and the shell disappeared. He knelt and gathered her shirt. Her scent and warmth clung to it.

“Where are you, Cat?”

He asked the question, but he knew the answer.

She was dead, and her body had faded as was the way of the Norse gods.

He buried his face in the fabric. Her exotic fragrance filled his lungs. He dragged in greedy lungfuls and gave Cat the one thing he had left to give.

He grieved.

Tears fell from his eyes, wetting the fabric. Sobs shook his chest. He felt as if his heart cracked into a million pieces. Nothing would mend it. He rocked on the balls of his feet and cried until he had nothing more.

A warm hand dropped onto his shoulder. He lifted his head and met Jaron’s eyes. Silence stretched. Rune didn’t hide his sorrow. He let it show.

“I felt your pain and came back.”

Rune didn’t need the explanation. All the Wardens shared the same essence. The mist bonded them together. He wouldn’t be surprised if more of his brethren came.

Jaron knelt opposite him and glanced from the shirt Rune clutched to his face. “What happened?”

“The one-god took her back.” It was the only explanation he could come up with.

A sigh fell from Jaron’s lips. He didn’t respond for a long moment. Finally, he stood. “We will honor her memory.”

Rune let the fabric slip from his fingers and faced his brother. “Then you will have to add mine to it.”

Jaron closed his eyes. “You will be joining her?”

“Yes.” Rune turned and walked away. He hopped to the first floor and strode from the house.

“Where are you going?”

Rune stopped at the edge of the cliff. The rainstorm that had doused the land no longer hid the stars. He settled on the teal lights dancing across the sky. The color of the display matched Cat’s eyes. More sadness gripped him.

He swallowed past the lump in his throat. “To my female’s home. We did not bond completely. I do not have her memories or a complete tie to her. When I enter the heavens, I will have to search for her. It will help to know of her loved ones. She will be close to them.”

“You were always the reasonable one. That is a good plan.”

“Reasonable?” Rune glanced over his shoulder. “I thought I was the cold one.”

“Not anymore, little brother. Cat thawed your frozen heart.”

“That she did, Jaron. That she did.”

Rune called the wind, stepped off the cliff and let go. His solid form broke apart and scattered on the breeze. The mist buoyed him and wrapped him in its embrace. He welcomed its comfort and prayed that by the time he reached Cat’s home he would have come to terms with his fate.

He didn’t want to die. He also didn’t want to exist without Cat.

It wasn’t supposed to end this way.

It had, and he feared he’d run out of impossible acts. Even the Norse gods couldn’t return from an early death.

Cat drifted in a sea of white foam. Pain no longer seized her muscles. Fear no longer tightened her chest. It couldn’t.

She had no body.

Although she would’ve sworn she did. Her lungs expanded and contracted. She could blink. With a thought, she wiggled her fingers and toes. She could even see the clouds and the stars around her, which was what made her arrive at her unbelievable conclusion.

She raised an arm and stared at where her fingers should be. All she saw was mist, the same as she’d seen around Rune.

She’d become one with his element.

The implications of what she hypothesized boggled her mind. She’d chosen her weapon—Rune. That much matched what Ivan’s grandmother had said of the alternate myth. She’d failed to mention Cat would become the source of his power.

And where was he?

She flipped over and scanned the ground below. The burnt embers of the home Surtr had taken her to no longer smoldered. Snow covered the exposed beams. She frowned. How long had she been drifting on the breeze?

She glanced at the eagle soaring several feet away. One of two birds who’d decided to travel with her, it glided on the uplifting current pushing them forward. The other was no doubt feeding. They took turns keeping her company. She appreciated their presence. They comforted her. Without them, she might’ve gone crazy. Of course, there was still the possibility she had. Either way, she wanted to return to Rune. He’d love her even if her mind had unraveled.

The wind picked up and pushed her forward. Time passed. The landscape changed below her. She didn’t know where she was but didn’t fear. Her guardian eagles flew close. After what felt like forever, the village came into view. She scanned it. People moved about, but she didn’t see the one person who owned her heart.

Urgency gripped her. She needed to search for Rune on foot. Too much time had gone by. She prayed he hadn’t left. How would she find him?

But how exactly was she going to look for him. She didn’t have a body.

She willed herself to take shape. Nothing happened. Her breathing quickened as fear took hold. Maybe she didn’t have one anymore. Or maybe she wasn’t one with the mist but actually dead.

Oh God, help me.

From the water below, a tower of whirling mist formed. It started off small and widened, lengthened. Tendrils of white fog rose from it. The tiny fingers grabbed her from the cloud she’d melded with and yanked her down.

She screamed. Her cry got lost on the whipping winds. A tight band formed around her, squeezing her chest. The pressure increased until she wondered if she was finally dying.

No. Don’t want to die. Want Rune.

She hit the water with a splash. The force that had tugged her out of the sky drove her below the surface. Icy seawater rushed into her open mouth. She snapped it closed and scissor kicked her way up. She came up sputtering. Wet hair covered her eyes. She shoved it back…with a solid hand.

A quick glance at the rest of her revealed her body dressed in the same outfit she’d worn when she faded into the mist.

“Holy hell.”

She laughed and flopped back. Water buoyed her instead of the mist. She drifted a few moments and enjoyed having her shape again.

A flap of wings dragged her attention to shore. Her eagles waited on the edge of the cliff. She swam to them and climbed out. A gust of wind dried her clothes. She grinned at the simple feat but rushed to the pathway leading to the ledge. She didn’t want to eagles to take off without her.

They turned their heads at her approach. She dropped to her knees a few feet away and stared at them. Silence stretched.

“Will you wait for me while I look for Rune?”

No answer. They only watched her. Was she actually waiting for them to speak to her? She shook her head at the silly thought.

“Okay, I’ll be back soon.”

She ran toward the village. Ivan’s son played ball with one of the dogs in town. He turned and scrambled back, making the sign of the cross.

She stumbled to a halt. “Are you okay?”

The dog trotted over to her and rubbed its head against her fingertips. She automatically scratched its head. The boy shifted his gaze from the husky to her face. He frowned. “They said you died in the fire.”

“I got out.” She nibbled her lip and tried to come up with a lie. “I hit my head, though. I got a little confused.”

His frown deepened. “Oh.”

“Do you know where Rune is?”

The kid shrugged. “He left.”

“Do you know where he went?” A half-shrug answered her. “I’ll go ask your dad then.”

Anxiety quickened her steps. The thought of never seeing Rune again frightened her. By the time she reached the hotel, she was out of breath. Ivan gave her the same reaction his son had and the same answer.

She wandered toward Rune’s house and slipped inside. It stood exactly how she’d left it, wrinkled bed sheets and all. She turned and covered her mouth to muffle a scream. Draven leaned against the wall a few feet from her.

“Do not fear me, Catherine. I told you before, and I’ll tell you again. I am not your enemy.”

No, he could’ve held the role Rune did.

“I made my choice the moment I saw Rune.”

He inclined his head. “I know. You cannot blame me for trying.”

“Then why are you here?”

He snorted and ran a hand through his hair. “To save my enemy.”

“Rune?” She tensed. “What’s wrong with him? Where is he?”

“He’s dying, but I don’t know where he is. He melded with the mist. It carried him away.”

Her heart pounded hard. “He can’t die. He’s immortal.”

“He never told you?”

She stepped closer, fists clenched at her sides. “Told me what?”

“That once he fed from you, he’d never be able to bite another person or animal. You would become his sole source of nourishment.”

She gasped, and he gave a small shake of his head.

“He’ll starve without you. It is the only way a child of an element can die. That was the reason some of my species committed the crime they had. They hated the vulnerability having a mate brought.”

Rune had told her that. Well, not in such explicit detail, but he’d said biting her would guarantee he’d never be able to leave her.

“If he does die”—Draven’s voice softened—“you can choose another child of mist to act as your weapon.”

She glared at him. “I don’t want anyone else. I love Rune.”

“Which is why I stayed here. I watched Rune battle my father. I saw Surtr die at Rune’s hands. Die, not just rejoin our element. When Rune left without you, I suspected you had, though. Joined with your element, that is.” He grinned. “I was right.”

She studied him through narrowed eyes. “Why try to save the man who stole your consort from you?”

Draven shrugged and turned around. He walked toward the door but stopped with his hand on the knob. “Some of my unmated brothers and cousins have been free for several decades. They’ve emerged bitter.” He glanced over his shoulder. “They want ultimate control over the world and the Wardens, not just our element. They think walking in the footsteps of our fathers is the way to accomplish that.”

“They plan to birth another generation, then kill their women?”

He clenched his hands. “No, they plan to absorb the life force of the gifted humans before they become too powerful.”

Surtr had told her he would eat her heart and absorb her soul but to hear the confirmation of the hideous act from another demon chilled her. She wrapped her arms around her chest. “And you don’t want power?”

He flashed her a smile. “Oh I want it, but I’m not willing to pay the price my brethren have in order to get it. I’d rather earn my strength the way one-god intended.”

“By becoming a weapon?”

“Yes. I too will win a female.”

She thought back on his pathetic attempt to earn her affection by trying to manipulate her emotions. “Women aren’t prizes, Draven. We can’t be won.”

“No, you’re treasures, exactly as was foretold. I had not realized what that meant until I listened to Rune grieve over your supposed death.”

Rune had cried for her. She blinked back her own tears. Her heart squeezed for the pain he’d endured.

“It made me jealous as hell,” Draven went on. “I want that, to feel again. I’ll get it too.”

He opened the door and stepped out, right into a cloud of smoke.

“Wait!”

The hazy tower he’d merged with puffed, and he disappeared.

Cat clenched her hands. Dammit, she wanted to get a sample of his blood. Too late, though. She set aside her worry of the virus and turned her concern on Rune. He needed her. She didn’t know how long he would last without her blood to nourish him.

She ran outside and returned to the cliff. The eagles waited for her.

“Can you take me to Rune?”

The bird on the right took flight. The other joined it. They flapped their wings and within moments rode the winds. She stood there and wondered how to rejoin them.

She stretched her arms to the heavens and willed her body to become mist.

Nothing happened.

Great. Rune is starving to death, and I’m fumbling with the unknown.

Something cool tickled her feet. She glanced down. Mist crept between her legs. She willed it to help her. It rolled across the ground and weaved a floor of white next to the cliff. She stepped to the edge. The rocks showed below the hazy cloud.

“You’re kidding, right?”

No answer, not that she expected one.

She took a deep breath and conjured Rune’s image. He needed her. He loved her. She felt the same. She held the emotions close. They gave her strength. Eyes closed, she stepped off the ledge but didn’t fall. Wind whipped around her, pulling at her skin. Her body felt as if it were breaking apart. She didn’t fight it.

The gust lifted her into the air and pushed her out over the water. The eagles flanked her.
I did it.
She only hoped she would get to Rune in time to save him as he had her.