Witches (Runes series Book 6) (16 page)

This time, it was easier to connect with my powers. As it flowed to my hands, I mumbled, “I give you back what was taken, by souls dark, angry, and strong. Let them rest and never awaken. From your core where they belong.”

The pile of bones slowly sunk into the ground until nothing was left. Torin helped me to my feet. I heard him say something to the others. Then he led me through the portal.

“You are supposed to help the others,” I protested.

“I will once I have you under the shower.” He led me straight to the bathroom, turned on the shower, and rummaged through a cupboard for a new bottle of shampoo. “I’ll find you a change of clothes. Throw everything away because the stench will cling to them.”

“You bought me this jacket,” I protested.

“I’ll buy you more.”

I studied his face. He looked even more tired under the light. “Don’t trust the Earl, Torin. No matter what he says or does. Do not trust him.”

“I know.” He reached out and touched my cheek. “I’ll deal with him tonight.”

I didn’t care what the Earl wanted. He was back in Torin’s life for only twenty-hours and his former buddies attacked? I bet he’d known they were coming. They’d probably followed him to Jace’s house.

I used all of Torin’s shampoo and body wash, but I still didn’t feel clean. After dumping all my clothes in the garbage, wrapping them up in several plastic bags, I pulled on Torin’s T-shirt. Then I headed home.

Onyx was asleep on the windowsill. I wanted to hug her, and at the same time scold her for disappearing on me. She lifted her head, gave me a bored look, and lowered her head back on her paws. I pulled on tights.

I was sure she’d gone back to sleep, until she said,
You stink.

“I do not.”

It’s not your job to fight Draugar. What if something had happened to you? What if a soul had body-hopped from a Draugar to you?

“Torin would never let that happen, and tonight, I helped.”

I know. I saw it.

I stopped just before entering the bathroom. “You did?”

Best free show I’ve watched in a long time, except when you were almost mauled by one of them.

“You don’t have to sound so pleased about it. I still shudder when I think about it.” I disappeared inside the bathroom and brushed my teeth. Onyx entered the bathroom and jumped on the counter. She sat by the sink and watched me without saying anything. Her fur looked different as though freshly washed or brushed. She’d probably licked herself and laughed with glee while watching us fight.

“Want to brush your teeth too?” I asked her, rinsing.

Her whiskers twitched.
No. Tell me how you escaped the attack.

“I thought you said you’d seen everything.”

I couldn’t stand watching you get eaten, so I closed my eyes.

I laughed. “Some familiar you are.
Garm
came to my rescue.”

Now why would Hel’s hound come to your rescue?

I shrugged. “Cause I’m important in the grand scheme of things. So, yeah,
Garm
did it. What other explanation is there? One second I was
Draugar
-food the next, this huge black animal leaped from the bushes. He moved faster than earthly animals and looked twice as ferocious. And he had many eyes.
Garm
has what? Six eyes?”

 
Daufi,
she said and faced the window.

“You know what, Onyx? If you’re going to curse me out, do it in a language I understand. Otherwise the insult loses its impact.”

It means stupid.

I crawled under the blanket. “Why are you cursing me anyway? What did I do this time?”

You are a dodo brain.

I chuckled, switched off the lights and tried to fall asleep, but I kept seeing
Draugar
crawl from the ground like worms every time I closed my eyes. Then there was the Earl. Why couldn’t he just leave? I had enough to worry about with the Norns to add him on to my People I’d Like to Destroy list. The smug grins on the Norns’ faces were haunting me more and more. Why had they seemed so happy after the battle?

It was almost one a.m. when the portal opened and Torin walked in. As usual, he only wore sweatpants. He didn’t bother to turn on the lights. He knew his way around my room. The mattress dipped as he joined me under the blanket, slid an arm under my head, and pulled me closer. I turned to face him.

“Not asleep?”

“I can’t.” He smelled nice. He was one of those guys that made you want to burrow into his neck and just breathe him in. Unfortunately, his hair was still wet and in the way. “Sorry I used all of your body wash.”

I felt his lips move as he smiled. “That’s okay.”

“Everything fixed?”

“Yes. The building, basketball court, and fence.”

“The souls?”

“Echo added them to his list. As if he needs more to stay ahead of the other Grimnirs.”

“They count how many souls they reap?”

“Goddess Hel keeps tally. They get a break from reaping depending on the souls they’ve collected. The more evil and darker the better. Echo just scored almost two dozen, which means he owes us.”

“No wonder the two Grimnirs were ticked off about Beau’s father.”

Torin pressed a kiss on my forehead. “Forget them. You call the shots and they’d better get used to it.”

His blasé attitude toward my Nornish activity was beginning to worry me. It was so unlike him. He’d hated it when I became Immortal. Hated it when my witch powers started to show. And now he was okay with everything? I didn’t buy it.

“Maybe we should ask Echo to share the souls. You know, give the two Grimnirs some.”

We both chuckled. Echo and sharing in the same sentence was unheard of. Even though Cora and I had been best friends since elementary school, he didn’t like it when she spent too much time with me.

“How’s Andris?”

Torin rolled onto his back and draped my leg across his hip, so I was partly on top of him. It was his favorite sleeping position. “I promised to replace his jacket, so he’s happy,” he said.

I snorted at the idea. “Why? He can afford a hundred of those jackets.”

“It was one-of-a-kind, and since he blames my father for what happened tonight, I figured I owe him one.”

That was the dumbest thing I’d ever heard. “You’re going to track down some designer just to get him a new jacket?”

“ Mmm-hmm. One of a kind, he kept saying.”

Andris can be such a baby sometimes. “Why can’t the Earl do it?”

Torin sighed. “Because he’s gone.”

My first reaction was to say, “YES!” But I reigned in the elation. “Oh. Why?”

“His presence here was bothering you guys. I can’t have you looking at me the way you did yesterday, or Andris threatening to beat some sense into me. He might get hurt.”

I grinned, and then I remembered what he’d said about me. I lifted my head and engaged my runes so I could see his face. “How did I look at you?”

“With disappointment.” He stroked my cheek, his runes flashing and dimming. “I didn’t like how it felt. I never want to disappoint you that way again.”

My insides melted. Now I felt bad. “I was worried, not disappointed.”

He stole a kiss, and tucked my head under his chin. “No, it’s okay to admit it, luv. I can’t be perfect all the time.”

I rolled my eyes.

“I felt that,” he said, then sighed. “It’s too soon for my father to ask for forgiveness anyway. Even though the information he’d given me proved to be useful.”

I frowned. “What information?”

“About the souls. He said they were angry and plotting revenge for what happened in the forest. He was right about someone organizing them.”

Yeah, I knew who that someone was. The conniving Earl. He set himself up to be the hero too.

“The attack tonight was too well planned. Souls don’t move or attack in groups,” Torin mused.

Unless they were being organized by their mentor. I kept my thoughts to myself, but not about what had happened earlier. Torin had a right to know. “The Earl was at Jace’s tonight.”

Torin stiffened. This time, he was the one who lifted his head to study me. “Did he see you?”

“No.” I explained what happened.

“Thank you for taking care of him. I’ll talk to Jace during lunch at school tomorrow and find out what happened. I’m happy you left your cat to keep an eye on him. If she hadn’t, Jace and his father would be dead right now. Most
Draugar
don’t care who they terrorize as long as they feed.”

Now more than ever, I was convinced his father was behind the attack. I burrowed under Torin’s chin and let his warmth chase away the cold. Now that I was in his arms, I felt safe and sleep came easy. And when
Draugar,
who looked like Norns, chased me in my dreams, he cradled me close and promised he’d never let them get me.

It wasn’t until morning that I realized I hadn’t asked him why Jace was under his care. He was a reaper. They don’t protect those about to die.

~*~

Torin had left the Harley at his fake apartment in Carson, so we took my car to school the next day. Cora and Echo were prolonging their goodbyes and steaming up the windows of her car. Typical. We were crossing the street when I noticed a girl with pink hair hurrying across the parking lot. Then a girl with blue hair stepped out of a green Honda Civic. Another with blue and pink joined her. I grinned.

“I think you started something,” I whispered to Torin.

He arched his eyebrows, totally clueless. We caught up with the girl with blue hair in the hall. “Nice hair style, Chelsea,” I said and nudged Torin. “Isn’t her hair gorgeous?”

“Yes.”

I nudged him again.

“Stunning, uh, Chelsea.” After, we met two more girls with neon streaks. He pulled me into a doorway, his eyes searching my face. “Are we on one of your rescue-some-poor-girl missions again?”

“Nope. This is me campaigning for the coveted junior prom queen and you,”—I gave him a toothy grin—“my super-hot and popular QB boyfriend are my ticket to getting it.”

He smirked. “That’s so lame, even for you.”

My jaw dropped. “You didn’t just say lame. Lame? You hate that kind of lingo.”

He shot me a disgusted look. “You don’t care about prom.”

I didn’t. “Do too. Mom already ordered my dress, and you need to find an outfit to match mine. The theme is All That Jazz. Lame, right? Say it again. I dare you.”

“If I ever say that word again, put a whammy on me and put me out of commission for a few hours. And I refuse to compliment girls dumb enough to dye their hair with a paint gun.”

“Shhh. They might hear. Think of it this way. You are making their high school experience a memorable one.”

“I don’t get it.”

Most popular people never realized how invisible the rest of the students felt, but I expected better from him, an Immortal who’d attended hundreds, maybe even thousands of high schools.

“Let me put it this way. For two years, I was a dot in this school, but I didn’t mind because I had Eirik and Cora. Others are not so lucky. A compliment from you,” I patted his chest, “goes a long way.”

He crossed his arms. “No. Not happening.”

“Come on. Yesterday, I helped you with the dead. Today, you help me with the living. If you don’t, I’ll join Onyx and watch the next time
Draugar
attack.”

“Are you threatening me?” He leaned in, invading more of my space. Instead of feeling crowded, my senses leapt. If we were alone, I would have jumped him.

I reached up and gave him a chaste kiss on his cheek. “No. I’m promising you.”

“Would you two get a room?” Cora teased. I peered around Torin and waved at her. She fanned herself.

I shook my head and focused on Torin. He wore an expression that said he was going to be difficult. “Please?”

“No. I’m done. I adore you, but enough is enough.” He planted a kiss on my forehead, turned and grinned at Cora. “Looking nice, Cora.”

Cora blinked. “Oh, thank you.” She looked at me and made a face. “Someone is chatty this morning.”

“He’s being difficult.” We hugged and turned to watch Torin walk away.

“That man can wear the crap out of jeans,” Cora said.

“He can wear the crap out of anything, or nothing.”

Cora’s mouth dropped. Then she slapped my arm. “You’ve been holding out on me! So you two…?” As if he knew we were watching him, Torin turned and spread his arms as though to say, “What?”

He was so cocky. “Not yet.” And since I didn’t want to discuss my virginity, I switched to her favorite topic. “How’s Echo? You guys were steaming up the windows of your car a few minutes ago.”

Cora laughed and looped an arm around mine. “He’s such an amazing kisser. I could make out with him for hours.” We put our backpacks away, and grabbed our books for morning classes. I had English, which was in the western wing while Cora’s first class was upstairs. “Are you having lunch with Torin?”

I shook my head. “He’s scouting in California. StubHub.”

“Ooh, soccer. My father is really getting into soccer this year.” She made a face. “I don’t understand it. Oh, you should join us for lunch. A restaurant delivers soup and sandwiches everyday whether Echo is there or not.”

“I don’t know. I was thinking of eating with Dad. You know, make the most of things while I can.”

Cora stopped walking. “How is he doing?”

“Better. He and Mom were playing chess last night.”

“Like old times?”

I grinned and nodded. Cora and I had had enough sleepovers at my house to know how my parents played chess. Dad put his game face on and did his best to let Mom win.

Despite being alive when chess, or
chaturanga
as it was called, found its way from India to Europe, my mother hadn’t mastered the game. But that was how she was. Never caring about new inventions and technology. If people were to go back to the days when humans walked around naked and ate only what nature provided, Mom would be perfectly happy. Watching her use computers was pretty hilarious. She cursed and yelled. Dad used to say she’d do great once the interactive computers hit the market.