I took the sword automatically with my free hand, but my mind was blank as I stared at the beautiful blond Amazonian woman he had apparently cast aside for me. The thought of her touching him, like I did, was enough to make me see red. Iraised the sword and took a step towards her as Robbie turned to face me. He read the fury and jealousy there, moved closer, then stepped around the raised sword and mace like they were nothing to him.
Turning his back on Edda as if she wasn’t a threat at all, he lowered his head to my ear and murmured for me alone, ‘You are entitled to take her life, but I know you, Stacy, and it will haunt you. Remember, only you have ever touched my tusks. Only ever you, Inspector. She is nothing to me. You are everything.’
The whispered words – and yes, the title – slapped some sense into me. Anger cooled enough to be pushed down fully. I lowered my weapons and set them down. Robbie stepped closer still. ‘So fierce, so righteous,’ he said without modulating his voice, not trying to hide the pride he had in me.
Another female ogre was pulling Edda up and away from Robbie and me. It was a smart move, but the rage had gone. Robbie was right: Edda deserved a second chance; she was battling with losing Robbie, and if our roles had been reversed, I’d want to kill her too.
Shall I shit on her?Loki offered, making me smile despite myself.
‘No,’ I said aloud. ‘Go and keep making friends with the crows. They’re curious about you.’
As requested, Loki flew from my shoulder towards the murder of crows, which rose like a dark shadow to hover in the air and greet him. He was a white dot among all the black feathers, far smaller and more delicate than the corvids. Yet it was clear from their gentle movements and soft caws that the crows were happy to see my little friend.
Around us, the ogres burst into whispers, looking first at the flocking murder, then at me.
‘What?’ I asked Robbie, frowning. ‘What did I miss?’
He smiled with satisfaction. ‘You commanded Loki, and he obeyed you – clearly understood you.’
‘So?’
‘So they are seeing that you can speak to birds like I can. Another sign that we are meant to be – that we are destined for each other, Inspector.’ His tone was mild, but his eyes were twinkling. Despite Edda’s attack, he was enjoying himself.
Hanlon approached with a tray of champagne flutes. Not what I’d expected, though I wasn’t surewhatI’d expected. Perhaps mead in some horns, Viking style.
Hanlon held the tray out to me in such a way that it would be natural to take the glass in my left hand. I sent him a flat look as I reached out to take a flute in my right instead. Hanlon grinned as I took the drink with my correct hand.
I held the glass loosely but looked at Robbie. I couldn’t drink until he had. ‘I’m thirsty, Robbie. Do your thing.’
Robbie grinned broadly at me too. Oh good, I was amusing everyone today. He took a glass in his right hand. The small flute looked dwarfed in his large hand, and the thought caused me to remember how good he was with those thick fingers of his.
Robbie held the drink aloft. ‘Skál!’ he called, and then he sipped from the glass as everyone repeated the phrase back at him.
I waited until he had swallowed before I asked, ‘Can I drink now?’
‘To your heart’s content,’ he assured me. ‘No food until we do the same thing with some meat.’
‘Meat is it?’ And I let my eyes slide down his body and linger on his shorts.
He cleared his throat. ‘Behave yourself, kærasta. These shorts hide nothing.’
‘I’d noticed,’ I purred, making him groan again.
‘Inspector, play nicely.’ But it was more an entreaty than a command.
I sipped my champagne and grinned. This whole thing was nowhere near as bad as I’d feared. Sure, Edda’d had her throat sliced, but only a little. Everyone was still living and breathing, and I had a glass of champagne with a magnificent view. Things were looking up.
Chapter Twenty-Four
I wasn’t foolish enough to drink to excess on an empty stomach, but luckily the ogres soon rolled out four massive hog roasts. Robbie ate the first hunk of meat and gave me the second, feeding me with his fingers, which I gathered had some import as once again all eyes were on us. Because the one glass of fizzhadgone to my head, I licked some of the meat juices from his hand, making him groan.
After that, he sat us down, me on his lap, pointedly hiding his burgeoning erection from all and sundry. I couldn’t help but shift teasingly against him, and he tightened his fingers on me to stop me from wriggling. Spoilsport.
The day shifted properly into evening, and I pushed my sunnies off my eyes and onto my head. At least now I didn’t need to worry so much about the shadow situation. Even with the summer’s warmth following us into the evening, I began to feelchilly, so I snuggled more into the man at my back who doubled as a furnace.
The edge of threat had lifted from the ceremony, and laughter, chatter and songs had arisen. Drums and guitars had been pulled out, and songs were sung in Icelandic, the tongue of the ogres’ homeland. The vibe was celebratory and festive, and plenty of ogres came to sit with me and Robbie, telling stories and then moving on so the next ogre could sit and pay homage to their king and, I supposed, his mate.
I lost count of the number of people I met, and I had no chance of recalling their names, though there were some ogres I recognised: Jón and Freya, Helga’s parents, and Aron, Helga’s best friend. I had expected all three to be leery of me, but they came with smiles and warmth, and as they got up to leave, Freya touched a hand to my knee and squeezed, giving me a grateful smile before they left.
