Ylva’s jaw tightened as her stare lingered on Freya, calculating. ‘You are not wholly valkyrian, are you?’
‘No.’
‘Alma knows, doesn’t she? She knows what you are.’
‘Yes.’
‘Then tell me, what are you?’ Ylva’s voice was sharp as her eyes met Freya’s, their shared hue blazing with the same unyielding defiance.
Freya said nothing.
Ylva tore her arm free and turned her back, her braid snapping against her shoulder as she strode to her white horse. ‘Why won’t you tell me?’
‘What difference would it make?’ Freya asked, her voice low, almost weary.
Ylva opened her mouth to reply, but both women froze, their heads snapping towards the sound of distant voices. Freya’s hand went instinctively to her sword, unsheathing it with a whisper of steel just as green smoke coiled into being a few feetahead, thick and unnatural, stinking faintly of scorched iron and decay.
From the emerald fire, Vera emerged. Her purple eyes glimmered with a predatory cruelty, her lips curving into a smile that was all mockery and amusement. Yet Freya knew instantly that something was wrong. This was not merely Vera as she remembered her. The sharp, regal angles of her face were warped by something darker, her very aura steeped in a power Freya had not felt for an age, a power that gnawed at the edges of the air like acid.
‘Well, well,’ Vera drawled, her voice dripping honeyed venom. ‘I thought I smelt something rotten.’
Freya raised her sword higher, every muscle braced. Around them, more witches and warlocks slithered into existence, stepping from the swirling smoke like phantoms. Beside her, Ylva drew an arrow to her bowstring, the tip trained on Vera’s heart with steady precision.
‘I always wondered what had become of you,’ Vera mused, her smile never faltering.
Freya’s brows furrowed. ‘What do you mean?’
‘You don’t recognise me?’
‘Vera…’
Vera clucked her tongue, wagging a finger with theatrical disappointment. ‘Try again.’
Freya’s eyes widened, her grip tightening on the hilt until her knuckles blanched. She shifted closer to Ylva, ready to shield her if necessary.
‘You married into my realm,’ Vera purred, her smile stretching unnaturally wide. ‘How are your children faring?’
Freya’s teeth clenched like a sprung trap.‘Eris.’
‘Ah!’ Vera laughed, a high, cold sound. ‘You guessed! Congratulations. It’s been so very long, hasn’t it? Last time I sawyou, Hades was dragging you by the throat out of his gates for what you did.’
From the corner of her eye, Freya saw Ylva stiffen, her bowstring trembling ever so slightly.
‘Oh, forgive me. Was that meant to be a secret?’ Vera gasped, feigning shock as her fingers brushed delicately over her mouth in mock apology. ‘Well, I suppose it isn’t anymore, is it? Remind me again, why was it that Hades cast you out? Ah, yes… you meddled in that little problem of Hecate’s.’ Her eyes gleamed with poisonous amusement. ‘Didn’t work out in the end, did it? She should have confided in me. We both wanted that little bitch gone.’
‘Why are you here?’ Freya’s voice was ice, her sword arm steady.
‘Because,’ Vera purred, her smile twisting, ‘I’m doing a bit of… cleaning.’
Her gaze slid to Ylva, tilting her head with predatory interest. Freya stepped sharply in front of the younger valkyrian, blocking the line of sight. That only made Vera’s grin widen.
‘You can shroud her all you like,’ Vera said, circling with feline grace. ‘Dress her in valkyrian leathers and braid her hair like yours. But I can smell the doggy scent all over her.’ She raised a hand, beckoning lazily. ‘Come here,doggy.’
‘No.’ Freya’s voice was a blade, her teeth clenched tight.
‘Oh?’ Vera chuckled darkly. ‘How protective you are over this one little pup. I wonder why.’
‘I need her.’
