The raiders’ camp.
Norrin’s tent.
Thori’s stomach clenched with nausea.
Norrin Stormtamer had bought him.
Hands shooting up to clutch at his neck, he found the collar still sitting snugly around his throat, warm and smooth under his fingertips. Gods, for a moment, he’d thought everything had been just a fever dream.
His nausea intensifying, Thori’s stomach churned violently, a wave of dizziness washing over him. He curled into a ball, trying to push away the cloying memory of being ensnared bySvanhild’sblót seiðr. He’d felt the terror and pain of the poor thrall she had butchered as if it were his own, and there had been absolutely nothing he could do about it. But Norrin had countered her spell and now—
Thori frowned in confusion.
His thunder was still trapped, but Norrin’sseiðrfelt almost soft around him as if it were made of silk ribbons that wrapped gently around Thori’s body. He shuddered. Norrin wasn’t a god. He didn’t possess powers as Thori did, but he must be a strongvalaif hisseiðrcould match Svanhild’s. The priestess seemed to think he was more powerful than herself if she was so willing to leave her ritual to him.
The heat of embarrassment warmed Thori’s face. Malevölurweren’t unfamiliar to him; Odin was the Lord ofseiðr, after all, but still—
As King of the Gods, it was only natural that his father would seek power and wisdom wherever he could find it. He was far above any question about his manliness. Still, the art ofseiðrwas a woman’s affair, inextricably entwined with sexual indulgences too indecent for a warrior like Thori to even contemplate. At least in theory…
Although that one time he’d slept with Jarnsaxa and she’d shoved her fingers up his ass—unprompted, of course—had felt…nice. Was it the same as sharing a bed with a warrior? He hadn’t sought Jarnsaxa out later, too embarrassed by his reaction, and perhaps a little worried that he might acquire a taste for that sort of activity. In any case, her longship had left for Jotunheim soon afterward, and he hadn’t seen theJotunnshieldmaiden again. Not that it mattered now.
The faint rustling of fabric made Thori look up. Was Norrin coming back?
A nauseating odor filled the tent; the metallic smell of blood mixed with something sweet and disgusting: honey and decay.His stomach twisted as he recognized the strange perfume before even laying eyes on the woman who carried it.
Svanhild.
His fingers dug into the furs beneath him, the memory of herblót seiðrtrapping him, and her clutching hands around his throat flooding his mind. He forced himself to sit up, ignoring the way his muscles protested.
“Well, well,” she purred. “Look who’s still alive.”
Svanhild grinned. She lingered at the entrance, framed by the faint light of the torches outside. Her long, fair hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her pale eyes gleamed with amusement as she took in Thori’s weakened state. But there was also something else: a flicker of insecurity.
“I don’t think Norrin welcomes you here,” Thori said, following a hunch.
Svanhild clicked her tongue, stepping into the tent as if she owned the place, as if she owned him. But Thori could sense her unease.
“SillyÁss. Do you think he replaced myseiðrwith his own out of sheer kindness?”
Her gaze slid to his neck, where the golden collar sat warm against his skin. Was he just imagining it, or did her already pale face lose even more color?
“The only thing he had in mind was marking you as his, as he’s going to mark you during the ritual.”
“He can certainly try,” Thori snarled, though Svanhild’s words sent a shiver down his spine. “I’ll never belong to anyone.”
“Still stubborn. I suppose that’s why Norrin finds you so entertaining.”
He lifted his chin defiantly, refusing to lower his gaze.
With the stealth of a nightmare creature, Svanhild crept closer, withdrawing a glass vial from her pouch. She opened it with a smirk and poured a strange golden oil over her hands. Thesickly sweet aroma which he’d smelled before increased tenfold, clogging his nose. Thori tensed, his whole body prepared to fight.
“Lie back down,” Svanhild ordered.
Thori didn’t move.
“No.”
Her grin grew even wider.
