At last, I see the glint of a metal gate in the moonlight and hurl myself over it.
It looks like I’ve made it to the entrance of the burial mound. As my luck would have it, there’s no light here. My ears strain to hear over the high-pitched ringing and my rapid panting for any sound of what was chasing me, but there’s nothing.
Unfortunately, the path took me around the mound, so there is no way to see where we parked or the direction from which Lachlan would be approaching.
I lean over to put my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath. A loud screech breaks through the ringing of my ears, and I look up just in time to see a large black shadow swooping down at me. Moonlight shimmers off iridescent black feathers and sharp talons that are coming directly for my face.
A scream erupts out of my mouth, and I stumble backward through the entrance of the burial mound.
Somehow, I managed to stay on my feet, but the world is tilting off its axis. The ground rises up, and my hands move to shield my face, but not quickly enough; an explosion of golden light, as bright as the sun, scorches my eyes. Blinded and faintly dizzy, I squeeze them shut.
The flapping of wings slowly fades away.
I massage my burning eyes with my fingertips, and the ground beneath my feet rocks a little before becoming still.
A light breeze cools my skin and ruffles my hair. The air feels different than before. Lilac and jasmine wrap around meon another gentle breeze, and strangely enough, the warmth of sunshine upon my skin.
A golden light illuminates through my closed eyes. The sudden change in temperature and floral fragrance has me pausing.
Shock locks my body into place.
A few feet away, someone clears their throat, and a male voice whispers, “That doesn’t look like Bryn.”
The sound of my mom’s name has me snapping my eyes open.
I scream.
6
VALKYRIE QUEEN
This is certainly not the underground cairn I was just tumbling into.
I’m standing in the middle of the largest, whitest marble room I’ve ever seen. It is easily five stories high and constructed entirely in glittering white marble. Sunlight streams through various open-air vents on the ceiling. Towering pillars create four giant doorways, two on each side of the rectangle-shaped room. But “room” is too small a word to describe this place; it’s a palace.
Did I hit my head and die? Is this the afterlife?
My attention falls on the crowd gathered around me. I whirl around, my boots squeaking on the marble floor.
“What the hell just happened?” I shriek.
A beautiful woman with slate-blue eyes approaches me. She’s dressed in the same costume dress I found in that box of my mom’s belongings, the pale blue color so light it’s almost white. My brow furrows, and such a familiar feeling washes through me. The dress is a mere sheath for her outrageously toned body. Her bone structure is similar to my mother’s, butsharper and unlined with age. Her golden skin is bathed in the spear of sunlight she’s standing in. A gentle breeze ruffles her onyx hair, which rests just above her shoulders.
She takes another step towards me, her palms up, in a consoling gesture, as she reaches out to me.
“Hello.” I’m grateful she speaks English, but her accent hints at something foreign, northern. “My name is Odessa.” She places a hand on her chest. The many rings she’s wearing sparkle in the sunlight before she reaches for me again. “What is your name?”
A golden circlet rests above her brow and catches the light as she tilts her head. With a crown like that, she must be the one in charge.
“Am I dreaming? Is this like a coma dream, or did I die?” I ask, ignoring her question.
Odessa presses on. “Can you tell me your name, girl?”
Squeezing my eyes shut, I inhale slowly while mentally checking my body; nothing feels broken. Opening my eyes, I pat my head, checking for lumps, and rub my hands down my arms. My sweater is ripped open on my arm from the fence, but there’s nothing where there should be torn skin. I cut my arm while running, so why isn’t there a mark?
It’s because I’m dead, right?
Putting that aside for the moment, I study my surroundings and notice that the woman in front of me, Odessa, has large, opalescent white wings peaking over her shoulders. Their ends barely hover above the ground.
