Noren and Viggo lay side by side, sprawled out on a bed, naked to the world. Their hands and feet were blue in colour, the ropes around them cutting off their circulation.
“Don’t just stand there, untie us!” Noren yelled, his face red and splotchy.
Westley quickly began untying the knots, having difficulty getting purchase of the ropes through fits of laughter. They were trickier than he expected, but he managed to free them, one at a time.
Given the scent in the room, he had an idea of what had happened.
“Let me guess. Gerrie?”
“That witch is going to pay for this,” Noren said, cradling his wrists in his hands, wincing as the blood flow returned.
“You let her string you up?” Brenna said, still laughing by the door.
“She tricked us! Put us under a spell!” Viggo cried in relief as his ties came undone. The males quickly scrambled off the bed and found their clothes.
“Was the spell called wine and sex?” Westley asked with a laugh.
“No,” they answered in unison.
“Don’t bother getting fully dressed, you’ll need to change into travel clothes. We’re leaving for Midgard immediately.”
“On whose orders?” Noren, skepticism mixing with his anger.
“On your future queen’s,” Westley answered, warning clear in his tone.
“This was North’s idea?” Noren asked, not bothering to do up the buttons on his pants as they made their way down the corridor and up the stairs to their rooms. “Does Easta agree?”
“North and Easta both agree that that is where we are supposed to be.”
“So the queens gave the order,” Viggo stated, not fazed in the slightest.
“The queens held a council with North and Easta. Do not be shortsighted. This plan goes beyond Asgard versus Idavoll. The realms are in danger,” he told Noren.
Westley and Brenna waited in uncomfortable silence for Noren and Viggo to change, their earlier argument lingering in the air between them.
Brenna cleared her throat. “You’ve changed.”
There was no use denying it. Even he didn’t recognize himself anymore. His thoughts drifted back to Solveig, knowing she was the reason.
He couldn’t be upset about it though. He may not recognize himself, but he was lighter than he’d been in decades, even with the turmoil of unravelling his beliefs. Even if it turned out that everything he’d been taught was a lie, he could deal with that knowing Solveig existed.
After another beat of silence, Brenna said in a small voice, “You could have told me.”
“Told you what?”
“That we were over.”
“Brenna, we were never together.” When she made a face at him, he rolled his eyes, a habit he was picking up from Solveig. “You know what I mean. You knew I didn’t want anything but friendship from you.”
Her lips wobbled. “And my body.”
“Which you freely agreed to,” he reminded her. His tone came out more scolding than he’d intended. He was being a dick, but he couldn’t help it. She’d known the arrangement. If she’d been unhappy with it, she should’ve said something.
“And you feel nothing more for me?”
How many times did he have to tell her? “No, I don’t. I’ve never felt that way for you.”
Brenna shook her head. “She won’t choose you, if it comes down to it. You know that, right?”
