"Is this about Eirik?" I asked, a little scared of what they might say.

Mom frowned. "No, honey. We don't know why he would side with that odious man." She glanced at Torin. "Sorry, dear. But I'm sure he didn't do it willingly. Eirik would never hurt or betray you. Something else is going on here. Come on, Lavania."

Lavania uncrossed her legs and leaned forward. Reaching up, she tucked a lock of hair behind her ears as though nervous, but her eyes were direct when they met Torin's. "This concerns your father, or the man I only knew as the Earl. I prayed this day would never come, Torin. I'm so sorry. What do you know about him?"

"He was the illegitimate son of an Anglo-Saxon nobleman," Torin said in a voice that said he didn't want to discuss his father. This conversation was going to reopen deeper wounds.

"That was his way of re-inventing himself. Femi can tell you how often and industrious Immortals have to be every few decades."

Torin's jaw flexed. "Did you turn him?"

"No. My mentor did, and she's the one he contacted when you and your brother went to war. He wanted both of you turned, but your brother chose death." She chugged water from a bottle, then continued. "William was an Immortal way before he met your mother, Torin. He was born in Hellenistic Greece and fought in more wars than I can name." She smiled. "He had quite a reputation even among Valkyries. Tough. Unstoppable. A force of nature other Immortals revered and-"

Mom cleared her throat and gave Lavania a piercing glance. It was obvious Lavania might have had a thing for 'the Earl'.

"I'm digressing," she said, her cheeks pink. "When he met your mother, William needed to become a new man and enter the British society. Marrying your mother made that possible. The Normans had defeated the Anglo-Saxons and were revitalizing England, building monuments and pouring in money. Not that your father needed that. He'd accumulated enough wealth over the centuries, but as an Immortal, that was not the kind of thing you advertised. He had his group of Immortal friends, some of the clergymen, but they continued to help Valkyries whenever their services were needed. When your father 'died' in the fire and left no heirs, the king gave the title, Earl of Worthington, and all the earldom to your uncle, your mother's only brother. Most of your relatives you see now are from your mother's side of the family."

No wonder none of the Earls of Worthington looked like Torin or his father. I glanced at Torin, but I doubted he was making that connection. Rage brewed in the depth of his blue eyes.

"So marrying my mother, a Norman, was the perfect cover," Torin said.

"Not just any Norman. A Norman noblewoman, King Richard's third or fourth cousin twice removed. Your noble blood comes from your mother's side, not your father's."

Torin leaned forward, his voice harsh. "I don't care about my noble blood. Why did he kill her? Another cover?"

I was seated on the other side of Mom, but I responded to the pain in his voice. I got up, walked around to the arm of his chair, and reached for his hand. At first, he didn't respond, but soon he was gripping my hand so tight it hurt. I engaged pain runes to take the pain away, but my insides knotted with anxiety and I felt his emotional pain as though it was mine.

"No, it wasn't," Lavania said. "William is an ambitious man, but we didn't know how far he was willing to go until he killed her. All the years he fought and defended humanity, he believed, had earned him the right to be a Valkyrie. To meet and live in the halls of the gods. It became an obsession."

"He doesn't have the temperament to become a Valkyrie," Femi added.

I stared at her with wide eyes. A quick glance at Torin showed him staring at Femi with narrowed eyes. I could just imagine his thoughts. He should have vetted her thoroughly.

"You've met him?" I asked.

"Our paths crossed. You don't live as long as we've done without our paths crossing."

Did that mean William de Clare had deliberately stayed out of Torin's radius? The way Torin's jaw tensed and the increased grip on my hand said he had reached that same conclusion.

"The Valkyrie Council decided he must remain an Immortal and protect humanity, but the Earl thought he'd found a way to leave this realm and get close to the gods. He believed he needed a new soul to escort to Asgard and he'd access the Bifrost."

The implication hit me hard and I sucked in air. That bastard had killed his own wife to get a soul. The silence that followed was heavy, but I felt Torin's pain in every breath he took and every pound of his racing heart. I wasn't sure how much he could take. I looked at Mom and begged her with my eyes to make Lavania stop, but she shook her head.

"About a century ago, he started talking to other Immortals who felt they had the right to move through the realms like the Valkyries. He has acquired quite a following."

"Where's my mother's soul?" Torin asked in a low voice. "I've search for it in Hel and it wasn't there."

Mom and Lavania exchanged a glance. Mom looked worried while Lavania had guilt written all over her face. "Torin," she said slowly. "Please don't try-"

"Stop lying to me," he spoke so calmly, which was worse than if he'd yelled. "I can forgive all the crap about who my father is and the fact that he's an Immortal, but you refused to let me escort my mother's soul to Asgard or say my goodbye, Lavania. Why? There are no laws that say you can't escort a family member. You made that up and I need to know now."

Lavania stared at her hands and Mom couldn't meet my gaze. As for Torin, I thought I had seen him furious. Not like this. Runes appeared on his skin. So many of them I couldn't tell what kind they were.

"Mom?" I begged.

"Sweetheart, there are some things-"

"Just tell him." I lost it. "Where is she?"

"He used a spell to bind her soul to him."

My ears started ringing as blood drained from my head. Torin jumped up and stormed off. I ran after him, engaging my runes. When he took off, I was right behind him. He cut through the residential area like a hurricane, so angry, so out of control nothing in his way stayed standing. His bellow of rage filled me with anguish.

When I caught up with him, he was headed north. It was too dark for him to run through the damn forest, glowing runes or not. He could fall and seriously hurt himself. Even a Valkyrie wouldn't recover from a mushed up brain.

"Stop, Torin."

He glanced back as though surprised, then plunged into the forest like some wood chopping machine, flattening everything in his path. The sound of trees snapping and crashing echoed in the dark.

I stopped, wiped my forehead with the back of my hand, tears blocking my throat. So scared I wanted to scream, I stomped my feet. "TORIN!"

The ground shook. Did I do that? I looked up and down street. No cars. Raising my foot, I brought it down. A tremor radiated from where I stood.

Ok, that wasn't a good thing to do. I peered into the trees, debating whether to go after him. Of course I had to. From the looks of things, this must be his place for releasing steam. I just didn't remember seeing any fallen trees during our previous runs.

Carefully, I made my way past the rocks and trench bordering the road and studied the fallen trees. Torin was gone, his glow hidden by the thick forest despite the line of fallen trees.

Tomorrow, the rangers would have a theory for this. Trees being uprooted from the ground without a trace of vehicle tires weren't common. If Torin left footprints, and I was sure he did, another alien story would resurface in the Kayville Daily. Cora's father, a sci-fi writer, had already started an alien invasion book series after the Grimnirs destroyed a vineyard. That had baffled local and state reporters. Then there was the people going crazy and turning on each other at the Hub and an indoor playground because of Eirik. Kayville was starting to turn into a little town of horrors.

The poor fallen trees. I touched one uprooted root, wishing we didn't leave too much supernatural evidence behind every time a soul reaper threw a hissy fit and vented.

A movement came from my left and I jumped back. It came from the fallen tree on my left. The leaves rustled and moved as though something was crawling from under it. A black bear, was my first thought. Torin had crashed the tree on top of a freaking sleeping bear.

The tree lifted.

It wasn't just any black bear. It was huge enough to lift the tree. My heart hurtling to my throat, I stepped back, not realizing how close I was to the manmade slope bordering the road. I lost my footing and fell backwards.

Rocks and sticks dug into my skin as I rolled toward the road. I tried to break my fall, tendrils of panic coiling around me. I scrambled to my feet at the edge of the road, expecting the bear to come lumbering after me. Instead, the tree that had fallen was now upright. And there was no bear under it.

No, it couldn't be. Echo had said people of the Old Religion like the Druids could control elements. Did I cause the tree to lift up and replant itself by reattaching its root?

Blood pounding past my ears, I stood there undecided. Where was Torin? I needed him. I peered past the now standing tree, but there was no glowing being anywhere. Mastering some courage, I pulled myself back up to the fallen trees and touched another root. As it moved and struggled to lift itself, the roots sank into the ground.

Laughing, I touched the next root and another. Then I splayed my hands like some all-powerful Witch and yelled, "Stand and let your roots sink into the earth. Live and be the giver of life and shelter."

Okay, so I got carried away, but it seemed to be working. The trees rose, creaks and rustles filling the hair, the earth shaking as roots disappeared into the ground. Where was Torin? He should see this. It was really awesome.

Pleased with myself, I ran down to the middle of the road, spun around at a super speed with my hand held up and woo-hooed. This could be the start of a trend. A pissed off Torin hell bent on destroying everything in his path and me following him and cleaning up his mess.

Nah, that sounded exactly what Norns did. Cleaned up after Valkyries.

This was different. He was hurting deep inside. Somewhere even I couldn't reach. His father was the devil incarnate. To do something so despicable to his own wife took a special kind of evil.

A flash of light came from deep inside the trees and pulled me to the present. It was so bright the glow kissed the tree tops. Within seconds, Torin screeched to a stop beside me. His eyes burned under the glowing runes.

"What are you doing?" His voice whipped through the night and I winced.

"Trying to get your attention," I said. "See, I fixed all the trees you destroyed. Cool, right?"

"You do not want to be around me right now, Freckles."

"I disagree. I plan to be around you when you are happy, sad, pissed off, hurting, acting like a jackass, goofing off, or showing off. Whatever and whenever. You and I are a package deal, pal. Equal partners and all that jazz." I pointed at a nearby tree and moved my finger left and right. The tree swayed. "Any time you want to destroy nature, get me first."

He leaned in until we were eye level. "Go home, Raine." His voice was mean.

"Only if you come with me. You want to stay out here, I'm staying too. You want pull a Flash move and sprint to Portland and back, I'll either run with you or wait out here until you come back. But I'm not going anywhere without you, Torin St. James."

My words only seemed to infuriate him. He stepped back and thrust his fingers through his hair. "You know I don't take crap from little girls."

"I know, but that's so six months ago. You didn't scare me then and you don't scare me now." I walked to the edge of the road and sat. He remained standing. "Did you hear Ingrid's news? She's going to intern for some fashion editor at a fancy magazine in New York."

"And I care about this why?" he snarled.

"She's your ward or Immortal companion to your little brother. Do you think Andris will go ballistic?" A car was coming and he was still standing in the middle of the road. Anxiety twisted my insides but I engaged my speed runes just in case I had to snatch him out of the way. "Or maybe he'll realize how much he loves her and go after her. Carry her out of the newsroom and bring her home. That would be so romantic." Dang it. He wasn't moving. "Ouch! That hurt. I think a snake bit me."

He was by my side in a fraction of a second. "Where?"

The car drove past. "It's nothing. Just a stick. Can we go home now?"

He sat without saying a word. Usually he'd make a scathing comment about how I'd manipulated him. He rested his elbows on his knees and bowed his head. "She's been attached to him for over nine hundred years, Raine. Nine centuries of watching that bastard do all sorts of despicable things."

"I know." I rubbed his back. His muscles were tight, but the sparks caused by the runes on both of us seemed to relax him.

"I'm going to kill him."

He spoke so calmly a chill shot up my spine. I swallowed and tried to act nonchalant. Pushing my fingers through his hair, I massaged his scalp. "I know."

"It's what he deserves. His head severed clean. Heart ripped out of his chest. I would not have been a Valkyrie if it weren't for him."

I almost reminded him that Lavania had given him a choice and he'd chosen Immortality. His brother hadn't. "Do you see James often?"

"Once in a while. Valhalla is huge and they're always busy." He sighed. "We'd assumed Mom went to Hel's Hall. When Andris and I were assigned to Goddess Hel, I searched for her, but the place is even bigger than Asgard."

The cold was slipping under my pants despite the runes, but it must be worse for him. Unlike my long-sleeved shirt, he'd left his jacket at the mansion and only wore a T-shirt. I rested my head on his back and tried to warm him.

What was he going to do with his mother's soul? Take her to Asgard? I didn't get a chance to ask Mom if she'd been granted Valkyrie status. The thought of Dad going to Hel instead of Asgard filled me with dread. It wasn't that the place was bad. According to Echo, the Halls had plenty of rooms.

A few more cars zipped past us, definitely speeding. I watched their tail lights disappear toward town and wondered how long before my ass went completely numb. Someone should come up with warmth runes for moments like this.

"I wonder if she's the reason he's never tried to find me," Torin said. "He knows I'm a Valkyrie and might see her."

"And don't forget. He wants to be you." That was it. I'd reached my limit. I stood and pulled him up. Or he allowed me to pull him up. "We are going home. I'm going to make us hot chocolate, then you're going to hold me until we fall asleep because tomorrow we have to come up with a plan."

"What plan?"

"How to go after the original Earl of Worthington so I can decapitate him."

Torin frowned. "I would never allow you to take a life."

"I would to save you or any one of our basketball team children."

He laughed. The sound started deep in his chest and built up until he doubled over. Then he reached down, wrapped his arms around my thighs and lifted me up. "You say the craziest things."

"But you love me anyway."

He studied my face. "I don't know. Let me think about it."

"Jackass." I thumped his head with the heel of my palm, then pushed his hair out of the way and kissed the spot. His eyes glowed. "Let's go home."

"As long as we agree on one thing. You are a healer, not a killer. Even the trees whispered it tonight as they lifted themselves from the ground. It was beautiful to watch and humbling that you did it."

"I guess I'm kind of awesome too," I said.

"You've always been." He lowered me down and planted one on my lips. With our runes engaged, I could swear I felt every feeling flowing through him. The good, the bad, and the ugly.

I woke up with a smile on my face and was still grinning when I left the shower. Mom was home and a cup of coffee waited on my bedside table. I picked it up and walked to the window.

A shirtless Torin raised his mug. For the first time in months, I'd slept and woken up in his arms. My life was a total mess, but little things like that made it bearable.

I lifted my coffee and saluted Torin, turned, and went to my closet to find something to wear. Ten minutes later, I hummed and skipped my way downstairs.

Mom was in the kitchen with Femi. I got another tight hug I couldn't escape. Didn't want to. I'd missed her hugs. "Morning, sweetheart. Happy you're still leaving your door open."

"I follow house rules whether you are here or not," I lied smoothly and slipped out of her arms.

"Happy to hear that." Then she and Femi exchanged a glance and chuckles.

My face grew warm. I'd broken it a few times. "Going to check on Dad. See you after school."

"I don't think you should work at the store anymore, honey. Lavania is back and you two should get back to your studies."

Until the incident with the witches, I'd actually enjoyed working at the shop. "I'll talk to her today and see if we can work out a schedule or something. I mean, I don't mind helping at the store a couple times a week, Mom."

She shook her head. "Not a good idea. I don't like that the witches know where to find you. Torin can take care of the ones at school because he knows them. The ones out there are too many and we don't know who they are. Some of them could be working with Torin's father."

Home one day and already changing the rules. Great. I sighed. "Fine."