Echo didn't swagger into the room, despite my hopes, and he wasn't waiting by my car after school. Blaine was. He watched me with an unreadable expression.

"Why the long face?" I asked.

"Who did you piss off?"

"Why would you...?" My voice trailed off when I saw my tires. The front two were flat. I dropped my backpack and walked around Blaine to check the back ones. They were flat, too. "The petty, vindictive Hel's minions!"

"The ones from this morning?" Blaine asked.

I whipped around. "You saw us?"

"I was in the foyer. I had to etch forgetful runes on a few people. Torin and the others forgot they draw attention and perceptive people notice when they disappear. So you need me to fix your tires? I know runes that can fix them."

"Oh. That's nice." Nara's smug face flashed in my head. "No. Let them do the fixing." By the time I was finished with them, they'd never mess with me again. I reached down and grabbed my backpack. "Can you give me a ride?"

"Me?" He glanced around as though searching for someone. "Are you sure?"

"The last time I heard, you had my back. Immortals united and all."

"Where's Echo?"

I shrugged. "Out and about."

"You do know there's no way those two Grimnirs poked holes in your tires. One punch should have made the point."

"And they would have reduced my car to junkyard scrap," I said.

"Your car is already a junkyard scrap."

I slapped his arm. "We can't all drive expensive foreign toys, you car snob."

He laughed. "I'm just saying. I'm surprised Echo hasn't offered to replace it."

"Because he knows I wouldn't accept it."

"Why not?"

"I'm not a charity case, Blaine Chapman. Besides, I love my Sentra. She and I have seen many actions together."

"Like?"

"None of your business. Can we get lattes?"

"Sure." When he reached the light, he turned left. He glanced at me and smirked. "So when you say action..."

He was flirting with me. A year ago, I would have been flattered and flustered by the attention. Now that I had Echo. No other guy mattered.

"If you must know, I had many firsts in this car. My first drive-in movie. First kiss. First..." My voice trailed off, memories of many firsts with Echo flashing through my head. I sighed.

"What?" Blaine asked, pulling into the parking lot of The Hub.

"Nothing." A soul wandered into The Hub. "Do you see the soul?" I whispered to Blaine.

"No, but I know one is nearby. Do you need to help it?"

"It's a he. And the answer is no. I don't do the asking. If they need help, they come to me." We got our lattes and took off.

Blaine drove like a maniac. Lucky for him, cops rarely lurked around the roads leading to the large vineyards near my farm. He didn't slow down until he reached my place.

A familiar car was in front of my house. I grinned. Echo.

"Looks like you have visitors," Blaine said.

"Echo." I jumped out of the car, eager to find him. "You coming in?" I asked.

Blaine glanced toward my house and shook his head. "No, thanks. You sure you don't want me to fix your car and drop it off?"

"No. The Grimnirs-"

"Didn't do it, Cora," Blaine said. "Slashing tires is a Mortal thing. Someone at school did it."

Who? Only one person at school hated me enough to want to hurt me. Drew. The problem was I couldn't see him vandalizing my tires.

"Maybe. Thanks for the ride. See you tomorrow." He sped off while I headed for our front porch.

CHAPTER 10. MOM AND ME TIME.

No one was in the kitchen. "Mom? Dad?"

No response. I angled my head. No sound. I grabbed a pear from a bowl and left the house. Shading my eyes, I looked toward the fruit trees then the barn.

Could Echo be out there with my dad?

I bit into the pear as I started toward the barn. The barn was empty. Where were they? I headed back to the house. Then a thought occurred to me. What if he'd told my parents who he was and had whisked them away through a portal? Mom would freak out, but Dad would want to see how everything worked.

I shook my head and ditched the thought. Echo would never tell them who he was. Norns had a rule everyone lived by. Humans were not supposed to know they existed, and that rule extended to Valkyries and Grimnirs. The consequences of breaking that rule were severe.

Back in the house, I grabbed my backpack and started for the stairs. Mom appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Hey, hun. I thought I heard a car, but when I looked outside I didn't see your car."

"Blaine dropped me off."

She frowned. "What happened to your car?"

"Flat tires. Someone deliberately slashed them."

She shifted into mother-bear mode, eyes flashing. "I'm calling your school first thing in the morning."

"No, Mom-"

"The school is responsible for whatever happens in school. They should have better security and a surveillance system."

I took the last few steps that brought me to her side. I grabbed her arm. "It's okay, Mom. I know the people responsible."

"Good. I'll need their names before I talk to the principal tomorrow."

"Mom, no. I'll take care of this." She didn't look convinced. "Please. It was a misunderstanding, and they promised to fix them all."

"The school should at least know. This is a form of bullying. Who are they, and why did they pick on you?"

I shouldn't have mentioned the slashed tires. "Mom, I've got this." She wasn't budging. "If things get worse, I promise to let you know. Right now, let me handle it."

"Only if you promise to report it."

Yeah, like that was going to happen. "Promise."

She pressed a kiss on my temple. "I guess I keep forgetting how grownup you are. You don't need me to fight your battles anymore or kiss your boo-boos."

"Boo-boos, Mom?" She laughed. "Where's Echo? His SUV is outside, but I can't find him anywhere."

"That's because he and your father took the truck. They said not to hold up dinner."

"They went to dinner without us?"

Mom chuckled. "No, they're at the Blue Bird."

Blue Bird was a sports bar where Dad and Raine's father would hangout on Saturday afternoons to watch sports and drink beer. Professional basketball was in session, and NHF draft was around the corner. Dad liked to watch them live with his buddies.

"Why?"

Mom took my arm and led me to my room. "I think they wanted to talk without us listening and interrupting." She gave me a pointed look.

"I never interrupt."

"You're very protective of him, which is perfectly fine."

He was protective of me, too. "Do you need help with dinner?"

"No. I thought we'd run into town and get some Chinese food."

My eyes widened. Mom was not big on eating out or takeout. "Really?"

She nodded. "I don't feel like cooking tonight, and it's just the two of us."

"Can we drive by Blue Bird?" I asked.

She laughed. "No. We're definitely not spying on your father and Echo."

Oh, we were so spying on them. I grinned and walked back to hug her. "You're the best."

"We're still not going. I'll call Chang's." I started to walk away, but she added, "Oh, before I forget. I made an appointment with Dr. Steiner. She expects you tomorrow at four."

My face warmed. Dr. Steiner was her doctor, an obstetrician and gynecologist. I've always seen Dr. May, a pediatrician. "Mom, I don't really need contraceptives."

"You don't just see her for that. You can talk to her about anything. You're a woman now, and I believe a woman should know certain things about her body, so she can take charge of her health."

I rolled my eyes. "I know my body, and we did have the talk."

"I know, honey. But an OB/GYN can answer questions I can't. Just go see her, okay?"

"So, you won't be there?"

"No. At eighteen, you earn the right to see the doctor without me hovering."

"I never minded. Do you remember when I had a high fever a couple of years ago but Dr. May was out of town, so we went to the clinic? You ripped that young doctor a new one when he insisted I didn't need more tests."

She laughed. "Nothing is stronger than a mother's intuition."

We didn't leave the house for another two hours. Chang's was crowded and even the takeout had a line.

"Can we stop by Blue Bird?" I whispered to Mom.

She shook her head. I waited until we'd picked up our takeout and she was backing out of the parking lot. "Mom..."

"No."

Whining ensued. "I swear I'll be in and out. I just want to make sure he's okay."

She signaled and entered Main Street. Blue Bird was several blocks ahead of us. "You don't think he can handle himself around your dad?"

"No. I mean, yes, he can, but it's not only him and Dad. Dad is probably in there with his poker buddies. They are a bunch of mean old men."

"Your father is not old. He's in his prime."

"You know what I mean, Mom. Jake's Dad made it clear he considers me his future daughter-in-law. He's going to dissect Echo or worse, go on and on about his perfect, Navy Seal son and me. Echo won't like it."

Mom chuckled. "You're like a mother bear with her cub."

"He needs someone to watch out for him. He's been alone for too long."

The smile left Mom's face. "It couldn't have been easy losing both parents at such a young age. He told us how he was raised by an aunt who died when he was starting high school and how Blaine's father became his legal guardian."