Oathbreaker (10 page)

“
It’s your presence that’s going to make my enemies nervous enough to mess up,” Odin looked over the small assemblage thoughtfully. “Honestly, I thought there’d be more protests. The lack is disturbing.”

“
Why?” I frowned and took a sip of my red wine. “Isn’t that a good thing?”

“
Unless they were already plotting against me,” Odin glanced back at me, “and this will simply push them into action sooner.”

“
Why would they want to oust you after all this time?”

“
I have no idea but I haven't lasted this long as their leader without trusting my instincts and my instincts tell me danger's brewing.”

“
Is that why no one is sitting up here with us?” I looked pointedly around our empty table and Odin laughed.

“
No, the high table is reserved for me, my family, and any honored guests that I choose to dine with.”

“
So normally you’d be eating alone?” I looked over the two filled tables before us.

“
Yes.”

“
How horrible to be surrounded by people yet be so isolated,” I wondered if he did it on purpose. Maybe he preferred it that way.

“
I haven’t been comfortable around others since Sabine died,” he stared down at his food, then took a deep breath and smiled at me. “You’re the first person whose company I’ve truly enjoyed since that dark day.”

Things were getting too heavy again, I had to lighten it up. “What about your Valkyries,” I gestured to the throng of beautiful women who sat at the table on our right. They were the only ones who had shown only a slight amount of surprise at Odin’s speech. It really didn’t matter to them, they were steadfast in their loyalty, of that even I was certain.

“They’re pretty to look at but all they think about is fighting and fu… making love.”

I laughed loud and hard, throwing myself back in my chair and earning disapproving glances from the gods. Odin joined in and the stares turned to confusion.

“I would’ve thought those two things would be entertaining for you,” I was surprised at how easy it was to flirt with him… and how fun.

“
They are,” he leaned in to kiss my cheek and stayed near to whisper, “with the right woman.”

“
Which would you prefer,” I found my lips a hairsbreadth from his, “fighting or…?”

His eye flamed for a second, then he closed it and when he opened it again, the fire was replaced by ice. I watched his jaw clench before he spoke. “I didn’t realize you could be so cruel, Godhunter.” He pulled away and I resisted the urge to reach for him.

“Odin,” I touched his hand and felt him tense beneath my fingers. “I’m so sorry; I don’t know why I turn into someone else around you. Maybe Trevor was right in wanting to be here with me. Or maybe I should just go home. I can come back tomorrow.”

“
No,” he grabbed my hand quickly, “it’s alright. Be cruel, just don’t leave.”

My eyes widened and I felt my breath rush out of me. My heart was pounding again, the stupid, traitorous organ, and I felt my magic trembling to life inside me.

“I don’t want to be cruel, to you
or
Trevor. I’m a grown woman, I shouldn’t behave like this. No wonder your friend called me a whore, I’m acting like one and I need to go home.” I started to get up but Odin pulled me back down.

“
I told you that you’re safe with me and I meant it,” he leaned in close so no one could see us. “Don’t go; I won’t pressure you into anything.”

“
It’s not you I’m worried about,” I looked away from him.

Why the hell did he make me feel like this? I hardly knew the guy and what I did know was more mysterious than factual. A mystery, that’s what we’d toasted to and that’s what my attraction to him was.

“I need you here, Vervain,” he glanced over at the rest of the hall and then back at me. “How will it look if you leave now? I may lose even those who are still loyal to me.”

I pushed him back a little, it was too hard to think with him so close. “You’re right, I agreed to do this. I won’t back out and leave you hanging because I’m having an issue controlling my lust.”

His mouth dropped open a little before he burst out laughing. “Your honesty is brutal but refreshing. Most women would deny what they felt and ignore the situation between us. You throw it out into the open, no ulterior motives, just a desire to conquer it.”

“
It does neither of us any good to ignore things,” I sighed, rubbing at the knots in my neck.

“
I wish I’d been the one to find you that day,” he murmured and took a swig of ale.

“
What day?” I gave up on trying to tame my muscles and looked back over at him.

“
When you crept into Valhalla,” he waved as if he could bring back a vision of the day, “to steal my campaign plans, and Thor caught you because he was trying to steal them as well.”

“
You would’ve killed me,” I grimaced and then smirked, “or at least tried to.”

“
Hardly,” he laughed.

“
The Godhunter breaks into Valhalla to steal your
Make War Not Love
plans and you’re saying you would’ve just let me go?”

“
I didn’t say that,” his eye twinkled. “All I said was, I wouldn’t have killed you.”

“
Just torture me a bit, eh?” I laughed, then sobered as the thought of being tortured by Odin hit me. It was like a splash of cold water in the face of my raging libido.

“
Remember what I said,” he brushed a lock of hair behind my ear. “You’re safe here, Vervain.”

“
Yeah,
now
,” I pushed at his shoulder and smiled. “I doubt our meeting would’ve gone so smoothly back then. At the very least, I would’ve kicked you in the balls like I did Thor.”

“
You kicked Thor in the balls,” his one eye got huge.

“
Oh, you didn’t hear about that?” I laughed, remembering Thor’s face when I’d caught him off guard. “Yeah, that whole thing about the bigger they are… it’s true, Thor fell hard.”

“
In so many ways,” Odin’s lips twisted.

“
You never forget the first woman to kick you in the balls,” I nodded sagely, then got serious. “I’m bad news. You should run screaming.”

“
Thor has a good heart but he’s been a fool,” Odin narrowed his eye on me. “If you were mine, I’d never have let you go.”

“
Even if I killed your ex-wife?” I tried to block out the image of Sif’s head lying three feet away from her body, but I’d imprinted it on my mind so I’d never forget. Murder shouldn’t be easy, it should always come with a price. Unfortunately, part of the price of that particular killing had been Thor.

“
Even if you tried to kill
me
,” Odin’s voice brought me out of my dark thoughts. He was staring at me with a little smile that seemed to say he knew I had it in me to do just that… and he found it exciting. The gods
are
crazy.

Then a thought occurred to me. “You were married, right?” I really didn’t want another angry ex after me for messing with her husband. Goddesses didn’t seem to accept divorce easily.

“Yes, thrice. Thor's mother, Iord, died before we left Atlantis, then I married Frigg, who I split from amicably, and then  Sabine, who also died,” he smiled sadly. “You won’t have to fight over me… or for me, like you did for your wolf. It’s just me.”

“
And all your traitorous friends,” I’d intended it as a joke but his smile vanished as he looked over his shoulder at the room. “Odin, I’m sure they’re not all against you. The Valkyries are definitely behind you, if for no other reason than they like the view. Can’t say that I blame them.”

He chuckled low and shook his head. “You’re very good at that.”

“What?”

“
Changing my mood in a heartbeat.”

“
It’s a talent
and
a curse, depending on which way the mood goes,” I rolled my eyes. “Just ask Thor, I could take him from wondrous infatuation to wild fury in seconds. He threw a vase at my head once.”

“
A vase?” Odin choked, “At your head?”

“
Well, near my head,” I shrugged, “it hit the wall
very
close to me.”

“
And may I ask what you said to elicit such a response?” Odin leaned back in his chair.

“
Why do you assume it was something
I
said?” I tried to look innocent and affronted but he wasn’t buying it. “Ok, so I might have told him I was more of a man than he was,” I looked away, embarrassed, as Odin howled with laughter.

“
That’s it,” the Polynesian god stood up. “I refuse to sit here and watch you become besotted with a human. She’s the Godhunter, Odin! Have you no honor? She killed Ku.”

“
Honor is the reason I’ve changed sides, Kane,” Odin didn’t stand, he just shifted in his seat to face the man. “I don’t see the honor in stealing power, especially when I’ve all I need already.”

“
You’re blinded by lust,” the thick islander shook his head. “I’ve made my decision. I’m a friend to you no longer.” He stalked from the hall and a few others got up and followed him.

“
I’m sorry,” I whispered.

“
This is necessary,” he smiled sadly. “It’s not the ones who leave now that I’m concerned about. There’s honor in their honesty. It’s the ones who stay behind, to betray me secretly, that are the real problems.”

“
So step one is done,” I looked over the remaining gods, who all met my stare uneasily. “Now, we wait.”

Chapter Eight

Two days later, I was sitting before the fire in my guest room, compiling a list of names. I’d been introduced to the remaining gods and although it wasn’t the warmest reception, most treated me with a grudging respect. They knew me as the Froekn’s Rouva as well as the Godhunter and many of them had seen me fight. If the Froekn didn’t warrant respect with the gods, watching me kill one of their own sure did.

Unfortunately, murder wasn’t a way to make friends or influence people, and most of them gave me a wide berth. I only had what knowledge I could get from a distance to help judge loyalties, even with my love magic whispering to me which of them was worthy or not, I couldn't say for sure who was a traitor. I mean just because someone was unworthy of my love magic, it didn't make them guilty of betrayal.

It was looking more and more like I’d have to resort to a spell. I just wasn’t sure what spell to use. I put the list down and reached for my spell book. While I was flipping through the pages, a knock sounded on the door.

“
Come in,” I called over my shoulder.

Odin came in, carefully took the book from me, put it aside, and pulled me to my feet. “You’re working too hard; it’s time for a little break.”

“What did you have in mind?” I glanced at the book.

“
A little horseback riding, a little fishing for lunch,” he nudged me toward the bathroom. “Get some jeans on that beautiful ass.”

I laughed and hurried to comply, yanking on an old pair of jeans and a red tank top before sliding into a pair of boots. All I knew of Asgard came from roaming it as a lioness or peering at it from Thor's balcony. I was looking forward to wandering through its unique landscape as a human.

“Okay,” I came out of the bathroom, putting my hair into a ponytail. “I’m ready.”

Odin led the way out to the stables. He was carrying a leather sack over his shoulder and he flung it down before he went to saddle a couple of horses for us. He led a dark gray mare out for me and helped me into the saddle. I took off before he could mount Sleipnir, too excited to wait for him.

“This way,” he caught up with me, then his horse quickly overtook mine, to lead us along a worn trail through the trees.

The forest closed in around us, the sweet scent of pine, sap, and growing things, meshing with the rich smell of earth and animals. Sun poked in through sporadic gaps, looking like bright little windows to faerie worlds wherever it hit. We followed the path up an incline, letting the horses trot leisurely. Then the trees thinned out, revealing a cliff top view of Asgard.

It was breathtaking. On our left was Valhalla and behind it the land stretched to the sky, spotted with the homes of other gods. Nearby was Valaskjάlf, noticeable only because of the way it sparkled through the trees. On our right was a grassy plain where wild horses were grazing and beyond that, the cliffs that held Bilskinir Hall.

I briefly wondered if Thor was home before I let my gaze drift out over the lake and up the cliffs that guarded the channel to the sea. There was a large stone carved with runes set upon the top of each cliff. They were the guardian runestones of Asgard, although technically it was Thor’s job to protect the Viking god territory.

“So beautiful,” Odin said behind me.

“
Yes, you gods know how to design a landscape.” I smiled at him over my shoulder.

“
I wasn’t talking about Asgard,” he grinned lecherously and waggled his brows.

“
That’s the worst line ever, it’s so last century,” I shot at him as I dug my heels into the mare’s sides. “Although I wouldn’t be surprised to find out you said it first, you are
really
old.”

My horse leaped into a run while Odin chased us down the mountain and across the field, where the wild horses scattered at our approach. I laughed as my hair flew out behind me, no doubt tangling hopelessly. I didn’t care. Freedom was riding a horse, feeling its power beneath you, and letting it carry you along on a crest of bliss.

I pulled up at the edge of the lake. Odin was beside me in an instant, leaping from his horse to mine. His arms imprisoned my waist as he stole the reins from me. My skin went from hot to cold, my pulse fluttering in my neck, as he leaned forward and whispered in my ear.

“
Old am I?”

“
I meant it as a compliment,” I stared straight ahead, knowing that if I turned, I was doomed.

“
Mmm hmm,” his hands crept up my sides lightly and I had a second to panic before he began to tickle me mercilessly.

I laughed, writhing helplessly in the saddle. “Okay, okay, you’re not old, you’re a spring chicken, a kid, a babe in arms, come on just stop already!”

He laughed and jumped off the horse, then helped me down. “A spring chicken? That was the best you could do?”

“
Hey it’s hard to think when you’re being tickled by a god who’s acting like a teenager on his first date.”

“
Gods don’t date,” he tried to look patronizing but a smile crept through.

“
When you’re involved with a human you do,” I lost some of my smile as I realized I was heading into dangerous waters again. Iceberg of lust off the port bow, Captain!

“
Ready for some fishing?” Odin adroitly steered the ship away from the dangerous ice. He pulled the leather sack off his saddle, then took the bit out so Sleipnir could graze and drink from the lake.  I jumped down and did the same for my mare before I followed him to the water’s edge.

There was an outcropping of rock poised perfectly over the deeper water, almost as if designed that way(cause it probably was), and we ended up there. He shook out a blanket to spread on the stone, the bright red wool flashing against the backdrop of blue. For an instant, it looked like a flapping war banner and my magic tried to come out and say hello.

I pushed it back down gently, it wasn't a good idea to get too dominating with War, and tried to slow down my heart rate. One of the drawbacks of having so many magics inside me was an occasional difficulty in controlling them. It had been happening more and more lately, a flash of something encouraging and one of them would try to come out. Magic liked to be used, Nature abhors a vacuum, and mine hadn't been utilized in awhile.

“
Are you alright?” Odin looked up at me from the sack he was rummaging in.

“
Sure,” I said breathlessly. “Just enjoying the view.” I didn't want Odin worrying about me going crazy and zapping him.