Page 60 of Revenge of the Elf Lord

Feeling her heart beating strongly against his, he never wanted to let her go. “How do you feel, nín gilgalad? Did it work? Did we kill the viruses?”

“Yes, my love, they are gone.” She kissed his cheek. “In your arms, I have never felt more alive.”

A throat cleared beside them. “It’s getting a little awkward in here—” Zel complained.

“Don’t sugarcoat it—it’s gross—making me nauseous,” Loki grumbled, lightening the moment and reminding Cyran he and Shalendra were not alone.

He glanced around the room, noticing the differences now that Haman no longer controlled what they saw. His workspace had taken on a darker atmosphere with body parts and organs inside the jars.

Strange organisms were swimming inside the thick, yellow liquid in several large jars on the top shelf. In front of him stood a large cage with thick black metal bars. Inside lay the crumpled bodies of two people.

Pulling away from her a few inches, he smiled. “Congratulations. Your quest is now complete.”

Her eyebrows rose in surprise. “My aunt and uncle? We’ve found them?”

Cyran pointed to the cage. “I believe we have, but you must prepare yourself, sweetheart. We have seen what Haman and Fer-Diorich do to their prisoners. I don’t want you to get your hopes up.”

“They live,” Zel added, “barely.”

Shalendra scrambled to her feet, her body weaving a little, but she waved Cyran off. “It’s nothing. Just a little dizzy. I always am after using a lot of magic.” She grabbed Cyran’s hand and threaded their fingers together. “I'm terrified at what we will find.”

Side by side, they walked toward the cage. Zel reached around them, clasping something behind the wall lantern, and pulled out an old-fashioned skeleton key.

Pushing it in the cage’s locking mechanism, he turned it, theclinkof the tumbler sounding loud in the room. He swung open the metal door and leaned in, picking up a disheveled woman in his arms and transferring her to Loki. Cyran eased his arms under the male, emaciated and skeletal, and removed him from the cage.

Zel fashioned a bed next to the cage, and they laid them on the firm mattress side by side. Shalendra stared at her aunt’s pale face and wild hair, letting out a soft whimper as she tried to finger-comb the messy strands.

Cyran leaned over the female and examined her, then turned to the male, who was in worse shape. After a few more tension-filled minutes, he leaned back and shook his head.

“I can’t do much here. I refuse to use anything in this room. We need to get them to Idunn, especially Jessica. She has more experience healing humans, and for some unknown reason, Jessica is still human. I can heal Olivier with basic healing and nutrition, but I don’t want to separate them, and from the way Zel is glaring at me, he agrees.”

“Cyran, we can’t leave Haman here,” Shalendra said. “He has to come with us to Asgard.”

Loki moved to stand in front of the statue and tilted his head. A few moments passed before he turned to face them, a slight grin on his face. “I have a better idea. I am going to deliver him to my daughter in Helheimr. I will suggest she take him to Sutr in Muspelheimr, where he can rot in hell.”

Zel nodded. “I like how your mind works, Loki. I think that’s an excellent idea.”

Resting one arm around Shalendra’s shoulders, Cyran pulled her to him, tucking her against his body where she belonged, and smiled down at her upturned face. “Let’s heal our family, nín gilgalad, and then go home.

EPILOGUE

Niflheimr

One month later

Shalendra’s steps slowed as she stared at the one place she never thought she would be able to visit again. So many good and bad memories returned to her in a flash, as if they had happened yesterday.

Closing her eyes, she listened to the distant clanging from the ongoing battles in Vígvöllr and, if she took the path to their right, she would find herself in Ævibjoð, the Forever Lands where those at rest began their eternal lives.

“Shalendra? What is it?” Cyran laid his hand in the middle of her back. She loved the heat from his palm seeping through her sweater, giving her an even more profound sense of peace.

She smiled up at her handsome elf. “Everything is so very right. Here, now, I have never known such happiness.”

Turning her head, she glanced at the gate a distance behind. The wolf, Garmr, lay beside his dark and mysterious cave, guarding the path leading up to her mother’s great hall, which had always reminded her of a black castle. “Are you sure Castien is now healthy and will meet us?”

“Loki promised he would bring him. Believe it or not, they have been enjoying themselves in Alfheimr with the co-regents. Ailuin was insistent about hearing what happened to him and seeking his counsel on the best way to combine our people. The task will be daunting, but Castien looks forward to feeling needed. This job will be good for him.”

“I agree.” She fidgeted, clasping and unclasping her hands as her fingers straightened, then folded over the backs as her nerves grew.

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