Page 8 of Valkyrie Song

She places a hand on my back, no more than a fleeting touch, but I feel her Light sinking into my bones. "I'll watch your back," she promises, nothing but seriousness in her sweet voice.

And that quiet vow shouldn't make my cock ache, but it does anyway. There's something about her gentle fierceness that calls to the warrior in me, soothing me in ways nothing ever has. If I'm not careful…

Fuck, what am I thinking? It doesn't matter if I'm careful or not. She's going to steal my heart anyway. Entire tracts of it have already fallen to her and her Light.

"Stay behind me," I growl again.

Chapter Three

Kara

Istick tight toStephan's broad back, my heart in my throat as he leads me through the forest toward the barracks, his booted feet not making a sound in the thick underbrush. I seem to trip over every root, twig, and branch, however. It's an eye-opening reminder that I don't know nearly as much about Stephan as I thought I did.

All this time, I thought he was hiding from me, but as we slip through the shadows, I quickly realize that if he'd truly wanted to stay undetected while following me, I probably never would have known he was there. He moves like a ghost now, silent and deadly.

He wanted me to see him following me. Why?

For the same reason he almost kissed you, that same little voice from earlier whispers.

A shiver of delight courses through me, ruthlessly tamped down before it can take root. I can't think about that right now. I can't think about the fact that I asked him to kiss me, either. If I do, I'll be a quivering mess on the forest floor, and the Forsaken will twist us up in their evil magic before we even know they're on top of us.

I'm not going to let that happen. Rand and Simek didn't work as hard as they did to keep me out of their hands just for me to fall into them now that the Portal is open. If they want to turn my sisters to the Dark, it won't be through me.

I strain for any sound, refusing to be caught off guard by the Forsaken, but after a few initial shouts and the sound of a skirmish from closer to the Bifröst, complete silence reigns. It's almost terrifying, honestly. All this time, we've been waiting for them to launch an attack. Now, they finally have and it's just…over?

I don't trust it.

I call more Light, allowing it to flood through me. Stephan adjusts his grip on his sword, his face set in grim lines, as if he feels the same distrust. Neither of us says a word the entire way back to the barracks. We're too focused on immediate needs—like keeping our eyes out for any hint of the Forsaken. But within a few minutes, we break from the edge of the forest, and the barracks come into view.

Fae warriors are lined up in a deadly wall of Light, standing in defense of my sisters, theirlyststålburning in an unbroken line of intent. Rissa, Abigail, and Marion blaze like an inferno directly behind the line of Fae, a bright ball of Light pulsing around them. Mine bends in that direction, as if eager to join the fiery nimbus.

I'm not sure where Tori is, but she isn't with our sisters. Neither is her mate—Reaper. Did she go to the Bifröst again, too?

Worry whispers through me at the thought.

"Come on, princess," Stephan murmurs, hurrying me toward the Fae.

They break ranks long enough to allow us through, the hole they made for us closing up behind us quickly. We hurry toward my sisters and their mates to find my sisters with their arms linked, their mates standing in front of them with theirlyststålat the ready.

"Kara!" Marion cries as soon as she sees me, relief painted all over her face. She hurries forward a few steps, her red hair wild around her as she throws her arms around me in a fierce hug. "We were worried about you."

I hug her back, guilt whispering through me again.

"She was safe, Valkyrie," Stephan answers for me. "We were in the forest."

Marion's mate, Malachi, glances between the two of us, his umber skin gleaming in the bright Valhalla sunshine. "The forest again, huh?" Something dances through his piercing blue eyes too quickly for me to read. "You spend more time in the forest than the rabbits, Valkyrie."

I feel my cheeks blazing with heat.

Marion notices and jabs Malachi in the side, glowering at him. "Maybe that's because there aren't hundreds of Fae and Blooded warriors annoying her at every turn in the forest, Malachi."

"I like the rabbits," I say quietly. "They're nice to me."

"I meant no offense, Valkyrie," Malachi rumbles.

Damrion, one of Abigail's mates and the ruler of the Fae, steps up beside Malachi, his lips pulled down into a frown. Like Malachi, he's massive. But unlike Malachi, he doesn't tease. He's serious, somber. His gold eyes drift across my face. "Have the warriors been unkind to you, Valkyrie? Tell us which, and we will deal with them."

"I…" I quickly shake my head. "No, no one has been unkind. I didn't mean it like that." This is what I meant. Everything I say to the Fae seems to come out wrong. I'm not like my sisters, able to fit right in. They fit as if they belong—as if they've always belonged. But me? Not so much. I know in my soul that this is my home and these are my people. But I still feel like an outsider.

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