Page 46 of Rune

“What does that mean?” I asked.

“Asgard is…obsessed with you right now.” He searched for the right word there. “And it’s Odin’s request you are seated in his seat tomorrow to watch the mortals be presented.”

I swung my eyes to Odin’s seat—an enormous thing centered in the stands with a white stone back, ravens carved into the armrests, a velvet throw, and a crown at the back. As the mortals fought, they’d have no choice but to notice it. Noticeme.

“That sounds mortifying. I’ve zero interest in being stared at.”

“I know. But it’s only for a few minutes, then none will be watching us. Plus, it’ll be another opportunity to show off our love.”

He coated those words in a second meaning, which told me he hadn’t informed his friends of our plan. I’d guessed as much when Liv told me he had something to stay for now, but his look proved it. He drilled his gaze into me, and I heard the secret words.This is what you agreed to—two months proving we are in love. You don’t have a choice.

“Fine.” The words were difficult to get out. I’d rather face off against Erik again than sit in front of all of Asgard as they brought mortals in to slaughter. But I could play my part. “I’ll be there.”

“And maybe leave the axe behind?” Ve added tentatively. “You won’t be the one fighting.”

Now Liv caught my eye, and I thought of Ve’s sister and how he found her with an axe through her body. “I’ll leave my axe behind.”

He looked relieved. He straightened the lopsided ends of his tunic’s collar, and refaced his friends with a plastered on smile as if he had not a care in the world.

I stared into my drink. My stomach churned at the thought of the Champion Games, and no amount of wine could settle it. Still I tried. I downed half the drink before lowering it to inspect.

I was familiar with wine. Tova and I had snuck our fair share to know the taste, and this wasn’t it. This ran sweeter, thinner, and had no scent.

“What is this?”

“Jravn,” Leif said, lifting his chalice high. He’d already refilled his cup, and his lips were tinted darker from the juice. A warmth clouded his cheeks that wasn’t there before. “It’s the wine of the gods. You’ve been missing out your whole life.”

I left it on my tongue with my next drink to soak in the flavor. “You’re right, this is good.” Not good enough to wash away my concerns, but it was a nice distraction.

I’d almost drunk the rest before Leif spoke again. “It’s revitalizing to gods, but one drop would kill a mortal in an instant.”

The chalice fell from my hand to crack at my feet, and I spewed what was in mymouth.

Everyone jumped to their feet as the drops fell around their heels. My blood pumped fast.

“What was that?” Liv asked, holding her goblet close while sending me a wary look like I was a feral dog. Bjorn was rubbing the droplets from his shoes, and Leif was shaking his head at the broken chalice and stream of dark liquid seeping down the stands, muttering about the waste.

My ears rang. Every muscle tensed.

“It kills mortals?”

“You’re fine,” Ve said, putting a hand on my arm. “I know you seem determined to keep some of your mortal tendencies, but you’re a goddess.”

I gave the weakest laugh I’d ever faked. My chest tightened with the action. The wine felt too much like blood on my feet, and the taste had turned bitter on my lips.

“I saw someone die from it once,” Leif said. “Loki felt wronged by some warrior on Earth, so he invited him to Asgard and threw a banquet in his honor. Then he gave him the wine, and the moment it touched his lips, the warrior died. Loki stood up, thanked everyone for coming, pried the glass from the dead man’s hand, and downed the rest of it before walking out.”

While the others joked about how that sounded exactly like something Loki would do, my thoughts were whirling.

One drop would kill a mortal in an instant.

I’d consumed far more than one drop, and my panic was the only thing going down hard. I was not dead. Not even close.

In fact, now focused on it, I felt. . . stronger. My breathing was easy. My legs weren’t tired even though I’d been training all day. I felt asthough I could take on a giant wolf with my bare hands just as our chieftain had—or I could take on the chieftain and win.

“Are you okay?” Ve asked.

I forced a smile. “Perfectly fine. I simply forgot who I was for a moment.”

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