Page 151 of Valkyrie Unknown

"It’s about fucking time," Finn muttered.

Fucker. The axe was in my hand again before I finished turning on him.

Davyn already had a palm to his chest, shoving him into the nearest tree. “We can leave you here,” he said.

Finn gave him a tight-lipped smile, and kept his mouth shut.

The instant we were free of this place, I wanted him as far away from me as possible.

Forty-One

Davyn

For the last seven months,the only thing that kept me from killing Finn was Azzie’s insistence I not do so.

I’d been waiting for his betrayal though, and hoping I could stop him before he hurt her.

I failed. Despite the fact that he hadn’t cut her directly, he brought her—us—in here, and that meant he was the reason she’d been hurt. Seeing him standing over her and shouting in the clearing, combined with Tania’s words, had loosened the leash I used to bind my bear.

Now Azzie was standing in front of me, as defiant and strong as ever, and not injured in any way.

“It’s about fucking time,” Finn muttered.

I should kill him anyway, and make sure this wasn’t worse next time. I lunged toward the god. ”We can leave you here.”

“Stop.” Azzie moved between us, despite the lack of conviction in her voice.

I snarled at her, and she stared back, unfazed.

“I’ve killed people for standing in my way in battle.” My words didn’t hold any real threat. Not for her.

The way she raised her brows said she knew as much. “This isn’t battle.”

“But it is.” I wasn’t threatening her, however I needed her to understand the severity of keeping Finn in our company.

One corner of her mouth tugged up, and she jabbed a finger in my chest. “Are you real?”

Odd question. “Are you?” I grabbed her wrist, but kept my grip loose.

Behind her, Finn rolled his eyes. “Just fuck already.”

Whatever the two of them had been through must be an interesting story. Before I could ask, Azzie draped her arms around my neck and pressed her body close. “Finn’s right.” Words that should never come from Azzie’s mouth. Especially now. “Let’s fuck. Here. Now.”

I was used to her teasing at this point, but this wasn’t the same. There was no seduction or flirting here. She was too blunt.Wasshe really her?

I pressed a hand to her throat and pressed her until her back met a nearby tree. If this was truly Azzie, I’d know and she wouldn’t be hurt. If this was some sort of illusion, if Tania lied about me not being subjected to a test, I wouldn’t hesitate to snap this doppelgänger’s neck.

Regardless of the hesitation that lingered in my veins, hating the idea of hurting anything that looked like her. “Who the fuck are you?”

Her smile slid toward seriousness. “I watched Finn kill you.”

What?

“That wasn’t really Davyn.” Finn’s annoyance was tangible. “This may not be either, though it’s a much better copy.”

I tightened my grip on the woman’s throat, putting enough pressure on the artery next to her windpipe to cause discomfort.

In a blink her hand was on my wrist. She tugged once—not a struggle, but a test of my strength—and she twisted out of my grasp. It was a move I’d seen Azzie do dozens of times and I had yet to figure out how. She could free herself from that grasp every time.

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