Page 81 of Valkyrie Unknown

Definitely not right. “Where?”

“Shamrock Lakes, Indiana.”

I didn’t know where that was, beyond about a twenty-four hour drive. I could push through another night without sleep if I needed, but driving wouldn’t get me there fast enough. Nothing about this situation felt the way it should.

“Are you in contact with anyone who can give me a lift?” I had to ask, despite the answer always being the same when it came to Enid.

She gave an amused huff. “Azzie’s the only person I know well enough to ask for something like that.”

Fuck. I wouldn’t take my frustration out on Enid. “I’ll call someone for a lift. Thank you for passing the information on, you’re a doll.”

She giggled and hung up.

I’d have to come back for my car. It was in our parking spot and it would be safe there for now. Time to ask a favor.Only for her.

I called Freya, and I would pay whatever she was asking.

“Hey, stranger.” Aya’s greeting was bright. “Are you in jail again?”

I’d be amused by the assumption if my mind weren’t elsewhere. “Not for a while now. I do need to ask for something, though.”

“What can I do for you?”

“I need to get to Azzie immediately.” Under most other circumstances, I’d be more cautious with my desperation, but this wasn’t the time for a drawn out conversation.

“Oh.” Her surprise was audible. “I didn’t realize you’d stayed with her.”

“As if you didn’t know.”

“I hoped. Do you know where she is?”

I growled. “Don’t you? You sent me to her three years ago.”

“No. A friend told me where both you and she were, back then.”

I’d never known Aya to be a liar, though everyone was when it suited their purposes. The idea of there being a third party behind this concerned me. “Who?”

“No one you need to be worried about. I give you my word. They’re not a threat to you or her.”

I wasn’t sure I believed that, but if this was an individual who could find me even when I was hidden with a ward, keeping my location or Azzie’s a secret did me no good. “I know where she is, yes. What will this cost me?”

“Nothing. Knowing you’re keeping each other safe is all I need.”

This was a bad idea. This was also my best option. “Do you realize how suspicious that sounds?”

“I do. It’s not my fault the truth makes you wary. Where are you and where are we going?”

Less than a minute later, I was standing in the comfortingly small town of Shamrock Lakes, Indiana. I knew which direction the forge was in before Aya vanished again, and headed there the instant she was gone.

The underlying scent of Draugar cranked my concern to new levels, but it didn’t seem as though any were currently active nearby. As I neared an old barn, the aroma of steel and ash grew more potent, and everything about Azzie lay underneath.

She wasn’t alone. There was a man here, who smelled like her. What the fuck?

“I wish I knew.” That was Azzie.

“It’s a good thing we made that blood oath.” That was a man’s voice, and the implication bothered me.

I roared as I stepped into the room. “You made a blood oath?”

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