Page 16 of Heart of the Wolf
“Fenrir is the child of Loki, a trickster god who meddles in all things to cause chaos,” he added at her arched brow. “Never trust Loki. He only brings pain.”
Brielle nodded.
“Fenrir is a monstrous wolf, capable of annihilation. Odin and the other gods bound him. There is a prophecy that Fenrir will break from his chains during Ragnarök, wreaking havoc before killing Odin. To prevent this, Odingifted me my wolf, evening the field between us and Fenrir.”
So… her Dane may have been destined to die after all. She wrung her fingers in her lap, blinking away a tear, grieving for something that she didn’t have and hadn’t happened.
“And when?” she asked, so quiet she wasn’t sure if he heard her.
“We do not know,” Leif murmured. “Could be one year or one hundred years from now. Old age could claim me before any of it comes to pass.”
Death came for everyone.
It was as inevitable as breathing. So why did the uncertainty rock her to her core? She had never been afraid of death. Maybe it was because there had never been someone she cared about enough to fear losing.
Her mother died when Brielle was still too young to fully grasp the finality of it all.
For months, she asked her father when momma was coming home, only to be met with crushing hopelessness when she never returned.
Sensing her tension, Leif spoke again, his words low and unshakeable.
“All we can do is live each day like it’s our last, knowing that in the afterlife, we will rejoice with the ones who mean the most to us.”
A universal belief that was shared between them. One that, in the end, they would be reunited with their loved ones.
He secured the second braid at the bottom to the first until they framed her head like a crown of curls. He passed a polished metal shield to her so she could see his work.
Gold twinkled in her brown eyes, a broad smile pinching her cheeks. Her lips parted in shock as her fingers ghosted the braids, turning to see them in all their beauty. She never knew her hair could look that pretty.
“Thank you,” she said, putting the shield down as her voice wobbled.
“Beautiful. Wild girl,” he said warmly, making her shudder with the compliment.
Even though he finished with her hair, his hands still didn’t leave her, resting on her shoulders.
If he held her forever, it still wouldn’t be long enough. Her hands rose to cover his. At her touch, he moved closer until his chest pressed against her back. The echo of his heart beat in tandem with hers.
Everything she’d ever believed tilted on its head, something surreal tethering them together.
It was the things of fairy tales—the stories of magic, gods, and happily ever afters.
Except those didn’t exist, and only a fool would believe in them.
And she wasn’t a fool.
“Why did you save me? Why am I here?”
Of all the questions to tumble out, she wished it wasn’t that one.
An emptiness carved a spot into the place where her heart was when all sense of him faded. His chest left her back, soon followed by the caress of his hands on her clavicle.
The icy feeling of being alone choked her despite the smoldering flames of the fire that danced nearby.
After what felt like an eternity, Leif’s broad figure swam before her, the shadow of the fire casting him in a midnight glow. Tension ticked in the set of his jaw, tiny creases framing the corners of his tender eyes. Brielle craned her neck to look upon him properly, an unsureness gripping her.
Whatever fantasy she created in her mind was just that, a dark fairy tale that hurtled toward a devastating ending faster than she wished.
She wasn’t ready to say goodbye. She never would be.
