Perfekt Control (The Ære Saga Book 2) (11 page)

“So why exactly aren’t you allowed to date
anyone? Have you
ever
been on a date?” She dabbed foundation
on a sponge and dotted it along my jawline.

“Of course I’ve been on a date.” My words
sounded clipped as I tried not to move my face. “I’ve only been a
valkyrie for about a hundred years. Before that I was in school,
and I didn’t have this stupid restriction looming over me.”

“So you can’t date because you’re a valkyrie?
Are valkyries like Asgardian nuns?” Mia smoothed concealer under my
eyes.

“Kind of.” I paused. “Difference is, nuns
never get to date—they’re celibate for life. Our restriction terms
out once we reach a certain rank. After that, we can get married
and have families if we choose to. But most valkyries decide it’s
easier to adhere to the code without external ties.”

“Explain,” Mia said.

I thought for a moment. “Okay, here’s the
deal. There’s no gain without sacrifice in Asgard. Duty to the
realm is above all else. It’s the way Odin sets things up.”

“Lousy plan, if you ask me.” Mia picked up
her blending brush and set to task.

“Ain’t that the truth,” I muttered. “Well,
Freya takes it a step further. She’s structured the valkyries so we
have to hit certain career milestones to earn certain privileges.
Our jobs are a pretty big deal, and since we’re warriors, soul
gatherers, and
also
working for the living representation of
love, Freya doesn’t like emotions tainting our professional
decisions. She needs valkyries to be hard; strong; willing to do
whatever it takes for the protection of Asgard. But at the same
time, because of her title, she knows the outcomes of our
relationship futures and wants to make sure we guard our hearts for
our future mate, if that’s the path we choose to take.” I rolled my
eyes.

“So she’s like an overbearing parent?” Mia
laughed. “I know a thing or two about those.”

“More like a loving big sister,” I corrected.
“She says maintaining the purity of our love is for our own
good—that once we give a piece of our heart away, we can never get
that piece back. So essentially, for our fifty to one hundred
initial years of service, we’re like the Romans’ vestal
virgins—locked in the training compound, only allowed out to
perform domestic duties for the titled gods.”

“Like Mist?” Mia wrinkled her forehead.

“Like Mist,” I confirmed. “Freya’s made an
example of her, poor thing. She hasn’t kept to her vow—she keeps
finding herself in, uh, compromising positions with some of the
titled’s bodyguards.”

Mia giggled. “She got caught?”

“Yeah. So Freya refuses to promote her until
she upholds her vow for a full two decades.”

“That’s longer than I’ve been alive!” Mia
looked appalled.

“You’re a baby,” I teased. “And I know it
sounds like forever, but it’s the blink of an eye to an immortal.
Freya’s honestly not asking that much. Being a valkyrie requires a
very particular mindset, and she needs to know that every candidate
can attain it. If they can’t handle the sacrifice, they can always
quit.”

“Does anyone ever quit?” Mia held up an eye
shadow brush. “Close your eyes.”

I did as instructed. “Never. It’s the most
demanding, but also the most rewarding job a goddess can have.
Well, a non-titled goddess,” I corrected. “We get to protect the
gods who do Odin’s work. We’re responsible for making sure the
titleds—the gods who influence the fate of all the worlds—are safe.
We get to choose the human soldiers with valor and
ære
worthy to ascend to Asgard. And when we reach captain rank, if
we’ve served well and kept our focus on protecting the realm, then
the Goddess of Love will reward us with our
perfekt
match.
If we haven’t devoted ourselves to the work, well, then she leaves
it up to us to figure out our path. And hunt down our
partners.”

Mia coughed, and I opened my eyes. “Shut the
front door. If you work hard and don’t screw around, she’ll hand
over your soul mate? Forget overprotective parent, she sounds like
a fairy godmother! That’s an amazing deal!”

I wrinkled my nose. “It’s a good deal
in
theory
. But remember I’m immortal. Which means it could be tens
or
hundreds
of years before I get promoted to captain. And
that is a freaking long time to not date. I haven’t even kissed a
boy in over a century.” Until this morning’s debacle. But I was
so
not counting that as a kiss. Not out loud. Not ever.

“Oh, Lord.” Mia leaned back in her chair,
deflated. “That’s a long time.” She sat up again and picked up a
brush. She dipped it in blush and applied it to my cheeks. “What
about Freya? Is she allowed to date?”

“She can date.” I nodded. “But she can’t give
her heart away. If she gets too close to a guy, her obligation to
the Norns requires she break things off. Otherwise, she’s too
emotional to oversee her duties. She took a vow to remain neutral
in all things.” My eyes narrowed as I recited Freya’s mantra from
memory. “You can’t have
perfekt
control if you’re crazy in
love.”

Mia handed me a mascara wand. She held up her
compact so I could do my lashes. “And that’s why she won’t let you
date until you make captain. She’s afraid you’ll lose control—put
whoever you fall in love with ahead of the realm.”

“Exactly.” I finished the second coat and
handed back the wand. “It’s not a huge deal. I knew this when I
signed on for the job. And all things considered, Freya’s moved me
through the ranks really fast. I was a domestic valkyrie seventy
human years ago—I had to bring titled gods their groceries, just
like Mist is doing for you guys. And after that I joined a junior
squadron, a senior squadron, and served three tours—two in
Muspelheim, one in Jotunheim. When I was assigned as Tyr’s second
bodyguard a few years back, it was a really big deal. Nobody’s been
made second without at least two hundred years of service, well,
ever.”

Mia zipped up her makeup bag and glanced up
the stairs. “You think Tyr had anything to do with that?”

“Maybe.” I shrugged. “We were like family
growing up. It makes sense we’d work well together. Or…” I stared
at my cuticles.

“Or?” Mia prompted.

“Or maybe Freya felt bad for me. My folks
weren’t exactly thrilled when I joined up. They’ve made no secret
about wanting grandbabies.”

Mia laughed. “Mine do that to me and Jason
too, though they’d
die
if we dropped out of college to start
a family. Well, either way, it looks like you’re tracking to move
up faster than most. So maybe your happily-evah-aftah is coming
sooner rather than later.”

“Maybe.” I shrugged. I wasn’t sure what
scared me more—the prospect of living another hundred chaste years
in the convent of Saint Freya, or the day she presented me with my
perfekt
match. I’d always imagined it would be Henrik. But
after today, it seemed pretty clear that
wasn’t
happening.
Even if he had kissed me back, one look at his ex and I knew for
sure I wasn’t his type. Leggy fairy I was not.

But I was a scrappy little warrior. And it
was time to rebuild that black box and compartmentalize my emotions
once again. Enough feeling—it was time to fight for Freya.

“Okay, ladies.” Tyr’s footsteps thundered on
the stairs. “Brynn’s got to go to Muspelheim.”

“Did Odin declare war?” I knew our leader had
been furious when the fire giants admitted to harboring Hymir, but
when the giant was spotted in Jotunheim last week, Odin had dialed
down his anger at the flaming realm. Or so I’d thought.

“Not just yet. But Odin’s ravens saw a bound
female being moved through Muspelheim, and Forse’s scout claims a
new portal was opened near the volcano earlier today.”

I jumped up so quickly, my chair clattered
behind me. “What about Barney?” I asked as I righted it.

Tyr held the wire-riddled contraption in one
hand. “He’s not ready, but Mia and I will keep working on him until
you get back. Catch the Bifrost into Alfheim and relay Forse’s
findings to Henrik. Then get over to Muspelheim as fast as you can.
Forse’s scout is a fire giant named Hyro.”

“Did Hyro say anything else about the portal,
other than that it was opened?” I questioned.

“No. Apparently the communicator she uses to
talk to Forse is on the fritz, and that’s all the information
Justice was able to discern. So you need to find Hyro, learn
everything you can about the portal, the volcano, any of it, and
then report back to me. I don’t want you making contact with the
perps until Barney’s operational. If they grabbed Freya out from
under three of us, Odin knows what they could do to just two of
you. Remember, if you feel your danger level is outside the norm,
call me and I’ll Bifrost in immediately.”

“But Odin said it’s a trap, and they want you
to—”

“I don’t care what Odin said.” Tyr glowered.
“I’m your commanding officer, and I’m ordering you to call me if
you can’t handle things on the ground. Am I clear?”

“Yes, sir.” I saluted.

“Good. Here.” Tyr pulled a painting away from
the wall and pressed his hand to the pad behind it. A door swung
open when the fingerprint scan was complete, and Tyr retrieved a
small black satchel from within our hidden arsenal. “If you get
into trouble with the fire giants, give them some of these rubies.
Half is the payout we promised the scout for her intel. The other
half should buy you enough time to run.”

“Fair enough.” I caught the satchel as Tyr
threw it to me, and tucked it into my backpack. I shoved the straps
of my bag over my arms, took my plate to the sink, and stopped just
long enough to give Mia a hug. “Thanks for the sandwich. And the
makeover. And the pep talk.”

She squeezed me gently and pulled back, her
face lined with worry. “Be extra careful. And tell Henrik if he
doesn’t take better care of you, I’ll personally shoot him in the
kneecaps.”

I groaned as I darted out the door. “Thanks
for that, mortal.” I jumped off the porch and ran across the lawn,
down the stairs, and onto the sand. The midday sun beat down on my
all-black ensemble, and I stood still to soak up the warmth. Odin
only knew what I’d walk in on in Alfheim, and I wanted to be able
to visualize this peaceful moment… in case I needed to bleach my
eyeballs once I arrived and saw what that wench was doing to
Henrik.

Don’t go there, brain.

“Heimdall, open the Bifrost!” I shouted. A
dizzying beam of light shot down. “To Alfheim.” I stepped inside
the brilliant circle and gave my friends a small wave before my
bones were sucked upward, my skin barely holding on. After several
nausea-inducing seconds, I was right back where I started, looking
around the pond for nymphie “Nea-Nea” and my so-called
work
associate
.

Please let them have their clothes on.
Please, for the love of all that is good and holy, let them be
wearing clothes.

“Henrik! Get out here. We’ve got new orders,”
I bellowed into the flower-strewn space. My voice was so loud, the
chorus of birds came to a screeching halt.

“Hey!” Finnea’s surprised squeal broke
through the silence. Henrik came tearing out from behind the
waterfall, a glossy look in his eyes. Finnea stamped along behind
him, adjusting her hair. I thanked every deity I could recall that
neither was naked. “Get that rainbow out of here! We were
having
a
moment
.”

“Moment’s over.” I grabbed Henrik’s hand and
pulled him into the Bifrost with me. He reached down to grab his
backpack, still propped against the rock on the side of the pond
where he’d left it. “We’ve gotta dash. Nea-Nea, it’s been a real
peach.” I waggled my fingers at her as Henrik ripped off his charm
blockers and tossed them into his bag. I tried not to look
victorious as he gripped my hand. What was the point? I might have
been taking Henrik with me, but I had no claim on him. After all,
he and I didn’t exactly have the…history he had with
her
.

“See you later, Finnea.” Henrik gave a small
nod and met my gaze with an apologetic look. “Where to?”

“Heimdall,” I called upward, refusing to let
emotions cloud my focus. “Take us to Muspelheim.”

And without a backward glance, we flew
through the realms, leaving one
älva-
laden Helheim for one
dripping in lava, flames, and the all powerful fire giants.

I didn’t know which was worse.

THE MINUTE THE BIFROST
dropped us
into Muspelheim, Henrik held out his arm. I reached for it
instinctively, then pulled back. Instead of letting Henrik comfort
me, I put my elbows on my thighs and bent over, drawing deep
breaths until the heaving stopped.
Stupid Bifrost
sickness
.

I stood quickly, and ignored the hurt look on
Henrik’s face. I could barely handle my own energy right now—no way
could I take on his.

“Listen, Brynn. About what happened—”

I pulled a dagger out of each boot and shared
one with my partner. “It doesn’t matter. Follow protocol. We’re
cloaked, right?”

Henrik frowned, but waved his hand in front
of us. “What the Hel? My magic’s not working. Why would… oh,
skit
.”

“What?”

Henrik pointed. “We dropped in too close to
the castle. Royal residences are enchanted with enough dark magic
to block my spells.”

Fabulous.

“We’re in the open, assess for immediate
threats and find cover.” Henrik positioned his back against mine in
the standard formation so we could turn a quick circle. I inched
away from the contact, staying close enough to feel the vibration
of his movement and counter-shift accordingly, but far enough that
I didn’t
actually
have to touch him. I couldn’t. We kept our
weapons drawn as we examined every inch of our surroundings for
prospective threats.