Chapter Nine Loki

"H elp me," I growled through gritted teeth. "You're too fucking big to pull up on my own!"

"I'm slipping!"

"Then fucking do something about it!" I yelled back, straining as I tried to pull him higher. "Get your feet under you! Grab something! Just fucking do anything!"

I pulled as hard as I could, managing to lift Heimdall up a few inches. I cried out from the exertion, the muscles in my arms feeling like they were tearing. My body was stretched out across the floor, and I had both of my legs hooked around a stalagmite to make sure I didn't get pulled into the pit as well. The last thing I wanted to do was die for this stupid motherfucker. But I couldn't just let him fall either. Not with the word mate still bouncing around inside my brain.

"Come on!" I shouted.

Just then, the load lightened, and I knew he must have gotten a footing somewhere. The thought had barely crossed my mind before the weight suddenly doubled, my grip slipping down to mere fingertips.

"Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck…" I heard him chant over and over again, clearly terrified out of his mind.

"Get your foot back on that ledge again!" I called down. I forced my eyes open, meeting his moss green ones in the dim light.

"I don't want to die," he sobbed.

"You're not going to die, okay? Just look at me."

He did as he was told, his gaze affixing to mine.

"I'm not going to let you go. But you have to help me."

There was a brief second before he finally nodded. He ceased his flailing and struggling, surveying the wall instead. My arms felt like they were on fire as I held him there, waiting for him to find a way to help himself. Finally, after what felt like hours, his weight lightened again, his foot hooking into the wall. And this time, he didn't slip.

"Alright," I said, keeping my eyes on his. "Now find another one. Take your time."

The weight of him might have been less, but after bearing his full bulk for so long, I was already exhausted. I reached deep down inside me, calling on the wolf to lend me strength. Despite my confusion over my feelings toward Heimdall, the wolf did not hesitate. In fact, it seemed to rally. I felt my upper body shift slightly, muscles growing larger and claws extending from my fingertips. Fangs dropped into my mouth as I gritted my teeth, summoning up all the strength I had in this unique Alpha form. I felt a twinge of pain as my pants tightened, my tail filling the seat of my jeans. But I didn't have time to worry about that. I had to get Heimdall up over the edge of this pit.

There was a small cry of joy as his weight lightened again and I felt him get a few inches closer. I took the opportunity to shift my grip down to his elbow, giving me more to hold on to.

"Good," I muttered through my fangs. "Now grab the ledge and pull yourself up."

"You won't let me go?" he replied, his green eyes full of fear as he stared at me.

"I won't let you go. I promise."

He nodded, letting go of the wall at last and throwing his fingers over the edge of the hole. Together we huffed and puffed and somehow eventually managed to get his upper body over the edge. From there I hooked my arms under his and gave one last valiant effort to get him up and out of the pit. But I must've had more strength left in me than I thought because I overshot and ended up practically hurling him out of the hole. We both fell backward in a tangle of limbs, his body landing on top of mine. We laid there, chest to chest, heaving as we both tried to catch our breaths.

Eventually Heimdall placed his hands on the ground, lifting his upper body so he was staring down at me. Our lips were only a few inches apart as we both breathed heavily, just staring at one another. I was alarmingly conscious of his dick pressed against my own, our legs intertwined like lovers cuddling in bed. At first, I did everything I could not to think about it, instead trying to focus on pushing the wolf back down. But as we laid there, I felt his groin grow rigid against my own and suddenly I could think of little else, my body responding in kind. There was a soft groan from his lips as he pressed against me, his body seeking friction of a different kind.

My heart was racing and adrenaline still coursed through my system. As such, my brain was a jumble of emotions and thoughts, none of them coherent by any stretch of the imagination. I couldn't speak because I couldn't think. Well, I could think, but only about one thing.

Mate .

That's when I felt my hand move of its own accord. Claws and all, I reached up and curled my fingers around the back of Heimdall's neck. The touch of his skin against mine was electric, sending a bolt through my body that went straight to my cock. I paused there for a moment, waiting for his reaction. It came swiftly and without warning. I flinched, waiting for him to strike. Instead, what I felt took my breath away yet again.

His lips against mine.

Mate .

The voice in my head was screaming as his tongue slipped between my teeth.

Mate!

I should have pushed him away, but all I could do was moan against his lips as I let him invade me.

MATE!

"Wait!" I cried, pushing him away from me.

I crawled backward on the stone, pulling myself out from under him. He just stared at me, those green eyes full of something soft and hungry that I recognized immediately as lust. He wanted me.

"I… what…" I stammered, trying to find the right words. Eventually I settled on one. "Why?"

Heimdall looked up at me, confusion filling his features. He scrunched his eyebrows together and opened his mouth, but no words came out. Soon he snapped it closed again, looking just as shocked as I was. It was all too clear that he didn't know the answer to my question, and neither did I.

Had I wanted him to kiss me? Yes. Did I understand why? Nope. And did I expect him to make the first move? Absolutely the fuck not! What was he thinking? What were we both thinking? Maybe the adrenaline had just gotten the better of us. Yeah. That had to be it. Just two dudes with way too much excitement coursing through their veins. Definitely.

Another full minute passed before I could stand it no longer. The tension in the air made the silence unbearable. But as I opened my mouth to say something at last, Heimdall beat me to it.

"Can you do magic?" he asked, as innocent as could be.

"I… what?" I said, shaking my head. "Why would I be able to do magic?"

"Your brother can."

"And? What does that have to do with me?"

"You're related."

"His mother was a witch. Mine , was not. If she had been, she wouldn't have died giving birth to me." I paused, my own words surprising me. I never talked about that with anyone. Not even Thor and Baldr. "So, no. I can't do magic."

Heimdall seemed satisfied with my answer. I wanted to ask him what caused his curiosity in the first place, but I decided to let it go. In fact, I decided to let the whole last five minutes go. The further we got from that kiss and the sudden rush of lust, the more I realized it was a bad idea. It was better to just ignore it. If only I could ignore the thick scent of pheromones in the air coming from us both.

"We need to keep moving," I said, grabbing my phone and pushing myself to my feet. "And I suggest we take the other path this time."

Heimdall nodded, shaking himself out of his stupor as well. "Right." He got to his feet, scratching the back of his head. "Uh… thanks for saving me."

"Sure." I waved a hand dismissively. "It was nothing."

"You saved my life. That's not nothing ."

"You'd do the same for me."

Judging by the look on his face, that might not have been the truth. But I left it alone. It was better to just move on. The faster we could get out of this cave, the faster we could leave all this weirdness behind. Heimdall was still my enemy and the only obstacle between me and taking revenge for my father's death. Despite whatever we might feel toward one another, whether it be lust or gratitude, it didn't matter. At the end of the day, I still had to go through him to get rid of Tyr once and for all. And that, for the past months since my father had died, was all I could think about. Every fiber of my being was bent toward that goal.

No matter what I might feel toward Heimdall, Tyr had to die. And I'd kill anyone in my way to make that happen. So, there was no need to talk about it or pretend otherwise.

"Come on, Hamball," I said, gesturing for him to follow. "Let's take the other path so we don't have to plummet to our dooms on this one."

Heimdall didn't protest at the name or my directions. Instead, he dutifully followed behind me as I led us out of the right path and down the left one, sinking further into the mountain. I could feel his warmth close behind me and still feel the burn in my muscles from saving his life. And that tingle on my lips… it just wouldn't go away.

I set my jaw, clenched my teeth, and went on, forcing all the softer thoughts in my mind away. We had to get out of this cave, and I needed to murder Tyr.

There was nothing else to think about.