Chapter Fifteen

Ihold Tori close, my lips never leaving her skin as Stephan makes the long drive back to Seattle, the unconscious Valkyrie on Malachi"s lap. He won"t let anyone close to her, growling at anyone who tries to take her. We all know what that means.

My Valkyrie burrows into me, whispering my name again and again. My brothers don"t intrude. It"s as if they don"t even exist in this moment.

Yet again, my Valkyrie saved my life, unwilling to sacrifice our love for anything. She didn"t just save me, she saved all of us. Her power is exquisite. I"ve never seen anything like it. I"ve never felt anything like the Light coursing through her veins. Even now, it sparks and hums, reacting to my touch.

I can"t wait to get her alone and feel it rolling over me when I"m buried inside of her. Gods. I ache to feel it like a heatwave scorching me when she"s coming undone around me.

"Reaper," she breathes, able to feel exactly what I"m thinking. The connection between our souls is wide open, my every thought laid bare for her to see.

"Just wait, little Valkyrie," I breathe in her ear, nipping at the shell of it. "You"ll see."

She groans, pressing her face to my throat.

I chuckle, holding her to me. Even now, she"s so shy and sweet. I hope she never loses that.

My eyes drift closed as the Seattle skyline comes into view. We ride in silence, just soaking up the fact that we"re together again. That she"s in my arms. That we"re alive.

"No!" Adriel"s broken cry echoes through the van, pulling me upright.

"Gods," Damrion breathes, his voice shaking. "Oh, Gods."

I follow the path their eyes have taken, my heart stalling in my chest. Flames pour from the safehouse, black smoke pumping into the cloudless sky. It"s fully engulfed, every inch of it blazing in an inferno.

Warriors rush this way and that, trying to carry the injured to safety, but there are far too few of them.

Stephan squeals to a stop at the curb.

Adriel and Damrion are out of the van, racing toward the inferno before the vehicle even fully settles.

The rest of us follow, rushing after them. Tori"s hand is locked with mine, tears streaming down her face as she takes in the chaos.

"Oh, Reaper," she whispers.

"What happened?" Damrion asks Daric.

"The Forsaken," the younger Fae growls.

Adriel grabs ahold of him, snarling in his face. "Where is she?" he demands, shaking the younger Fae. "Where is Abigail?"

I know before Daric even says anything. The truth is written all over his face.

Adriel knows it too. "Nei."

"I"m sorry, brother," Daric says. "We tried to fight them off, but there were too many of them. They took her."

Adriel stumbles backward, his face losing all color, his eyes losing all hope. He crashes to his knees, a broken cry rattling from his lips. The world around us seems to shatter, the last vestiges of his icy control splintering away. The raw, desolate pain in his one good eye is devastating to witness.

Damrion drops beside him, broken in a way he"s never been. For once—for the first time in millennia—he and Adriel are perfectly in sync, their pain healing what was broken between them long ago.

A fierce oath spills from his lips as he presses his forehead to Adriel"s. "We will bring her back. I swear to you, we will."

"She"s…she"s not gone," Tori whispers, her voice shaking with a mix of fear and determination. Her gaze flits to mine, a quiet plea sparkling through the tears.

"We won"t let them keep her," I promise, my grip on her hand tightening as if to lend her some of my strength. I can feel the heat of the fire licking at my face, the acrid taste of burning wood filling my mouth and lungs.

"And what will you sacrifice to get her back?" Adriel growls, his gaze narrowed on me.

"Anything," I vow instantly. There is no price too high. For my mate to survive, we need Abigail. I"ll crawl through the Helheim to get her back if that"s what it takes. That"s what Adriel and Damrion were willing to do for me. Of course I"ll do the same for them. There is no question.

Malachi finally rouses himself from his shock, his Valkyrie still unconscious in his arms. "We"ll start scouting immediately. We won"t rest until she"s back with us."

"Ja," Dax agrees, holding Rissa as she sobs. "We will find her."

As we mobilize again, I gently pull Tori up against my chest. For just a moment, the world narrows to just us—our shared warmth a sharp contrast to the cold bite of loss hanging heavy in the air. Her sobs shake her tiny frame, but she clings to me like a lifeline.

"We need to move," Malachi says, his voice tight with urgency. Long gone is the irrepressible Fae who finds humor everywhere. There is no laughter here.

"Yes," I agree, pressing my lips to Tori"s forehead before pulling away to help drag Adriel and Damrion to their feet to head toward our new mission—bringing Abigail home.

Their steps are heavy, weighed down with the biting agony of terror for the Valkyrie they love. But together, we plunge forward, warriors of Valhalla stepping onto the battlefield once more to keep our oath. Our lives for theirs. Our souls, in their service.