Souls (Runes series) Read online

  “Uh-oh, you’re in a bad mood. You talked to Echo and he stormed off.”

  “No, he didn’t.”

  “Of course he did. He wouldn’t be Echo if he didn’t get angry and melodramatic. He didn’t throw you out, did he? I saw the two of you having dinner Saturday night.”

  My jaw dropped. “Oh, now you’re stalking me?”

  He ignored my question and shot back, “What did he say?”

  “He’ll think about it,” I fibbed, feeling terrible.

  Dev sighed. “You’re a terrible liar. At least you tried. I’ll try again in a century or two.” He sounded so sad and defeated I felt worse.

  “Tell me something I can use to persuade him. I know I can convince him if he knows why you want to talk to him.”

  “I love your attitude, Cora, but I know Echo. Once he makes up his mind, there’s no changing it. How about some music?”

  “No, music. Talk to me. You said things weren’t what they seem. What did you mean? Were you framed?”

  The radio crackled, and Bon Jovi’s It’s My Life filled the car. Dev sung along.

  Un-freaking-believable. Too bad he sounded good for a dead man.

  I reached out and switched off the radio. “Listen, Dev. I want to help you. No, I need to help you. Not because I’m on some stupid mission to help every soul with a sob story.” Gah, I was a total wimp and a pushover when it came to sob stories. I even helped criminals. Petty criminals, psychopaths, perverts. Their crimes weren’t written on their foreheads or anything helpful like that. “Echo regrets what happened between you two.”

  “Did he say that?” Dev sounded hopeful.

  “Uh, no, but I know Echo. He’s never regretted the things he’s done. Not turning your Druid brothers and sisters into Immortals, making sure he’s on Hel duty for eternity just so he could punish the Romans who persecuted your people. He does what needs to be done and moves on. But when he talks about you, I can tell it bothers him. He needs to know why, Dev.”

  Silence followed.

  “Why did you do it?” I asked.

  Nothing. I waited. Bon Jovi was back on. I wasn’t sure whether that meant Dev wouldn’t talk to me. After a few seconds, I gave up. Soon I was humming along. The group was before my time, but I grew up hearing their songs because Mom had a crush on the lead singer or something.

  I pulled up into the parking lot across from the school. Students hurried to the school building while others steamed the windows of their cars. Two girls walked by discussing school prom and reminding me of something I’d pushed aside after the battle with the Immortals. Junior prom was this Friday and the senior one was several weeks away. I planned to attend both. With Echo. Hopefully, we’d be talking by then.

  I still hadn’t picked up my dresses from Angie’s Boutique. Because of my D-size cups, dresses off the rack never worked for me, unless I was going for spandex. I hated spandex.

  I stared out the windshield as I waited for Dev to say something or slither out of the radio. Nothing happened. I wondered what he’d say or do if I gave him an ultimatum. Talk and get lost. Echo’s face when he’d talked about Dev flashed in my head. No, I was doing this for Echo, too.

  I glared at the dials, wishing I had the mental powers to bend them to my will. Seriously, Druids were the most stubborn and annoying men on earth.

  I should talk to Raine about this. She was so level-headed she might just have the solution I needed. Plus, she’d understand about going the extra mile for someone you loved.

  Torin’s bike was missing from its usual place at the curb, which meant they hadn’t arrived yet. He and Raine usually arrived about the same time as Andris, and Andris’ SUV just pulled up beside Blaine’s sports car. Blaine had given Eel a ride to school? Were they an item now? He could do so much better.

  Ingrid saw me and waved. I like her. She was unlike her evil older sister Maliina who’d runed me and turned me into a soul magnet. In retrospect, I guess I owed Maliina. If she hadn’t turned me and mimicked me, I would never have met Echo. Ingrid and Blaine were Immortal like me, though they were hundreds of years old.

  A soul of an older man walked aimlessly around the parking lot and glanced toward me. Andris ignored him. Ingrid and Blaine probably didn’t see him. They didn’t need to. Immortals dealt with the living, not souls. Blaine had even told me he used runes so he wouldn’t see souls.

  “Dev?”

  No response, just the NPR people talking about the Spring Fund Drive. “Listen. I want to help you, but I can’t if you won’t talk to me or try to at least meet me halfway.”

  More chances to win an NPR mug instead of the voice I wanted to hear. Annoyed by his silence, I switched off the engine and reached for my backpack. The moment I stepped out of the car, I spied Andris sauntering toward me.

  He blew me a kiss. Androgynously beautiful, sarcastic, and a hoot and a half, Andris was a Valkyrie like Torin. When I wasn’t with Echo, he was my second favorite guy to hang out with.

  I was about to close the door when I noticed my cell phone in the front passenger seat. I reached for it, glared at my radio, and closed the car door.

  “I appreciate what you’re doing, Cora,” Dev said, speaking from my cell phone and blindsiding me. I almost dropped my phone. He sounded like a male version of Siri. “Whether you succeed or not, it’s been a pleasure meeting you.”

  “When did you…? Seriously, stop moving around without warning me. It’s creeping me out.”

  “Okay, here goes. Tell Echo I did it because of Teléia.”

  Teléia? The woman Echo, Dev, and Rhys had a crush on? “What do you mean?”

  “He’ll understand once you tell him.”

  “Tell me more.”

  “No. There’re people who don’t want the truth known, so the less you know the better.”

  “That’s a copout, Dev. I can protect myself.”

  “Not against Grimnirs. You barely became an Immortal.”

  “I have Echo,” I bragged.

  “Do you really want him going against the other Grimnirs to protect you? Again? The last ones he and your Valkyrie friends killed are not happy.”

  “Cora?” a student said from behind me, and I whipped around.

  Jeff Lancaster, the super geek from my English class held out his hand. My keys dangled from his finger. “You dropped these.”

  “Oh.” I took the keys. “Thanks, Jeff.”

  “Hi, Jeff,” Dev said.

  Jeff stared at my phone then me. “Um, hi?”

  “Don’t mind him,” I said. “Shut up, Dev.”

  “I miss talking to people. You have no idea how lonely it gets inside electronics.”

  “Dev—” I glanced at Jeff and groaned. His eyes were locked on my phone like it was the freaking Holy Grail.

  “You’ve upgraded Siri?” Jeff asked in a whisper.

  I opened my mouth to say no, and inspiration hit. “Nah, this is a new app for androids. More interactive than anything out there.”

  “I haven’t heard anything about it.” He spoke slowly and inched closer. “Can I try it?”

  “No.” I put the phone in the pocket of my jacket. “I’m an apps tester.” He gave me a suspicious look. I wasn’t geeky enough to be a software tester, but he didn’t have the guts to call me out. “So, this is FMEO.”

  He grinned. Using the acronym for “for my eyes only” just gave me some cred.

  “Is this guy bothering you, Cora?” Andris asked, coming to stand behind Jeff. The poor guy froze, his expression shifting from curious to uneasy. One, Andris towered over him. Two, being associated with our popular and beloved QB, Torin, had some serious perks. Since everyone assumed Andris was Torin’s cousin, they put up with his rudeness and tried not to piss him off.

  “Nah. Jeff and I are buds. We were discussing homework, so bye-bye.” Hopefully, Andris would get the clue and keep walking. As a Valkyrie, he could see things Mortals couldn’t. Like a soul slithering from a cell.

  “You heard her, Jeff
. Shoo. Go away,” Andris said rudely, deliberately misunderstanding me. “She’s way, way out of your league, and she has a boyfriend who will break every little bone in your body if he catches you staring at her boobs again.”

  Jeff turned beet red, his eyes volleying between me and Andris. “I wasn’t staring. I swear. She has this cool phone with, uh, with a new app—”

  “Don’t care. Run along,” Andris said and wiggled his fingers dismissively.

  Jeff took off as though the devil was on his tail. Maybe he had been staring at my chest, maybe he hadn’t. Still…

  “Why are you such an ass all the time, Andris? Or are all Valkyries douches?” I spoke aloud so Dev wouldn’t come out while Andris was around.

  “Mortals bore me and being nice to them serves no purpose.” He glanced around. “Where’s our resident grim reaper?”

  “He should be here any minute, so go away.”

  “Can’t.” Andris leaned against my car and crossed his arms. “He told Torin dark souls were in town, and I want the deets. Have they been bothering you?”

  “No. Just go.”

  He smirked. “Me thinks you want to get rid of me, blondie. Hiding something?”

  For a self-absorbed guy, he saw way too much. “Fine. Come on. Let’s go.” The first bell was about to ring anyway. I started toward the crosswalk.

  “I thought you were waiting for Echo.”

  “Not with you around.” I glanced back, but he hadn’t moved. “What?”

  “Don’t you feel it?”

  “Feel what?”

  “A presence,” he said, glancing around.

  My stomach dropped. Valkyries and Grimnirs could sense a soul faster than Immortals. The sound of Torin’s Harley reached us. Great! The two of them would ferret out Dev and start asking questions I wasn’t ready to answer.

  “It’s a… Aah.”

  I followed the direction of his gaze and groaned. Nara and Rhys stood under the trees lining the north end of the parking lot. With runes inking their skin, we were the only ones who could see them.

  “Grimnirs,” Andris said.

  “Friends of Echo’s,” I corrected. “They probably want to talk. Just a sec.” I started across the parking lot. He followed. “Privacy, Andris.”

  “Not happening. They don’t look friendly.”

  “Ever met a friendly Grimnir other than Echo?”

  A snicker escaped him. “Echo is friendly? Since when?”

  I death rayed him with my eyes.

  “Okay, tiger girlfriend. Go, but I’m going to hang around just in case. Tell them to stay cloaked. We try to blend in around here, and their Matrix-inspired garbs are not exactly high-school uniform.”

  “And your two-thousand-dollar cashmere sweater is?” I asked, glancing over my shoulder at him.

  “This body is too fine for knockoffs.” He smirked and tapped at his watch. “Hurry up or I’ll leave.”

  “Please do.” I turned, pulled out my cell phone, and whispered, “Dev, Nara and Rhys—”

  “Are here,” Dev finished. “I heard. Don’t trust them.”

  I slipped the phone into my pocket, glanced back to make sure Andris was keeping his distance, and approached the dynamic duo. Andris was busy talking to some girl, probably another conquest.

  ***

  “Where’s Dev?” Nara asked.

  I lifted my cell phone and pretended to talk into it. “Good morning to you too, Nara. Hi, Rhys.” He gave a brief nod. No smile. Still, I directed the question to him. “What’s going on?”

  “Have you seen—?”

  “We were tracking Dev and lost him near your farm,” Nara cut off Rhys. “Are you hiding him in your house? Because we’ll have no problem ransacking the place until we find him.”

  My jaw dropped, anger building fast. “You go anywhere near my family and I’ll—”

  “Do what?” she snapped.

  “Make you sorry,” I shot back.

  She laughed. “How? By sending Echo after me? Please, like that’s supposed to scare me. He’s not been the same since he met you. Before you, no one would think twice about crossing him. Now? He’s weak and pathetic. An idiot in love.”

  No one called Echo weak. My grip tightened on the strap of my backpack, the urge to swing it at her washing over me. It didn’t matter that she wouldn’t feel it or my backpack might end up being the casualty.

  “You know what, Nara? I don’t feel like listening to your voice, so zip it. And FYI, I’d watch who you call weak or pathetic. Echo is still the best Grimnir around here.” I ignored her again and focused on Rhys. I angled my phone in case anyone was watching. “What do you want with Dev?”

  Rhys’ hand shot out and gripped Nara’s arm when she opened her mouth, effectively silencing her.

  “A lot of our people lost family members because of Dev,” he said, “and they haven’t forgotten or forgiven him. Every time he’s sighted, the word spreads fast. Others are coming, Cora, and they won’t be nice.”

  He made it sound like a horde of angels of death were about to descend upon us. “So, you’re here to, uh, warn me?”

  “Yes,” Rhys said.

  “No,” Nara said at the same time. “We are here for Dev. We take him, and you go back to your little love nest or whatever you and Echo have going on here.”

  Oh, that must kill her. I ignored her. “Why can’t you guys just leave the poor guy alone? He’s dead.”

  “Most of the people he betrayed ended up in Hel’s Hall,” Rhys said. “They’re pissed, and they’ve been waiting a long time for him. They want him on Corpse Strand, but we,” he nodded at Nara, who made a face, “plan to protect him.”

  I wasn’t buying their benevolence. “Sorry, guys. Souls come to me for help, and until I help them, they’re under my protection. Mine and Echo’s. You can have Dev after I’m done with him.”

  I turned to leave and waved to Andris, who was now charming a different girl though his eyes kept drifting to me. He waved me over, studying the Grimnirs with narrowed eyes. The second he looked away, everything happened fast.

  A hand closed around my neck and yanked me backwards against a hard body, knocking the air out of my lungs. My backpack slipped from my shoulder and landed on my foot.

  “Listen to me, you stupid girl,” Nara snarled in my ear, squeezing my neck.

  “Nara, stop it,” Rhys yelled at the same time.

  I engaged my runes to stop the pain and clawed at her hand with little effect. She was stronger, and she’d also engaged her runes. If the students hurrying past thought my posture was weird, they didn’t show it. My sight grew blurry, and my ears started to ring.

  “Damn it, Nara,” Rhys said. The pressure around my neck eased, and I knew he was breaking his cousin’s chokehold. “Think about what you’re doing.”

  “I will not put up with her meddling just because she happens to be Echo’s latest playthi—”

  Blurs appeared in my periphery and they were gone, the force of the attack yanking me off my feet. Before I landed on the ground, someone grabbed me around the waist and stopped me from falling on my ass. A familiar face came into focus.

  “Raine?”

  “You okay?” she asked, looking furious.

  I nodded. A few feet away Torin had Rhys slammed against a tree, his feet dangling off the ground. From his flexed muscles, he was barely containing himself. The Grimnir didn’t look scared, but he wasn’t fighting back either, which said a lot about him. They both had their runes engaged and fully cloaked. The few students walking past only saw Raine and me. Raine and I often hugged or walked arm-in-arm, so seeing us together was nothing new.

  “Get off me, Valkyrie,” Nara screamed and tried to dislodge Andris who was straddling her and pinning her hands to her sides. Andris might act like he was above getting down and dirty, but he stepped up and delivered in his cocky style.

  “Come on, sweetheart,” he crooned. “You know having me on top is the closest you’ll ever get to Asgard, so enjoy
the moment. Cora, sorry I was late to the party.”

  Nara hurled insults at him, twisting and bucking.

  “Nara!” Rhys snapped, and she stopped. He looked down at Torin, eyes narrowing. “I don’t want to fight you, Valkyrie, so let me—”

  “Shut up,” Torin cut him off. “Cora. Come here.”

  I’d never heard Torin use a voice like that. It was the obey-or-else voice. I obeyed. Or else Rhys’ neck might go bye-bye.

  “Did they hurt you?” His voice softened.

  “No.” I glanced at Nara who’d stopped struggling and was glaring at me. I could tattle on her, but it wouldn’t serve any purpose. I was already worried about what Echo would do to them when he found out about this.

  Torin studied me as though he knew I’d lied. Then he nodded and focused on Rhys. “When I let you go, Grimnir, disappear. If I catch you anywhere near her, you will not like it. Cora is under our protection. You mess with her, you mess with us.”

  “But she has a soul that belongs to us,” Nara protested. Andris still had her trapped.

  “He is under my protection.” Everyone turned to stare at me as though I was a nutcase. Been there. Done that. Hated it. “I promised to help him,” I added defiantly.

  “Dev betrayed our people,” Nara interjected.

  “We don’t care,” Torin snapped. “If Cora gave him a promise, she’ll keep it.” He let go of Rhys and did something I’d noticed the football players do after roughing up someone. He adjusted Rhys’ collar and brushed invisible lint from his duster. “Now be a good Grimnir and get out of town.”

  Rhys bristled. Obviously, he didn’t like Torin’s condescending voice. When he spoke, his voice was scathing. “Others will come for him.”

  Torin shrugged. “We’ll deal with them, too.” He glanced at Andris and gave him a nod. Andris jumped up and offered Nara a hand.

  If a look could kill, he’d be barbecued. She ignored him, got up, and said through gritted teeth, “We’ll meet again, Valkyrie.”

  “I’m free Wednesday nights,” Andris said, opening his arms. “Don’t bring anything but your lovely self.”

  Her hands fisted, and her eyes promised all sorts of bodily harm to Andris. She gave him a scathing once over, turned, and followed Rhys through the portal he’d created.