“Elara.” He whispered her name like a prayer into her hair. “Not even Hel can steal you from me. I will die to spare you any pain.”
“Don’t you dare,” she growled, nails dragging over his jaw. “I need you. You will do no such thing, Jarl.”
The bloated creature moved closer, and Njáll shuffled her outside.
Even now, she remained stubborn. Anything she demanded of him, he’d do.
“As you command, little flame,” he grunted, keeping her close.
Chaos erupted across the usually serene village.
Fires billowed from the trees, black smoke darkening the moon. Dozens of corpses lumbered through the labyrinthine pathways, warriors pushing them back as women and children retreated to the woods.
Odin’s wolf cleaved through the draugar, slowing them but unable to stop them.
Njáll closed his eyes. When he turned to face his kona, the fear from earlier all but retreated. Inside, a glittering resolve burned in the recesses of her gaze.
Smooth skin warmed under his touch as he cupped her face.
“You must run! Hide in the thicket. Or go deeper into the pines. I will find you when this is over.”
Nothing in this world mattered if she wasn’t in it to share it with him.
A deep scowl appeared on the lines etched near her mouth, her spine straightening as her jade eyes heated.
“I won’t leave you, Njáll. You cannot win this with steel alone. No matter where I go, they will follow.”
The tip of his tongue licked across his teeth, a snarl itching in his throat. He knew she was right and hated her for it.
Still, he needed her far away.
All he wanted was to keep her safe.
His thumbs swept over her cheeks, pulling her closer. The full weight of her fury ignited in her gaze. All of it leveled at him.
“Now is not the time to be difficult, Elara!”
Steady hands covered his own. She rocked up onto her tiptoes.
Soft lips fused to his in a brief, bruising kiss.
Smoke thickened around them. Screams and shouts rang out in the distance. Grey ash rained down, the pieces sticking to the sweat on his shoulders.
None of that stopped her.
The tart taste of berries lingered on his tongue, while the world devolved behind them. The conviction in each swipe of her tongue unraveled him a little more. She pulled away slightly, her warm breath fanning over his swollen lips as she spoke.
“I will not hide, Jarl. This is my fight as much as yours.”
Thirty-Six
Elara
One silver eye and one hazel eye glared at her, swimming with a mix of adoration and fury. Her hands did not shake, and her body did not tremble. She stayed surprisingly calm as she held Njáll’s face.
Ash from the cloying smoke stung her eyes. The taste of death made acid crawl up her throat.
But for one stuttered heartbeat, she ignored all of it.
