Page 15 of Heart of Mischief

You will make yourself strong.

You will kill Elias.

And yet, what did “killing” Elias even mean? As far as she knew, mares were nearly invincible; only Valkyrie steel could penetrate their shadows, and even then, the effects didn’t appear to be permanent. Back in that cave, she’d sliced off both of Elias’s legs. Now, he stood before her, whole and intact, as if nothing had ever happened.

And even if shedidknow how to kill a mare, did she really have the stomach for it? For the aftermath? The guilt? The unwashable blood that would weigh down her hands forever? He might have been a monster, but he was still partly human. There was a soul somewhere within him, even if it was so misshapen as to be almost unidentifiable.

No, she told herself.You’re just chickening out because he’s here. He’s here, he’s present, he’s real. Of course you’re going to try to talk yourself out of this.

You have to stay strong.

“—fall for that crap,” Mason was saying when Charlie swung back into reality. “How stupid do you think we are?”

“Like I said—” Elias studied his fingernails. “You don’t have to believe me. But orders are orders, and I’m not leaving this town until Loki says I can.”

“Let me guess.” Mason smiled without humor. “He didn’t bother to tell youwhyyou’re protecting us, either.”

“Of course, he did,” Elias said, feigning offense. “The god of mischief and I tell each other everything. I’m his most trusted confidant.”

“I highly doubt that,” Mason said.

“I am. It’s the reason he gave this mission to me.” Elias’s eyes sparkled with joy, and Charlie knew—she justknew—that he was about to say something that would ruin them all. “There’s no one else in Helheim that Loki would trust to keep his own children safe.”

5

His own children.

His own children.

Hischildren.

There they were. The words she’d been waiting for. The words she’d been dreading.

Confirmation.

She half expected Mason to start pummeling Elias with his fists again. But when she looked over at her brother, he appeared just as shell-shocked as she felt.

Distantly, she was aware of Elias making his goodbyes (“Great catching up, old friends; I have a feeling we’ll be seeingquitea bit of each other in the coming days”) and whistling as he set off down the hallway, but she couldn’t focus on him. Couldn’t focus on anything but her brother, who looked so hurt, so lost, it made her want to break down crying.

“Mason,” she whispered, grasping his hand.

“Don’t.” Mason yanked his hand away, disgusted by her touch. He didn’t even look at her. “Just… don’t, Charlie.”

She recoiled. It felt like he’d slapped her. Down at her feet, Henry squeaked, as if he were in pain, too.

Taking a deep breath, she tried again. “Mason, I know how awful this is. I know you don’t want it to be true. Neither do I. But we have to face the facts, and—”

“I’m not having this conversation with you,” he said, not evensparing her a glance. He started to turn away, to walk off in the opposite direction that Elias had gone, but before he could, Lou grabbed his wrist.

“Oh, for the love of the gods,” Lou growled, yanking Mason backward. With her free hand, she grabbed Charlie’s wrist, too. “Come on.”

“Hey!” Mason said. “What are you—”

“Shut up,” Lou said as she pulled them across the hall and into the nearby girls’ bathroom. Abigail and Henry followed in their wake, letting the door swing shut behind them.

At the mirror, Marie Anderson and Taylor Smythe, who were touching up their makeup, looked at the intruding male with alarm.

Marie said, “What the hell are you—”