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“You’ll steal the keys?”
I parted my lips. “Well, not exactly. Look, you’re wrong about him. I think I can get him to listen.”
“No.” He turned his back toward me. “You’ll make things worse. Don’t tell him anything.”
“Where are you going?” I asked when he opened the door.
“Hunting.”
“What or… who?”
“Freya.” He growled something under his breath. “I’ve wasted too much time on this foolishness. I should have been working on killing her first.”
He left. I called after him, but he never turned back. By the time I ran out of the house, he’d already gone, left for the forest. A part of me knew he wasn’t coming back. What reason did he have?
I must have been mad to consider it. If I was caught, I’d lose my position as a keeper. I’d finally proven I was good enough; people would have to respect me. I’d gotten everything I wanted. I could go to find my sister, maybe even find a way to bring her here, but worry weighed heavy in my chest. Concern for him. I hated I felt it, but I knew firsthand how it felt to lose family.
Pacing in front of the vaults, swinging my keys around my finger, I closed my eyes. Edmund was going to kill me. I would definitely lose my position if they found out it was me. I’d have to lie, and Edmund would never condemn me without proof.
Was this worth lying to my family over?
I walked back and forth again. The vaults were a couple of feet taller than me and reached up to the ceiling, with large, heavy bolted doors made from reinforced steel. Around them, a bubble of magic buzzed so clear, a person wouldn’t see it unless they were looking for a sheen in the air.
I licked my dry lips. Maddox said the gods were dramatic and bad-tempered. I was putting everything on the line over his word. He could well be manipulating me. Freya was obviously the bad guy, but Raiden’s brother and sister might not be as innocent as he made them out to be. Didn’t Maddox say Thalia had almost destroyed the underworld in an argument with her father? Then, Raiden had said tales had been twisted over time. Not all the stories were true, but what I did know for certain was every single one about Freya was a lie.
I sighed. She’d surely come back at some point. Raiden was tracking her, and I hoped he could kill her, but she was goddess of the hunt. She wouldn’t be easy to put down… or find. How could a goddess even be killed?
Three gods after her, however, would mean imminent death. She was killing witches and warlocks my age, one who I’d once known. Who would be next? Naomi? Maddox? I shuddered. This wasn’t just about Raiden anymore.
Blowing out a tense breath, I stopped twirling my keys and took a step forward. I’d been afraid of taking risks since I’d lost Mona, and this was the biggest since. Everything I had worked for could be taken from me. The chance to see Mona again would dissolve with if I were caught, but I couldn’t risk not protecting the coven from Freya. She needed to die, and it would reunite Raiden with his family. Even if he was an ass, he at least deserved that.
A thud sounded from above. Edmund, Maddox, or Dora might come down here. My heart tugged me one way, whereas my head tugged me another, and I knew what I had to do.
Chapter Seventeen
Iran through the forest, the keys to the realms containing two gods pressed against my leg. They were snug tight in the pocket of my black pants. Red leaves crunched under the soles of my boots. The laces had come undone at the top, but I didn’t care. I did, however, wish I’d left my brown leather jacket at home.
Sweat beaded my forehead as I pushed on. Stopping for a moment, I pulled the jacket off and flung it over one arm. Pressing my hands against my knees, I tried to catch my breath.
Where in the underworld are you, Raiden?
Taking off once more, I raced past time-chiseled trees. Raiden was angry, impulsive, and in no state of mind to face off against his sworn enemy.
By the time the sun set the sky into indigo, lighting the feathery moss hanging from low branches with the moon and starlight, I was utterly lost. The memory of finding Bryan’s body swam unwantedly into my mind, stilling me.
Would Freya have stayed so close, knowing Raiden would come after her? She had to have cloaked herself again, and I wondered when the next body would be found—or if there was already a body but no one had come across it yet.
My stomach churned. I peered through the darkness, ignoring the hissing of a nearby snake. My ankle twisted when I stepped on a stray root. The air whooshed from my lungs as I fell onto the mossy mattress below. Rustling sounded as a squirrel scurried from where I’d fallen, disappearing into the underbrush. The smell of damp earth mixed with decaying leaves lingered as I sat up, coughing out a small leaf. Picking a twig from my hair, I looked around. There was no way I was going to find him in this darkness. I rolled my foot around, readying myself for the pain that didn’t come. I sighed relief. It wasn’t broken.
A sound came from within the trees. I tried to slow my raspy breaths, pressing my hand against my mouth. Every nerve in my body screamed danger as I stood. My breaths quickened, and I begged my racing heart to calm as cracking sounded from the branches above. After a few seconds, a thud came from behind me.
I froze, fear rooting me to the spot. My fingers tingled as I turned slowly, listening to the slow, steady breaths coming from the blackness over my shoulder. A shiver snaked down my spine when I felt hot breath against my neck. A finger grazed against my cheek, pulling a lock of hair behind my ear and jolting me back.
“I don’t know what he sees in you.” Freya stepped in front of me, her unnerving smile and venomous stare both meant for me.
I looked around us.
“Raiden’s gone,” she said through a grin. “I sent him after a false trace, left my scent on trees leading up north. He was so upset, he didn’t even stop to wonder why I’d leave such an obvious trail. He just smelled me headed for that.” She showed me her hands, waggling her fingers. Dried blood coated her nails. “The heart of the last man I ate,” she said, explaining my unasked question. “At first I went after girls, but I found I enjoyed killing men so much more.”
