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“Mea,” he scolds with a finger to his lips. “Quiet.”
A tear falls down my cheek. Leif and I have only been married for a short time, and I’m not ready to give him up.
“Maybe they’ll tire before they reach us,” I whispers, desperation in my tone.
Blood-curdling screams from our fellow villagers penetrate the walls of our home, and I shift closer to Leif.
As he wraps an arm around my shoulders, his grip on his ax tightens, and his knuckles turn white. “Maybe,” he says with a forced smile.
I don’t know how much time passes, but I spend it praying, begging for God’s mercy and offering up whatever I can think of as a bargaining chip.
Someone carrying a torch passes by the window, and the flame glows through the opening. Leif faces me and cups my chin.
“I love you,” he says. “I’ve loved you since the moment I saw you, and I will love you for eternity.”
I frantically shake my head. “No, Leif. Stop talking like that. We’re not going to die.”
“We are,” he insists. “Or at least, I am.” He presses a kiss to my lips. “Tell me you love me.”
“I do, Leif. I love you so much.”
I surge up from the water, coming awake with a start. I’ve had that dream for as long as I can remember, but this is the first time I’m recognizing it for what it is: a memory.
My dreams haven’t been dreams at all.
Rising from the tub, I know what I have to do. Without slowing down to drain the water, I grab a towel from the rack and wrap it around my waist. A sense of acceptance settles into my very being, and I’m practically giddy with excitement.
I love Viking. My soul loves him, has always loved him. Whether it be now, or in ten more lifetimes, we will be together.
Why wait?
He represents everything I’ve been passionate about my entire life. And when Kára said that my soul and Mea’s are one and the same, it was as if so many pieces of a puzzle clicked into place. I suddenly understood why I’d instantly felt a connection to Viking. I was able to wrap my mind around the fact that I love a man I barely know.
Because my soul knows his.
I grip the doorknob and twist, but the door flies open much faster than I’m expecting, and I’m knocked onto my ass.
“You stupid fucking bitch!”
Staring up at the intruder, I’m shocked to see Jeff scowling down at me.
“Jeff? What are you doing?”
“I tried to warn you,” he grates out as he leans over and grabs me by the hair. “I begged you to change your thesis topic, but you wouldn’t listen.”
Jeff drags me back to the tub and slams my head against the edge. My vision blurs, and I try to hang onto consciousness, but fail, and the world goes black.
* * *
Viking
I siton my Harley in front of Makayla’s house like a creeper. She didn’t respond to my last text asking her to promise to call me if anything happened, and I panicked. Kára tried to stop me, but I refused to listen.
The street is quiet, and the sun is starting to set, casting shadows across the road, but my view is suddenly blocked when Kára appears in front of my bike.
“You need to get inside now,” she cries.
“What are you thinking? Someo—”
