feathers.
The last thing I saw of him was a pair of gleaming black raven eyes in a human face. Then the man was gone and an oily black raven emerged from the swirling cloud of feathers and black dust.
As he headed for the doorway, a group of warriors thundered up from each side of the passage attempting to block its exit.
But the bird just sailed over them, easily escaping without even a scratch on his odious little bird body. And the last thing I heard was the echo of cackling laughter coming down the hall.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Loki.
I stared at Fen as he transformed back into human form, his body growing smaller, losing muscle and bulk, his face shrinking and shortening, jaw going from canine to human in what looked like a painful process.
He didn't even flinch as he changed, and when he finally stared at me with human eyes, they were filled with fury.
"How the hell did he get inside our defenses?" I asked, furious that the Trickster god had managed to get through all the magical blocks we'd placed on Asgard's entrances.
"He certainly knows how to do it without tripping up the wards." Fens tone was disgusted. And I could understand why. He'd been the one to oversee all the spells and wards that had been put in place to protect our realm.
"Are we ever going to be able to keep him out?" I snapped, knowing it may piss Fen off but I didn't care. Being bested by Loki on home turf is not something that sat well with me.
But Fen didn't take my tone to heart. Guess he understood my frustrations considering he shared them.
"We will need Vanya to help reinstate the wards. Maybe she can find out how he got in," said Fen rubbing his forehead as he paced back and forth.
I sighed. "He could have been coming and going for as long as he wanted. God knows how much Loki already knows about our plans."
"He probably knows everything you told me," said Derek from the doorway. "Or rather, everything you thought you were telling me but told him instead. I was a bit confused when I was summoned to Fen's hall today. I had no idea why I was supposed to be there. So I'm guessing someone gave my doppelg盲nger the rest of the information."
I nodded, turning to Fen who stood beside Loki's abandoned computer on the table. "Do we know who said what to Loki? Did we provide a lot of information to the team members or were they just told to arrive here on time."
Fen glanced at me and shook his head, "Minimal information was given. Only you, Thor and I knew the full details of where we were going and what the mission was." Fen rubbed his chin. "The warriors were told it was a covert op, highly classified and that we had no idea how long we'd be so to gear up for a long trip, just in case."
Derek shook his head. "Well, all I got told was to meet here, so I definitely missed the rest."
My hands closed into fists at my side as I tried to control a rising bout of fury at Loki. "We need to prepare just in case. With him turning into birds or any kind of animal, he could have heard all the details and we'd be walking straight into a trap the moment we land."
Fen nodded but his eyes swirled black and gray, in much the same way as Loki's did. "We have doubled the manpower. At least we can try and cover our backs a little better if we have to fight off an army of Jotunn."
"Let's get at least a dozen Valkyries. They can provide the glamor for the additional warriors." I felt better knowing we would have extra fighting power along, but Fen's expression distracted me.
He stood still, staring at the laptop that Loki had left behind. The longer he stared the more concerned I got.
"Fen?" I asked, now also staring at the laptop too. "What is it?"
"I thought I heard something.""
From the laptop?" I asked.
He nodded then looked up at me. The moment he met my eyes I realized what he may have heard.
"Get out of the room. Now," I screamed and followed the warriors as they rushed for the door.
The room exploded just as I passed over the threshold. I hit the floor hard and felt someone land on top of me just as the explosion ripped into the passage, so