face. “No. You have not turned me into a monster with this little ploy of yours. Now, are you ready to live up to your end of the bargain? Or do you have more games to play?”
Hel chuckled. “So feisty, little soul. Yes, you may take your mates and go fight the hordes of Ragnarök. But don’t forget: If you don’t fulfil your end of the bargain, you will die. And then your soul and your mates’ will return to this place—to me.”
Thirty
Annabel
The second I stepped through the doors leading back into the throne room, a pair of strong arms closed around me.
“Are you hurt? Is the baby hurt?” Modi demanded as a cool hand slid to my abdomen, dark, cautious power gently probing.
“I’m fine. We’re both fine,” I said.
“We felt you,” Magni rasped, the hoarseness in his voice betraying their terror for those moments we had been apart.
Freya? Grim inquired through our bond. I feel her… within you? How?
“I will explain later,” I murmured before turning back to Hel. She was leaning against the door frame, watching me surrounded by my worried mates with a sardonic slant to her lips.
“We will be leaving now,” I told her.
“I suppose you will,” she said, giving me a mocking bow before she reached out a hand. Dark magic plumed from her fingertips and over the combined shields Magni, Modi, Grim, and Saga raised around us. But the Death Goddess’ power wasn’t aimed at us. It hit the floor a few yards past us and fizzed before rising into a large rectangle hovering vertically in the air. Nothing but blackness could be seen through its center.
“Enjoy your freedom, little soul,” Hel said as she inspected her nails. “And don’t forget—should you not fulfil your end of our agreement…”
“I will fulfill it,” I said, turning to the rectangle. “Come. It’s time to leave this place.”
But my mates hesitated. Grim glanced from the rectangle to me. “What did you promise her, Annabel?”
“I will tell you later,” I said, jerking on his and Bjarni’s hands to get them to move forward with me. “Let’s go. We’ve got an Armageddon to stop.”
“Nothing is worth losing you over,” Bjarni said simply. “What did you bargain, sweetie?”
I drew in a deep breath. “You won’t lose me; I promise. But may I remind you that as long as we remain here, I’m dead?”
That did the trick. They moved as one, taking me with them toward the rectangular portal. The inky darkness inside it swirled as we approached, leaching out of the frame.
“Is it safe?” Magni muttered, his head tilted toward Grim.
My cold mate reached out with his magic, letting it slide over the void-like surface. After a moment, he nodded. “It will lead us to Asgard.”
“Did you think I would deceive you, brother?” Hel taunted. “How very… hurtful.”
No one answered her as we stepped through the portal and darkness consumed us.
The sucking, pulling sensation of the portal released me without warning, and I stumbled onto a cushiony surface. Booming crashes rang in my ears, and disorientation rippled through me. There were so many colors. Brightest was the emerald green underneath my knees and palms, and it took me several seconds to realize we’d landed on soft grass.
Grass. I breathed in and the lush scent of it filled my nostrils, tinged with smoke, and something else I couldn’t quite put my finger on. I inhaled again, filling my lungs.
Alive. I was alive.
“Pet? Are you okay?” Magni’s worried face popped into my field of vision. Magni’s face—with his beautiful, bright green eyes and his deep-red mane. I laughed at his sheer beauty, at how vibrant he was, and grasped his beard so I could plant a kiss on his unprepared mouth.
He tasted so sweet. Sensual. I shivered against him and hummed with delight as he wrapped me in his strong arms and deepened our kiss.
“As much as properly celebrating our mate’s return to the living seems like a great idea, perhaps this is not the time or place,” Saga drawled. “We need to regroup and figure out our next steps—and fast.”
Reluctantly I pulled my lips from Magni’s to look up at my blond mate. He nodded at the horizon over his shoulder, and I finally noticed the smokey haze on a background of orange and red. At first I thought it was a sunset, but the light was different, and that deep, thrumming noise jarred my eardrums.
“Surtr’s horde must have arrived while we were in Hel,” Bjarni said just as lightning flashed.