Broods Of Fenrir - By Coral Moore Page 0,56
drew his face down toward her, lips soft against his. She tasted like the snow, clean and cool.
He pulled away after a few seconds, though he wanted nothing more than to lose himself in her kiss for hours. “It"s much too early to say one way or the other, but I suspect like many of her schemes it"s not based entirely in reality.” Dagny nodded, a frown twisting her mouth.
Her regret made him uncomfortable, so he chose a new subject. “What do you think your mother will tell Ansvarr?”
“I think she"s going to tell him exactly where we are.
She let me go too easily.”
He hoped so, because Ansvarr had to die. It went beyond the damage he"d done to Dagny, though that was enough to send his anger soaring. She was safe with him, but who knew how many others Ansvarr would abuse and terrify.
Like their mutual sire, Ansvarr was a beast that had to be put down. Brand felt no remorse for the task in front of him.
He stood up, helping her to her feet at the same time.
“Well, we"d better go meet him, then.”
* * *
Brand knew something was wrong before they came within sight of the lodge. The smell from downwind was faint, but the earthy quality of the fresh blood was unmistakable. He froze and sniffed the air.
Dagny stopped next to him. “What is it?”
“Brood blood scent coming from the lodge.” She sniffed a few times, and her body tensed. With a panic-stricken expression, she said, “I left Alice at the lodge.” She started up the next hill.
He stopped her with a hand on her arm. “It"s not Alice.
Gunni wasn"t with her?”
“Not when I left.”
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He scented again, deeper. “Three males, all blood I"ve never smelled before. One is probably Gunni, but I can"t say for certain.”
“Why do you think one is him?”
“Similarity between the smell and what I know of him from when I Called him. I can"t really explain it.” He felt her eyes on him.
“Neat trick.”
He shrugged, scanning the hill separating them from the lodge. “One of the perks of being king.”
“I didn"t think there were any perks, given how you"ve spoken of it.”
“That"s a conversation for another time.” He started up the hill, and she came behind him after a short delay.
When he reached the top, he gazed down into the valley. Gunni and another male circled each other in front of the lodge. The other combatant was much larger, and Gunni looked almost small by comparison, though he was above average in size himself. Gunni limped when he moved; blood leaked from a wound in his upper thigh, staining the snow around him. Nearby, a third male lay unmoving on the ground.
“Find Alice,” he said, as he accelerated toward the fight below.
Gunni was driven to the ground, snow exploding around him. His assailant landed atop him, clawed hands digging into Gunni"s chest. Gunni grunted; blood spurted from his mouth.
Brand closed the remaining distance in a handful of long strides and hit the attacker with his shoulder. The male went sprawling over the snow. Though he recovered quickly, Brand was faster. He kicked the attacker in the chest, hard enough that he heard the crunch of ribs. Settling a boot into the center of the male"s back, Brand pushed him into the ground and turned to examine Gunni. “You okay, Gunni?” Gunni rolled over onto his side. He spat up a dark clot of blood onto the snow. He gasped twice before he answered.
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“Fine. Is Alice all right?”
“I sent Dagny to look for her. Any more of these about?”
Struggling to sit up, Gunni shook his head. He ripped a piece of cloth from his torn shirt and began to bind the wound on his leg.
The male under his foot struggled a bit, and Brand put more weight on his back to discourage him. He looked like one of Björn"s offspring, fair-skinned and red-haired. “Your father couldn"t come for me himself, so he sent you instead? That isn"t like him. Which one are you?”
“Farbjörn.” The redheaded male laughed.
Brand pushed down until Fari groaned. “Where is he, then?” When Fari didn"t answer, a response came from Gunni.
“Ingrid"s.”
“What in Tyr"s bloody hand is he doing there?” Fari spluttered as Brand increased the weight of his foot. “I don"t ask questions.”
“Of course you don"t, you"re the dumb one.” Fari proved his point by snarling and struggling until nearly unconscious.
Brand let up on the pressure. “Easy, big guy, I don"t want you to die by accident.”
Dagny and Alice