Page 51 of Soul of Fire

But if it did.He raised his head, his eyes fierce as he cupped my face in his strong hands.I would tear this world apart, Kjære.

I smiled despite myself.I’m sort of counting on it.

He groaned, pulling me closer as he pushed one final pulse of Baldur’s magic into me to ease my pain.

I told you to stop that,I chastised as he captured my mouth in a fierce kiss.AndJorgen and Branka are watching.

I don’t give a fuck.He pulled me tighter to him, sweeping his tongue over mine once in a silent command.If you can’t get it out, or if you get caught, just leave it and fly back to the coast. I’ll find you.

But—

You are more important than the damned Book. Than everything else in this world.Arik held my face as he pulled his lips from mine, Baldur shining faintly silver through his eyes.Promise me, Kjære. Get yourself out. I don’t care if you have to burn it all down to do so.

His arms were tense, and I knew he was fighting the urge to fly off with me and hide me away safely in his cave at Ironholm. I wrapped my arms around him just as tightly, trying to soothe his anxiety.I’ll have Branka. I’ll have Idunn. What’s the worst that could possibly happen?

Arik groaned again.Don’t fucking tempt fate, Kjære.

You don’t believe in fate.

He squeezed me more tightly.I shouldn’t be letting you out of my sight.

Nor I.I felt the words stick in my throat, my own anxiety bubbling to the surface.What if you getcaught?

Arik’s beard twitched, and he gave me a sardonic look.Saying goodbye to my mother isn’t illegal.

No, but defying your father is. I pressed a final kiss to his lips.If you see him or your brother, punch them in the throat for me.

My violent little mate.He pressed a kiss to my forehead.I seeArne rubbed off on you.

We pulled apart, and I turned to the side of the room where Branka and Jorgen had fled to give us privacy. Jorgen was watching skeptically as Branka shuffled around the room in her robes.

“You’ll never fucking pass for a skald if you stand like that,” Jorgen said irritably. “You need to slouch at the very least.”

“Like this?” Branka pulled the hood so far over her head that her face was completely hidden. She slouched her shoulders and back and shuffled forward, attempting to imitate the elderly skalds we’d seen in the hallways.

“Better,” Jorgen admitted, watching her with his arms folded over his chest. He looked up and frowned at Arik. “Maybe this is a bad idea.”

“No, we’ve already decided.” Branka tossed me the other blue robe once more, eyeing it with distaste. “Get dressed. I plan to wear this for exactly however long it takes to steal the Book and not a second longer.”

I grimaced as I pulled the scratchy fabric over my own head. “Ugh. How do the skalds wear these daily?”

“Without undergarments,” Branka said, doing a little twirl as Jorgen groaned, muttering something about innuendo at a time like this. “How wonderful it is to be short.”

Branka was right, though. The robe was barely large enough to cover me, but her feet were visible beneath the hem. Neither Jorgen nor Arik would have been able to get one over their shoulders, and even if they had, it would have been obvious who they were to anyone with half a brain.

Arik withdrew the key from his pocket and looped the chain around my neck. “Stick to the shadows and move quickly.”

“Not too quickly,” Branka corrected, her voice pitched low like a man’s. It wasn’t convincing. “The skalds shuffle.”

Jorgen eyed Branka’s boots skeptically. “Maybe don’t talk, love. If you can help it.”

Branka pouted at her mate, who laughed and pulled her into an embrace.

“Where do we find the Book?” I asked, turning to my own mate to give them a semblance of privacy.

“I’m honestly not sure. I only saw it once, and I was a boy.” Arik tugged my hood up over my head. Anxiety rolled off him, but he didn’t try to change my mind. “But it’s full of Chaos. Idunn should be able to sense it.”

I nodded, remembering my first landing at Ironholm and how badly the Chaos affected me. “I’ll try not to bleed all over it.”