Broods Of Fenrir

chapter 16


Dagny stared out the filthy windows of her mother"s cabin. The three days since she"d left Brand had passed slowly.

Her head still hurt, but most of the pain associated with the abrupt removal from his brood was gone.

Ingrid"s annoyed voice interrupted her thoughts. “This was all part of the plan.”

She didn"t bother to look up when she responded. “I know, Mother.”

“Then, why are you still sulking?”

“I"m not sulking.”

Ingrid snorted. “This is the best way to get what we want, dear.”

“So you"ve said. Repeatedly.”

“Well, I want to be certain you remember, since you f*cked up the plan so badly.”

Gods, not this again. “I had to let him bring me into his brood. It was the only way to gain his trust.” That was only partially true. She could have gained his trust other ways, but she"d wanted to believe him. Gods, she was so stupid. Males couldn"t be trusted; that was one thing her 143

crazy mother was right about. In the end, he"d let her go back to Ansvarr, despite saying he"d protect her.

At once, she realized that wasn"t fair. She"d made him do it by throwing his promises back in his face and telling him if he didn"t let her go, he was just like all the others. She"d been repeating the scene over in her head since she"d left him. Each time she went over it, the guilt became worse. His stricken face was burned into her mind.

Ingrid narrowed her eyes. “I"m still shocked he actually let you go. Males with his level of power never give up members of their brood, certainly not female ones.”

“You told me he was exceptional.”

“He is that.” Ingrid paced across the small living room.

“I know you wonder if staying with him would have been better for you.”

Dagny sighed. “Get out of my head, Mother.” Her mother spoke in a gentler tone. “You want Ansvarr dead, and so do I. This is the best way to achieve that goal.” She slumped back in her seat. “Brand told me he would kill Ansvarr for what he did to me.”

“You can"t believe a word he says.”

“He never lied to me. I"m the one that lied.” She swallowed when her voice broke. “I lied to him about everything, and I hate myself for it.”

“He will stomp on your heart. I have occasion to know.” “So you"ve said.” She made a dismissive hand gesture.

Ingrid grumbled. “Girl, you are treading on my last nerve.”

Dagny lowered her head into her hands. “I want this to be over.”

“As soon as you"re sure we can take the next step.” She rubbed at her forehead with one hand, wishing the headache would go away. “I did exactly what you told me. I took his blood within a half-hour of the peak of the moon.” Ingrid scoffed. “You did more than that. I can"t believe 144

he allowed you to mark him. He could have killed you.” The reminder of their time together and how she"d treated him afterward made her stomach tense until she felt sick. “He wouldn"t hurt me, Mother. I"m certain of it.” A knock at the door interrupted their discussion. Dagny looked at her mother, wondering who it might be. Ingrid continued to appraise Dagny, unperturbed.

Ingrid"s voice rose. “Enter.”

The door swung in and Alice"s head peeked around the corner. Ingrid hissed. “Loki"s cock, what are you doing here?”

“I need to speak with Dagny, please,” Alice said in a voice that wavered a bit.

“Well, come in.” Ingrid gestured with one hand, encompassing the cluttered area against one wall where a stool stood. Alice crept into the room. She glanced around, eyes nervous. Her nose twitched. Dagny couldn"t blame her. The cabin air was overpowered with a mixture of putrid substances, as usual. Alice made her way to the stool. After she sat, she fidgeted nervously. “I"d like to speak with her alone.”

“Of course, I"ll leave my own home.” Ingrid laughed harshly and headed out the door.

Alice smoothed her hands over her knees. “I came here to tell you that Brand is going to kill himself.” Dagny shot to her feet. “What are you talking about?”

“Björn is coming to take vengeance for the death of his son, and Brand"s not going to put up a fight.” Dagny blinked, trying to understand what was happening. “He wouldn"t let himself be killed while you"re still linked to him.”

“I"m not in his brood any longer. Right after you left he gave me back to Erik.”

She sat back down heavily. “Fenrir forgive me.” Their plan had gone so terribly wrong, and it was all her fault.

Alice stood and crossed the small room. “Go talk to 145

him.”

Dagny looked down at her hands. The shame of what she"d done was all the more terrible with Alice staring at her so hopefully. “I rejected him. It"s done.” Alice knelt next to her and touched her arm. “I know you don"t want to go back to Ansvarr. Just tell Brand you made a mistake.”

Dagny rubbed her mouth with the back of one trembling hand. Whenever she thought of Brand, she could taste him, dark like the earth in the deep woods. “The only mistake I made was allowing him to become infatuated with me.” Alice withdrew her hand. “Merciful Sigyn, you set him up.” Feeling the tears gather, Dagny nodded absently. “Now you see why I can"t go talk to him. What would I say?”

“The truth. Don"t you owe him that?” For the first time since Dagny had met her, Alice"s voice had an angry edge.

“Why do I owe him anything? I never promised him I"d stay with him. I did this for all of us, Alice. He needs to take his place and change things.”

Alice stood abruptly and stared down with her jaw clenched. “That"s what this is about? You expect him to take charge of the Broods of Fenrir and undo centuries of ingrained behavior all by himself? They"ll tear him apart.”

“After everything that"s happened to you, how can you just sit here with him, cozy in Denver, knowing what goes on everywhere else? Have you forgotten how terrible it is to be in a real brood?” The anger shook her voice. She detested that she begrudged Alice her years of safety. Alice had been with Brand, while Dagny had been tortured and shamed by Ansvarr.

Alice made a disgusted sound in her throat. “I know more of what happens in a brood than someone like you could ever understand.”

“What"s that supposed to mean?”

“You"re stronger than most males. What do you think 146

it"s like being as weak as I am, Dagny?”

“That"s why I did this, to protect you, to protect all of us.” The petulant tone that had crept into her voice annoyed her.

Alice glared. “Don"t pretend you did this for me. I never asked you to save me. I"ve come to terms with my lot.” She lifted her eyes to meet Alice"s angry stare. How was it possible that she"d misjudged everything so badly? Her mother had portrayed her part in this as the avenger for every female who had been wronged over generations.

After a few seconds, Alice walked to the door.

Dagny asked, “Where are you going?”

“I"m going to try to convince him that he shouldn"t kill himself.”

“May I come with you?”

Alice turned back to her. “Only if you"re going to tell him the truth.”

Dagny sighed. “Telling him that I betrayed him won"t save him.”

“Maybe not, but telling him how you feel about him might.”

“I told you, it was all an act, part of a plan my mother devised to manipulate him into claiming his kingship.” Alice"s mouth lifted into a crooked smile. “That may have been how it all started, Dagny, but that"s not all you feel.

You can"t fake what I felt from you.”

“Is everyone but me a damned empath?” Alice shrugged. “Brand and I might be the last.” Dagny joined Alice at the door and reached for the handle. “You should let me go first. She"s going to freak out.” Ingrid confronted them on the other side of the door.

“Where in Helheim do you think you"re going?” Dagny cleared her throat. “I"m going to talk to Brand.” Ingrid glared at Alice. Next, she turned her stare to Dagny. “That"s a bad idea. Ansvarr will be here in a few hours to collect you.”

She gaped, unable to understand her mother"s admission. “What? My going back with him wasn"t part of the plan.”

Ingrid smirked. “I had to improvise. We need to increase the incentive to get Brand to kill Ansvarr.”

“You"re a raving lunatic.”

“Perhaps, but you"re going back with Ansvarr.” She wouldn"t walk back into that sadist"s hands. She"d tie her mother up if she had to.

Alice came forward, putting a hand on Dagny"s arm.

“Your plan isn"t going to happen if Björn kills Brand.” Ingrid turned to Alice. “The days Björn might have been able to kill Brand are long past.”

“Even if Brand doesn"t fight back?”

Ingrid made a dismissive noise. “He wouldn"t do that.

He"s too proud.”

Her face adamant, Alice advanced toward Ingrid. “You counted on him feeling responsible for her, but he feels much more. Without her, he"s desolate.”

Ingrid cast a glance at Dagny. “I don"t believe it.”

“He severed my brood ties with him right after you left.

He was in agony already, and he yanked them all loose at once.

There"s no other reason he"d do that.” The words cascaded out, her voice unwavering.

Dagny had never seen Alice so animated, so alive.

Ingrid"s lips pursed. “Go.” She pushed past them to enter the cabin, her face drawn in thought.

Dagny stepped out of Alice"s car into the cold winter air and listened. With sound dampened by a fall of fresh snow, the night was nearly silent.

Alice moved to where she stood. “I"ll wait in the lodge.

No idea where he is, but I know he hasn"t been inside since we left three days ago.”

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“I don"t know how I"ll find him in that case.”

“He"ll find you.” Alice patted her on the back before she began walking to the lodge.

Dagny wasn"t so sure. Her stomach clenched, as if filled with something heavy and cold. She suspected he wouldn"t want anything to do with her. Even if she found him, she didn"t have any idea what she should say. She pondered that as she struck out through the knee-deep snow in a random direction.

Alice had made it sound so simple, but the reality was anything but. If she bared her heart to him, told him everything, and he rejected her, she"d be crushed. And wouldn"t she deserve exactly that because it was what she"d done to him?

Gods, but she was a fool. She"d trusted a plan spawned from her mother"s deranged mind rather than what she"d felt.

She climbed a small rise and examined the surrounding terrain. The trees were close together, but the sparse underbrush made traversing the woods easier. She took a deep breath, filling her lungs with icy air. Her heart rate climbed when she caught his scent. She set off down the hill in the direction her nose dictated.

Twenty minutes later, she found him sitting with his back against a tree, arms draped over his upraised knees. The snow had drifted around him in piles that covered his feet.

He lifted his head, tension obvious in the lines of his face. His blue eyes glowed faintly in the darkness of the night.

“I"m surprised you"re back. I would have thought you"d be in Vancouver by now.”

Her throat suddenly dry, Dagny swallowed. “Alice came to talk to me. She"s worried about you.” He curled the fingers of one hand and then the other, moving them stiffly. “She"s always worried. There"s nothing she needs to concern herself about.”

“I"m worried, too, Brand.”

His chuckle was humorless. “Are you? I wonder why. If you cared anything about me why would you force me to let you go back to him?”

She couldn"t think of a response, so she didn"t say anything. She moved closer, clearing a patch of snow away with her feet before she knelt nearby.

Brand shook his head. “Can"t you just leave me alone?

It"s not enough that you left me so that you could go back to my f*cking brother, you have to come here to torture me?” His voice cracked as his volume rose toward the end. He leaned back against the trunk of the tree.

Seeing him so forlorn, so beaten, hurt. She wanted to crawl away and cry. “I came here to tell you the truth—” He interrupted her with a snide chuckle. “No thanks.

You already told me you want nothing to do with me. That"s all the truth I can handle from you.”

“I was never going to go back to Ansvarr.” He turned his face toward her, the back of his head still against the tree.

When he didn"t speak, she continued, “I was going to wait at Mother"s until I was sure that I carried your offspring.

Then, she was going to take some of my blood and convince you that Ansvarr had killed me.”

His jaw tightened. “What the f*ck are you talking about?” “The plan my mother devised to make you kill Ansvarr and force you to take over as king.”

“You"re serious.” He grimaced and passed a hand over his face. “That makes me feel much better. Thanks for sharing.” He started to rise, but he"d obviously been seated there for a long time. He stumbled and had to hold on to the tree to remain standing.

She rose, taking his arm to hold him up.

He glared down at her. “I really don"t need more of your f*cking help.” He yanked his arm out of her grip.

“Brand, please.” She reached to grab his hand. When she touched his icy fingers, he reeled so badly she was sure he would fall over, but somehow he maintained his feet.

He tugged his hand away and braced his head against 150

the tree. “Loki wept. How the f*ck do you scramble my circuits like that?”

“I don"t know what you mean.” She wanted to reach out and hold him, but didn"t think she should.

He closed his eyes. “When you touch me, even now that I know it"s all an act, I feel warmth. So much that I want to bask in it.”

She inhaled before she answered. “That"s what I came here to tell you. My mother"s plan set this all into motion, but I do care about you.”

He turned his face toward her. A frown twisted his mouth. “If that"s true, why did you leave?”

“I"ve spent my entire life being lied to and manipulated.

I didn"t trust you.” She took his hand again and held it.

He didn"t take his hand back, but he didn"t tighten his grip either. “You betrayed me. Not only that, but you just about destroyed me. The idea that you were going back to him to be abused again almost killed me.” She squeezed his fingers. “I know. I owe you a debt so huge I"ll never be able to repay it.” He pulled away from her with a growl. “Do you really believe what I want is repayment?”

Her eyes burned and she shook her head.

He exhaled a long sigh. “Then, why do you offend me by offering it?”

“I"m sorry.” Tears spilled onto her cheeks. The urge to run away tightened her belly. She"d lost her chance. He"d offered her exactly what she wanted, and she"d hurt him because she"d been afraid to believe in him. She turned away, wiping her face.

After a few seconds, he said in a soft voice, “If you can"t or won"t give me all of you, leave me to my misery.”

The delay was soul-wrenching. Brand wanted to scream 151

in frustration and pain. His chest burned, the beast"s claws tearing at him from the inside. He fully expected her to walk away, but time ticked on, and Dagny stood frozen, her breath misting the air. Each minute felt like a year, the seconds slicing through his heart.

She looked over her shoulder, tears damp on her face.

“Claim me.”

He barely allowed himself to believe it might be true.

“You"re sure?” His pulse quickened when she nodded. “And the wolf?”

Her shrug was miniscule. “It hasn"t had much to say the last few days.”

He knew how to fix that. He swallowed, then whispered, “Forgive me.”

Her eyes narrowed a fraction. An instant was all the time he gave her to contemplate what he was about to do.

He closed the distance between them. Gripping her wrist, he twisted her arm behind her back, and turned her around, pushing her forward into a tree. The impact shook snow from the branches above them, causing it to land in heavy, wet clumps on the ground.

“Brand, what—” Her words cut off with a small yelp.

Curling his fingers in her hair, he tugged her head back.

He lowered his mouth to her ear. “Quiet.” He licked her, tasting the skin he"d so desperately missed. “I need to talk to the wolf, Dagny.”

Her chest heaved as she panted. “I told you. I haven"t felt her in days.”

“She took the brunt of the pain from severing our connection. She"s hurt and confused. You have to let go. She"ll come to me.”

“If she won"t accept you, what then?”

“Let me worry about that.” He kissed the side of her neck. “Give her control.”

By gradual degrees, Dagny"s body relaxed. Nuzzling his face against her neck, he smiled. She did trust him, finally. He 152

released her wrist, letting her arm dangle at her side. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her pliant body against him.

Several seconds later, without warning, her body tensed.

She went from a rag doll to a crazed badger in an instant. She writhed, trying to escape his arms, but he held her fast, the feeling of her ass grinding against him all the incentive he needed to hold her tighter.

“There"s my girl,” he murmured.

A growl vibrated through her while she continued to struggle. “Let go of me.”

“You and I have unfinished business I intend to put right.”

She froze. “If you think I"m going to roll over and let you scratch my belly after you turned me away, think again.” She elbowed him in the side hard enough to make him grunt, and then stomped on his foot.

He tugged on her hair, cranking her head back and staring into her silver eyes. “I"m not asking your permission.” He covered her mouth with his.

A gasp that was almost a moan escaped her parted lips.

His kiss was a challenge, aggressive and demanding. The she-wolf ceded quicker than he"d hoped, her body relaxing against him. He broke the kiss and slid his mouth over her jaw, down to her throat. He tore at the top of her shirt, exposing the junction of shoulder on the right side of her neck.

He lowered his head and bit her, mouth stretched taut over her skin. With a groan, her head fell forward, bowing her back against his torso. Her energy roared through him with concussive force. He began to weave the mating bond, threading his power with hers in an intricate pattern.

The process was a slow one, but he relished every second. The link between them solidified with each connection he made. Her chest expanded into his arm with her deep, rhythmic breaths. His hold on her was light, barely enough to keep the contact between them. When the last of the bond was 153

tied off, the sense of her came alive inside him, and he sighed into her skin.

His lips tingled, and he tightened his bite. He pushed energy through the wound, setting his mark in her skin. She shivered against him. He drew more of her blood, repeating the knots of the links that bound them. When he finished, he extricated his teeth and sealed the wounds.

He pressed his cheek to hers. “Twice knotted, twice bound. Under the waning moon, I claim you.” She lifted her voice into a joyous howl.

He moved his hand to the lower portion of her belly, pulling her closer. Enjoying the sensation as she squirmed against him, he groped her breast. Eager to feel her skin, he tore open her shirt. He pulled the clothing from her, kissing down her neck and over her shoulder as he did.

He opened his mouth and scratched down her back with his canines, careful not to break the skin. She shuddered in his arms. He pushed his hips forward into her, pulling her back at the same time. His cock ground against her ass. A gasp escaped her lips.

Worry that he might hurt her made him hesitate. The beast roared inside of him, desperate for her.

She turned to look at him over her shoulder. “What"s wrong?”

He spoke softly, lips caressing her back. “I"m afraid the wolf will hurt you.”

Her sultry smile was immediate. “Neither of you would ever hurt me. I know it.”

He answered with a smile of his own, and a low growl rumbled between his teeth.