Perfekt Balance (The Ære Saga Book 3) Read Online Free Page A

me forget how
annoyed I am that you don’t trust me to take care of myself, then
you aren’t as bright as I thought you were, Tyr Fredriksen.” Mia
huffed. Then she turned to Henrik. “But he’s not wrong, I have a
laundry list of things to do to get ready for my family’s visit.
Including bake.”
    “Hold up.” Henrik held out one hand. “Where
are you going? And why is Forse about to kill someone?”
    We all turned to look at Forse. Sure enough,
his eyes were slits, his breathing was sharp, and he had a pulsing
forehead vein that rivaled Tyr’s neck one. He positively seethed
anger.
    “We are going to Svartalfheim,” Tyr answered
coolly. The four gods in the room drew a collective gasp.
    The mortal took in our reactions with
practiced calm. “Which one’s Svartalfheim again?” she asked
lightly.
    “The worst one after Helheim,” Brynn
muttered.
    “It’s the realm of the dark elves,” I
explained. “When the cosmos was born, the blackest souls were sent
to a wasteland—a realm of isolation and soot. Svartalfheim.”
    “And you’re all going there?” Mia
squeaked.
    “Forse, Brynn, Elsa, and I are going there.”
Tyr spoke with his chin on Mia’s head. “You’re staying here with
Henrik.”
    “Elsa doesn’t need to go,” Forse argued.
    “ You of
all people know how delicate this retrieval is. The perp has been a
fugitive since…well, it’s been a long time. She’s being harbored by
dark elves who demanded Fenrir in her place, and I have no
intention of unleashing that beast again. The elves agreed to
accept one of the Svartish treasures from the vault instead of the
wolf, but they could very well turn on us once we get there. We
need a Unifier to make sure this exchange goes peacefully. Right
now, Elsa’s all we’ve got,” Tyr finished.
    “Um, thanks?” I said.
    “You know what I mean.” Tyr turned his gaze
to me. “I don’t want to drag you into Svartalfheim any more than
Forse does. I know you’re not up to speed on the peacekeeping
function, and I don’t like putting you in danger. Not only are you
my baby sister, but you’re a Key—you’re one of the gods we train to
protect. I hate everything about this. Unfortunately, I don’t have
another option.”
    “I could go,” Mia offered. Her voice was
shaky, but she held her head high.
    “No.” Five voices sounded as one. A
combination of relief and disappointment flickered across Mia’s
features.
    “If I’m not ready, you’re definitely not
ready,” I reminded her. “I’ll get this one, and once I have a
handle on this bizarre skill set I’ll pass the torch to you. I
promise.”
    “I’ll hold down the fort from here this
time.” Mia stared me down. “But I don’t want to be on baking duty
with Henrik forever.”
    I
swallowed. Figure this out, Elsa.
    “Hey, there are worse things than baking with
me.” Henrik raised an eyebrow. “I never did teach you to make my
mom’s chocolate mousse cake, did I?”
    Mia looked up with a small smile. “Does she
use Mexican vanilla?”
    “Tahitian,” Henrik countered. “And I’ve got a
stash in my secret cabinet.”
    “Now that that’s settled, does anyone want to
tell me the name of the perp we’re retrieving from that
Odin-forsaken realm?” Brynn chimed in.
    I turned to my brother and waited for his
answer. When he spoke, his voice was clipped.
    “Runa.”
    The name fell like a lead balloon at a
birthday party. Brynn’s mouth dropped open, and Henrik sucked in a
breath. I couldn’t see Forse’s face, but the sound of knuckles
cracking behind me let me know he wasn’t happy. I could relate.
    Oh dear gods. We’re going after Runa.
    The room
swirled in a violent vortex, and Forse gripped my arms to steady
me. As he righted me in my chair, the world slowed to a standstill.
Runa was more than just Forse’s psychotic ex-girlfriend. She was
the monster who committed the crime—the one that changed everything.
    When I finally found my voice, it came out
dry and