Page 114 of Fallen Gods

“Is me.” I lean in, lay a cool hand on his shoulder. “Who am I to deny her a taste, Rowen?”

His fist is faster than I expect. It cracks my jaw, rattles my teeth, and drives me a step back into the trophy case. Glass explodes while pain flares all down my back.

Shit. He hits like a truck.

Drops of silvery-red blood run from my nose, and he’s already got a fist twisted in my shirt, dragging me close. I let him.

“You’re an abomination,” he snarls. “You shouldn’t exist.” His lip curls. “You don’t deserve the runes that protect you.”

He shoves me and turns away like a little bitch.

“What, you gonna run?” My voice carries down the hall. He stops. “Besides, who made you the judge of who’s ‘worthy,’ huh? I’ve done nothing wrong in this life. My parents sacrificed everything so I could live on to do something, something important. Can you say the same about yours?”

Something flickers behind his eyes—guilt, rage, both. He lunges.

I slip to the side, grab his shirt collar, and bounce him off the cinderblock. My fist cocks—

And suddenly Reeve is there, wedging himself between us like a human pry bar, palms on my chest.

He shoves me just as his loud laughter fills the room, along with the gasps and whispers of the students starting to gather. “Whoa. Okay, no, Frosty, not today. It’s not Christmas.” He shoves me a step back and smacks my cold hands, then turns with a sunny smile. I quickly shove them in my pockets. “Rowen, maybe pick a fight you can win? Bro, this is embarrassing.”

He throws a glance down the hall at the students congregating before continuing.

“Nothing to see, folks! Too much creatine kills! Stay hydrated! Don’t do drugs!”

“I could have beat his ass,” I say loud enough for Rowen to hear.

Rowen points at us, breathing hard. “Stay away from her. Both of you. Next time, I won’t stop.” He stalks off, shoulders stiff, fury tucked back under that guard-dog exterior. I smirk when he shakes his right hand out like it’s stinging from hitting my face. I hope it’s broken.

I’m wiping blood from my nose when Reeve mutters, almost to himself, “That guy and his temper.”

“Rowen? He’s just constantly pissed. Wouldn’t you be if you had to work for Odin?”

Something flashes in Reeve’s eyes. “Hell yeah I’d be pissed. Let’s go feed you before you redecorate the hallway with someone’s spleen.” He claps my shoulder, feels how cold I am, recoils a bit, but doesn’t comment on it.

I lift up my shirt, wiping the rest of the blood off my face with the inside of it while Reeve rushes over to the approaching campus security. Two guys who look like they’ve barely graduated walk up in full uniform, walkie-talkies in hand, concern etched in their eyes.

Reeve grins at them. “I’ll let President Erikson know all the gory details, don’t worry. Feel free to do your jobs and file a report, though—destruction of property, assault. Oh, and be sureto include that Eira Helian’s private security was at fault. You should already have his information on hand.”

They talk for a few minutes before Reeve motions for me to follow him. Shattered glass crunches beneath my feet as we pass stunned students and walk back to the dining hall. I don’t even care anymore if they see the white of my eyes, the frost just dying to get released.

Fucking Rowen. The rune line down my back throbs in time with my pulse—hot, cold, hot—like it heard the word “Jötunheim” and decided to wake up angry.

“Tea.” Reeve suddenly snaps his fingers after shoving me into a chair at an empty table. “Tea always calms the nerves.”

“I don’t want tea.”

“People are staring,” Reeve says through clenched teeth. “You’ll drink the damn tea and put a nice smile on your face like you don’t want to set fire to the school or rip Rowen apart limb by limb and add said limbs to the fire—stop smiling, stop that, it’s creepy. I’ll be right back with your tea. Think…nonviolent thoughts.”

Which means the minute he walks away, I think of Rey. Which leads to thinking about Rowen. Vicious stupid cycle, because now I’m focusing on the way she didn’t look back in class, which just tells me she knows where we’re going after tonight even if I don’t.

I need to accept what’s going to happen and, rather than fight it or try to overanalyze everything, open the door and let the storm in.

Chapter Fifty-Eight

Rey

Rowen’s been driving for maybe ten minutes, and this is the quietest I’ve ever seen him, let alone Eira and Ziva, who sit silently in the back seat. We’re headed to Sigurd’s for our end-of-first-week house party. Eira fidgets with her phone behind me, and I’ve seen Ziva open her mouth at least four times, then seemingly think better of it and close it. Rowen’s been stealing uncomfortable glances at me, like he knows I’m pissed.