Free Day of the Vikings. A Thriller. (ARKANE) by J.F. Penn Page A

the earth. She pulled out a slim metal box and held it to the sky, rain hammering down upon her uplifted arms.  
    “For you, Odin. Skelfr Yggdrasils askr standandi, ymr it aldna tré, en jötunn losnar ,” she called to the heavens. “Yggdrasil shakes, shiver on high the ancient limbs, and the giant is loose.”
    The triumph in her voice sent a shiver down Morgan’s spine. The words the Valkyrie spoke were from the Völuspá, a prophecy of the end times, heralding the battle known to the Vikings as Ragnarok.  
    The Valkyrie opened the box and her men gathered close behind her to look inside. The expression on their faces was one of wonder, and more than that, of visceral desire. Morgan had seen that look before, on the faces of those who saw the huge gems of the Jewel House in the Tower of London and coveted them. The Valkyrie lifted the object from the box and turned to the men, the lump of yellow rock in her hands. There was a fire inside the precious stone, a burning that turned its facets to gold even in the darkened world around. The raindrops seemed to bring it alive. Odin’s Eye was said to shine like the sun, and this rock looked to be a huge piece of rare yellow diamond, worth many millions. Morgan knew it would serve a darker purpose tonight.
    “We must go to the west for the summoning,” the Valkyrie said, looking up into the swirling clouds, eyes unblinking in the heavy rain. She indicated the injured man on the ground. “Bring him.”

Chapter 11

    MORGAN STEPPED BACK QUIETLY to hide in the shadow of the abbey as the Valkyrie and her men passed close by, dragging the moaning clergyman between them. The group entered a car and drove away into the rainy night. Morgan had checked the maps and seen the famous Bay at the Back of the Ocean, a wide west-facing sweep of white sand looking out across the sea to North America. It was just over the other side of the island, but too far to walk or run. She looked around the car park, spotting a mountain bike alongside a low fence. It wasn’t locked, as these islands hadn’t been a crime hotspot. Until tonight.
    Grabbing the bike, Morgan pedaled hard after the car toward the west of the island. The rain lashed down upon her, but she soon warmed as her breath came hard, heart beating fast with the exertion and apprehension of what was to come. Could the Valkyrie really summon the final destiny of the gods with the Eye of Odin?
    As she pedaled faster, rising to her feet to push hard up the hill, Morgan smiled, an almost manic excitement rising within her. In one sense, she had never felt so alone, with no backup, her partner Jake at the other end of the country, her family not even knowing what she was doing or where she was. But she also recognized that the thrill of the edge was what she constantly sought. It made her feel alive. If she should die here today, it would be with the grin of the berserker on her face, going to meet her fate laughing at the gods.
    At the crest of the hill, Morgan paused to catch her breath and, through the rain, saw the headlights of the car near the rocky headland. A mist was rising from the earth: the smell of wild thyme and the salty tang of the ocean spray hung fresh in the air. The sound of the waves on the beach could be heard beneath the thump of the rain, and the crackle of lightning burst through the charged air, the forked silver striking the rocks below.  
    She let the bike freewheel down the hill and then left it so she could continue on foot, creeping through the rocks at the edge of the bay, hiding behind one to peer through at the tableau.
    One of the Neo-Vikings pushed the clergyman to his knees on the rocks as the Valkyrie began to spin the staff, holding the Eye of Odin in her other hand. A shrill cawing filled the air. Morgan looked up to see a flock of dark birds, the ravens of the island, begin to fly in a circle in an eerie reflection of the movements below. The Valkyrie whirled the staff, weaving patterns in the