Free Giants of the Frost by Kim Wilkins Page B

Arvak's dark flanks glistened in the half-light as Vidar led him outside. Rain had blown in again, the sky stained with night and clouds.
    "Vidar? Where are you going?" Aud stood at the door, her hair loose, her expression sleepy.
    "I'm going to see Loki."
    Realization spread across her face. "He'll be asleep," she warned. "You should wait a few hours."
    "I'll wake him up." Without a backward glance, Vidar mounted and spurred Arvak toward the east, toward Loki and the pale sunlight struggling through clouds.

Chapter Six

    Every time Aud approached Vidar to ask for a day to herself, he always agreed. "Of course, Aud," he would say, dark eyes crinkling at the corners. "Take your time, do as you please." And yet, she always felt uneasy about asking. Was it because, secretly, she wanted him to protest her absence? Was every request for time away from him laden with hope that he might reveal some trace of affection in his answer?
    Sometimes she returned in the early hours of the following morning, long after he had gone to sleep. On those occasions he would wake, ask if she was well and safe, then return to his slumber. He never asked where she had been. Was he too respectful of her privacy to ask or too indifferent to her actions to care?
    Vidar had returned from Loki's late in the morning. He had never been more attractive, with a wild gleam in his dark eyes, a flush of color high on his cheeks. Clearly, he had decided to go to Midgard and to ask Loki for assistance. She longed to know what attracted him to the mortal world. His restlessness had started around the time she had seen him drawing runes in the magical water of Sjáfjord. He had seen something there, something that beckoned him compellingly enough to put his trust in Loki. Now she watched Vidar from behind her door. He sat by the fire, carving a small piece of wood. His expert hands were concentrated on the task, but his eyes told another story. He was daydreaming. She watched his fingers move, the tendons in his wrists, and a swelling of tenderness and desire for him caught her breath.
    "Aud, I can feel your eyes on me," he said, not looking up. "Is something wrong?"
    "No, no." She stepped out of her room and hovered uncertainly near him. "I had hoped for a day to myself. To walk…" She gestured toward the west.
    He turned from his work and smiled at her. "Of course, Aud. Take your time. Gather your thoughts." Aud slipped on her shoes and pinned on her cloak. She hesitated near the door to the cool outside and glanced back. He had returned his attention to his carving. She could see now what it was: a bird, curved over itself to grasp its own K claws in its beak. Beautiful work, lovingly rendered. Was it a gift for her? A flutter of excitement stole over her. He looked up again, saw her gaze and hid the carving under his sleeve. "Go on. Enjoy your day."
    "Do you never wonder, Vidar, where I go?"
    With a patient sigh, Vidar put his work aside and turned to her. "Aud, I have given you every reason in the past few years to trust me. You've been sentenced into my service, but I feel no need to belittle you, to mistreat you, or interfere in your affairs. I am happy for you to take a day for yourself and I don't mind how you spend it."
    Aud moved forward and knelt before him. "Yes, yes. You're always kind and respectful. But do you not wonder where I go and what I do?" She wanted to ask, "Do you not think of me when I am away?"
    "You head west," Vidar said, his dark eyes growing soft. "I have seen you. You head toward Vanaheim." He stood, drawing her to her feet. "Go, Aud. I will enjoy the solitude." He led her toward the door and ushered her into the cold bright morning and on her way. So he thought she went to Vanaheim. He knew she was forbidden to return to her own land, so perhaps he imagined she lingered pitifully on the border. She trudged up the slope. He was partially right in that her destination was the border of Asgard and Vanaheim, but not so that she might