Free Arctic Dawn (The Norse Chronicles Book 2) by Karissa Laurel Page B

Eight
    A fter an hour-and-a-half ride and a brief geography lesson from Baldur, I learned Helen’s warehouses were situated near the Mojave National Preserve, a federally owned wilderness composed of 1.6 million acres near the border of Nevada and Arizona.
    “That’s neato and all,” I said, “but why would Helen take Nina to some warehouses out on the edge of nowhere?”
    “It’s not an easy place to stumble on by accident or run away from on purpose,” Baldur said. “Desert for miles around. If you escaped, you might succumb to the elements before you lucked into an ATV or a hunter who was willing to help you out. It makes a good prison.”
    “It makes a good place for us to die without anyone noticing, too. I learned that lesson at Oneida Lake.”
    Speaking of the lake had the effect of naming an evil spirit. Everyone fell silent, and gooseflesh broke out on my arms. I wondered again about Skyla—where she was and if she was okay.
    “Seriously,” I said. “All you’re going to achieve by this is to gratify Helen’s desires. The only things waiting for you at the end of this road are empty hopes or a trap. Probably both.”
    Thorin slowed the SUV and turned it off the dirt path we had followed into the desert. The truck rolled to a stop behind a thatch of cacti and desert brush, and Thorin killed the engine and turned off the headlights.
    “We’ve considered all that,” Baldur said. His flashlight bobbed in my direction as he bailed out of the truck. “But it’s a chance we have to take. This is the first solid lead I’ve had on Nina in decades.”
    “You guys could be putting yourselves in danger—”
    “Solina, don’t worry,” Val said, cutting into my objection. “We know the risks. We’ll be smart about it.”
    Smart? Hardy har har . But I bit my tongue and took a fortifying breath. “Okay, what’s the plan?”
    Thorin grimaced. “It’s one thing to keep you close, Sunshine, and quite another to lead you into the heart of the lion’s den. Stay here, be safe, and if we don’t come back—”
    “Run for your life,” Val said.
    No valid reason existed for me to insist they take me along. Immortal blood did not flow through my veins. Some goals and schemes might have been worth the risk of losing my life, but walking into semiobvious traps laid by Helen was not one of them. “All right. I’ll wait here. But this is the part in the movie I always fast-forward through. I hate the anticipation.”
    Val squeezed my shoulder. “We’ll be back before you know it.”
    Thorin hung back as Val and Baldur started down the pathway. Without a word, he dangled the SUV keys before my face. I snatched them and stuffed them in my pocket. He winked at me, turned on his heel, and caught up with the others.
    The three men’s figures moved away from the truck and dissolved into the darkness. I climbed into the Yukon and pulled the door closed, making sure to lock it before stretching out across the bench seat. After a few minutes of staring up through the aptly named moon roof, my stomach growled, and I cursed myself for not having asked for a food stop on the way. I had eaten nothing since… I couldn’t remember, exactly. The ghost of a low-blood-sugar headache haunted my temples. When the scheme ended, if we all lived through it, I intended to insist on a burger stand or a taco truck or a freaking 7-Eleven hot dog, even if it meant we had to drive all the way back to Vegas to get it.
    “Solina, wake up!” Val pounded on my window and jolted me from my daze.
    I hadn’t slept—too much worry kept me from dozing off—but I had zoned out, staring into the sky, looking at the moon and thinking of Mani and tacos.
    “Solina!”
    I popped the lock, and Val flung open the door. “What happened?” I scrubbed my eyes and peered into the darkness behind him. “Where is everybody?”
    “It’s gone to hell.” Val scrambled into the driver’s seat. He riffled through the glove box and flipped down the