Tracked: A Valkyrie Saga Book 2

Chapter 16 - A Plan for Retribution

A young and powerful Valkyrie female had been found in the Americas. She doesn't yet have a backing of an influential royal family. This is the chance we have been waiting for. She could change everything for us. We must act soon. If we take her now, before she integrates into a clan it will be easier to assimilate her into our way of life.

--Alexei Vassiliev, King of the Kingdom of Russia

The sun had set before Derik and I made our way back to the house. The moment Derik and I got up from our spot on the forest floor, I sought out the twins and didn't hesitate to walk over to them. My nerves were shot and I felt better with them by my side. They didn't complain and I hoped they wouldn't mind if I was a little needy the next couple of days.

Once I was by their side, I didn't know what to do next and I could feel the palpable tension in the air. I knew that they were all waiting for me to have another freakout but honestly, I was too drained. My mind was fuzzy and I was fully embracing the numb sensations I was experiencing. I knew it wasn't going to last, but right now I just needed some time to recuperate. I think the guys understood because they were completely fine hunkering down in the house with me.

We ended up on the couch with me sitting between the twins and Max leaning against my legs while watching some sort of mindless cooking show. I honestly wasn't paying attention and instead found myself drifting into an uneasy sleep even though I had taken a nap just a little while ago. Feeling that much pain, having that much adrenaline surging through my system, and getting healed to such an extent had really taken it out of me. I should know, this wasn't the first time I had the shit beat out of me. It had been years, and it had always been in the ring but the physical pain had felt the same. At least this time Max was able to heal me better than the healing potions that my father used to feed me.

The third time that I jolted awake with my body awash in panic, I noticed that Mathis was kneeling in front of the couch and his face was contorted in anguish. I focused on his emotion-filled eyes to push away the memories and recenter myself. I was surprised to see that it was him and not one of the guys trying to calm me down this time. I didn't fully know how to describe the budding relationship that I had with my grandfather, but I did feel like it was changing on a daily basis.

The first couple of days that I interacted with Mathis, he constantly reminded me of my father and he had been quick to anger and frustration. But a couple of days ago, it felt like most of his anger towards me had morphed into something closer to understanding and compassion. He was still strict with me when I pushed back about certain Valkyrie customs, but I could no longer see my father staring back at me when I looked into Mathis' eyes. Instead, I saw someone who genuinely cared for me but didn't necessarily know how to express it.

Right now I could only see bone-deep worry in his color contact covered eyes.

Once I had my breathing under control and was no longer trapped in a flashback, Mathis reached out and gently cupped my cheek with his palm. The cool sensations of the familial bond radiated out from his palm and a deep sense of peace seeped into my skin. I had never felt anything like the quiet assurance of unconditional love and protection that a family member could offer and couldn't help when my body pressed more firmly into his touch.

My father had seen me in this much or even more pain on countless occasions as I was growing up, and never once offered me this type of reassurance. This was the moment when I started to understand that Derik had been right. Just because Mathis had raised my father, didn't mean that they were the same. Mathis was different from Samuel because of the simple fact that he was capable of love and kindness. More importantly, he was offering me those things without asking for anything in return.