Playing With Fire (EDITING)

Devious Dealings

Loki began to laugh like a madman until I gripped my knife tighter and set the point against the bottom of his jaw near the neck. When the skin broke, he fell silent and met my eyes.

I lowered my voice and repeated my question. "What did you do to my father?"

He didn't respond. His expression didn't change even slightly. I knew he wasn't about to tell me any more.

Not too roughly, but hard enough to knock him out again, I slammed Loki's head against the stone floor. Immediately, he fell limp.

Silence filled the air so thickly it was disturbing. I was choking on a mixture of anger and confusion and truth. I felt like I'd been slapped. The only thought I could grab hold of in the tumult was that Loki was right. When I repeated it to myself, it began to echo in my head, gaining speed, volume, and ferocity. Loki was right.

Loki was right.

Loki was right. But how could he have known? How could he have found my father and stolen the information from him? But it wasn't just Papére, I realized. I'd never told my father about my time in the circus. None of the details as least. So how did Loki know?

I wanted to scream. I wanted to break down and throw a tantrum and scream at the unfairness of the world. Couldn't- for once in my life- couldn't my family just be safe and together? As long as I could remember, there had never been a time when Grandpére, my parents, Daniel and Han, and I had all been together. And if there had been a time like that, I was either too young to remember, or it had only been a very short time.

I could feel my hands shaking as I loosened the grip on my knife. No way Loki was getting away with this. If I had to, I was going to chain him up like a hound and force him to take me to my dad. Nothing was going to stop me now.

I rose to my feet and Doug leapt up to support me when my leg failed to do so. Megan and Kitty stood as well and Megan began to pace like she always does when thinking. Her iridescent wings fluttered sporadically, lifting her off the ground at times. Kitty leaned on the windowsill to stay out of the way, but I could tell she was thinking too.

While I waited for Loki to wake again, I motioned for Doug to help me out to the balcony surrounding the outer edge of the room. He agreed and adjusted his arm across my back. When we'd reached the protective railing, I turned and sat with my back to the mountains, looking out toward the ocean that dropped off into oblivion.

"We'll get him back," he said.

"Dang right we will. If anyone tries to stop me, I'll shoot them," I replied.

A half smile lit his face and he sat on the railing behind me, scanning the horizon. After a while, he pointed out over my right shoulder to the Bifrost on the drop-off. "That's the thing we came here through. Thor called it the Bifrost, the gate to the nine realms. The keeper, Heimdall, didn't like us all coming through without an invite."

He had asked no questions so I didn't answer. I didn't want to have story time and I didn't want to be reminded of the battle on the cliff that caused our trip to Asgard. I just wanted to go home.

"Lyrica?"

"Mm?"

"When Loki took you up to the room, what happened?"

"As Odin, we talked some, he offered me lunch, but then he shifted to Loki and we fought. We really weren't in the room long, it took awhile to get there."

"That's all?" he sounded skeptical.

"Oui. I promise nothing else happened. He's more long winded than people think he is."