TRO: THE ELSKER SAGA, BOOK THREE

Chapter 1

Thundering footsteps announced the giants' entry. They crossed the room with angry shouts. The language was foreign but the sentiment translated easily enough. A few more seconds, and I would be deader than a doornail.

My blistered palm wrapped around my grandmother's necklace as I squeezed my eyes shut. I drew on my happiest memory of my sinfully gorgeous husband, Ull. Just that morning he'd stood at the altar of the little church in Cardiff. He'd been the most beautiful creature I'd ever laid eyes on, watching me walk up the aisle with near-worshipful eyes. The smile playing on his lips and the gratitude in his gaze were images I'd remember for the rest of my existence—no matter how short it might be. The footsteps stopped just beyond my reach, and I knew the guards had found me. It was only a matter of time before they ripped down the curtains and eliminated the threat.

Hopefully, it would be over quickly. Pain had always been my undoing.

The silver replica of Thor's hammer began to warm in my hand, and I opened my eyes. Beams of light radiated from between my fingers in bright flashes. They were sure to give away my location, but I didn't care. I knew exactly what was happening.

It was taking me home.

I squeezed my necklace as the guards tore down the curtains. The beams increased in intensity, striking the guards in the chest and throwing them back. The angry giantess stormed across the room, hands outstretched and ready to strike. Before she could reach me, I was sucked into the air, my insides churning under the unbearable pressure as I hurtled through darkness. My bones felt like they might rip clear out of my body, and the pounding in my head was so insistent I danced precariously along the edge of consciousness. Just before I could pass out, I remembered the note. I tore it from my pocket as I hurtled through space, determined to see its contents before I woke up from this bizarre vision. My gut told me the scene I was in was old; I was intruding on a nightmare from a long ago past. And I had a feeling I'd need to know what that note said in order to protect our future.

The paper shook in my hands as I strained to make out the words. This prophecy would spell the fate of the three babies. It would explain why their giantess mother was overjoyed at its news; and why my very presence had driven her to a rage. Whatever it was, whatever their fates, my gut told me the prophecy and those children had deep ties to my new family.

I unfolded the note. Hastily scrawled letters told the future of the three newborns from the nursery. The prophecy marked a new beginning that necessitated a violent end. It contained only two words.

End Asgard.

I closed my eyes as the bile rose thick in my throat. And then I was consumed by darkness.

"Sweetheart. Wake up." The voice in my ear was soft yet commanding; the words managed to be both a plea and an order. My eyelids fluttered, and I buried my face against the warmth beside me. It smelled of earth, and pine.

It smelled like home.

"Wake up now, Kristia." The warmth moved away from my cheek, and when I dragged my eyes open I found myself cradled in strong arms. The magnificent blond deity looking down at me had a furrowed brow, set jaw, and the perma-stubble that was so characteristically Ull. Even on his wedding day, he couldn't bring himself to shave.

"Hi," I murmured as I rubbed the sleep from my lids. All thoughts of my nightmare were instantly forgotten as I lost myself in my brand-spankin'-new husband's endless blue eyes.

"Hi yourself." Ull brushed a lock of hair off my face and lifted me so I was positioned tightly against him. "Must have been some dream."

"Hmm?" I dragged myself away from the whirlpool that was Ull's gaze, and absorbed my surroundings. Opulent couches equipped with seatbelts, a small table holding half-empty champagne flutes, and an entertainment unit that would rival my fantasy of a Hollywood screening room. Asgard's private jet was equal parts elegance and comfort, and right now it was barreling toward the mysterious destination where Ull and I would spend the first night of our married life.