A Wolf's Tale: Book One in the Loki's Brood Series

By Valerie Bruce

If you were chained down with unbreakable chains and rarely fed, never pitied, never spoken to, what would you feel? If your sister was bound to a world of ice and the dead with only sorrow and hunger as pastimes, what would you think? If your brother was thrown into the sea to die, what would your reaction be? If your father was spoken of in sneers when he’d sacrificed himself to save others by eating the blackest of hearts, then treated like a criminal because that darkness slowly began to take him over, what would you do?
You'd rebel.

Ragnarok ended centuries ago. But the repercussions of it are still felt by Loki's brood. Banished to Midgard in human form, they were set to guard humanity as a punishment for their actions against the gods.

In the modern world, they are very different than the stories of old cast them.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Valerie Bruce
• Release date: Apr 23, 2011
• ISBN: 9781458117908

Book preview

A Wolf’s Tale: Book One of the Loki’s Brood Series

Valerie Bruce

©12/16/09 by Valerie Bruce

Smashwords edition

Prologue

And so it was that the skies turned black over the world of men. For three days and nights the Earth shook, the seas churned and no light was to be found. High above the world of mortals, a war among the gods raged.

But in the end, little changed for the gods do not die. Not even by the hands of other gods. It was after the Great War that three of the perpetrators, the three deemed to be the most dangerous demi-gods ever born, were banished to the world of mortals in human form.

The three were, Jormun, the Midgard serpent, large enough to circle the seas and more poisonous than any living thing. Fenrir, the World Wolf, twenty times the size of any normal wolf and more deadly than any pack had ever been. Finally, Hel, called the Queen of the Dead as all who died of any cause aside from battle was taken to her door.

They were to be allowed no contact with one another without a mediator present to be certain they would never again attempt the bloodshed that had been wrought in Asgard. Their full powers only to be called upon when the Wyrd sisters allowed it and had need of them.

With that sentence, one family was torn to pieces.

It was Fenrir who first set out for lands away from his birth. With no familial contact to bind him to any one place, he began to wander the world at large. He roamed from place to place, gaining a reputation as a fighter and wild mercenary. But a wolf without a pack is usually a wolf doomed and so he was for a time.

Until one night when he was roaming the wastelands of Russia. The bitter cold finally draining all energy from the small, human body he was forced to inhabit. It was face down in the ice and snow that the werewolf god, Volos found him and brought him into the packs. But that was a millennium ago.

In the modern world, Fenrir is someone very different.

Chapter 1

Fen almost turned around when he felt someone staring at his back in the courtroom. It was not an unusual phenomenon, all things considered. He had to suppose he did look odd for a lawyer, with his blond hair trailing down his back, but this was different. This gaze carried power. He finally glanced over one shoulder and when he spotted the person watching him he knew why he felt the heavy weight of a powerful being pressing on him. His sister, Hel sat in the back of the room, her expression clearly stating We need to talk. He sighed heavily. When the Queen of the Dead sought him out in court and wanted to talk it was never a good thing. The fact that she was there in person was a minor miracle considering the Sisters had decreed none of his family be in the same physical space without supervision. He shrugged. Start one little war with the gods and this is what they’d gotten out of it. Physically free but chained in so many other ways he didn’t care to count because it would piss him off.

After the judge ruled on the case, he put all of his paperwork into his briefcase and turned to find his sister at his elbow.

How bad is it? he asked through clenched teeth.

If I’m allowed to come and physically talk to you, what do you think? she said in a low voice so only he could hear.

That’s what I was afraid of. Come on, I think one of the briefing rooms is empty, he said, taking her by the arm and steering her past his leering colleague. He shrugged. His sister really was beautiful, any idiot could see that. He barely suppressed the chuckle as he knew his coworker was still staring at her. She’d eat him alive. If he was very, very lucky.

They walked several doors down from the courtroom and Fen pushed the door to the briefing room open and let her inside before following.

I’ll ask what’s going on in a minute but first things first, he said, hugging her so tightly it would have crushed a lesser being. Gods, I miss you and Jory so damn much.

We miss you too, she said, hanging on to his waist just as tightly.

This sucks! I know that’s stunningly ineloquent for a lawyer to say but I don’t care.

Yes, it certainly does, she said, pulling back to look up at him. Before you ask, it isn’t anything to do with our family, thank all the gods above and below for that.

"Doubtlessly. So, what is going on? It has to be epic and it has to be bad if they sent you to talk to me," he asked, ruffling her already unruly mop of blood colored curls.

It is. There have been several disturbances in the Weave lately, she began.

So? There are always disturbances in the Weave. Humanity’s inclination to war alone is enough to rip it apart a thousand times in a day.

True. However, that isn’t the problem. This is weird and moving faster than any war mortals could start. Even the Sisters can’t pin it down and that has everyone worried.

Fen nodded. As well it should. What do they want me to do?

They want you to figure out what’s happening. They also want you to talk to Mirelle, she said, cringing as the words left her.

Why? Fen asked, eyes narrowing and teeth baring. The Sisters had to be doing this on purpose because they knew he loathed Mirelle more than any undead being on the planet. That was only because she’d tried a million different ways to force him into some sort of sordid alliance with her. Even after he’d firmly told her he wasn’t interested and wouldn’t be if she was the last female life form on Earth. Unfortunately, like most vampires, she didn’t seem to understand the word no. Well, she understood it but he was fairly certain she ignored it.

Because she’s the oldest and most connected out of all of them. She’s more likely to know what’s going on than anyone else would be. Plus you’re the only one she’ll agree to talk to.

Of course, he growled. Hope they don’t mind if I stake her head on a pike after I get information from her. Any other little minor favors they might enjoy? Like my balls in an omelet for them?

She snorted back a laugh. I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t think that was appetizing. Sorry. They want you to talk to Regina too but that’s no great hardship.

No, that isn’t. I need to check on her and the pups anyway. She had a rough delivery and I don’t like that someone’s been trying to kill her for the last year and a half.

I’m sure she’s probably not wild about it either, Fen.

Probably not.

And someone has been trying to kill her in some way or another since she became the Alpha for the packs, Hel pointed out.

I never could understand that. She’s a fabulous Alpha. Volos himself couldn’t have asked for a better leader of his packs. I hate politics and posturing. See, this is why I love my day job. For the most part, the evidence speaks for itself and I can leave all the extra nonsense at the office. When do they want this done?

Sooner rather than later I’m guessing.

This just gets better and better, he said, rubbing the back of his neck. Fine. I’ll clear my case load and leave Monday. That’s the best I can do. If they don’t like it, too bad. They can get over it.

In about a million years, she said.

They’ve been pissed at us for millennia now, he said with a sigh and shake of his head. What’s a few more?"

Chapter 2

Fen resisted the urge to snarl at everyone and everything for the rest of the day. He foisted off the major and immediate cases to his colleagues, claiming family emergency. Thank the gods he was a partner in the firm so no one complained too much, not that he cared in the slightest if they did complain. The weekend passed faster than he liked and Monday seemed to come upon him before he could blink.

He packed everything he would need for the trip and made his way to his private plane. Not that he would need it once he got to his destination but it was nice to have the luxury. It was guaranteed he’d be tired as all hell when he got there not to mention freezing his butt off. Siberia tended to do that to a body. Any and every body. But Regina would make sure he had a good tankard of mead, an excellent meal and a warm fire to sit by so he had only minimal worries on that score.

Thirty six hours and very little sleep later, the plane landed on a private airstrip smack in the middle of Siberia. He sent the pilot off to get something to eat and rest at the tiny bed and breakfast just off the airstrip that was specifically designed to cater to non pack members.

He waited until the man was inside before shifting into his normal form. Bones popped and cracked as they shifted and he took a deep breath of the cold air as his body expanded to more than fifteen times his human size. He shook himself and took off at a sprint. The ground trembled under him as massive paws found purchase on the ice and snow. It felt so good to run, he thought. To