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"You tracked in snow," she said, not turning around She was sitting at her desk, acting completely entranced by what appeared to be so when I studied? "How can you even tell?"

"Take off your shoes," she said irumbled, but still, I leaned over to free h winter boots They looked cool, especially when paired with s would probably look cool paired with a navy blue catsuit--but all those laces were a supres off

Wriggling ?"

She gave a torh "The Poetic Edda You probably haven’t heard of it"

As hard as I tried to break the ice, Frost insisted on being a little snot with me Emma had been her roo Frost--and Frost begrudged me her death Did anyone not hate me for that?

Actually, there were two on this island who knew I’d donehomicidal teen I appeared to be Ronan, and of course, Carden

Where was Carden? I needed hie to feed I needed to lean in to hiether, the sense that I could finally relax and stop looking over my shoulder for just…one…second

"The Edda is the preend," Frost went on I hadn’t responded to her earlier ding, and apparently she was anxious tothrough the Niflung Cycle"

"Already read it" I couldn’t resist my reply Frost’s real problem wasn’t that Emma had been killed--it was that she wasn’t the only sned to turn in her chair to peer at inal Old Norse I iined I wanted to s you with that?" The creepy old Viking vamp had chosen her as his teacher’s pet, and I couldn’t resist any opportunity to goad her about it

"Master Dagursson says I’ would say anything for a little female attention," I snapped back Fine, so maybe I didn’t want to admit that possibly it killed s over and began to pullback out" If Carden wasn’t going to coo in search of him

"But it’s alirl really needed to learn to relax "Don’t worry, Mo into a weird position in her chair "Don’t call h boots, and as I did, I wondered what nerve I’d just hit "Not big on the faht of my own , leavingbut an abusive father and a tattered old photograph of her younger self I’d fled the dad part of that equation but treasuredI’d done of soraffiti The vampires had confiscated the photo once already, but so it to me at the end of last terain I had the feeling that neither the photo nor I would survive if the vampires were to realize it was back in my possession, not to h people had suffered for their kind gestures on , I didn’t kno vas, and I didn’t want to test the notion, so I’d tucked that away, too, though I needed to do a better job of hiding my stash I had plans to build a secret panel behind one ofFrost out of the room so I could construct it

"I have a new fahts

"Good luck with that" I’d thought I could create a new family for myself, but my friends had all either died or, in the case of Yasuo, turned from me So many people I cared for had disappeared from my life--one day there, the next…poof

I stood I needed a friendly face I needed Carden The wet suede of my boots was cold and uncoet out of there

But then I flung open the door, and there he was My glorious, beautiful valittered in his strawberry-blond hair, like he’d hiked through snow-covered trees to reach s to showcase those strong shoulders,him look extra manly, like he was ready for soed with relief So I hadn’t knoas tensed, loosened I shuddered in a sigh, realizing only then how shallow my breaths had been How tense my chest and neck

I breathed his name "Carden"

CHAPTER FIVE

I stood frozen--how to react? I wanted to flingat my back I couldn’t let her discover that Carden and I had bonded I opened , when I heardthe floor

"Master McCloud" She’d hopped to her feet, and the words snapped froht we serve you?"

I snorted, then quickly covered ht we serve you? Je-sus

I looked to Carden, wanting to share a bemused eye roll, but his attention was pinned on Frost The irises of his eyes had widened, and when he spoke, his voice was a hollow rumble "You will don your coat"