ENTANGLED (#2 The Valkyries)

Chapter 17 - Tracking A Lead

The bifrost deposited us on the road outside Triton and Arachne's Malibu home. Yet, the few hours on Asgard had been a full day on Litaui. A rare summer rain had fallen, soaking the heated pavement. Smoke scented the air, and I turned to the distant hills, frowning at the glow on the horizon.

"Is that a forest fire?" Kara asked, also looking into the distance.

Thor scowled. "Humans continue to ignore the changes in their climate that they've caused with their pollution."

I sighed. "I know, Thor. The oceans are a mess. The Atlanteans and I do what we can for the current sea life, but we can't just clean it up or they won't learn."

Together, we walked up the brick driveway to the massive glass and steel modern mansion, an update from the previous home that I'd visited in the past. But then, Triton and Arachne had always been very good at reinventing themselves and keeping pace with human culture. Kara gave us a little grin, then pounded on the elaborate silver and glass door, ignoring the doorbell and communication intercom.

I bit my lip. Yeah, Kara obviously knew exactly how to piss off Mist's parents and she wasn't holding back. Again, she pounded on the door, rattling the sturdy metal in its frame.

Thor's eyebrow rose and he pointed at the doorbell. "There's a—"

"Nope." Kara pounded a third time and the door was yanked open by a scowling Triton.

"What the hell, Artemis? You've been on Asgard so long you don't know a doorbell when you see one?"

Thor covered his smile as Kara pushed past Triton to enter the house and we followed.

"It's Kara now," she told him as he looked between the three of us.

Triton's gaze shifted back and forth between us, his brow furrowing in confusion. "Why are you here? Did you find Mist?" The hint of worry in his tone had me shaking my head.

"No. We need you to contact Nabu," Thor said, crossing his arms and glaring at Triton.

Triton's eyes widened. "I... uh... I don't."

Thor's eyes turned from a peaceful blue to a churning sea of dark clouds lit from within by electric flashes. A crack of thunder boomed outside the house.

Triton held a hand up, backing away. "I'm... I'm sorry, my prince. I don't... I don't have a way to contact Nabu."

Lightning crackled outside the windows as black clouds surrounded the house. Thunder shook the panes of glass with a deep rumble.

"Unless you want me to wipe this house off this bluff and into the ocean, you will find a way, Triton," Thor growled, following Triton down the hall.

Triton blanched and fumbled with a door knob, shoving the heavy oak door open. "Maybe... maybe I could make a few calls and see if I can track him down."

We followed him into his office where he picked up his gleaming black and silver cellphone from the polished oak desk, his hand betraying a slight tremor. Amber liquid sat in a tumbler, the base of the glass a spider's web of cracks as the single cube of ice within melted. An open laptop, covered in scratches and scuffs, sat in the desk's centre, the screen flashing ads and stock market updates. 

I took a seat on the black leather couch in the corner of the room while Triton made his first phone call, Thor practically breathing down his neck with a hip against the desk and massive arms crossed. Kara investigated the bar in the corner, poured each of us a drink, and after giving Thor his, she sank down beside me and handed me a glass.

Triton hung up and tried another person, starting to pace back and forth in front of the windows.

"How long do you think it will take?" Kara asked, her voice low as we watched Triton.

"Too fucking long," I growled, tossing the drink back and trying to not shatter the glass.

We sat in silence, the only sounds in the room being Triton's muffled voice on the phone and the occasional crackle of thunder that shook the windows.

The antique clock over the fireplace mantle seemed to tick louder and louder with each moment that passed. Unable to sit any longer, I rose to pace. We needed Nabu to help us find Mist before it was too late. Before she ended up like... I tried to push away the thoughts of what might have happened to Mist, but another face lingered in the back of my mind, haunting me. Surely, the past wasn't repeating itself.

On my next circle of the room, I stopped at the floor-to-ceiling windows, staring down at the churning waves crashing onto the beach and rocky shoreline. The tide was in and Thor's storm had whipped the water into a frenzy that sent salty spray high into the air with every impact. Relentless, powerful, majestic. I fed my anxiety into the ocean's embrace, wishing I was down amongst its swirling form.

Finally, after what felt like hours, Triton hung up the phone and set it on the desk with an audible clunk had me turning away from the water's pull.

Triton slid a hand through his hair, brushing the blond strands away from his forehead. "I've made contact with an associate of Nabu's. He's tracking him down now."

I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding as Thor nodded in approval.