FROST- Jotun Chronicles #1

Suspicions and Sandwiches

I’m used to waking up to the sound of birds chirping, or Dave singing in his off-key baritone in the shower. Instead, that morning I woke up to the dull repetitive thumping of someone’s headboard against the other side of the wall. I groaned and sat up, rubbing my gritty eyes, the room swimming blurrily into focus. I couldn’t have slept for more then four hours last night. I did not feel alert, or ready to face danger and espionage. Not in the least.

            I sighed, my stomach roiling uncomfortably as I shuffled over to the bathroom and stared at myself in the mirror. Everything was still the same. My hair was still three shades too light, my eyes too blue. Part of me dreaded going to see Erik, but mostly, I needed to know what the hell was going on. I was going to get answers today.

            The stream of hot water felt good, in spite of the hotel’s lousy water pressure, and I shut my eyes and let myself relax for a second. When I finally stepped carefully over the lip of the tub into the steamy exterior of the bathroom, I felt slightly more human. Only, isn’t that just hilarious? I guess I’m not human. I snorted, scrubbing at the condensation on the mirror, which did little but leave a trail of smears. Well, never mind makeup anyways. This wasn’t a beauty contest. I was going to meet a Frost giant for sandwiches. I groaned, even the thought sounded ridiculous.

            I was just struggling into my jeans when a low knock from nearby made me freeze. Was someone knocking on my door? Heart beating furiously, I stayed absolutely still, listening intently. A clicking sound, and then a voice murmured from next door. I let out a breath. It was the people next door, not someone knocking on my door. I grabbed one of my boots and started to yank it onto my right foot. A voice from the hallway, sounding slightly muffled said,

            “Hi, I’m Steven Wilkinson. I’m a private investigator working for the police.”

            I froze again, heart in my throat, chest tight. The voice continued, “We’re looking for a young girl. We think she may have been kidnapped. Now, we last traced her cell phone to this room. Do you mind if we take a look around?”

            My breath was coming in short, sharp gasps now. The person next door murmured something in a low voice I couldn’t hear, but they must have let the detective in, because heavy footsteps moved from the hall into the bedroom next to me. There was someone else looking for me now? A million confused thoughts raced through my head as I crouched there with one shoe on. Could my step parents have hired someone to come find me? That was possible. It was obvious that the cell phone tracers they’d used weren’t fool proof, since they were checking the room beside me. Perhaps they just picked up on a general area. Maybe he really was a cop.

Another possibility was that it was a Fire giant. I remembered Loki mentioning something about the Frost giants having a firm foothold in the police. It stood to reason that the Fire giants would too. So maybe this wasn’t a cop, maybe he was working for Loki’s people.

            Quietly I laced up my boot and began to stuff my foot into the other one. It probably wasn’t one of Erik’s people, since clearly; he was the one they’d sent. The guy next door was either a cop, or a Fire giant, and I didn’t want either one to find me.  Luckily I’d shoved all my stuff back into my bag right after my shower. I pulled the knit cap out of the bag and jammed it over my bright hair. Then I slipped my knap sack over one shoulder and hooked the strap of my purse onto the other. Creeping as quietly as I could to the door I paused to listen, hand on the door knob.

            The low voice of the detective was saying, “I hope you don’t mind. This is just a routine inspection. Do you mind if I check the bathroom?”