Valkyrie Rising by Ingrid Paulson

Author:Ingrid Paulson [Paulson, Ingrid]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: General Fiction
ISBN: 9780062025722
Publisher: HarperTeen
Published: 2012-10-01T00:00:00+00:00

WHEN I RETURNED to my grandmother’s room, Tuck’s mouth was drawn into an uncharacteristically grim line. “How do we start, then?”

“Start?” I repeated numbly, feeling like a deer caught between headlights and a high-power rifle’s scope.

“It’s Valhalla or bust,” Tuck said, a spark of his usual fire flaring beneath his somber surface. “Until we wake up from this acid trip, I guess we play along? Please tell me your new Spidey senses will tell us what we do next.” He pointed at the alarm clock on Grandmother’s bedside table. “It’s midnight. Dawn on Thursday is barely more than a day away. Good news is, I’m fantastic under pressure.”

I’d never in my life been so grateful for Tuck. For his confidence—even when it defied logic. He looked like he was unraveling at the seams, but he was making a valiant effort to hold those edges together. And that was enough to snap me into gear.

Even though Grandmother had told us to wait here, there was no way we could obey. She hadn’t known Graham would be taken or that Loki would appear, claiming he knew her plan would fail.

“My grandmother would know—apparently she had quite a life before my father was born. Maybe we can find something that will point us in the right direction.” I glanced around the room, grasping for something that would point me in any direction.

A floorboard had been pried up at one corner. A thin metal rod was wedged underneath, propping up the wooden slat just enough that I could see beneath it.

“Tuck, c’mere,” I said as I tugged at the board, dislodging it the rest of the way. The nails made a stripping sound, like Velcro, as they were wrenched from the subfloor. Before Tuck had a chance to reach me, I’d already pushed the board aside to reveal a hidden compartment below.

Inside was a sword. It was ancient looking, with crude carvings along the blade and handle. They were difficult to make out underneath a layer of dust as thick as frosting, but at first glance, it almost looked like the engravings told a story—with scenes and characters arranged in panes like a stained-glass window.

I lifted it out of the concealed compartment, and a scrap of paper followed, fluttering to the ground at my feet, faceup. Grandmother’s handwriting was scrawled messily across the page in a rush. Judging by the torn edge, she’d ripped it hastily off the corner of a larger page.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.