“And you think Loki wil give that to you?” Finn asked, and most of the sarcasm had falen away from his voice. He actualy wanted to know if I thought Loki was good for me.

“Yes, he wil,” I nodded.

“And how does your husband feel about al of this?” Finn asked.

“I don’t know exactly,” I said, purposely leaving out the part that I didn’t know how much Tove realy knew about Loki and me.

“But once everything is settled with the Vittra, Tove and I are getting our marriage annuled.”

“You’re leaving him for Loki?” Finn asked, and now he sounded astonished.

“No, actualy,” I said. “Tove is leaving me. He wants to share his life with someone he actualy loves, and that’s not me.” His whole body slacked, and he stared off at the floor. Finn ran a hand through his hair, and I realized with some dismay that I would never again run my fingers through his hair. Whatever had happened between Finn and me, it was over. He was no longer mine.

“I’m sorry,” Finn said quietly.

“Pardon?” I asked, thinking I’d heard him wrong.

“You’re right, and I’m sorry.” He looked up at me, his eyes stormy. “I never fought for you. If anything, I fought to uphold a system that kept me from you. And… I am sorry for that.” He swalowed. “I wil always regret that.”

“I’m sorry, too.” I bit my lip to keep tears from faling.

“But…” Finn sighed and looked away from me again. “At least he does love you.”

“What?” I asked.

“Loki.” He said his name bitterly and shook his head. “At first, I thought it was a trick, but I’ve been around him enough now and heard him talk about you.” Finn shifted his weight, seeming uncomfortable with the conversation. “And he does love you.” He nodded his head, but I’m not sure why. He let out a shaky breath, and I think he was trying not to cry.

“So… I guess I can live with that.” He rubbed his forehead.

“Now, if you’l excuse me, I have to go down to finish getting ready to leave.”

“Finn,” I said, because I didn’t want to end things like that.

“We can talk more later, if you want to, but we have too much to do now.” He didn’t look at me when he said that. In fact, he didn’t look at me at al when he left.

I wanted to say more to him, but he was right. We had to leave.

23. Time

Throughout the long drive, we said hardly anything. I rode with Tove, Loki, Duncan, and Wila, and the fear was almost palpable. I had no idea if we were doing the right thing. I sounded so confident when I talked to them, but that was because this was the best I could come up with.