Shelly Laurenston - Shelly Laurenston

Her bedroom door swung open before he could open it and Janelle stood there in her Giants NFL jersey and oversized sweatpants.

“What the fuck is going on?” She looked at him. “And what the fuck are you doing here?”

He smiled. “I have no idea.”

The son of a bitch is laughing at me. Arri was sure her head would explode. I’ll kill him!

Her wings snapped from her back and her talons suddenly extended from her fingers. She had those talons almost on Mike’s face when Janelle caught her in mid-‐air.

“Arri, no!”

“You are a disgusting, ugly-‐colored scumbag!”

He pulled on his jeans and struggled into his boots while staring at her. “I have absolutely no idea what that even means, but trust me, princess. If anything had happened, you wouldn’t be in your underwear.”

Well, what the hell did that mean?

Now she really wanted him dead, but Janelle wouldn’t let her go.

Fine. She had other skills at her disposal now. She started a chant, but Janelle slapped her hand over her mouth.

“Get out of here, Mike! Right now!”

“I’m gone.” Liar-‐Mike Molinski leered at her. “So long, princess. I’m assuming it was fun.”

She fought Janelle harder as Mike, ignoring the growing number of Crows standing in the hallway, slipped out of her bedroom and hopefully out of her life forever.

But somehow she knew better.

Janelle released her. “Jesus, kid! Are you okay? I’ve never seen you like this.”

“I hate him!”

Janelle took a step away from her. “I’ll get you some tea and make sure he’s gone. I’ll be right back.” Once in the hallway, Janelle ordered the other Crows to go back to their rooms.

Suddenly exhausted, Arri sat on her bed. She retracted her talons but winced at the intense burning pain coming from the palm of her left hand.

Horror, cold and brutal, swept over her as she stared down at the rune freshly branded into her flesh. It wasn’t Skuld’s rune. This rune, the Hagalaz, belonged to another god. Hella of Helheim. Goddess of the Dead and Queen of the Underworld.

Arri had no idea how she got this or why, but she knew Molinski was behind it.

He had to be. And she’d get the truth out of him, even if she had to beat the living Helheim out of him…well, more likely she’d ask Janelle to do it.

But someone would be beating Liar-‐Mike Molinski within an inch of his life, if she had to bring hell on earth to make it happen.

Then, with that last thought swirling around her brain, little Arri Chang burst into tears.

End.