Frost Bitten
Prologue
The room was quiet, or perhaps Sigyn was simply having trouble paying attention. That would have made the most sense. She couldn't get her mind to focus or her thoughts to clear long enough to able to digest all that had happened in the last handful of days…and finally all the answers – no, all the solutions – were in front of her, yet she had no access to them.
She tried hard to stay attentive to the men in front of her, watching them move and speak, despite still being unable to follow their flow of conversation. Though she didn't need to follow their thoughts to know where they were going…no, she knew well the blame they were placing on their prisoner. Each of these men had done terrible things in turn and now she was to ignore their flaws and sit in judgement of the one person she promised never to doubt? The feeling sat heavily in the pit of her stomach.
"Loki's mind is far afield. It is not just power he craves. It is vengeance, upon me. There's no pain would prise his need from him."
Thor was mistaken for there was at least one pain that Sigyn could imagine the twisted man would understand more than his brother would ever know. Her stomach churned even thinking about him, thinking of all the things her Loki had done. Thor threw a distinctive look her way at whatever the intimidating director had said. Sigyn again had not paid attention to their base, but the golden prince's gaze told her their meaning. "What are you asking me to do?"
"I'm asking 'what are you prepared to do?'" Nick Fury's one good eye landed on the tall woman standing uncomfortably between them. His steely gaze found her own, begging sensibility from her…but even her unrelenting honestly would not have been able to come up with an answer for him.
"Loki is a prisoner," she voiced, with a wavering tone that revealed her insecurities.
"Then why do I feel like he's the only person on this boat who wants to be here?"
Sigyn had no response for what she knew was the truth. No prison had ever held Loki in the past… Whatever would make her believe that this could hold him now? The humans were industrious, yes, this she knew, but no one was more determined than the man in that glass cage.
"We need to figure out what he wants," Agent Coulson's voice was smooth, but Sigyn could hear the growing lie that sat on the tip of his tongue, even if he had not yet spoken it. She nodded at the insinuation before they even need suggest it.
"Let me go," she offered, her voice stronger than before. No one was surprised by her words or her determination. In fact, this all seemed to comfort them. "It's time I have a word with my husband."