His haggard face twisted into a hopeless smile.
"How could we even escape this cell? And if we did, the whole city is swarming with armed warriors making ready. Never could we win past all the soldiers of Jotunheim to freedom."
"What will they do with us?" I pressed. "Why do they hold us instead of killing us?"
"I don't know," he muttered. "Be sure that Loki has some evil scheme in mind that will make use of us."
He staggered, and I hastened to help him to the hide couch, where he sat down weakly.
Frey's wounds in that battle in the cave had been serious ones. He had lost most of his unaging strength.
My own strength was rapidly returning. I had paced back and forth from door to window of the cell, racking my brain for some means of escape. There was none. Finally I gave it up and sat dully down beside Freya.
Hours must have passed as we sat in a heavy, hopeless silence. The Sun was setting through the slowly thickening mists of Jotunheim, casting a pale beam onto the stone floor. There was a rattle at the lock of our door. It opened, and a big, fierce-eyed Jotun captain stood glaring at us. Behind him were a dozen guards.
"You, outlander," said the captain to me. "Come with us. Our lord Loki would speak to you."
'What does Loki want with me?" I demanded, rising painfully to my feet.