Page 21 of A Shield Maiden's Earl
“Again, thank you for this impressive boat,” I said dutifully. “I’ve never been so honored.” Tilting my head in question, I issued him a hopeful smile. “Might we visit with your people now?”
“I would like that,” he said readily enough. “I’m sure they would like that a great deal, too.”
Grateful that he didn’t seem put off by my pulling away and avoiding intimacy, we continued enjoying a pleasant day together. Sometimes he was with me, and other times, away to attend to one thing or another, but he always returned with awarm smile. Moreover, despite enjoying having more time with people today than last night, I found myself looking forward to him returning to my side.
That sensation only grew over the next few weeks as I settled into my new home and role as the earl’s wife, getting to know my new tribe on a more personal level while they went about their daily tasks. Although Brynhild and I grew closer, Ivar remained distant and clipped with me.
“You just need to give him time,” Brynhild counseled one blustery afternoon after Ivar scowled at me for no apparent reason and stomped along like the beast I had started calling him in my mind. “His disposition has been foul of late, and he has long been protective of Soren. Since they were young lads.”
“Yet what harm have I done Soren that would make Ivar dislike me so?” I frowned as we strolled in woodland near the stronghold, checking the growth of trees for shipbuilding. “And why is his disposition fouler than it once was?”
“While he claims you were at fault for bringing illness to our tribe years ago, I suspect he knows better,” she said. “Not only did many on your boats fall ill, but sickness was sweeping the countryside anyway, so ’twould have touched us eventually.”
Although sad things went as they had, I was practical enough to know she was right.
“I think Ivar’s disposition toward you has more to do with Soren,” Brynhild went on. “You must understand, ’twas not easy for him seeing you leave after your illness, given the bond he’d thought you two forged. Then to have your hand in marriage rejected years later.” She shook her head. “He didn’t take it well, and ’twas Ivar who saw him through both instances.”
“And does Ivar know I had no choice in both cases?”
“No doubt he does, but that makes little difference until he feels you won’t find a way to break Soren’s heart again.” She sighed and pulled her gray fur cloak tighter around her againstthe wind. “And as I said, his foul mood in general doesn’t help things any. He’s grown more worried about our country lately and the changes that are undoubtedly coming.”
A strange sense of forbidding rolled through me. Could these changes be related to the crack in my boat? Might they somehow separate me and Soren once more?
When I looked at her in question, she went on.
“There is talk of strife in Scotland,” she revealed. “’Tis said they revolt against the last of our presence there, and battling lies ahead.”
That alarmed me on several fronts, given that my sister, Astrid, was in Scotland, and Soren and his tribe were renowned for their battle prowess.
No fool, I did not need to ask what that might mean. “So, our king could very well call on Soren and his warriors.”
“’Tis a possibility,” Brynhild confirmed. “’Twill depend on several factors, I imagine.”
“Ja,” I murmured, looking to the south. “This stronghold is positioned well for a swift journey past the Hebrides and advantageous approach from the north to the western shores of Scotland.”
“’Tis,” Brynhild concurred, her voice gentler than it had been moments before, without doubt because I wore my troubled emotions on my face, but my soul stirred in warning at this news. If the crack in my boat was not alarming enough, Soren wasn’t just renowned for his battle skills, but also for ships built to withstand any storm, making him and his tribe a good choice to call upon. Now, having seen them and knowing their overseer and builder firsthand, I agreed.
Yet some weather was sent by the gods, and some ships were meant to sink, no matter how well built. I could only pray they were not our ships and my husband was not at the helm.
“And what word of the Norse still in Scotland?” I asked. “Those like my sister sent to garner good relations and mayhap make an advantageous marriage to keep things amicable betwixt the people.”
“I have heard nothing of them.” She looked at me with the tenderness a mother might. “Yet if I do, I will tell you straight away, even though I’m sure Soren will before it even reaches my ears.”
“Despite not telling me any of this to begin with,” I murmured. “No, I’m not sure he will.”
“If you ask,ja, he will,” she said. “If you have learned anything else since arriving, ’tis surely how much he cares about you. How much he longs for you to find peace and happiness by his side.”
Our conversation ended after that because Brynhild was called away, leaving me to my own thoughts, and every one of them only saw an unpredictable future on mine and Soren’s horizon. A fate that was indeed full of change, leading to fear not just for my new husband but also for my sister in Scotland.
So I was grateful for the distraction when I came upon warriors practicing their skills in the large clearing outside the main lodge. Slick with mud from rain the night before, the ground was more challenging for fighting, much to my pleasure, even if I could only observe for now.
Assessing the men and women alike who fought in individual battles, I could admit to being impressed if not envious, and it seemed Soren saw that as he joined me.
“Would you like to practice as well, shield-maiden?” he wondered, yet again surprising me, considering my father would have forbidden it, and I said so. While tempted for a moment not to, I had come to respect Soren a great deal, and I would not have him break his word.
“My word was to accept your shield and blade and not let you travel to distant lands and battle.” The corner of his mouth inched up, and he seemed to dare me. “Nothing was said about you fighting here within this tribe.” He shrugged. “Besides, as a warrior in your own right who might someday need to protect your people, I would see you practice regularly.”
My heart leapt with excitement at the thought of wielding a blade against someone again after all these years. “Yet, I’m not dressed properly, nor do I have my shield and blade in hand.”
