Page 44 of A Shield Maiden's Earl
Though I thought for a moment I dreamt once more, when I stirred awake and opened my eyes, it was to her beautiful face. To her loving amber eyes gazing down at me.
“Are you truly here this time?” I whispered.
“Ja.” She smiled and cupped my cheek. “As are you now.”
Tilting my cheek into her warm hand, I knew this was real. My deathbed nightmares were behind me, and the little girl with red hair had brought me back to her.
And it warmed my heart because I finally understood who she was.
I met Freya’s smile. “We have a daughter on the way,ja?”
“We do.” She didn’t seem surprised that I knew, despite not having told me. “She was with me when I called you back to me, and you spoke of her within your fevered state.”
While that pleased me greatly, my pleasure was short-lived when I became aware of our surroundings and realized where I was. Worse yet, where Freya and my daughter were.
“’Tis unsafe here,” I exclaimed, sitting up despite her and Astrid telling me I should tread carefully. “I didn’t want you here.” Frowning at Astrid, I shook my head. “You told me I imagined your words in my fevered state. You assured me she wasn’t coming, yet you knew she was.”
“No, I never said those words to you,” she swore. “’Twas undoubtedly magic at work. The connection you share with Freya and your daughter.” Astrid shook her head. “I would not have wanted you thinking they were in peril whilst battling such illness.” She tilted her head in consideration. “Yet something tells me, despite your worry over them, some part of you held on because you knew they were coming.”
“And thank the gods, too.” Freya squeezed my hand. “Because it allowed us time to bring you back, husband, just as you brought me back years ago.”
“And for that I’m forever grateful,” I said softly, squeezing her hand in return, glad to see her safe yet fearful at the same time. “We should leave straight away.”
“Soon enough,” Astrid assured, seeming to eye me with amazement that I could so comfortably sit up now. “You’re safe here until you’re well enough to travel. The chieftain has given me his word. He’s kept it thus far, too. No harm has come to either of you despite Freya having been here for several days now.”
While some parts were hazy, I remembered Lachlann and Declan, and it was hard to believe. Mayhap not of Lachlann, given I had saved his life, but definitely of Declan, and I said as much.
“Even so,” Astrid said, “men came by recently asking if they had seen you, and they lied, so ’tis safe to say you need not fearLachlann and Declan. I strongly suspect, however, they would prefer you leave as soon as you’re able.”
I could tell by the troubled look in Freya’s eyes that those men searching for me had shaken her.
“I would imagine they do,” I replied, no fool. They harbored the enemy and had willingly kept it from their countrymen. And I, being someone who might know King Hákon’s plans, no less. Taking in the room and late-day sun streaming through the windows, I frowned between the sisters. “Where are Lachlann and Declan now?” I focused on Freya. “And where are those who brought you all the way to these shores?”
“Ivar, Sten, and our men await offshore,” Freya said. “They know you live and are coming home with us. Whilst I remained by your side, tending to you, Astrid has met with Ivar every other night to keep him updated.”
I nodded, glad to hear Ivar had traveled here with her. “When does he come ashore again? And does he typically have a set hour?”
“Tonight andja, he does, lest he spies trouble ashore,” Astrid replied, urging me to sit forward so she could unwrap the bandage around my waist. “How do you feel, Soren? Because your speedy recovery is remarkable.”
“Thirsty and hungry,” I admitted, taking stock of my condition. “Otherwise, I feel surprisingly well.”
I thanked Freya when she handed me a cup of cold water that I could at last hold on my own.
“’Tis good you have regained your strength so quickly,” Astrid marveled, saying the last thing I expected. “Given it’s been just under a week since Freya and her pendant, and mayhap your daughter brought you back from the land of the dead.”
“Impossible,” I exclaimed, shocked by the state of my wound when it was revealed. “I appear to have been healing for many weeks, if not months.”
“’Tis a miracle indeed.” Astrid washed it. “As of yesterday, I no longer need to apply a poultice.”
Freya offered me a soft smile and fingered her pendant. “The gods have truly favored us with this.”
“And truly favored us with each other,” I said, meeting her smile.
It was hard to believe we had brought each other back from the brink of death, yet here we were, and I could not be more pleased. I would be happier, still, however, when she was safely away from these shores.
“Do you feel ready to stand?” Astrid asked, rewrapping my bandage. “Mayhap enjoy your first meal in some time?”
I had never been so eager to do anything. “Ja.”
