Tโhe room was larger than the whole of my childhood home. The walls were decorated with hangings and the floors with furs, and a hearth glowed with a banked fire to ward away the chill. But itโ
was the bed, large enough to fit an entire family, that immediately drew my eyes.
Youโre no maid,ย I chided myself.ย It isnโt going to hurt.
Words that meant little, for it was not the fear of pain that made my skin crawl, but revulsion at having to sleep with a man for whom I held no affection. No desire. All while his wife looked on.
Born-in-Fire.
โDisrobe.โ
Clenching my teeth, I started to unfasten my dress, but froze as Ylva blurted out, โI canโt do this.โ
Turning, I found the lady of Halsar doubled over, hands pressed to her face. โI thought I was strong enough to see this through,โ she whispered. โBut to have you bed another woman? Itโs too much to endure again. It will break me.โ
Snorriโs expression softened and he knelt before his wife. โMy love, you know you possess my heart. Thisโโhe gave a backward gesture to meโโis a political arrangement. My heart and body care nothing for this woman, but the gods wish for her to be under my control, so it must be done.โ
Ylva burst into tears, and guilt bit at my insides. All this time, Iโd thought her nothing more than a bitch bent on making my life miserable because she enjoyed it. Not once had I considered how it must feel to watch your beloved husband take another wife.
Snorri pulled her into his arms. โThere is no choice, Ylva. You know this. Unless the marriage is consummated, it will not be legitimate. Our enemies will learn of this and fight between one another to steal her away, just as in the vision Hlin granted. Freya will be destroyed and Skaland will remain fractured and weak.โ
I held my breath, because as much as I didย notย want to have sex with this man, the agony of being ripped in two was all too vivid. All paths led to pain, but at least the former was one I knew I could endure.
Ylva lifted her head. Though her fair skin was blotchy and her eyes red, her voice was steady as she said, โWhat if there was another way? One that did not require you to share her bed?โ
โNo matter what we do, the gods will know this marriage is not legitimate.โ Snorri gave a sharp shake of his head. โThey will not favor me if I donโt bend to their will.โ
โBut isย thisย truly their will?โ Ylva wiped at her eyes. โThe foretelling said nothing of marriage, nothing of consummation, only of control. The gods surely wish for you to wield her like a weapon, not beget a child upon her to leash her heart.โ
Sickness washed over me. Had that been their plan? To tie me to them with a child?
โWhat alternative do you suggest?โ
Ylvaโs jaw tightened, and she looked to the floor. โWe could use the runes.โ
Witchcraft. Sorcery. Every instinct told me to run, even as logic whispered that I wouldnโt get far.
โI could bind her to you.โ Ylvaโs voice grew stronger, likely bolstered by the fact Snorri had yet to dismiss her plan. โBy oath.โ
I swallowed hard, my eyes skipping back and forth between the pair. No matter what, I was trapped in this situation. The only uncertainty that remained was which tie would bind me: my body or my word. And I knew which Iโd prefer. Knew that Iโd do anything, swear anything, to keep a child from being caught up in this nightmare. โIโll swear an oath.โ
Their heads swiveled, eyes latching on me with such intensity that it was hard not to cringe. But I had to persevere. โIt must be on the condition that Snorri swears never to touch me.โ
If he was offended, Snorri didnโt show it, only rubbed his bearded chin and then turned to his wife. โIf anyone were to learn of this magic, your life would be in danger, my love. For the only way to break the spell is your death.โ
โThen we continue the deceit that I am your wife,โ I said. โThe gods enjoy cleverness, so they will look upon the deception as a brilliant strategy worthy of a king.โ
The moment the words exited my lips, Snorriโs eyes brightened, reference to his promised destiny washing away what uncertainty he had for Ylvaโs plan.
Outside the room, the revelers were shouting and laughing, lewd comments floating through the walls, most of them suggestions for Snorri, and tension mounted.
โThe people will want proof of consummation to believe it,โ he said.
Donโt be a pawn,ย a voice whispered in my head.ย Find ways to take control!ย โFake it,โ I said. โIt isnโt as though they expect the evidence of a maid, so Ylva will provide as much proof as I would. None would dare call their jarl a liar.โ
Ylvaโs eyes flared. Crossing the room, she caught hold of my arms, her fingernails digging deep into my skin as she pushed me against a wall, her mouth close to my ear as she said, โI donโt trust you.โ
The feeling was mutual, but I was flush on the tiny bit of power Iโd gained.
โThe best alliances,โ I said softly, โare those in which each party holds something against the other. Let us be the best of allies, Ylva.โ
โIf youย everย betray us,โ she whispered, โI wonโt just kill you. Iโll make you watch while everyone you care about is carved apart, piece by piece, and when you are reduced to a broken thing, Iโll bury you alive.โ
I believed her. Believed this woman would doย exactlyย what she threatened, and for that reason I would not cross her. But that didnโt mean I needed to be cowed by her. Not blinking, I said, โUnderstood.โ
โCast the spell, Ylva,โ Snorri said. โLet us cement the control that will deliver me my destiny.โ
I watched in silence as Ylva retrieved a silver plate, setting it on a table. Removing a knife from her belt, she made a shallow cut on Snorriโs palm, allowing the blood to pool in the center of the plate. Then she motioned to me. โGive me your hand.โ
โDonโt cut the tattoos,โ Snorri warned. Ylva scowled but drew her blade across the back of my arm.
I winced but said nothing as she held the wound over the plate, my blood dripping down to mix with Snorriโs.
With her finger, Ylva swirled the blood together and then used it to paint runes around the edge of the plate. โFreya,โ she said. โRepeat after me. I vow to serve no man not of this blood.โ
If I said these words, Iโd be bound for the rest of my life. Or at least the rest of Ylvaโs. But the alternative was so much worse. โI vow to serve no man not of this blood.โ
โI vow allegiance to him who is of this blood. I vow to protect, at all cost, him who is of this blood. I vow to speak no word of this bargain except to him who is of this blood.โ
I repeated the words.
โNow you, my love.โ
Snorri was silent for a long moment, then he said, โBefore the eyes of the gods, I vow loyalty of my body and heart to my one true wife.โ
Ylvaโs eyes jerked up and there was no mistaking the swell of emotion in them. โYou honor me.โ Then she drew a final rune on the plate and everything, including the pool of blood, flared bright before disappearing into smoke. โIt is done.โ
I felt no different, and I wasnโt certain if that was a good or a bad thing, for part of me wished to feel the weight of what weโd done.
Ylva moved to retrieve a dark cloak, which she draped over my shoulders before pulling up the hood. โIโll not have you watching.โ
I shrugged, allowing her to push me toward the rear wall. Beneath the rug was a trap door, and as Ylva opened it, night air rushed into the room. โStay in the hole,โ she said. โDo not wander.โ
I could easily have turned my back and covered my ears, but offered no argument, only dropped into the opening. Almost immediately, I heard the sounds of kissing, and though I was no prude, I had no desire to hear more.
Removing the pieces of wood concealing the escape tunnel, I climbed outside. It was a dark night, the moon and the stars obscured by heavy clouds that smelled of more snow, and I leaned against the great hall as I tightened my cloak against the chill.
Laughs and shouts echoed through Halsar, and I kept to the shadows as several men staggered into the village, arms clasped around shoulders as they sang. From inside, drummers had struck up and thereโd be dancing and merriment until dawn. On any other day, Iโd be in the thick of it, laughing and singing and drinking until I was sick. But all I wanted to do now was cling to the cold shadows, my heart devoid of cheer.
Born-in-Fire.
I frowned, reexamining my poor humor. On the surface, it felt as though Iโd made many concessions, but was that truly the case? Though weโd only just met, Iโd spent my life sworn to Snorri as the jarl of these lands. The only thing that had changed was that now magic bound me to the oaths Iโd inherited from my father. There was little point in dwelling, for the deal was
done. Better to dedicate my mind to understanding how I was expected to achieve the results the gods foresaw for me.
How better to learn that than from the individual who had seen my future.
Lifting my head, I scanned the darkness. What were the chances that Snorri didnโt keep the individual whoโd spoken his precious prophecy close? I hadnโt seen Odinโs mark, which I knew was a raven, on anyone at the feast, but that didnโt mean the seer wasnโt somewhere in the village. And this might be my only chance to speak with them without someone looming over my shoulder.
Praying that Snorri would take his time with Ylva, I stepped away from the hall. I kept my head low as I strode down the narrow path between buildings. Mud squished beneath my shoes, my nose filling with the smell of dung and fish and woodsmoke, the homes quiet, for nearly everyone was at the great hall celebrating. From time to time, I passed men standing next to small fires, ostensibly on watch duty, but none paid me any mind.
The faint breeze sent wooden wind chimes swaying, the soft clicks welcome after the noise in the hall, and I walked past building after building, searching for the symbols that would mark one as a seerโs abode. I found nothing, eventually reaching the docks stretching out into the black fjord. Walking to the end of them, I paused to take several deep breaths.
Iโd never spoken to a seer before. They were either in the service of a jarl or too expensive for any but the most desperate and wealthy to consult, and my mother always said knowing the future was a curse because, good or bad, you couldnโt change it.
Except thatย Iย could. The one drop of blood Hlin had gifted me gave me the power to change my fate.
Though how Iโd know whether I was succeeding in changing it was a mystery to me.
Without a clear picture of the future, every action that I took might be already woven by the Norns.
Thinking about it made my head hurt. All I wanted was to stand on the docks with the cold air filling my lungs until my mind cleared. Except
Snorri and Ylva might have already noticed my absence, and Iโd probably pushed them far enough tonight.
One more moment,ย I told myself.ย A dozen more breaths.
Then my skin prickled.
Cursing myself for wandering off without even a knife, I spun on my heel, my heart leaping into a gallop at the sight of a shadowy figure a few paces behind me. My lips parted, a scream for help rising, and then I recognized the height and breadth. โBjorn? What are you doing here?โ
โI might ask you the same thing.โ His voice was strange and clipped, and unease filled my chest as I grappled for a lie.
โYlva was upset. Snorri wished time to make things up to her.โ
Bjorn gave a soft snort. โTwice in one night. Didnโt think the old bastard had it in him.โ
โWhat are you doing out here?โ I repeated the question, mostly because I wasnโt certain whether I should be worried that he caught me wandering alone.
โWasnโt in the mood to celebrate.โ
He took a step forward and I instinctively took a step back, my heel finding the edge of the dock. โNeither am I.โ Hesitating, I added, โThis wasnโt where I expected to find myself. Nor the path Iโd have chosen, but unfated as everyone says that I am, I still find myself trapped.โ
Bjorn went still. โYou could run.โ
Could I? Could I race away into the night and find myself a simple life that didnโt violate the oaths Iโd made? Maybe, but my family would pay the price. โI canโt.โ
He huffed out a breath, frustration seeming to ripple out from him. โHow did I know youโd say that?โ
My unease suddenly turned to trepidation, though I wasnโt entirely certain why. โWhat difference does it make to you?โ
โEvery difference.โ His hands balled into fists, but then he abruptly went still. โDo you hear that?โ
I inhaled and exhaled, listening, then a rhythmic sound filled my ears. It came from the water and grew louder with every passing second.
Oars. The sound was oars moving in their locks, blades splashing into the water.
Not a single set, but many.
Bjorn stepped up next to me, both of us peering out at the water. My skin turning to ice as I spotted the shadow of not one vessel, but the shadows ofย many.
Raiders.