Passion's Fury (Viking's Fury Book 3)
Page 5
“Runa is no master, she’s a woman.”
Jarl Roald’s marriage to his Sami wife, Eva, had changed him for the better. But occasionally, the captain felt he was talking to Roald’s dead father, Jarl Brandr. A man who felt women should remain silent and had no say in their futures. Thorolf wished Roald trusted his sister more. But in the scheme of things, the fact he’d given her a choice in who she married, suggested Roald cared for her, though he’d never admit it.
“I must insist,” Thorolf said. “It is tradition where I come from.”
“Yes,” Roald mumbled. “I often forget the men of Borg are different than most. You spent too much time in the frigid crosswinds when you were a boy, Captain. It has muddled your mind, I think.”
Thorolf chuckled. “My mother saw fit to keep my ears covered as a boy,” he said. “I am of sound mind.”
Roald sat on the chair at his table. “I trust you. But someday, Captain, I will inquire about you to the chieftain in Borg. You’ve been in my service so long; I never saw reason to question your credentials as a soldier. Over time, you’ve earned the admiration of my family and men. A rare accomplishment.”
Thorolf bowed, accepting the praise with confidence. He served without fail. As his father and brothers had before him. But the captain had never uttered their names or even his mother’s name. For all were dead. Instead, he chose to invest his time and energy in serving a family similar to his own. It eased his pain and suffering, gave him a reason to want to live.
“I am honored to know you.”
Roald carved something into a piece of deer skin with his knife, then handed it to Thorolf. “Here is your temporary reprieve from allegiance to me.”
He gazed at the runic symbol representing defense of someone he loved and respected. It meant nothing to anyone else, but to Thorolf, it represented everything he believed in. Free now to focus solely on Runa, anything he said to her or did for her from this point forward, could be kept between them. He no longer answered to Jarl Roald first. He tucked the scrap in his belt.
“Thank you.”
Roald waved his hand dismissively. “It is I who should thank you. Runa is a great burden to any man. Though I am pleased she’s interested in Prince Axel, I suspect she has ulterior motives. Axel is a fierce warrior, but he’s never loved a woman. That inexperience will cost him dearly when dealing with a girl as unpredictable as my sister.”
“Or keep him pleasantly entertained.”
“Yes.” Roald laughed. “Odin save the man who ever truly loves her.”
Chapter Ten
Jarl Roald stood at a distance watching while Prince Axel’s retinue of soldiers and thralls rushed to finish packing the horses for the journey home. Against his better judgment, Roald had given permission for Runa to leave the Trondelag, unwed and in the care of Thorolf and her maid, Auda. Though everything appeared normal at the surface, dark thoughts plagued the jarl’s mind. And something even more troublesome soured his gut.
“You must learn to let go.” Eva slipped her arms around his waist from behind, resting her sweet face against his back. She gave him an extra tight squeeze. “She is a good girl, Roald. As independent as her brothers, but also as honorable.”
“As long as it serves her purpose.” He turned around and tugged his wife into his arms.
Eva gazed up at him. “A terrible thing to say about your only sister.”
“Experience has taught me well, Eva. One should listen when an old dog barks. And no matter how hard I try to clear my mind, I can hear my father’s voice warning me to put an end to this deception.”
Eva stepped back. “Deception? Did you not demand Runa choose a husband from among the men you invited here? Threatened to marry her off to a beast of your choice if she didn’t? Do you blame her for selecting the wealthiest and most handsome of the five? The one you prayed she’d have the sense to choose. Visiting where she might call home one day is a prudent decision. She deserves to see how the prince conducts himself at home. Whether his even temperament is genuine or not.”
Roald nodded in agreement, though reluctantly. “I gave you no choice.”
“Wrong.” Eva slapped his chest playfully. “I let you think you were in control, Husband.”
“Did you now?” He kissed her tenderly. “I am not the one who donned a veil and snuck into the jarl’s chamber late at night to seduce him. It seems you couldn’t resist my masculine charms. So if we look at this rationally, I’d say I was in control the whole time.”
“Even so,” Eva said, “Runa’s life is taking a different path than ours. Let her enjoy her maidenhood while she can. Soon enough, she’ll be joined at the hip to a man and children. Let Prince Axel spoil her—woo her properly. And if she accepts him, think of the celebration we’ll have.”
Roald pulled on the end of his beard, mulling over his wife’s words. Yes, if Runa accepted the prince’s troth, then he’d rejoice at gaining such a powerful brother-in-law. But if the girl rebelled as she often did, he’d punish her severely for humiliating him. “I will try. Perhaps Odin spoke to her—showed her how unreasonable she’s been. If she marries the prince, I will reward Runa with silver and gold and our mother’s jewels. She will sit on her throne next to Prince Axel decorated as any princess should be. But if she betrays me, us, I will…”
“Jarl Roald.” Thorolf approached and bowed. “Lady Runa is ready to go.”
Wearing a golden-brown apron-dress underneath her summer cloak, with her hair tightly bound in braids and covered with a blue, silk scarf, Runa looked so much like their mother. Roald nearly choked when he beheld her.
“Brother.” She curtsied respectfully. “I know we haven’t had much time alone. I wish to thank you for your generosity.”
For a brief moment, Roald regretted his doubt in her. She looked and acted every part the true lady, a pillar of respectability and modesty, the way their father had raised her to be. She even kept her green eyes downcast while she waited for him to acknowledge her presence. But it wasn’t her eyes he worried about; it was her heart.
“Rise, sweet Sister,” he commanded.
She did, meeting his gaze then.
“I wish you safe travel.”
“And I wish you much happiness, dear Brother.”
“Do you?” He leaned in so only Runa could hear his words. “If I were to judge you at first glance, I’d have every confidence that you were a reformed woman, ready to fulfill your duty to this family. Just as you appear peaceful on the surface, so do I. But I have a war raging inside me—whether I should trust you or not.”
She batted her eyelashes prettily and whispered, “Shall I rip my beating heart from my chest so you can have a spaewife read my true intentions as she would the runes?”
The stubborn girl didn’t seem to understand the affect her sharp tongue had on him. The man who could seal her misfortune if she continued to defy him. Roald grinned as he drew a short knife from his weapon belt and offered it to her. “Would you like the honor of the first cut?”
“Roald? What are you doing?” Eva asked, looking from him to the weapon.
“Nothing violent, my sweetest,” he lied to his wife. “I merely offered Runa a weapon for the long trip ahead. Gods forbid if she ever had to use it.”
“A sage gift,” Eva said.
“Yes,” Runa agreed, her fake smile eating away at Roald’s patience. “I thank you.” She took the knife and tucked it in her own embroidered belt. “I will miss you, Sister.”
Eva embraced Runa as if she’d never see the girl again. “The spirits will guide you, Runa.”
Roald struggled to stay quiet as Thorolf took Runa by the elbow and guided her to the awaiting horses.
“She’s a beautiful girl,” Eva commented as she waved a last time to Runa. “I will miss her.”
To save himself a tongue-lashing by his beloved wife, Roald waved to his sister as her mare trotted away, now knowing the girl had no intention of marrying Prince Axel.
*
But the fact that she’d outmaneuvered her brother so easily made up for some of her unhappiness. Even though he’d caught her in the lie at the last minute, it was too late for him to cancel the trip.
Prince Axel would have demanded an explanation. And since Roald feared any scandals, Runa had taken advantage of her brother’s weaknesses with a little help from Thorolf. She snuck a quick look in his direction, discovering that the captain was watching her.
“What troubles you?” he asked, riding closer.
“Nothing, Captain.”
Thorolf sighed. “You can lie to Jarl Roald, but not to me.”
“What do you mean?”
“I overheard your conversation, Lady Runa.”
This news surprised her. “How? We barely breathed our words out.”
“I have sharper hearing than the average man. Blame years of spying.”
“This coming from the man who chided me for eavesdropping.”
“Tis not the same thing, Lady.”
“No?” she teased him.
“You are too smart to think otherwise. Why did you challenge the jarl so boldly? Have you forgotten my words? That there are ways to pacify men?”
“Roald isn’t a normal man, Captain Thorolf. He’s a tyrant who thinks I am obligated to bend to his iron will. I cannot, will not play the spineless woman when I am so egregiously insulted. The very look on his face reveals how he truly feels about me. There is no love lost between us. Love was never a factor in our relationship.”
She waited for the captain’s response, eager to hear what he’d have to say. A better judge of character didn’t exist, not in her small world, anyway.
“I have tried to guide you, Lady,” he started, his features shadowed by disappointment. “But sometimes I think you enjoy poking the great bear with a branch of thorns just to hear him roar.”
Runa pulled gently on the reins of her mare to slow the horse’s gait. “And if I did, could you blame me?”
“Do you know the first rule of war?”
Runa wondered what this change in subject had to do with their current topic of conversation, but she was willing to listen. “No.”
“Never give your enemy the advantage.”
“Are you admitting my brother is my enemy?”
“No. But in your mind, yes.”
“And what advantage have I given him exactly?”
“He knows you don’t wish to marry the prince.”
Runa stared at the ground, then searched the line of riders for Axel. He was positioned at the front, next to his captain. “That remains to be seen, Thorolf.”
“Does it? The jarl warned me to tie you to the nearest tree whenever we made camp because he was concerned you’d run away at the first chance. Do I have reason to heed his words, Lady Runa? Will you bolt in the middle of the night like a spoiled girl or will you face your future like a woman?”
His words embarrassed her and she felt the flush creep up her neck and spread to her cheeks. “You have no cause to speak to me this way.”
“I do,” he insisted, grabbing the reins to her mare suddenly. “I am a simple man. My life is yours, Lady, believe me. But nothing will make me turn a blind eye if you plan on endangering yourself and me by breaking your word to Jarl Roald and Prince Axel. Though I serve you, I am still pledged to safeguard your welfare. To make sure you don’t make foolish choices.”
“Blame yourself for our current situation, Captain. You told me to visit the prince’s home, to choose a suitor.”
“You obviously misunderstood my heartfelt advice.”
“I disagree. Look where we are. I’m no longer stuck in the great hall or in the women’s quarters. I am here, free of my brother. Free of the soldiers who shadow me. Free of his scorn and suspicion.”
“But not rid of me.”
She’d never be free of the handsome captain. Even if she married the prince or someone else. Thorolf would haunt her for the rest of her life because she couldn’t escape her unspoken feelings for him or the way her heart fluttered whenever he stared at her. But the usual fire in his eyes had been replaced by something bitter. And she couldn’t stand the way it felt.
“Let go of the reins,” she demanded.
“Give me a reason.”
“I command you to.” With that, she broke free of Thorolf’s judgment and rode to the front of the line, seeking out the prince’s company.
Chapter Eleven
Every man had limits, including Thorolf. How many times had he come too close to breaking his private vow where women were concerned, especially with Runa? The godforsaken woman had his ballocks in a vice, though she didn’t know it. And every time she tested his heart a little more, his raw emotions rose closer to the surface, ready to explode.
He swallowed a mouthful of warm mead from a wineskin, one of several hanging off his saddle. Good thing he’d had the sense to pack more than he usually did. Runa often inspired him to drink. Though he never got drunk. But Thorolf was blessed with a high tolerance for fermented drink. It didn’t mean he couldn’t appreciate the numbing effects. There was no better cure for bitterness. He took another swig, then corked the skin.
The guilt-stricken beauty had fled in shame, seeking the company of her prince. Her prince… A possibility that didn’t please him, at all. What right did he have to feel anything one way or the other? His opinion only mattered in one capacity—as a soldier. Not as a man.
The well-traveled path they were on wound its way through the forest, the occasional clearing presenting an opportunity to make camp. They’d been on the road for several hours now, twenty people in the party, moving at a fair pace.
Thorolf circled the line many times, his trained eyes always searching the landscape for possible attackers. A soldier defended whoever he was put in charge of, he didn’t fall in love with her—or lust after her—or want to kiss her pain away. His need of a wife dissolved the day his family was slaughtered and he left home, ashamed to survive the attack—broken because he couldn’t save his family.
The years that had passed since then made little difference. The memory was fresh, a constant companion that nearly drove him mad every day. He could still hear his mother’s agonizing screams, see her torn gown hiked up her waist, her thighs soaked with blood. His dead sire lay next to her and his eldest brother disemboweled only feet away.
Desperate to escape the moment, he dug his heels into the sides of his mount, forcing his warhorse into a frenzied gallop, leaving Prince Axel in the dust. Nothing calmed him better than the wind whipping through his hair or the sight of snow-capped peaks in the distance. For nothing reminded him more of his old home in Borg.
None in the Trondelag knew his history, but he couldn’t hide his birthplace, for his accent gave it away. Thorolf’s family hailed from one of the earliest settlements in Norway. Where the true dialect of his native language was still spoken, where the gods were worshipped the right way. Where women were as fierce as their men and babes were born with a sword and ax in their hands.
When his anguish and rage finally abated, he stopped abruptly. His passionate reaction to Runa and his memories reminded him why he’d worked so hard to become the kind of man he was. Strict discipline made him appear a controlled man on the outside, which allowed the chaos within to continue. Nothing would ever calm his inner turmoil. He fed off it like flames did tinder.
“Captain Thorolf?”
He twisted in the saddle to find Prince Axel riding his way. Escorting Runa did not mean he had to converse with her suitor. But to keep the peace…
“Did you see something? Someone?�
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“No,” Thorolf answered.
“Did you exchange unpleasant words with Lady Runa, then?”
Damn his questions. “What the lady and I discuss remains private.”
“Not if it upsets her,” the prince challenged.
Thorolf shifted in the saddle, the traumatized boy inside him ready to fight, ready to make Axel bleed. “There are things you don’t know about her,” he said with good intentions. “She’s a complicated woman. Thinks too much, questions everything. Sometimes my answers don’t please her.”
“I am trying to know her, to unlock the secrets in her heart. But she isn’t very forthcoming. I only wish to be a true confidant.”
“I am glad to hear it,” the captain said. “But nothing can make the lady happy until she realizes she must leave the past behind in order to claim the future.”
Truer words he had never spoken, but following his own advice … impossible.
“She still mourns the loss of her father?”
“Aye. And her mother.”
“I understand.” Axel inclined his head. “What of you, Captain? Why is a man of your ability escorting ladies across the country when you should be in command of a vast army?”
The prince wore no armor today, perhaps trying to impress Runa with the richly embellished tunic he donned. His stallion was equally impressive, the saddle and bridle decorated with hammered silver and amber, a testament to his wealth.
“I go where the four winds carry me.”
“A man without roots.”
Thorolf gritted his teeth. Those absent roots had been savagely ripped from the earth. “It is as you say.”
“If you ever wish to settle in one place, Captain Thorolf, to feel a part of something greater than yourself…”
“I appreciate the thought,” he said. “But I am pledged to Lady Runa. Until she releases me from her service, I will not consider any offers.”
Axel squared his shoulders, his critical gaze lingering on Thorolf too long. “Don’t take this as a personal insult. But if I have my way, you’ll be dismissed sooner than you like.” The prince turned his horse about and rode back in the direction of his guards.