“Fine, have it your way. Who can understand the working of a female mind?”
Kim should have been annoyed at that statement, but when she turned around to look at him, she saw the grudging respect in his eyes. She dipped her head, and Lord Liufr smiled.
It wasn’t long before the commotion at the entrance heralded Guta’s arrival. Her beautiful face pinched in worry, she made her way to Ralloph’s side as fast as her heavy gait allowed. Kim could tell every step hurt, but Guta made it. A shudder went through Ralloph’s frame when she grasped his hand. Holding it up to her chest, Asger’s sister bent to kiss her husband. Some of his strength appeared to return to Ralloph, because he lifted his hand, and kissed her back.
Kim’s heart beat faster at what she was witnessing. There was no doubt in her mind that Ralloph and Guta loved each other. It was plain to see. Asger murmured something and drew her back into his frame. Kim took strength at the contact. She didn’t even realize she was crying, until Asger swiped her tears away with one of his large hands.
“How did you know?” The whispered question in her ear made her cry harder. She turned in his arms, seeking his warmth. With his strong heartbeat under her ear, peace settled over her.
“I didn’t, not really. It was a hunch. Something she said, that’s all. We should stitch his wound.”
Kim felt him nod.
“I will do it. Get me a chair.” Guta’s voice rang out, and when her father shook his head, she squared up to him.
“Yes, I will. My side is by my husband.” She smiled at Ralloph while she said that, and he gave her a weak smile in return. Guta turned to address Kim.
“Thank you for making them get me.”
Kim stepped up and drew the other woman in for a hug.
“It’s the least I could do.”
Guta nodded. She sat down heavily on the chair, and then proceeded to stitch up her husband. Ralloph’s eyes never left hers, and Kim grew a bit misty-eyed again. Asger stayed close by, hovering, especially when Guta refused to leave.
Eventually she was persuaded to move, only because Ralloph had stabilized, and they could move him to the homestead he shared with Guta. By the time everything had settled down, Kim was dead on her feet. At Asger’s insistence she, too, climbed into bed having managed to finally freshen up. Sadly not in the promised bath, but with the aid of another cold bucket of water. Kim didn’t think she would get any sleep. In the end, however, she fell into an exhausted slumber, almost immediately as her head hit the pillow.
The next morning brought the news that Ralloph was healing, and Guta had gone into labor. Just as everyone had feared it proved a difficult birth, but the dawn of the next day, saw Guta hold a dark haired little boy, the image of his father. Kim burst into tears again, witnessing the tender moment between the newborn and his parents. Asger laughingly pulled her to one side, when he noticed, but he, too, blinked away rather suspicious looking moisture from his eyes.
It made Kim realize more than ever that she would have to make a decision about her future, just as soon as she knew if there was a future here for her.
Ralloph’s return had thrown the village into a combative mood. Everyone who could hold a weapon readied themselves for an imminent attack from his clan. Asger had explained how Ralloph had been held prisoner by his own brother, had been tortured for information, until he could finally make his escape.
It seemed Ralloph’s brother had delusions of grandeur. Not content with being under Lord Liufr’s rule, he wanted the title and lands for himself. The man was ruthless and unhinged.
Worry for Asger and the village she was fast coming to love as home meant that Kim insisted on learning how to fight. Asger had laughed his ass off, when she first suggested he teach her how to use a sword.
“There is no need. You are no shield-maiden, minn kona. I do not want you put in danger.”
Kim had positively growled at him.
“I’m in danger just by being here. If you think that I’m going to just sit here, waiting to be rescued like some damsel in distress, you’ve got another think coming. I know I won’t ever be a warrior, but you can at least teach me to defend myself. If you’re not willing to do so, I’ll just have to find myself another man who will.”
That little outburst had earned her a spanking with his belt, followed by a round of hot sex that still made her toes curl under, remembering his intensity.
However, she got her wish. It meant she was covered in bruises from head to toe. Muscles she didn’t even know she had hurt, but Kim knew how to handle a sword, dagger and shield with relative competence.
Even her stoic father-in-law had smiled and nodded, after witnessing a training session.
“You would have made a fine shield-maiden. I am sure your daughters will be. You will give me fine strong grandsons.” He’d smiled at her, winked at his son, and left. For Asger’s part, he hadn’t quite looked at her. Dread had settled in her heart.
She knew Asger didn’t totally understand her form of contraception and what it did. All he’d taken from that discussion they’d had while he’d still been buried deep inside her body after one of their increasingly more desperate bouts of lovemaking was that she didn’t want his children.
Kim sighed, remembering that conversation now. Several weeks had passed with no attack from the neighboring pack. There had been more skirmishes and reports of longboats up the coast, but no attack.
The village remained on high alert. Lord Liufr was deciding whether to launch an attack on the other clan first to force the issue. Ralloph had advised against it. In his opinion that was what his brother was waiting for. Leaving the village would leave it largely undefended. At the very least their warriors would be depleted. There was strength in numbers, so it had been decided to wait them out.
Sooner or later they would show their hand. With the sun beating down on them, birds chirping in the trees, Kim could almost forget the threat—almost. Little Swaan was asleep in his crib by Guta’s feet, and the other woman smiled up at her, seconds before an arrow whizzed through the still air. It missed Kim only because she ducked to tuck the baby’s blankets around him.
A horn sounded, and all hell broke loose as more arrows rained down on them. Guta threw herself over her son, scooped him up, and dashed for cover with Kim in hot pursuit.
Grabbing the heavy broadsword and the shield she’d left outside, Kim joined into the battle cries of her fellow Vikings, as unknown men and women invaded the village. She could sense Asger’s rage, his worry, and saw him in her peripheral vision, as the bloody fight went on.
Bile burned in her throat the first time she gutted an opponent intent on gaining entry into their homestead. Hot blood sprayed across her face and clothes. Guta’s scream behind her gave her no chance to dwell on it, however, as she whirled around to block another sword aimed at her head. This guy was huge, his black eyes boring into hers, lips curled into an ugly sneer. Surprise registered on his face briefly when she fought back, but she was no match for him. Arms aching with the sheer effort required to block his parries with her shield, she was backed into a corner. The next blow would finish her off, of that she was sure, when a huge wolf appeared from nowhere. Asger in his wolf form was a formidable sight, as his teeth lodged in Kim’s attacker’s throat. With one sickening crunch, he tore out the other man’s throat. The Viking fell to his knees, a huge, red arch of his blood turning the ground wet.
It seemed to be the signal to shift, as all around her men shifted into their animal selves. If that was possible the battle turned even bloodier, until at long last the victory horn sounded.
Kim staggered to her feet with a sigh of relief, desperately searching the crowd and smoking remnants of the few homesteads their enemies had managed to set alight. Relief flooded her when she spotted Asger. Bloodied and dirty, he was alive. He made his way toward her with a determined expression on his face. Kim knew that look. He was annoyed with her. No doubt she had earned herself another punishment for not staying
inside the homestead, and coming out to openly fight.
Warmth spread through her lower abdomen at the thought. Punishment always led to hot sex, and that’s exactly what Kim needed right now. Before Asger could reach her, however, pain shot through her heart. So intense she could barely breathe, as it spread down her arm. The wind picked up, the world spun, and Kim fell into the abyss. The last sound she heard before blackness claimed her was Asger’s shout.
“Neinn, stay with me.”
****
Kim came to in a crumpled heap in front of her wood burning stove. It wasn’t on, of course, and she shivered in her cold cottage. The air felt stale, musty, as though it had not been disturbed in some time. Her answer-phone light blinked at her, mocking her with its cheeriness, its capacity full, she noticed, the battery power fading fast. Struggling to her feet, she winced at the dried blood on her clothes, testament to the fact that she hadn’t just fallen asleep and dreamt the last few weeks … months … how long had it been exactly?
Time moved differently here, she knew that much. Often much faster than it did in Asger’s world. Kim blinked back tears at the thought of Asger. Already she felt as though a limb had been torn off her. A faint glow emanated from the bookcase, and Kim’s heart beat faster when she saw it came from the old ledger. It had fallen on the floor, and the pages turned as though caught in a gust of wind. She could have sworn she heard Asger’s voice before the book became immobile again, just like the ancient one had warned. She’d been to see him, had been summoned by him, in fact.
Dressed entirely in black, blind and stooped over, the old man had been a formidable presence, as he’d held out his hand. A shock of connection had shot up her arm, when she’d placed her hand in his. The ancient one had smiled, exposing crooked, yellow teeth.
“I have a message for you from the gods,” he’d said.
“Message?” Kim had asked, her heart beating so fast, it had been a miracle she hadn’t gone into cardiac arrest there and then.
The ancient one had nodded.
“Yes, you have a choice to make. Following your heart will let you travel to wherever you need to be. Your time, your choice, but only you can decide which one that is. Choose wisely, my child, for the portal is closing, not to open again in your lifetime, not for you at least.”
He’d smiled at her sharp intake of breath, but had completely refused to extrapolate.
Kim hadn’t wanted to bother Asger with her questions, so she had spilled her guts to Guta instead. The other woman had cocked her head to one side deeply in thought.
“The ancient one likes to talk in riddles, but I take that to mean that you will be faced with a choice. To return to your time, or to stay here. Obviously we all want you to stay, but it can’t be easy to leave all that behind. You tell such tales of wonder and invention.” Guta had smiled at her and seen to her son, leaving Kim to ponder that question.
As she looked round her cottage now, it didn’t feel like home anymore. Not without Asger here. What had brought her back, however, and what blasted day was it?
A quick look out of the window brought with it renewed palpitations. It had been summer when she left. Now the trees were barren. A fine frost lay on the ground, which explained why it was so bloody cold in her cottage. Turning on the light switch brought no result. The power was either off or disconnected.
Shivering, Kim grabbed the throw off her settee. A fine cloud of dust rose into the air. Sneezing, she shook it out, and then wrapped it around herself. At least the wood was stacked neatly next to the wood burner, and in no time at all she had a nice fire going. It would warm up the house and most importantly give her enough hot water for a quick shower.
Instant hot water was one of the things she missed most when not living in this time.
Once the fire was roaring away, she padded into the hallway. An enormous stack of her mail sat neatly on the sideboard, and what looked like several days’ worth of junk mail cluttered the floor. Susan and Richard had clearly held up their promise to look after the place in her absence, but hadn’t been here for at least a week. The odd pain she’d felt in her chest came back to haunt her, and then she saw it. The note left on her kitchen table.
I don’t know when and if you’ll see this, my sweet girl. You have been gone now for six months. I had to turn the power off. As far as everyone is concerned you have gone away to write, to find yourself. Your sister turned up, looking for you. She wasn’t best pleased to find you gone, but she didn’t seem concerned either.
Kim put the note down and smiled. No, Lisa wouldn’t be concerned. They had been growing apart for so long now, after all. Kim would have to leave her a letter or something. Explain where she went. Not that Lisa would believe a word of it, but it would make Kim feel better. And she probably ought to release a statement to her readers, too. She had some loyal ones, after all, who would no doubt wonder where she was.
Picking the note back up again, Kim gasped at the next words she read.
Now, I don’t want you be alarmed, but Richard is in the hospital. He had a heart attack last week. He will be okay, but I know how close you are to him, and I guess, if anything will bring you back, it’s this.
A tear fell on the note in her hand, smudging the writing. Kim hastily swiped it away. The ancient’s one prophecy suddenly became clear. She had come back to enable her to say goodbye, because she was needed here right now.
You might not see this, of course, and that is fine. I just thought I would leave it here, just in case.
We love you,
Susan x
Kim drew a shuddering breath into her lungs. The blanket fell to the floor, followed by her bloody dress and boots, as she discarded them on her way upstairs. The shower was only lukewarm when she stepped underneath the stream, but it was bliss nonetheless, after the frigid water she was used to.
Having washed off the grime and blood of the battle, and thrown on some jeans and a jumper—clothing which felt strange after the loose dresses she’d grown accustomed to—Kim sat behind the steering wheel of her car, praying that the vehicle would still work.
After several attempts the car fired. Breathing a sigh of relief, Kim drove to the hospital Richard was at, and now found herself outside his door.
Susan was reading to him from the sounds of it. The other woman gasped when she saw Kim standing in the doorway. Richard’s lined face broke into a huge smile, and Kim burst into tears.
Chapter Fourteen
Asger’s muscles screamed at him as he split the wood in half with one fell swoop. The pieces joined the growing pile of kindling that threatened to take over all the space outside his house, but what else was he to do?
The fight was over. Peace reigned, and it was the wrong season to go raiding across the seas. Besides, setting foot in England would only remind him of what he had lost. His chest tightened. His wolf whined his distress, and Asger swiped the sweat off his brow. Summer was over. Autumn, too, and the air held the promise of snow.
Winter was the time to celebrate the life they had, to snuggle up with his woman, and to not leave their bed for days. If he had a woman.
Asger swung his ax again. He missed and swore. The ax sailed through the air, impaling itself in the tree, like the cruel hand of fate had split his heart in two.
The poets among them said it was better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all. Asger wasn’t too sure about that. If he’d never met his válað he wouldn’t feel the gnawing ache in his soul now. A constant reminder of what he had lost when she faded from view, as though she had been nothing but a ghost.
For weeks he’d held out hope that she would come back. Held vigil at the spot she disappeared in the vain hope that she would fade back in. It had been a useless exercise, however. As time marched on, he had to admit, to himself at least, that she wasn’t coming back. Why would she? What did he have to offer her, but a life steeped in worry and danger?
His kona had proven herself to be capable warrior, but
he’d seen the horror in her eyes when she’d felled her first enemy.
No, Kim was not meant for this life. Had he not always known that? The ancient one, when consulted by him, had only said she was making a choice. He had not divulged what that choice was, but time spoke for itself.
Asger knew that time moved differently in their worlds. What seemed like ages here, could be the blink of an eye in her time and vice versa, but that was small comfort in the middle of the night, when he reached across the empty bed to pull his woman back into his arms, and encountered nothing but thin air. It hit him then. He was alone, and always would be, because there would never be another woman for him.
Guta was the lucky one. The gods had granted her a second chance at happiness, a second válað. An act that was practically unheard of it was so rare. It wouldn’t happen to him. He didn’t want it to happen to him. Grumbling under his breath he stalked to the tree to pull out his ax. Laughter behind him made him freeze as an achingly familiar scent teased his nostrils. It couldn’t be. This was just another figment of his imagination. Why did the gods tease him so?
“In my time we say that talking to yourself is the first sign of madness, husband.” Kim’s amused voice washed over him, soothing all the cracks in his heart and soul her sudden disappearance had ripped wide open. Shaking his head he turned slowly. If this wasn’t real, maybe he was going mad.
“You’re still abusing poor, innocent trees, too, I see. We really must do something about this tendency of yours.” Another, much stronger wave of his kona’s scent hit him in the gut. It was laced with something else that just couldn’t be. She’d said that was impossible. He would have smelled it on her, yet…
Neinn.
Tentative fingers trailed over his tense biceps, stroked his beard and then there was the firm, gentle pressure of her lips on his, the weight of her breasts pushing into his chest. The firm globes already seemed heavier, her body more rounded, as he blindly reached out and mapped out the contours of her body. The faint, rapid heartbeat galloped in his ears, and he dropped to his knees like a stone. Still not daring to open his eyes, afraid it might break the spell somehow, he pitted his ear against the gentle swell of her abdomen.
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