Taking the path through the lower meadows she headed for the hill above the farm. She would find fresh air and solitude up there and if there was any company it would only be a few sheep. That was fine by her. The less she had to see of humankind the better.
* * *
On leaving the barn at dawn Finn took a detour to the promontory but the place was deserted. Either Lara was in no mood to practise sword craft or else she had no wish to be found there. He had a pretty shrewd idea which of those suppositions was correct and was sorry for it. Their previous training session had been fun. Unfortunately, recent events were not calculated to win her confidence or soften her mood. Just then he had no idea how that was to be achieved. Lara was unlike any woman he’d ever met. It was a pity she hadn’t come to the promontory this morning because there were things he needed to impart, not least about their forthcoming departure. Since she evidently had no intention of seeking him out he’d have to go to her.
* * *
When he reached the hov he found it empty. That left the bower as the most likely line of retreat. From his point of view, she couldn’t have made a more awkward choice because he couldn’t impose his presence there without creating uproar. He’d have to send a female servant to fetch her and that in turn would arouse all manner of speculation that he could well have done without. No doubt Lara was fully aware of that and probably enjoying the thought of his chagrin. He gritted his teeth. How was it that she always managed to make his life more difficult at every turn?
He was rounding the end of the hov when he saw her, but, far from hiding in the bower, she was heading away from the steading along a track that led towards the hill behind. For a second, it occurred to him to wonder if she was running away, but she wasn’t moving like one in furtive haste; nor was she dressed for travel or carrying anything with her. Whatever her intention it wasn’t flight. The little witch was good at keeping him guessing. But this way at least they could have a private conversation.
He set off after her, his longer strides closing the distance between them. For a while she didn’t notice that she was being followed but as he gained on her some sixth sense must have given warning of his presence and she glanced over her shoulder. He saw a flicker of surprise and then annoyance in her face. Somewhat to his surprise she stopped and waited for him to catch up. They surveyed each other in silence. He saw that she had changed back into the green gown and that the jewellery was missing too. In fact all trace of bridal finery was gone. She looked pale but otherwise composed, her expression impassive now.
‘Where are you off to, Lara?’
‘For a walk.’
‘Alone?’
‘As you see.’
‘I looked for you on the promontory earlier.’
‘Did you?’
‘There are things we need to discuss.’
‘Such as?’
He sighed. Clearly she had no wish to talk to him at all although in the light of recent events he couldn’t entirely blame her. All the same this could not be avoided. She had just become part of the arrangements.
‘Tomorrow I leave for Ravndal.’
He had her attention now. ‘But that is several days’ sailing from here.’
‘That’s right.’
He didn’t miss the glimmer of hope that flickered into her face. The thought of his departure was pleasing to her. If she was anticipating his protracted absence she was doomed to disappointment.
‘My continued presence here is unwise,’ he went on. ‘Steingrim won’t be far behind and when I meet him it will be on ground of my choosing.’
She could see the point. ‘What about the other ships, though?’
‘Alrik’s will accompany us. The second will meet us a little later.’
‘I see.’
‘We’ll be leaving early.’
She nodded, controlling a sudden surge of jubilation. He was leaving tomorrow. He would be gone for days; weeks with any luck. Perhaps the gods were redressing the balance a little.
‘Was there anything else, my lord?’
‘No, nothing else—for the moment.’
‘Then I beg you will excuse me.’ She would have continued on up the path but his voice stayed her.
‘Lara.’
She paused, surveying him quizzically. ‘My lord?’
‘My name is Finn. It would please me if you were to use it.’
‘As you wish.’
‘You know, it seems to me that life would be easier if we were not at odds.’
‘Ah, yes. I’m quite sure you would prefer a meek and obedient little wife who would never open her mouth and who would perform your every command with alacrity.’
He smiled faintly. ‘That would indeed be a novelty though I fear it would quickly wear off.’
‘What do you want, then? It cannot be a wife such as me for you have already declared me to be lacking in obedience, respect and temper.’
‘So you are. Perhaps I should prefer a woman whose character is somewhere in between?’
‘You should have sought her earlier. It is too late now. You are stuck with me.’
‘I can conceive of worse things that might befall a man.’
‘Well you do have the compensation of ships and swords.’
‘There is that of course.’ He reached out and lifted a fiery lock of her hair, testing its softness between his fingers. ‘Though I think there are potential rewards far greater than those.’
His hand brushed across her gown, an apparently accidental touch but no less disturbing for that. As disturbing as his proximity now. Not that she intended to let him see it. ‘You think that if it pleases you.’
‘It does please me, Lara.’
‘Well, then, at least one of us is happy.’
He raised an eyebrow. ‘Does it not occur to you we might both achieve that state?’
‘How should it? In my experience marriage is not conducive to happiness.’
It struck a chord but he had no wish to rake over his past. However, he was curious about hers. ‘In your experience?’
‘My sister was given in marriage as a peace woman in order to end a long-running feud. The match was much against her will. Her husband was a cold, hard, unfeeling brute and our father knew it. Nevertheless, he gave Asa to this man anyway.’
He could not miss the bitterness and anger in her tone and understood it. The lot of a peace woman was neither easy nor enviable. However, he resisted the temptation to comment on that since anything he said would sound like a platitude. In any case there was a more fundamental point here that needed to be addressed.
‘And do you think me a cold, hard, unfeeling brute?’
For a moment she was silent, evidently wrestling with strong emotion. Then her gaze locked with his. ‘What do you care? You have already stated that my opinion is of no importance.’
Finn grimaced and his hand fell to his side. She knows how to turn the tables on me. She’s damnably good at it. All the same she isn’t going to slide out of this. ‘Answer the question, Lara.’
‘When it comes to achieving your ends I think you are as cold and hard as any other man. Feeling doesn’t come into it.’ She paused. ‘However, I...I do not think you a brute.’
‘I’m overwhelmed.’
‘You did ask.’
‘So I did.’
‘Would you rather I had lied to flatter you?’
‘No, I would never wish you to lie to me.’ He paused. ‘Nor would I wish to lie to you.’
‘Indeed I hope you will not. In that way we will both know exactly where we stand.’
Finn had a fairly good idea of where he stood with her just then but decided not to voice his thought. If he did she would be quick to confirm it and there was only so much truth a man could take in
one day.
‘I give you my word that I will always try to be honest with you,’ he replied.
She inclined her head in acquiescence. ‘Good.’
‘Now if you will excuse me there are things I need to arrange.’
For a moment or two Lara watched his retreating back, then turned and resumed her walk. The news of his approaching departure was more than pleasing. She had no doubt that he would defeat his enemies eventually but that wouldn’t be accomplished overnight. In the meantime she would be relieved of his constraining presence. She smiled, her spirits lighter than they had been since the whole sorry business began.
On reaching the top of the hill she found a convenient rock to sit on. From here the view was impressive but her mind was more agreeably engaged. Eventually she would have to accompany Finn to his hall but, given the nature of this marriage, it seemed entirely possible that he might often be away from home. Since she had no intention of sharing his bed she had no doubt that he would take his pleasures elsewhere too. That was fine by her. Indeed it was the best that might be hoped for.
* * *
Finn spoke to his men and made the necessary arrangements for the morrow. It was good to have something to do and for a while it took his mind off Lara. However, she was proving to be an invasive presence. Their conversation had been disturbing and in spite of his best efforts it kept coming back. The reason for her antipathy towards marriage was now much clearer and he could well understand how her sister’s fate had affected her thinking on the subject. To see someone you loved made desperately unhappy was intolerable. Being married off to a total stranger in her turn had only further fuelled her resentment. A stranger whom she regarded as being cold, hard and unfeeling. Just short of being a brute in fact. He drew little consolation from that. It wasn’t the first time a woman had thought the worst of him.
Bótey had been in no doubt. Of course he was younger then and so arrogantly self-assured, concerned only with following his own wishes regardless of how his actions might affect others. For him the lengthy absences from home were something he took in his stride, relishing the adventure and the change of scene and the companionship of his sword brothers. For Bótey those times meant loneliness and boredom. She’d lacked the inner resources to be content with her own company. If he hadn’t been so self-absorbed he might have foreseen what that would lead to. Finn’s jaw tightened. He couldn’t right the past but if he’d learned anything from that time it was about the folly of taking someone for granted. He wouldn’t make that mistake again.
* * *
The company was in lively good humour that evening, the hall filled with conversation and laughter. Lara could feel the buzz of anticipation in the air around her as she moved from group to group filling the mead cups. These men were looking forward to the coming adventure and the prospect of a fight. The possibility of death had no power to deter them; what mattered was the winning of battle fame. Then a man’s name would live after him on earth while he entered Valhalla and feasted with the heroes in Odin’s hall. As she looked around at the eager faces she wondered how many of these men would be slain in the coming enterprise. Steingrim was a dangerous and determined foe. What if he were to win? What if it were Finn who was slain?
By rights the notion ought to have been mighty pleasing but oddly it wasn’t. In spite of all that had happened she could not wish that. He was so much larger than life that it was hard to imagine a world without him in it. Somehow he had made an impression at an altogether deeper level than she’d realised. She could barely recall the faces of the other men who had sought her hand, but, if Finn walked out of her life tomorrow, she knew she’d never forget his.
‘You seem thoughtful this evening,’ said Alrik as she paused to refill his cup. ‘Are you anxious that your handsome husband is soon to go into battle?’
‘No, of course not. Why should I be?’
‘You are but recently married after all.’
‘Finn looks like the kind of man who can take care of himself.’
‘That he is. His reputation is considerable.’ Alrik glanced across the room towards the subject of their talk. ‘He is a man whom others will follow.’
Lara’s gaze followed his and came to rest on the tall figure across the room. In any company Finn would stand out, she thought, and he would always be at the centre of things, as now.
She smiled faintly. ‘Including you?’
‘Aye, including me. It will be an honour to fight at his side.’
Lara regarded him curiously. At twenty Alrik was an able commander in his own right. He and his crew would accompany Finn, a prospect he evidently relished since there was no mistaking the sincerity in his tone and looks.
‘What makes you so eager to join his cause?’ she asked.
‘We are kin now so his cause is mine, but it’s more than that. I respect him and so does every other man here.’
‘But you barely know him.’
‘I know that I could not have a better man at my back in a fight.’
‘You trust him, then?’
‘Aye, I do.’
‘How has he managed to inspire such loyalty in so short a time?’
‘It’s obvious, isn’t it? The man has presence, intelligence and courage.’
‘Perhaps.’
‘There’s no perhaps about it,’ he replied. ‘He does.’
‘Very well, but the possession of those qualities doesn’t necessarily mean you can trust him.’
‘Look at his crew, Lara. Don’t be deceived by the jovial smiles and friendly banter. They’re as tough as boiled leather, and every man among them has made a name for himself in battle. Would such men follow one whom they believed to be untrustworthy?’
‘I suppose not.’
Alrik snorted. ‘You suppose right. If they’d had any doubts on that score they’d have cut his throat and left his body for the crows.’
‘I will admit he is a natural leader.’
‘He’s also a likeable one. It’s a rare combination.’
Lara made no reply but her brother’s words had left her with plenty to think about. The present situation had caused her to see Finn in an unflattering light but it was evident that others didn’t share those views. Respect was not given on demand. Reluctantly she was forced to concede that their high opinion of him had been earned. Of course, he would appear different to men because they inhabited a different world in many respects; a world in which trust and mutual reliance were all-important. Battle forged a bond like no other. They didn’t think about women in the same way. When they thought about them at all it was to satisfy a physical need, to get sons or to attain a political ambition; perhaps all three. Such terms as trust and liking didn’t feature.
She left Alrik and continued filling cups. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Finn talking to his companions. As always he looked completely at his ease, radiating quiet confidence. He must have said something amusing because his words were followed by a burst of laughter. It elicited several quips in return and she heard him laugh. It was infectious and she found herself smiling too. Finn looked up and for a moment his gaze met hers. She saw amusement there and then it faded to be replaced with something that caused her pulse to quicken. A flush of warmth crept from her neck to her cheeks. Disconcerted now, she looked away.
Finn called across the room, ‘Is there any more mead in that jug, woman?’
The tone was unmistakeably provocative and it stopped Lara in her tracks. Several grinning faces turned her way, their owners waiting for the coming explosion. She ignored them. Glancing down into the jug she favoured Finn with a smile.
‘Yes, there is.’
Having answered the question she turned away, feigning to look for empty cups elsewhere. Finn’s eyes glinted.
‘Then bring it here and be quick about it.’<
br />
The words drew several indrawn breaths. Lara surveyed him coolly.
‘Right away, my lord.’ Without the least semblance of haste she made her way to his side. ‘Here it is.’ She held up the jug. ‘Would you like me to refill your cup perhaps?’
His lips twitched and he looked around at his companions. ‘What it is to have a wife with sharp wits.’
Several chuckles greeted this. Lara smiled sweetly. ‘It’s good to be appreciated, my lord.’
He held out his cup. ‘Oh, I could scarcely fail to appreciate you.’
‘The sentiment is mutual, believe me.’
‘I’d be tempted to take that for flattery if I didn’t know better.’
‘Keen perception is one of your strengths.’
He laughed softly which, in its way, was far more disturbing than annoyance would have been. She poured the mead, concentrating on keeping her hand steady, supremely conscious of the man and of having his undivided attention.
‘You imply that I have more,’ he said.
‘Well, let me see.’ She pretended to consider. ‘Although our acquaintance has been short I could not fail to note that you are single-minded in pursuit of a goal—that you possess a cunning brain and that you have considerable skill at barter.’
He nodded. ‘I also enjoy a challenge.’
‘How very fortunate.’
‘And I like to win.’
‘Dear me! You must have known your share of disappointment.’
‘I am rarely disappointed.’
‘That must be why humility doesn’t feature among your personal qualities.’
His grin widened. ‘I do confess it.’
‘Never mind, it is amply compensated by arrogance.’
‘A crushing blow to my self-esteem.’
‘Nothing could crush that, my lord.’
Finn laughed out loud. ‘I’m sure you will persevere anyway.’
Lara stared at him. The man was impossible. Nothing deflated him. Nothing daunted him. It was definitely time to beat a dignified retreat.
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