Shield of Lies

by Jerry Autieri

  The oak had carpeted the base of the hill with dead leaves that rolled in the wind with a sound like rain. He protected his torch from the wind, turning to cup his body around it while the breeze died, then trudged up the hill to meet his contact.

  "Throst, my love?" came the sweet voice of the dark shape hidden by the wide oak trunk.

  "Astra, it is me," he said, mounting the final steps.

  She was a plain-faced girl but with skin perfect and unblemished as polished stone. She wore a heavy gray cloak, hiding her pleasing shape in a lump of shadow, but she threw her arms wide to accept his welcome. Both embraced and were it not for the awkwardness of holding aside their torches they would have done so with more ardor. Her face swam with flickering shadows thrown by the torch and her eyes gleamed with yellow points as she searched him.

  "But it has been too long! When will you let me join you?" She pulled away, and Throst regretted the loss of her warmth and scent. Hiding in caves and ruined halls with sweaty men had heightened his appreciation of a woman's comforts.

  "Very soon, my soul, you will live with me in a hall of our own, but for now there is little time to entertain dreams. You have news for me?"

  "News of all kinds," she said with an impish smile. "Ulfrik had a falling out with some of his men a few days ago. One of them claimed Ulfrik's youngest was his own, and it led to him and his men being banished."

  "And his name is Konal Ketilsson; his face is badly burned." Astra stopped in surprise and he saw the smile grow on her face in the darkness. He told her how he had spied on Konal's camp and then recruited him. "I hoped you could prove his tale, and you have."

  "Oh, I witnessed it with my own eyes. Since that day Ulfrik has taken to drink and his wife has become a horrible shrew. They fight every day over his inaction and Ulfrik has taken to sleeping under the table in his hall. His friends don't know what to do, and Gunnar feels cut off from him. It's perfect!"

  Throst nodded in deep satisfaction. "A pity he won't suffer like this for long, but I cannot give him too much time to figure out my plans. I have met with Clovis since we last spoke, and as I guessed he did not want Hakon but greatly desires Gunnar. I assume you have captured his attention?"

  Astra's voice quaked with barely controlled laughter. "He is hooked like a fish and does whatever I suggest. I swear I could make him fall on his sword if I promised to spread my legs for him."

  "But you haven't given him that much?" Throst seized her thin arm without thinking, and Astra drew a sharp breath. Feeling his face warm with shame, he dropped his hand which drew a smile from Astra.

  "Of course not, and he's not brave enough to take it for himself. Ulfrik is raising a gutless puppy. He's already a man, but he's not even allowed to piss without the leave of his father. Gunnar hates him for it, but he can't confront him."

  Throst grumbled his pleasure at the news. Angry people were so easy to shape, and Gunnar's lust and frustration would lead him directly into Throst's hands.

  "It is odd for a jarl's son not to just take his pleasure with any woman he chooses. He may yet find his guts, so be wary of him." He gave her a warning look and her smile twisted in the strange shadows of the torchlight. Astra was not a virgin when he had found her, and sharing women did not matter unless she belonged to him as Astra did. No one should have what is his until he has finished with it, and he was not done with her.

  "Do not worry for that. Gunnar has strange ideas about what is right, and thinks he should not force himself on a woman he loves." She snickered and covered her mouth.

  "Gods, I'll be doing Ulfrik a favor to rid him of such weakness. It's that strange mercy Ulfrik cultivates which has ruined his leadership and passed onto his son. Neither of them would kill me when they should have, and now they both will regret that mistake. Life is made by the strong and the weak are sent to ruin."

  "And though your enemies live in fortresses and wear gold on their arms, you are stronger," Astra said as she drew closer to him. She laced her free arm around his waist and pressed herself closer, the softness of her body thrilling him.

  "Control yourself, woman. I'll not be tempted by you now. Both of us must return before we are missed, and you have a task to fulfill for me. When all is done, we will lay together for days on end."

  "Promise?"

  Throst gently removed her arm with a nod. "You've my word. Now here is the plan."

  Chapter 29

  The night was a foul darkness, no moon or stars shining, all hidden behind clouds as thick as gathered hay. The frosty cold was early this year, and Ulfrik worried for the winter ahead and securing his son before it arrived. He vowed that Hakon would be returned to the warmth of his hall before winter clenched the land. Now all he had to check the cold was his cloak and the guttering orange flame of his torch. His hand shielded its light, for in the perfect blackness it would be a beacon to anyone watching. He only hoped one man would see it, as any other could bring him trouble.

  At the edge of the woods where he had snared Clovis in a trap not long ago, he waited. He had counted the days and trusted to the gods that his plans succeeded. The deceit he had to visit upon every person he loved was a sharp pain in his heart, and he could not be sure of its worth until this night.

  Escaping his own fortress had been difficult, and how his enemy's spy managed it remained unknown. At last he had to confide in one lone man to allow him in and out. To his chagrin he had revealed more to a barely known bondsman than his own wife. As he huddled against the cold, keeping the torch as close as he dared, he thought of how he tormented Runa. She did not deserve to suffer as she did, thinking her husband had given up to ale rather than fight. Yet no one could know his plan, and least of all her. His heart told him somehow the spy worked through her in ways he did not know. Nothing more than a thought, but one he would prove this night.

  Once the cold and boredom had sapped Ulfrik's will, a single orange light bobbed between the trees. He revealed his torchlight to it, and the corresponding torch made directly for him. As it grew closer, his free hand gripped his sword hilt and he widened his stance. Then the approaching torchlight halted and a raspy voice hissed from the darkness.

  "Lord Ulfrik? Is it you?"

  Relaxing, he stood looser and dropped his hand from his sword. He drove his torch into the soft earth, and placed a rock to brace it. "None other. Come, be welcomed."

  The torch raised higher to light the final distance as the man approached. At last his bulky shape billowed out of the darkness and the man stepped into the light.

  "Welcome, Konal," Ulfrik said with a smile, opening his arms to receive his friend. He fixed his brand next to Ulfrik's then embraced his lord in greeting.

  "It is all as you had expected," Konal said as he stepped back, a satisfied smile deepening the folds of his face. "Throst found me and was desperate to take me in."

  Ulfrik's heart raced and his arms trembled. A dryness filled his mouth, and he did not understand the fear suddenly overtaking him. His first question was harder to ask than he had imagined. "Is Hakon well?"

  "He is surprisingly well," Konal said with a smile. "He is tied and guarded always, but Throst's sister cares for him. I've been not more than three days in his company, but I've not seen him mistreated. Mind you, he has bruises and scabs, and is thin and scared. But his will is strong and he is defiant. Throst had me strike him to show my contempt for you."

  "And I trust you did what you must?" Ulfrik winced at his question, strangely hoping Konal passed the test.

  "I belted him like a man, and cursed both him and you to unending shame in Nifleheim. No one doubted me, least of all Hakon. But he took it better than a man, and he defied me to do worse and again claimed Odin had his one eye upon him."

  Ulfrik's pride swelled at the thought his son's bravery. "Perhaps the All-Father watches him, but I put no faith in Odin for protection. The gods' ways are strange. Yet if it gives him power to fight, then it is good."

  "I promised him Odin only watched for
him to die," Konal said, his voice smaller.

  "You have played your role convincingly, maybe too convincingly. You had some surprising words for me the night we began our ruse."

  "Not more than we had planned," Konal said, but Ulfrik detected a waver in his eyes even in the strange shadows thrown from the low torchlight. Still, Konal had taken considerable risk and shamed himself in public to make this a success. Ulfrik trusted him, and whatever he imagined he put aside.

  "Runa is quite distraught, with our fight and the gossip swirling about her."

  "And what of Aren? I had hoped for him not to see our act."

  Ulfrik shrugged and rubbed his chin. "Nothing ever bothers that boy. He has no serious temper."

  Konal opened his mouth as if to counter Ulfrik, but then fell quiet. "He is better raised in your hall, Lord Ulfrik. I am poor and cannot offer him the future that you can. You have cared for him since birth, and raised him without question as your own. You are a greater man that I ever will be, for I would not have owned your child. That you will allow me to remain near him when this is done, I am ever grateful."

  Ulfrik waved aside Konal's statement. "We chat like we're in the mead hall during a summer night. Reveal all to me and let us make our plans. I mean to have Hakon back and Throst in chains. We've little time to waste tonight."

  Ulfrik frowned as Konal described how they had camped in Throst's hideout, and he cursed not following Einar's intuition. Then he told of Throst's alliance with Clovis. Mention of the scheming Frank imparted a deeper chill to Ulfrik's core. Konal further revealed the plan to capture Gunnar and turn both him and Hakon over to Clovis for a minor fortune in silver.

  "And I have discovered the traitor; you'll not like who it is. Gunnar has been the unwitting fool for Throst's lover, Astra. She plies Gunnar for information and relays it to Throst, and she will lead your son to his doom."

  Closing his eyes, he shook his head at the news. "How I wished it was a pock-faced, coward of a man instead of my son's first love. I never realized Throst had a lover. What a fool I've been."

  "I've not met the girl, but Throst got word from her only yesterday. He explained our role in the scheme. Astra will lead Gunnar outside with the promise of a good fuck. I guess your boy hasn't got around to doing it yet, and so the promise of it will be a strong lure. I can't imagine Gunnar being dumb enough to fall for this, but I guess if his prick is leading the way it is possible. Anyway, you can imagine the rest. We overtake him as he's getting ready to mount the bitch then drag him off to Clovis."

  Listening with his eyes still closed, Ulfrik imagined each step in the plan. He recalled when he was Gunnar's age and how every glimpse of a calf and every skirt that hugged a woman's curves would drive him wild with lust. Those urges, particularly if restrained, would defeat any caution when the moment came to fulfill them.

  "How is she getting in and out of Ravndal?"

  "I asked Throst the same question, but he would not answer. His sister was more forthcoming, and apparently a hole under your north wall is just big enough for her to wiggle through."

  "Like a damned mutt digging her way out? Such a simple thing, and yet I hadn't thought of it."

  "Sometimes it's the easy things we see last," Konal said. "No one else considered it, either."

  The two sat in silence, and Ulfrik's mind began to form plans. Suddenly he realized this was an opportunity and not a disaster. Konal frowned in confusion and Ulfrik began to pace with his hands locked behind his back, uncaring of the cold night air that billowed into his cloak.

  "How confident are you of overtaking Throst and his men?" he asked as he paced. "What do you make of Throst?"

  Konal tucked his head down and considered the question. "If we act soon, I am confident we can kill them to a man. They only need to sleep and us to remain awake." He drew the edge of his hand across his neck. "Then it's a slaughter. As for Throst, he is smart and knows how to control his men. They fear him, and I've heard he killed their former leader in a duel using his left hand. I've not seen him fight, but I've not survived this long because I under-credit my enemies. What makes him dangerous is his youth. He thinks with a young mind, one that is selfish and vengeful. I cannot say what he will do next, and I expect he might not even know himself."

  "What about his relation with Clovis? Does the Frank trust him?"

  Konal shrugged. "I cannot say. It seems Clovis gave him silver to seal their bargain. To a Frankish lord, it might not be much, but Throst stores great value in it."

  Silence resumed as Ulfrik stopped pacing to consider his options. His instincts railed against his thoughts, but the chance to smash his enemies was too great. "When we first planned to bait Throst with your betrayal, we expected to uncover the traitors then tear them down. I did not expect to find more to exploit."

  In the wavering light, Konal's head cocked to this side. "I can free Hakon this night. In fact, we must act before tomorrow or the trap with Gunnar will force my hand."

  "Such was our original aim, but now I have new information." Ulfrik bowed his head and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his palm. "It pains me to use my sons, particularly Hakon, but they will be key to smashing Throst and Clovis at the one blow."

  He smiled and immediately felt shamed for it, recalling Hakon's smooth face and innocent smile. He continued, straightening himself and focusing on the plan. "Astra is feeding Throst information, but we can control what she knows. Let her give him information valuable to Clovis, so valuable Throst will want to pass it on for a reward."

  "You want to bait Clovis into a vulnerable spot?" Konal asked, folding his arms. "But what of Hakon?"

  "I give you responsibility for Hakon's rescue, and I will reward you and your men with gold. You will have to coordinate your timing with great care, and if at any point in your judgment Hakon is in danger of being killed or maimed, then you must save him."

  "Of that you have my word, and I need no encouragement of riches to do so. I knew him when he was a babe, and have grown fond of him since my return. Your family is as my own, Lord Ulfrik; there is no one else left to me."

  "But your men will be motivated by riches, and so they will have them. There is no price too high for the safety of my son. Do what you must to prove your loyalty to Throst: curse me, beat Hakon, swear yourself to Clovis, anything to strengthen the ruse, and after three days from tomorrow you kill them all and bring Hakon home."

  "You do not want Throst alive?"

  "If possible, but with Clovis involved now, Throst is a bug to be crushed under heel. Deal with him as the moment dictates. I will be grinding Clovis into bonemeal while you are cutting the legs from under Throst."

  Both men laughed, and Konal grew serious. "Now how will you use Astra to get Clovis to where you want?"

  "You will encourage Throst to contact Clovis after Astra makes her report." He put his arm on Konal's shoulder and drew him closer. "Now let me tell you how it will be done, and you may offer suggestions to improve the idea."

  Chapter 30

  Gunnar stared at his father in the early morning light slanting through the open smoke hole above the hearth. The words spoken could not be true, yet his father's sad eyes fixed on him and he nodded with a barely perceptible finality. Gunnar shook his head, felt a sudden quake in his knees and heat in his eyes. Now he was grateful that his father had cleared the hall and forbidden even his mother from entering, for unmanly tears threatened to flow.

  He wanted to hate his father, to call him a liar and accuse him of a lame attempt to control him, but he could not. He could see it for himself now. Astra had strung him along and he had been willing to overlook every question: how she suddenly appeared to him after the hanging of Throst's father, the vagueness of her history, her lack of family in Ravndal, her interest in his father's activities. All of this he had glazed in a dewy, foolish infatuation with a woman who seemed to always speak whatever he needed to hear and always hold what he most desired just out of reach. So many other girls had hoped to ca
tch his eye, but Astra had done so effortlessly and he could not understand how.

  "It hurts worse than any blade, I know. She was never worthy of you," Ulfrik said, his tired voice warm with understanding. Gunnar looked at him again, seeing a haggard face so unlike the vigorous man he had grown up idolizing. Did he really understand? His father always won every battle and succeeded in every venture. How could he know failure like this?

  Faint sounds of Ravndal waking to the new day reached into their awkward silence in the morning-bright hall. Laughter floated through a window, and Gunnar wondered how anyone could laugh at such a time. Enemies within and without worked to ensure ruin for all, and yet men still found laughter. Would he laugh again, he wondered. Did he deserve it, being such a fool?

  "I wish there was more time to heal," Ulfrik said, stepping through the shaft of white light and into the darkness with Gunnar. Both stood at the center of the hall, no other person within, not even the servants and slaves, and faced each other. His father placed a cold, rough hand on his shoulder and squeezed. "But your brother's life hangs on our next move, and you must be the one to save him."

  He frowned in confusion at his father, who nodded solemnly. "How so? Haven't I been the fool all along, bringing this disaster into our hall?"

  "Foolish words," Ulfrik admonished, bowing and shaking his head. Again he squeezed Gunnar's shoulder before letting his arm drop. "This won't be the last time your trust will be betrayed, my son. When it happens, you will curse your blindness and swear to never trust again, but this is wrong. Trust is at the heart of all things. You cannot stand in a shieldwall without trust in the men at your sides. A jarl cannot lead his people if he cannot trust them to obey their oaths. My son, many shields at your side will falter and many oaths will be spoken in ill-faith, but no matter. You are not to blame nor can you always know when trust will be broken. You will bear no shame for it, though stupid men might call you a fool. You will stand aside from those who soil themselves with dishonor, and not even the hem of your cloak will be dirtied for it."