14 #2
Hafter heard her, frowned, and roared to his feet, striding toward them.
a??Has she insulted you, Rorik? Shall I punish her?
Where is the rope? I shall tie her to me again and drag her about.
But ita??s that womana??s faulta??she taught Entti bad things, made her smart and loud, then made her hate us and we dona??t deserve it, shea??a??
Entti looked up at him through her laughter-teared eyes.
a??Ah, another big warrior, intent on his own prowess, his lordly rights.
Go away, Hafter, you annoy me. Your tongue flays itself with its own stupidity.
But first, wish your lord Rorik and Mirana happiness.
She will be the lady of Hawkfell Island and your mistress.a??
Hafter stared at Entti, then looked blankly at Rorik.
a??You would wed this girl who would have killed you more times than I can count?
She who would slit your throat even when you bed her, Rorik?
By the gods, she will bite your tongue when you try to kiss her!
sHE WILL SEND HER KNEE INTO YOUR MANHOOD AND brING you low.
Aye, shea??ll unman you and laugh and enjoy herself whilst she does it.
Entti was simple but now she isna??t. You, Rorik, you were of full wit and thoughtful brain, but now youa??re quite mad.
It is all her faulta??this woman with her sin-black hair and her green eyes that hold secretsa??she has this mystery about her that makes men and women behave differently, makes them do things they shouldna??t do.
a??I must fetch your father from Malverne. He will make you see reason. If you lust for her, tie her down to protect yourself, and plow her belly until you tire of her. But do not wed her, Rorik, she will surely do you in.a??
Entti rose swiftly and leapt at Hafter. She sent her fist into his belly, shouting in his face, a??You fool! You are less full-witted than the stoats rutting in the garden! Kerzog has more wit than have you! Have you no heart, no feelings? Did you not listen to Lord Rorik?a??
Hafter was again distracted by this new Entti.
a??Shut your mouth, woman! You are the stupid one.
Nay, not stupid, you arena??t that, are you?
The woman saw to that. You are simply unaware of the womana??s hatred for Rorik, for all of usa??except she seems to like you and the other women overmucha??which I still dona??t understand.a??
a??Hafter,a?? Rorik said quietly. a??That is enough. I do not need your defense. Enough.a??
a??Nay, it is all passing strange, and you, Rorik, you will awaken on the morrow and wonder what demons possessed you and then you willa??a??
a??Hafter, it is done.a??
Hafter stared at his friend, a man who was closer to him than his own brothers, a man hea??d known all his life. a??Rorik, you do not jest?a??
Rorik shook his head. He smiled. a??Nay, jests are far from my mind.
Mirana has accepted me. We will wed on the morrow.
We will have a feast and all will be well.
You must trust me. If she is willing to, why then, for you, it should be nothing more difficult than breathing. Trust me. I know what Ia??m doing.a??
a??But her half-brother slaughtered Inga and your children and many of our people!a??
a??Aye, but she didna??t. Why should she shoulder any of the blame? She accepts what Einar is now. She gives her loyalty to me.a??
But Hafter couldna??t accept it. Loyalty from a woman?
It sounded preposterous. The woman had been nothing but a thorn, nay, more a bramble or an entire forest of thorns and brambles.
He said, a??Kron told all of us about the king and how he wants to have the woman as his wife.
She could be a queen, Rorik! Why would she want to wed with a simple man like you when she could be a queen and have everything a woman could ever want?
a??It makes no sense. So what if King Sitric is old and repellent and will give her no pleasure in her bed? He is still the king and he has power and wealth. You must think about her motives, Rorik. I do not trust her any more than I trust this new Entti the woman created.
a??You are being noble, Rorik. You do this only to protect her, dona??t you? It is nonsense. She needs no protection. Send her back, use her as a lure to get Einar, or is that what is really in your mind? Tell me true, for I must know.a??
a??Hafter, were you to plead my case for me to Mirana, I should have her trying to kill me rather than accepting to wed me.
You will be quiet. I have told you the truth.
I want this woman. She will be my wife and the mistress of Hawkfell Island.
She will be loyal to me, to you, to all of us.
I trust her, as you must also. She isna??t deceitful, she is honest. She doesna??t want to be a queen.a??
a??Ha! You arena??t stupid, Rorik, at least you werena??t before we had the misfortune to voyage to Clontarf.
You captured her and everything has changed.
It is beyond too much to understand.a?? He closed his mouth then, only to open it once more, saw Entti frowning at him, and closed it again.
He looked at Mirana, whoa??d said not a word.
He really looked at her now, and he saw a young woman who was passing pretty, quite lovely really, small and fine-boned, her flesh as white as newly fallen Vestfold snow, her hair thick and black as a midnight revel.
Her eyes were a green color that looked like dark moss, beautiful eyes that were soft and mysterious, aye, there were secrets in those eyes of hers, with the thick black lashes that added to their mystery, and he wondered how he would feel if she looked back at him with warmth and caring in those eyes, and with desire.
And she was brave and smart. Ah, but still .
. . it wasna??t right. It wasna??t smart.
But there was naught he could do about it.
He prayed that Rorik knew well what he was doing.
He himself didna??t really believe Rorik was doing this to protect her or to somehow use her to capture Einar.
Rorik wasna??t that kind of man. On the other hand, Hafter had been wrong about a number of things of late.
Hea??d humiliated himself in his wrongness and his head still hurt from it.
Only the gods knew what was in the womana??s mind and in Lord Rorika??s mind.
He looked at Entti, still frowning at him, tense, ready to attack him again, and scratched his head where shea??d struck him.
Yet another one whose mind was now hidden from him.
He didna??t like this new Entti. He turned away, shaking his head.
He heard Entti say behind him, a??Thata??s right, you lout, turn away, go hide, dona??t face the truth thata??s staring you in your goata??s face! a??
He said nothing, though the irritation at her words was great. He walked away, silent and thoughtful.
But it was Hafter, only minutes later, who yelled for silence and gave all their people the news. He sounded enthusiastic. He looked over at Entti and she smiled at him, making him feel like a trained pet who had performed just as shea??d wished.
As for the women, they surrounded Mirana, hugging her and kissing her loudly, telling her that finally Lord Rorik had shown good sense.
a??Aye,a?? Old Alna said, trying to look wise, a??finally hea??s wedded a woman like his mother, wise and kind.
Aye, and strong. a??Tis a strong woman Lord Rorik must have for he is a warrior, a Viking, and at the bottom of things, he is a man, and thus rough and untidy, sometimes unmeasured in his talk and actions.a??
a??A good thing I say,a?? Amma said. a??You didna??t really bind Alna or Asta very tightly, so you dona??t need to feel guilt about it. They understood. All were proud of you and your cunning.a??
a??Now Gurd will keep to me at night,a?? Asta said, laughing and hugging Mirana. a??I am very fond of the new Entti and know now that you wona??t allow any more married men to abuse their wives with their infidelities.a??
a??I will do my best,a?? Mirana said, smiling at all of them, these women whoa??d taken care of her and fed her and treated her as one of them, without question.
Mirana felt very lucky. She saw Utta standing at the edge of their circle, and quickly drew her in.
a??I thank you, little one. I am nearly as good a cook as you are.a?? And Utta hugged her close.
a??Aye, Utta, you and I will deal very well together, never doubt it or my affection for you.
Would you be my sister or my daughter?a??
All the women laughed at that.
And there was Erna, drawing back, as she always did, but she was smiling, moving slowly closer, her face softly pretty. a??Utta must be a sister, I think,a?? she said, looking from little Utta to Mirana, a??for none would ever think you her mother.a??
That night Mirana slept in Rorika??s bed. He slept in the outer hall, wrapped in a wool blanket. She happened to see the chain lying next to the bed on the floor. She just looked at it. She didna??t touch it.
She smiled. What she was doing was right, she felt it deep inside her.