CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Thora avoided looking toward her father, much as she hated to admit a powerful sense of comfort had surged through her at the first sight of him.
Refusing him hadn't been difficult, she'd rebelled against him often enough when she was younger, but somehow, this time seemed to create a chasm between them she feared they'd never bridge again.
Still, despite the familiar comfort his arrival had stirred, apprehension overpowered the brief moment of happiness to see him again.
This morning, the crowds seemed bigger than ever, the merchants' shouts grating uncomfortably on her ears. She held tight to Ari's hand, forcing her attention anywhere but toward her father, who still tried to catch her attention.
The smoke from the cooking fires burned her eyes and her stomach rolled once more at the smells from the roasting pigs and goats. Kata pressed in closer and the feel of the wolf's fur beneath her fingers soothed her a little.
Sobs and pleas for mercy reached her and she turned, her gaze settling on the slave market.
Several women and young men were held in a pen, hands bound while traders looked them over and made bargains for their sale.
Thora shuddered, looking away as one trader savagely beat a young man.
She wondered what the poor soul had done to earn such savage punishment.
She pressed a little closer to Ari, his nearness, as always, bringing the feeling of safety amid the chaos rioting both around and within her.
The trek to the longhouse seemed to last hours, though she knew only a few minutes had passed.
Each step closer to the council jarred through her, making her head pound.
She gave a moment's thanks there had been no time to eat this morning, for surely she would lose anything she ate.
"Thora, are you unwell?"
Ari's voice broke through the internal tumult. She turned, the ground suddenly starting to spin. She reached for him, her fingers closing around his tunic, his hands tight on her arms.
"What have you done to her?" Her father's voice seemed a distant shout, the buzzing in her ears growing louder.
"Come, you must rest for a moment." Ari led her to a spot near the stables, pulling her close. She leaned into him, breathing deeply of his familiar masculine scent.
A hand on her shoulder drew her gaze up. She stared into her father's concerned face. She burrowed deeper into Ari's embrace.
"Are you ill?" Kori asked.
She shook her head. "Just... worried. I'm feeling better now."
She looked up at Ari, whose gaze possessed a similar concern.
"Are you sure?" he asked.
"Yes." She disentangled herself from his hold, feeling stronger once more. "You must finish this."
His smile chased the remainder of the chill still clinging to her.
Once again, she fell into step beside him, Kata on her left and Kati beside Ari.
The throngs of people thickened with each step closer to the longhouse.
Ari pushed his way through those gathered in the courtyard until they stood amid the inner circle.
Five men sat upon a dais before the longhouse, their throne-like chairs large and imposing. The one in the center possessed a large set of antlers, making the man seated there look even more formidable. King Hemming, she supposed, assuming the other were local jarls or those close to the king.
Ari leaned close to her ear and confirmed her hunch. "King Hemming sits in the middle. Jarl Drengr is to his left."
Thora's gaze drifted from the fair-haired young king to the older man with long snowy white hair beside him.
His fluffy beard was neatly groomed and the ornately embroidered cloak he wore had a collar of fine fur, the elegant garment revealing his wealth.
He leaned over to the king and whispered something.
Even from this distance, Thora recognized the sharpness in his eyes while he considered the three people standing before them, in an apparent dispute over land.
"Where is your brother?" Thora whispered.
When Ari didn't answer, she turned to find him glaring across the courtyard.
She followed his stare, her stomach knotting to see Hersir standing amidst several men near the end of the dais.
She'd only caught a glimpse of him that morning, but she still recognized him without any doubt.
He also donned a finely woven cloak, and his leather boots gleamed.
Though they stood far away from him and his companions, Thora read a malicious madness in his expression while he watched the proceedings.
"Hersir." Ari issued the name on a quiet growl.
Kori jumped in front of him. "Tell me how you know Hersir and Jarl Drengr."
The sudden movement left the wolves prancing about them in agitation. Thora flicked her fingers, urging them to sit beside her. Though they obeyed, Kati continued to paw at the ground, while Kata shifted from sitting to standing and back.
"He is my brother."
"You son of a whore! You are using my daughter against your own flesh and blood?"
Kori's shout drew the attention of the entire crowd, as well as the council. A strange silence settled over the assemblage. As if realizing the focus had fallen to them, Kori turned.
"Ari? Is that you?" Jarl Drengr stood, eyes wide and a hint of a smile lifting his beard.
Ari faced the man he'd been accused of trying to kill. His grip on her hand tightened almost painfully.
"Yes, it is I."
"I'd not thought to see you."
Ari took a step toward the dais. At the same time, Kori tugged on Thora's arm and her hand fell away.
"Ari!" she cried, trying without success to jerk free from her father's tight hold.
He turned, taking a step toward them, but Kori raised his sword. "Stay back."
Ari halted, his attention bouncing between Thora and the council. "Just a little while longer."
His assurance did little to calm her rising panic, but she nodded. He needed to finish what he'd come here for, without worrying for her. When this was all over, surely her father would be convinced and not insist on keeping them apart.
He turned and took several steps toward the dais. Hersir did the same until the two men stood only a few feet apart.
"What are you doing?" Hersir shouted.
"I have come to clear my name," Ari announced.
The strength in his vow sparked a surge of pride within Thora.
"Clear your name? None will believe you. You're lucky you weren't killed for your crimes." Hersir paced slowly, his smirk making him looking even more evil.
"They were not my crimes, and I am going to prove it."
Hersir laughed, a maniacal shout that sent a fearful shiver along Thora's spine.
A moment of gratitude for her father's embrace was quickly chased by the reminder he intended to give her to this man.
She tugged against the tight hands on her shoulders, but they held firm.
She refused the urge to turn and plead with him to release her, folding her arms and taking several deep breaths in an attempt to steady her racing heart.
"You're nothing but a murderer!" Hersir sneered, his hand going to the hilt of his sword. "Everyone knows it."
"I demand an explanation for this!" King Hemming's booming voice rang out over the courtyard, sending the hushed murmurs into silence.
Drengr placed a hand on the king's arm and drew him into a conversation no one heard, not even Hersir who stomped his foot in a display of petulant anger.
Thora shuddered. She finally dared a look at her father, but his bland expression revealed nothing of his thoughts.
Did he know what his choice would cost her?
"I seek only to see you settled," Kori said.
She'd spoken aloud? Narrowing her eyes, she shook her head. "You seek an alliance for the clan, with me as the sacrifice!"
"He is wealthy and powerful and will be a jarl."
"He set Ari up to be executed as a criminal. Ari has the witnesses to prove it."
The skepticism in her father's eyes only grew stronger.
Jaw clenched, glancing at the dais. The other jarls had joined the conversation between Drengr and Hemming.
The case they had been hearing seemed to have disappeared.
Had they issued a decision? A moment later, she sucked in a deep breath, her hand pressed against her lips to stifle a scream.
Hersir stalked toward Ari, sword now drawn.
"Stop!" the king commanded.
Hersir's face mottled with rage but he obeyed and turned to face the council. "I merely mean to –"
"I don't care what you intended." This time Drengr's voice carried over the once again agitated crowd and their ever-growing murmurs. He faced Ari once more. "Tell me, boy, what you have come to say."
"I have proof that it was not I who commanded a murderer to kill you. It was Hersir."
Gasps and shouts filled the air. Thunder rumbled overhead, along with a flash of lightning, though the sun still shone bright. The crowd again fell silent. Clearly, the gods watched closely and none wished to draw their ire.
"You're a liar as well as a murderer!" Hersir's shout grew oddly high-pitched. He pointed his sword toward Ari, the blade wavering.
"Let me go!" she cried, pulling at her father's iron grip.
Ari turned and fixed her with a stern stare. "Stay."
The command in his voice, combined with his pointed stare, roused an immediate need to obey. She stopped fighting her father, closing her eyes against the threatening tears.
Ari returned his attention to the council, reaching into his pouch to withdraw several daggers and pieces of bark marked with runes.
"Along with this proof, I also brought witnesses." He turned and motioned toward his men.
"Karsi? Alarr? You too?" Drengr asked when the two men stepped forward.
"Who are these men?" Hemming asked.
"They were once part of my clan, but they left us. I never knew why."
"Because Hersir threatened us when we refused his request to commit murder in your name."