Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Rain pattered against the canvas above, steady and cold, as if counting down the final hours of her freedom. Eadlyn shivered, the chill sinking deep into her bones as her maid, Mildred, helped her dress.
What a wretched day for a wedding.
Not that she had expected sunshine. Hoping for something special now felt like a childish dream.
It didn’t matter whether she was married here in the mud and gray or weeks from now in the familiar stone hall in Kenwich.
Either way, she would go north to a land she had never seen, bound to a man she did not know.
No feast or fine silk would have softened that truth or quelled the roiling in her stomach.
She stole a glance at the bucket near her cot as her insides twisted again. Mildred had tried three times to coax her to eat something, but it was no use. Her nerves were wound too tightly to keep anything down.
As Mildred laced the back of her woolen overdress, Eadlyn ran trembling fingers along the pale blue fabric.
It was the closest thing she had to a bridal gown, simple for travel.
She hadn’t prepared for a wedding. If this ceremony had taken place in Kenwich, she would have worn a gown fit for a princess.
Part of her mourned the loss of a traditional wedding.
However, except for God, nothing in her life had ever been as it should.
This was just one more trial she had to endure with His grace.
Once dressed, she sat down for Mildred to brush out her long hair and pin back a little on the sides—an appropriate style for a maiden bride.
Mildred’s voice broke the silence, hesitant and small. “I stepped out this morning to look for wildflowers for your hair. I thought…something to make it pretty. But they’ve not started blooming yet.”
The thought warmed Eadlyn. “You’re kind to think of that, and I appreciate the effort.”
They both fell silent again. When Mildred finished her hair, Eadlyn rose from her seat, trying to settle her racing thoughts on what to do next.
Jarl Runar had insisted the wedding conclude before midday.
They apparently had no desire to linger on Essix soil.
In a few brief hours, she would leave behind everything she knew—her home, her brother, her people—and travel with strangers to a kingdom she’d only heard and read about.
She’d hoped for a chance to speak with Aevar before they were bound in marriage.
A moment to find something of the man behind the warrior’s eyes.
But she had not seen him since the tense negotiations had ended last evening.
Still, part of her was relieved by the delay.
Facing him meant acknowledging this was real.
Before she decided on her next course of action, Mildred caught her eye. The girl was wringing the life out of her hairbrush.
“Mildred, what is it?”
Her gaze faltered, too much moisture welling on her eyelids. “I know you shall leave with the Nords after the wedding. If you require it, I…” She gulped. “I will go with you.”
Eadlyn’s heart broke at the fear in her expression. Is that how she looked? Goodness, she hoped God gave her the strength to hide it better than that. She clasped her hands around Mildred’s. “Milly, no. You will return to Kenwich with my brother. This is my path. I won’t drag you into it.”
A gust of relief left Mildred’s lips as her shoulders sagged. “Oh, my lady…you’re too kind to me.”
Eadlyn squeezed her hands. “I would never take you from your home and your family.”
Why did her own eyes have to water now?
Mildred’s lower lip quivered. “I wish you didn’t have to go with them alone.”
“I won’t be alone.” Eadlyn lifted her chin with as much steadiness as she could summon. “God will be with me.”
That truth anchored her trembling heart.
Mildred’s eyes welled again. “And you’ll have my daily prayers, my lady. I promise.”
Eadlyn almost hugged her. “Thank you.”
“My lady.”
Galen’s voice drifted through the tent flap. Was it time? But she wasn’t ready. Not yet. Her composure shattered like glass across a floor.
Gathering what resolve she still possessed, she untied the flap and stepped outside.
The rain had ceased, though the air remained heavy with dampness.
Galen stood in the muddy grass. His dark hair plastered his brow, droplets of rainwater sliding down the hard lines of his face.
It wouldn’t surprise her if he’d stood guard there all night, in case the Nords snatched her away early.
The thought made her skin crawl, but her attention snagged on the Talt just beyond him.
“Says he has something to ask you.” Galen jerked his thumb toward the man.
The Talt stepped forward, glancing at Galen as if for permission. The scabbards on his belt were empty, so unless he had a dagger hidden somewhere, he wasn’t much of a threat. When Galen didn’t move to stop him, the man’s gaze shifted back to Eadlyn.
A bright smile split his bearded face. “Morning, my lady. My name’s Kian.”
He seemed far too cheerful for a day like this. Then again, he wasn’t the one marrying a stranger.
Eadlyn dipped her head in greeting.
“I was sent to see if any of these fit you.” He opened his hand to reveal a small pile of silver rings. “We’ve been gathering them, hoping to find one suitable for the exchange.”
The ring exchange, of course. They’d dispensed with so many traditions by holding this wedding so quickly she hadn’t even thought of it.
She stared at the collection. The rings were worn, tarnished, and engraved with foreign patterns, grime clinging in the crevices.
A far cry from the delicate silver ring her mother had worn. Not that it had done her much good.
“It’s only temporary,” Kian added, as if reading her thoughts. “Proper ones will be made once we’re home.”
Eadlyn cleared her throat, a lump still hanging on. “Of course.” She reached for a ring and slid it onto her finger, the metal damp and cool against her skin. It was too big, so she returned it to the pile. She searched for something to distract herself while she tried on the next. “You’re a Talt.”
“Aye. That I am.” His grin had a calming effect, and his eyes sparkled with a genuine kindness that made him far less frightening than the Nords. Perhaps they should have made this alliance with the Talts after all. But she could not think that way. Not now.
“I figured as much during negotiations.”
“You’re observant.”
“Well, you don’t look much like a Nord.”
Kian chuckled, a cheery sound in the gray gloom. “No, I don’t.”
If only Eadlyn could have had a conversation like this with her to-be husband. Then, possibly, she wouldn’t feel as though she were going to throw up at any minute. She drew a chill breath into her lungs, glancing at Kian between rings.
“Do you know him well?”
“Aye, Highness, I do.”
“May I ask…what sort of man is he?”
Kian paused, tilting his head. “A fierce warrior. Loyal. Honest. He’s saved my skin more than once.
” He leaned in as if sharing a secret. “Honestly, I’d fight my own kin for him.
” His face crinkled with another smile, but it faded to a much more serious expression.
“He’s a good man. He won’t harm you if that’s what you fear. ”
Eadlyn searched his face for the truth in his words. Could she trust him enough to find comfort in them? Lord, please show me. While no answer was immediately forthcoming, she managed a nod. “Thank you.”
She wiggled the ring currently on her finger. While still a bit large, it shouldn’t slip too easily from her finger. From the looks of it, it was her best choice.
“I think this one will do.” She pulled it off and dropped it into Kian’s free hand.
“Good. I’ll get these back to the jarl.”
He headed off through camp toward the river, and it felt as if he’d taken the sunshine with him.
Not that any could be found today, choked out by stifling gray clouds.
A shiver worked its way through her, alerting her to the bitter bite in the breeze.
Though spring had newly arrived, the frigid air suggested winter might have one final say in the matter.
She ducked back into the tent, rubbing her ring finger. The coldness lingered.
Mildred turned to her. “Is there anything else you need, my lady?”
Eadlyn shook her head. “No, Milly. I think I’d like a few minutes to myself. Once the ceremony begins, please pack the rest of my things for the journey.”
“Of course.” Mildred curtsied and grabbed her cloak as she slipped outside.
Alone with God, Eadlyn closed her eyes and pressed her hand to her fitful stomach.
Now that she was by herself, it churned with renewed vigor.
She took a deep breath to calm it, but lightheadedness threatened instead, her heartbeat too loud in the quiet tent.
Knowing she had to get a handle on her fears and emotions before the time came to face her fate, she stepped to her bed and sank to her knees on the sheepskin rug beside it.
Clasping her hands, she reached out to God.
Any sort of elegant prayer jumbled in her head.
Only a soul-deep desperation rose from her heart for God’s strength and wisdom.
For His deliverance. She did not want to do this, yet she must. She had prayed and prayed for a different way, but this was where she found herself.
Yet even here, she prayed again. All she wanted was to go home, where she had finally found peace.
A tear escaped, sliding hot and unwanted down her cheek.
She blinked hard, but the rest followed.
A quiet sob soon slipped out, and she pressed a fist to her mouth to smother the sound.
Galen’s voice murmured outside, but she couldn’t respond.
Canvas rustled as he entered the tent. Only then did the crushing black tide that had risen around her recede.
She drew in a long, shaky breath, and pushed herself to her feet, wiping her cheeks.
For once, Galen’s impassive face softened.
Sniffing, Eadlyn made a poor attempt at lifting her voice. “I don’t suppose anyone would believe me if I said they were happy tears.”
“I don’t think anyone would expect them to be.”
She let a long breath seep out, her shoulders sagging with it. “I just want to be strong and dignified. I don’t want them to see me weak.”
Galen’s brow furrowed. “My lady, you are stronger and more dignified than any man I’ve ever served with or fought against. Certainly more so than your brother.”
His mention of Edward was exactly what Eadlyn needed to summon the strength and purpose her fear had swallowed. He was the reason she was doing this. Both for him and for Essix. “He desperately needs someone to teach him how to be a man. You’re the only one I trust to do that.”
“I will do my best.” Galen’s expression sobered again. “It would be better if you were here too. I’d stop this wedding here and now if I could.”
“I know, but if Essix is ever to thrive again, I need to do this.”
“Essix doesn’t deserve you.”
She always appreciated his candor. “Other women have been given in marriage alliances. I won’t be the first or the last. At least I am the one making the choice.”
Galen let out a weighty breath. Those facts didn’t seem to help him as much as they helped her.
He looked like he’d rather be out fighting the Nords than standing here as helpless as she was.
His eyes blazed as he took a step closer and said in a low voice, “If he hurts you—if any of them hurt you—get word to me and I will get you out of there, alliance be hanged.”
A smile rose to Eadlyn’s lips.
“I mean it.”
“I know, and that heartens me.” Just knowing the option existed gave her a spark of hope. An ember to carry northward.
Galen shook his head, his expression burdened. “I did everything I could to protect you from your father and often failed, but I’ll not stand by and let you suffer for the rest of your life.”