Chapter 9 Freija
Freija
My body still ached the next morning, but I had to put aside the pain and focus on the day’s Council meeting.
The eleven council members plus Halvar, myself and Father were all in attendance, and my pulse beat like a rabbit scampering through the woods.
These were the people I’d have to convince of my travel and research plans.
Each one as movable as the rock around us.
The cavernous ceilings with rugged stone walls rose above the seated Council.
Each member perched around the large stone slab presided over by my father.
I’d spent countless hours in here at meetings, diplomatic dinners, and celebrations.
But today was the first time I’d seen the seat at the far end occupied by Halvar.
Usually it was a commander serving in his stead, but now that he was back in the mountain, that was his seat.
“Repairs on the tunnel by the seamstress are going well,” Karl-Mogens said and ran his hand across his wrinkled jaw, his white hair thinning more and more each year. “Foreman Fredrik gave me a full report and is moving on to a leak near the dungeons next.”
I stifled a shiver. The dungeons were my least favorite place in the mountain.
Cold, damp, and populated by fae who had done harm to the mountain or our people.
Some were there on life sentences, others didn’t live long after their initial arrival—either succumbing to the purposefully harsher elements or vicious interrogation.
“Freija,” Father said, drawing my attention back to the meeting. “When will you have an updated report for us on the food resources?”
I swallowed hard and tightened my grip around my fountain pen. “It should be ready shortly. There is some more information that I need to gather to make it perfect.”
“We like perfect,” Father replied with a gentle smile that rosied his cheeks.
“Sooner would be preferred though,” Karl-Mogens jumped in, and my shoulders slumped. “There should be plenty of information in the library.”
He’d always been the more contrary member of the group.
While he had a point about library resources, the details I was looking for were not there.
At least not that I’d found. No, they were more likely in one of the other mountains further south.
Not that they’d let me go down there to find it.
Now was too soon to pitch my plans. I still hadn’t heard back from Ragnhild either regarding her contact and needed to give her more time.
I let out a deep breath. “The full report will take a bit longer to complete, but rest assured, I am working diligently on it.”
Karl-Mogens pinched his lips together, like he didn’t enjoy hearing a woman talking. I’d never been a fan of his, but he was knowledgeable of the mountain’s history.
Halvar cleared his throat, and the muscles in my back released all their built up tension. The council members turned their attention to him.
“My guards would once again like to thank you all for bringing us back from the North. It is far warmer down here.” The group chuckled and Halvar’s lips twitched in what might be a smile, but was more like a wavering line.
His voice was like a balm to my senses, easing the discomfort that sat upon my shoulders.
“We have yet to find any new leads on the culprits behind Princess Freija’s threats.
Though, I have implemented an informational survey among key business owners who have active communities around their establishments. We can expand from there if necessary.”
“That won’t raise suspicions and spark panic?” Birger interjected.
Halvar shook his head. “Asking questions on an unrelated matter and moving conversation toward what we are looking for.”
“Excellent, excellent,” Father said and clapped his hands together. “It will be a relief to find the perpetrators.”
It would indeed.
The meeting continued without much fanfare.
I made sure to note the updated numbers of individuals visiting our healers, an economic report from Marthe, and some interesting stories from the little hamlet of Skolvik that sat at the end of the fjord.
Apparently, a few more boats had been seen offloading cargo and tools for constructing more homes.
It was yet another sign of the increasing human population in our area.
Father brought the meeting to a close, and I gathered my things and made for the exit. My new shadow fell in behind me.
“Ah, there you are. Good meeting?” A familiar voice said as we exited the council chambers and stepped into the throne room. Mother, dressed in an elegant silver shift, clasped her hands near her sternum.
“It was fine,” I replied. “Is everything all right?”
“Perfect, dear, but there is something I wanted to discuss with you.” She stepped aside to allow the straggling council members to pass and motioned for us to join her away from prying ears.
That in itself had my heart beating faster and my grip tightening around my notebook. “Your father and I were thinking—”
Oh, this didn’t bode well.
“—that now might be a good time to once again consider suitors.”
My grip loosened and my pen clattered to the floor, notebooks almost following after it.
I bent down to pick it up and my fingers collided with another set.
Halvar’s pinky brushed across the back of my hand as I retracted it, sending a zip of energy across my skin.
With a soft inhale, I rose back to standing.
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
“Here,” he replied and offered me the pen. I took it and swiftly tucked it between the pages of a book.
“Thank you,” I mumbled and refocused on my mother who was still giving me a gentle smile after delivering such unwelcome news.
I popped my hip to one side. “I think it’s best we consider my courting days over Mother. I’m well past—”
“It is never too late to find love, my dear,” she said and shuffled closer, resting her hands atop my shoulders. “Your father and I were your age when we were finally introduced.”
Their arranged marriage was a love story for the ages and had two bright daughters to show for it. I’d heard it all before and wasn’t interested any more. They had been the lucky ones. Something at the back of my mind nagged at me. Poked at me the same way I prodded the plants in my garden.
“There’s an expectation, you know,” Mother said, voicing the direction of my thoughts. “The fae of the fjell want a Queen and her consort. They want to see you form a union.”
My chest squeezed.
“It will bring them and you great joy. I just know it.”
Well, that made one of us.
“Freija, my dearest, give it a try one more time. For us? Please? There are some wonderful gentlemen from the mountains around the country that would be worth meeting. And the Council are quite intent on having you marry to strengthen the royal line… sooner rather than later. Especially in light of recent events.”
My teeth buried themselves in the plump cushion of my bottom lip. I clenched my jaw and took a deep breath. Those expectations reared their heads once more like an invasive plant species.
“Freija?” she coaxed.
This was yet another thing getting in the way of my plans. At this rate, I would never get this report done and I’d be tethered to this mountain for the rest of my life. But what choice did I have? I let out a sigh, tension flowing out of my muscles. “I’ll take a look at them.”
Mother beamed. “Excellent. Oh, I really think you’ll be more fortunate this time around. There are some very good candidates on my list that the Council has approved of too.”
“Why didn’t they mention it in the meeting then?”
“Ah, well. They wanted me to be the one to discuss it with you. Some mentioned it would be more palatable coming from a woman and mother.”
Good grief.
She drew me into a quick hug, and, a moment later, left in a swirl of silver and a cloud of thyme.
What was my life becoming? I turned away from my mother’s retreating form and faced the beast of a man behind me. That resolute posture, wise gaze, and domineering presence loomed large. As foreboding as the weight of my responsibilities to this mountain.
There was no getting out of any of this. I’d have to find a way to do it all.
I straightened and cleared my throat. “I accept your offer to train me and to continue our sessions.”
His lips tilted up at one corner as the axe magically vanished from his hands. “What made you change your mind?”
“It’s my duty to this mountain to do what I can and be the best future monarch. If that means I must suffer through training and have you as my shadow then so be it.”
“So be it,” he mimicked, his voice low.
“Indeed. So, why don’t you put together a training regimen for me, and I will see to it that it’s adhered to.”
“Will you now?”
“You don’t believe me?”
He took a step closer, head tilting to one side, and matched my stance. “Most soldiers are not as diligent as they say.”
“I’m not one of your soldiers.”
He stalked around me, assessing. “You certainly are not.”
I followed his movements until he put himself between me and the exit. The air sizzled between us once more, screaming danger, don’t touch.
But I couldn’t help myself. Daring to set my fingers against his chest, I nudged him aside. “If you’ll excuse me, I have suitors to sift through.”
Slinking past him, I made for the archway to the tunnels, but a hand landed on my upper arm, stopping me.
“You do not have to do what they say, you know.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, soldier,” I replied and peered back at Halvar. “I’m the heir. I don’t have the freedom of choice. That died upon my birth.”