Page 71 of A Curse Carved in Bone
Unbuckling my belt, I lifted the heavy vest of metal links over my head, discarding it in a pile. While it was a relief to be free of the weight, it did little to ease the chill and I stuck my hands under my armpits.
“Here.” Bjorn set his axe on the ground in front of me. “Try to avoid picking it up.” He pulled off his own mail and tossed it next to mine.
I gave a soft smile and sat on my heels to keep my arse dry while I warmed my hands over the axe, slowly regaining feeling in them. Bjorn prowled the perimeter, seeming to be taking account of our stock of trees, their sizes, and the distance he’d have to throw. I noticed how he avoided the crimson stains where Snorri had fallen. But it was betterthan silence. Better than hopelessness. I had no notion of whether this would work, but it was something, and something was worth clinging to right now.
We would weave our own fates, and I refused to let that fate be death on this rock in the middle of nowhere.
Yet as the second tree burned low, still no one had come.
I ignored the growl of my empty stomach and sipped some water from snow I’d melted in my shield using the heat from his axe. “Which one is next?”
“That one.” Bjorn jerked his chin toward a distant tree as he walked past me, axe disappearing only to reappear in his hand. Coldness pressed around me, and I eyed the sun setting in the distance, knowing it was going to get worse. Rising to my feet, I walked the perimeter to get my blood flowing, my stomach clenching each time I heard Bjorn curse, unwilling to watch the process.
Thunk.
I exhaled a breath of relief, allowing myself to look toward the thick tree he’d hit, much farther than the others had been but large enough to burn longer.
Bjorn turned and eyed me. “You’re freezing.”
“I’m fine.” Not entirely true given that my clothes were sodden from melting snow and the wind felt like it was bringing all of winter down upon us, but I didn’t want him to worry. “But thank you for volunteering.”
“For what?” His eyes narrowed.
Not giving him a chance to step away, I unbuckled his belt and then lifted his tunic, shoving my frozen hands beneath it. He winced as I pressed them against the hard muscles of his stomach. “I would not have volunteered for this.”
Yet he belied his own words, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me close, my hands sliding around to his back, the feel of him doing more than the warmth to drive away the chill. I rested my head against his chest, feeling the heat of his axe against the back of my legsas it manifested on the ground near my feet. “I need to tell you something.”
“I’ve been told a few too many things today, Freya.”
I nodded my head in acknowledgment but still said, “When I was taken by the Nameless posing as Snorri’s men, they drugged me, but I was roused from my stupor by the specter. She said, ‘Your name was born in fire. Skaland will be united beneath the rule of the one who controls your fate.’ ”
“She.”
I bit the insides of my cheeks. “Her eyes are the same shade of green as yours, Bjorn. Snorri believed Saga was the specter, and I…I think he was right.”
“So not only did she die in my fire, she still burns in it.”
His whole body sang with tension, and while I wished my words had not hurt him, I had a point that needed to be made. “Your mother is trying to help me. The first foretelling about me was the only one she ever gave. All the stories of darkness and death were spun by Harald to manipulate you. And to manipulate me. False foretellings through and through. He doesn’t want Skaland united because that will make it strong where it is now weak, and weakness is easier to manipulate. He’s been trying to change my fate all my life to prevent anyone who might rival him from coming to power, and I think your mother remained between realms to fight against him. She’s suffering in order to keep Harald from winning, and for that reason alone, we can’t give up.”
“What if he has won?”
His gaze was fixed on the burning tree, though I didn’t think he saw it. “We’re still alive. He wanted us dead but couldn’t see it through, and we need to take advantage of that. Escape and stop him. Make all of Nordeland and Skaland know who and what he really is.”
“He’s beloved, Freya. It’s not so simple.”
“I know, but how much of that love is built on lies?” When Bjorn didn’t answer, I added, “Tora is not serving him of her own free will, that much is clear. My guess is that she discovered what he was and hebound her to keep the secret. What if he has bound others in a similar fashion?”
“Even if we escape, how do we prove it? It is our word against his, and he has an entire army and dozens of Unfated in his service.”
I huffed out a breath. “Obviously I have not thought that far ahead, so quit asking questions about what we will do when we are free when the priority is escape.”
“Your plans always have great beginnings, Born-in-Fire, but having barely survived the middles and endings of said plans, it is difficult not to ask questions.”
“The question you should ask yourself is why you aren’t being more helpful by offering suggestions rather than criticisms. I have a plan. You have no plan. That makes my plan better than yours.”
His chest shook beneath my cheek with silent laughter. “Is that a challenge?”
“Yes.” I smiled. “Let me know when you come up with an idea, as I will deeply enjoy picking it apart as you do mine.”
