Page 112 of Clash of Storms
Tormund locked it.
And Malin's shoulders finally slumped in relief.
"Tiamat's blood, what are you doing here?" Sigurd hissed, his hands rubbing her upper arms and tears sparking in his eyes. "Where have you been? We had only that one brief letter, saying you'd run off with the Blackfrost of all males, and nothing ever since. Elin and I were worried sick."
"It's a long story." She drew back and saw her sister waiting impatiently behind him. There were more hugs. Kisses. Elin wouldn't let her go.
"What happened, Malin?" Elin demanded, scraping a strand of blonde hair out of her eyes. "The queen declared you a traitor. She said you were involved in the princess's kidnapping."
She'd missed both Elin and her father. "Nobody saw me. And Árdís wasn't kidnapped." Malin drew back, squeezing Elin's hands. "Is that what they're telling the court?"
Sigurd brushed away his tears. "Aye. The queen returned in a fury two days ago. What do you mean the princess wasn't kidnapped?"
Malin told him an abbreviated version of events, as his eyes grew wider and rounder. Her father might bedreki, but he'd been loyal to the murdered king and the true prince-heir.
"You met Prince Rurik?" Sigurd demanded, ignoring what she'd said about the battle.
"Aye." She took Freyja by the hand. "And this is the prince's mate, Freyja, a mortal woman who lives near Krafla."
Her father gave Freyja a strange look, his dark eyes sharpening. "Freyja?" he repeated, as if he couldn't quite believe the word. "Amortalwoman? Not with those eyes she's not."
"Father," Malin stressed.
How could he be so rude?
Sigurd shut his mouth, but he gave her a telling look as if to say his line of questioning wouldn't end there.
"My queen," Elin said, trying to kneel in front of Freyja, who looked quite taken aback.
"Not yet, Elin." Freyja captured Elin's hands, and dragged her upright. "Please don't do that. I spent years tending my father's farm and minding his sheep, and it feels odd to have someone greet me like this."
Sigurd frowned. "But why are you here? Malin, this is the very last place you should have brought Freyja. If the queen realizes she's here—"
"She won't find out." Malin swiftly explained that the prince was going to confront the queen and her brother, while they were here to rescue Sirius and Andri.
"Goddess," Elin whispered. "You have been busy."
She was looking at Malin as if she'd never seen her before.
"Is Sirius here?" Malin asked impatiently, now all the greetings were out of the way. "Where are they keeping him?"
"Aye, he returned to court two days ago."
The gravity of her father's voice made her heart plunge. "What's wrong? What is it?"
Reaching within his pocket, Sigurd withdrew a glimmering silver chain. Malin clapped a hand to her mouth in horror as she recognized thedrekipendant on the end of it. It spilled into her other hand, feeling like it weighed more than it should.
"He wanted you to have it."
I will give it to the woman I love.
The blood rushed out of her face and her knees trembled. She couldn't be too late. "Father?" Her voice sounded like a little girl's, tears obliterating her vision.
"He's alive. Barely." Sigurd knelt in front of her, and Malin realized she'd collapsed into a chair. "It's bad, Malin. They chained him to the throne room walls once they were done torturing him, so everyone could see the price of betrayal."
He'd hate that. Her prouddrekiprince brought low and displayed like a common thief.
"Andri's locked away somewhere near the queen's chambers, and there's been no word of where," Elin added. "We knew something was happening as there's been such a flurry of activity in the upper halls—drekiarriving at all hours of the night, and Roar with his face burned...."
