Page 35 of Tears of the Wolf
The main doors at the end were open, as were most of the side entrances that let in light and air during the warmer months. Come winter, all those side doors would be sealed and packed with straw until spring came once again. Wooden beams supported the outside of the walls and fresh shingles covered the roof.
“What do you think?” Cenric asked as he pulled her through the entrance.
Brynn looked up at the ceiling as they approached.
Beams crisscrossed the roof, most of the timbers had been blackened with age, but some were new, replaced by Cenric and his men this past summer. Tables and benches took up a good portion of the hall, but there was also a massive pit at the center for cooking fires and braziers for smaller fires in the winter.
Come winter, many of Cenric’s people would come here, especially on the colder nights. They’d pack in for warmth and spend the late nights around the fires, sleeping, but also singing and storytelling while the women spun wool, and the men repaired tools or sharpened weapons.
This was definitely not what Brynn was used to, but…
“What’s this?” Brynn’s hand brushed one of the wooden pillars that supported the roof of the great hall.
Shapes had been carved into the pillars, runes that appeared in threes, twos, and some lone symbols. Some of the runes had begun to wear away, but others were fresh. They were Valdari runes, made of straight lines, characters originally meant to be etched in stone.
“Honors from my guests, though some are from my father’s guests, or even his father’s.”
Brynn looked to him in confusion, calling for more explanation.
“In the north, if we are received well, we leave the mark of our names on the pillars of our host’s hall.” It was an old Valdari custom, one of many that had crossed the sea and been adopted by the people of Ombra over the years, even before Cenric’s birth.
“I see.” Brynn looked toward the ceiling, where the marks had been scratched all the way to the top of the first two pillars. “You’re running out of space.”
“I am,” Cenric chuckled. “My son’s guests may have to use the next row of pillars.”
Brynn smiled, though this time it was tinged with sadness.
Edric and the rest of the men came, carrying the trunks and barrels, and boxes, and various packs of belongings.
“Where do you want these, lady?” Kalen asked, carrying one of Brynn’s trunks.
“In the head room,” Cenric said. “Put all her things there.”
Brynn looked around the longhouse. Her expression shuttered, becoming hard to read again. She was retreating, drawing back behind a barricade of neutrality.
Disappointment flickered through Cenric. He wanted her to be pleased. Had he said something wrong? Was Ombradisappointing her after all? “Come, lady. Let me show you the rest of your servants.” He glanced around. Everyone would probably be outside tending the animals, but just the same…
“Lord! Welcome home.” A slender woman with her hair pulled back under a kerchief bowed to Cenric.
“Gaitha,” Cenric inclined his head to her. “I trust you’ve managed the household well.”
“Right as you left it, lord,” Gaitha said.
“This is Lady Brynn of the Istovari. My wife.”
Gaitha bowed to Brynn. “Welcome, Lady Brynn. I have run the household for the past few weeks, but I understand you will be taking that over.”
“Yes,” Brynn answered, voice wavering just enough Cenric caught it. “I will be.”
Gaitha bowed again. “It will be good to have a lady of Ombra. I can only civilize these savages so much on my own.”
“We’re plenty civilized,” Edric laughed, grabbing her from behind. “Miss me?”
Gaitha whirled on her husband. “And welcome home to you, you great fool.”
The smaller man cast her a wicked grin. “And how was the past week without me?”
“Splendid. I finally got a full night’s sleep without your snoring.”
