Page 101 of Alliance Bride
Asfrid didn’t move. She didn’t even raise her voice. “We were commanded to take her north. That is what we are doing. If you want our help to communicate with the Kalgorans when we get there, you will keep your hands off. Otherwise, we walk away. You can travel with your sword and your title. I’m sure the Kalgorans will welcome you with open arms.”
They continued to stare at each other in an intense, silent battle of wills.
Sig broke first.
With a muttered curse, he stormed into the trees, a string of angry threats and obscenities trailing behind him. Eadlyn couldn’t help praying he’d meet a bear. Or something worse.
Now that he was gone, the heaviness of the encounter and the information she’d learned descended. They were taking her to Kalgora. The thought of that left her legs wobbly, but it did give Aevar time to find her if Asfrid kept Sig at bay.
The woman dragged her over to a tree and sat her down none-too-gently. While Asfrid seemed happy to protect her from Sig, they were far from friends. Even so, Eadlyn caught her eye and murmured, “Thank you.”
She stuck to Aerlish. Even if Asfrid didn’t understand the words, the meaning was clear. The woman paused before turning toward the horses. Dagr joined her, glancing first at Eadlyn and then into the trees where Sig had disappeared.
“You’re playing with fire.”
Asfrid tugged at the straps of a rolled-up blanket and sheepskin on her saddle. “I won’t stand by and watch that pig assault a bound woman. We’re delivering her. That’s all.”
Dagr followed as she walked back over to a spot near Eadlyn and laid out the bedding. “He’ll have you punished when we return to Ormvik. He won’t let it go.”
“I don’t intend to give him the chance. We will do as ordered and disappear. I’m tired of being treated like a stray dog. We are not Staegar’s thralls just because Móthir was. We should have left Ormvik a long time ago.”
“You don’t think Staegar will come after us?”
“He’s got bigger things on his mind. As long as we deliver the princess, he’ll forget about us. Sig can whine all he wants, but he needs us.”
That ended the discussion. Dagr grunted and laid out his own bedding beside his sister’s. Eadlyn looked at the horse she’d ridden. No blanket. No comforts.
Sig returned eventually, prowling the edge of the camp. As darkness fell in full, they shared provisions. Asfrid gave Eadlyn only a handful of berries. Though she wasn’t hungry, Eadlyn needed her strength and tipped the berries into her mouth. To her dismay, no one started a fire. It would have made finding her easier in the dark.
Not long after they ate, they decided the watch order. Dagr went first, and Asfrid settled down on her bedroll, while Sig lay down several feet away. With a tight cramp in her middle, Eadlyn curled up, the grass damp beneath her cheek, and stones biting into her hip. She tried not to think. Thinking hurt. But she ached for Aevar’s arms around her, holding her close. She fought to push it down, to stay strong, but a tear rolled over the bridge of her nose. She bit her lip hard as pain swelled, forcing more tears to rise, and prayed for rescue.'
Eadlyn jolted awake with a gasp. Cool, damp air filled her lungs, and the forest greeted her with a heavy silence cloaked in predawn shadows. She blinked, trying to shake the fog of half-sleep. For a fleeting moment, she had believed she was home. Safe. But no soft bed or tender arms cradled her now. Only cold earth, aching bones, and the ropes that still bit into her wrists.
It wasn’t a dream.
She was still a captive.
A rustle made her flinch. Asfrid knelt, rolling her blankets and securing the straps. Nearby, Dagr moved through the gloom, brushing pine needles off his cloak and cinching saddles. A few feet away, Sig still lay sprawled on the ground and snored like a beast, far too comfortable for someone so cruel.
Eadlyn’s whole body ached. Her back was sore from the hours in the saddle the day before, and her hips throbbed from sleeping on knotted roots and uneven stones. But worse than anything was the hollow space in her chest. An ache carved by fear and longing.
Asfrid stood, brushed her hands on her trousers, and walked toward her. Without a word, she gripped Eadlyn’s arm and tugged her to her feet. Her fingers were firm, not unkind, but gave no room for resistance. Eadlyn followed, her legs unsteady beneath her as they moved deeper into the forest. A cool breeze swept through the trees, stirring the underbrush.
They stopped near a fallen tree, its trunk stripped bare and damp with dew. Asfrid said nothing, but the implication was clearenough. She was giving Eadlyn the chance to relieve herself away from the men. Eadlyn should be grateful, but all it did was remind her of the first night with Aevar on the journey to Fjellheim. How frightening it had been. So much had changed. This was the first time they’d been apart since they’d married.
Unlike Aevar, Asfrid didn’t give her the courtesy of walking away or even turning her back, though she didn’t seem inclined to watch. Instead, she swept the trees like she expected Aevar to come tearing through them any moment. Eadlyn begged God that he would.
But after a few heavy heartbeats, the forest remained empty. Swallowing her disappointment and pride, she turned to take care of her business. Then she gathered her courage and faced Asfrid once more. This might be her only chance while Sig wasn’t nearby. Asfrid clearly had no affection or loyalty to him or Staegar. Perhaps Eadlyn could persuade her to help.
She breathed a prayer, pressing hope into every word that followed. “I heard what you said to your brother,” she spoke in Nordric. “If you take me back to Fjellheim, the king will protect you from Staegar.”
Asfrid’s head whipped toward her. Her eyes narrowed, flashing in the gray light with the revelation that Eadlyn had understood them this whole time. “You really think they’d forgive us? For abducting you?” Her tone was flat and skeptical. “You think your husband would?”
It wouldn’t be easy, but Eadlyn nodded. “They will if I ask them to.”
Asfrid snorted. “I like my plan better.”
She grabbed Eadlyn’s arm again and led her back toward camp. Brush snagged Eadlyn’s skirt, the forest cold and unkindaround them. Each step bit harder at her resolve. If she didn’t get out of this soon… If Aevar didn’t come…
