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Chapters (76)
  1. Cover
  2. Praise forMATTHEW HARFFY
  3. BY MATTHEW HARFFY
  4. Title Page
  5. Copyright
  6. Dedication
  7. Maps
  8. Epigraph
  9. Contents
  10. Place Names
  11. One
  12. Two
  13. Three
  14. Four
  15. Five
  16. Six
  17. Seven
  18. Eight
  19. Nine
  20. Ten
  21. Eleven
  22. Twelve
  23. Thirteen
  24. Fourteen
  25. Fifteen
  26. Sixteen
  27. Seventeen
  28. Eighteen
  29. Nineteen
  30. Twenty
  31. Twenty-One
  32. Twenty-Two
  33. Twenty-Three
  34. Twenty-Four
  35. Twenty-Five
  36. Twenty-Six
  37. Twenty-Seven
  38. Twenty-Eight
  39. Twenty-Nine
  40. Thirty
  41. Thirty-One
  42. Thirty-Two
  43. Thirty-Three
  44. Thirty-Four
  45. Thirty-Five
  46. Thirty-Six
  47. Thirty-Seven
  48. Thirty-Eight
  49. Thirty-Nine
  50. Forty
  51. Forty-One
  52. Forty-Two
  53. Forty-Three
  54. Forty-Four
  55. Forty-Five
  56. Forty-Six
  57. Forty-Seven
  58. Forty-Eight
  59. Forty-Nine
  60. Fifty
  61. Fifty-One
  62. Fifty-Two
  63. Fifty-Three
  64. Fifty-Four
  65. Fifty-Five
  66. Fifty-Six
  67. Fifty-Seven
  68. Fifty-Eight
  69. Fifty-Nine
  70. Sixty
  71. Sixty-One
  72. Sixty-Two
  73. Author’s Note
  74. Acknowledgements
  75. About the Author
  76. An Invitation from the Publisher

Looking about the smoky hall, I was once again struck by how easily we were all getting along. The men of Northumbria managed to understand and make themselves understood, and as the night progressed, laughter was heard frequently in the hall. We might have spoken different tongues and worshipped different gods, but looking at the men and women seated at the benches in Tannskári’s hall, there was nothing in their appearance to separate them. The men, both Norse and Northumbrian, drank too much and told tales of their exploits in ever louder voices. The women served mead, ale, and the food they had prepared, watching their menfolk with the familiar blend of affection and exasperation that I had seen on my mother’s face. It was the expression of goodwives everywhere, loving, yet resigned to the foibles of their men. The children too were like all other children. They shrieked and rushed around the hall, playing with each other and teasing the growling dogs mercilessly until one of the men or women shouted at them.

Hearing about Mancas’ fears, I knew I had not been alone in my trepidation of these people. But after the day of comradeship and now, as the noise, sights and smells of the feast wrapped about me like a welcoming cloak, my opinion began to shift, just as the wind changes direction in the sky. I had been fearful for the journey to Rygjafylki, but now, I began to believe the mission we had been sent on by King Æthelred might not be impossible after all. These people were no different from us. Surely it would not be so hard to convince them to trade with Northumbria in peace, just as Tannskári had traded with Mancas for repairs and supplies.

I was disappointed that Thurid was not allowed to sit by my side on the mead bench. She sat at the high table, close to her mother. Whenever I looked in her direction, she met my gaze with a small smile and I felt the Devil whispering in my mind that it would not be such a bad thing if I should slip away into the night with her, to kiss her full lips, and to feel more of her soft flesh than I had when she had held my hand that day.

The mead was strong and my fantasies became increasingly passionate as the feast grew old. When I noticed Thurid rising to retire, I decided to act upon my desires. My mind was filled with her. Her smile, the cool touch of her hand, the soft weight of her on my lap, her fingers slipping into my mouth as I licked them clean. My memories and dreams swirled together, curdling my thoughts like old milk. I could not rid myself of the attraction I was sure we both felt, so I pushed myself to my feet.