But she whirled around. In two long strides she was beside us and hooking her fingers through the cord encircling Knut’s neck. She yanked hard; he wheezed in pain as the narrow strip of hide dug in, cutting off his breath. Svala hauled him up bodily. His face turned purple; his eyes bulged. He was going to die right in front of us. No, I whispered, that wasn’t what I meant you to do. Or perhaps I only thought it. Peering around Felix, I knew I could do nothing to stop whatever was about to unfold.

She held him a moment, the strength of her arm formidable, and her face was indeed that of a goddess, stern in her judgment. Something had changed; his presence no longer cowed and frightened her. The cord snapped, and Knut collapsed to the deck. Set free, the talisman graven with Eolh flew through the air, tumbling on its way, and fell into the sea. Svala touched the frayed cord to her lips in an oddly tender gesture, then tucked it into her bodice. To my astonishment, I saw a tear spill from her eye and roll down her perfect cheek.

Now here was Cathal on the deck beside us, lifting the wheezing Knut, dragging him away. Sigurd came up to help; together they conveyed the Norseman below. Svala had turned back toward the north. No screaming now, no singing, no calling. She stood calm and quiet.

“All right?” Felix asked, somewhat breathlessly.

“Mm. You?”

“In one piece. Sibeal, you’d be better down in the hold for this last part. It’s—a little dangerous.”

Laughter welled up in me. It owed more to sheer terror than amusement. “I thought you once said you’d always tell me the truth,” I managed.

“This, now, is frightening,” Felix said, and there was no trace of laughter in his voice. “But the passage between the rocks is . . . different. And there’s . . . ”

There’s what lies beyond, I thought. The monster. “I know,” I said. “But I’m not going down in the hold with Knut, even if they’ve tied him up.” It was the first time I had seen a man crazed by fear. With difficulty I summoned a confident tone. “This is the very best crew we could have. They’ll get us through.”

“We’re almost there, Sibeal,” Felix murmured, wrapping his arms around me. His warmth flooded into me once more; my heart lifted. “We could find them before sunset. We could be on our way home tomorrow. I’ll owe you a debt for the rest of my life.”