“I may as well tell you, I suppose,” Eirik said as their horses moved along a broad track under pines. “I hoped to persuade Oksana to come with me to the islands and to stay. Her and the children.”

“Persuade her?” echoed Somerled. “Why didn’t you just tell her? She’s a thrall, isn’t she?”

Eirik’s mouth tightened. “Such words reflect a narrow vision,” he said. “A man or woman becomes a thrall simply by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. A moment of bad luck, that’s all it takes. Back home in Novgorod, Oksana is a nobleman’s daughter. She has my offer of marriage, these four years past.”

Eyvind stared at him. “Marriage?” he queried. “Then why—?”

“Oksana’s a proud woman. She’s determined to do this her way or not at all. First she’ll earn her freedom with her own work: no concessions, she’s made that clear both to Mother and to me. Only then will she agree to marriage. After that, she says, if I want to take her off voyaging, it’s up to me. The fact is, she likes it on the farm, and Mother would miss her now; she’s more like a daughter than a slave. There it is.”

“So, she won’t wed you,” Somerled mused aloud. “That hardly matters, surely. She seems ready enough to welcome you into her bed, judging by that mob of small warriors that ran out to greet you. Why tie yourself down when you can have what you want with no obligations whatever?”

Eirik set his jaw, hunched his shoulders under the wolfskin, and rode on. “I’m coming to understand why Ulf can’t stand the sight of you,” he said.

Eyvind changed the subject quickly. “The Jarl won’t be well pleased to see so many of his warriors go, perhaps for good,” he observed. “They say Thord won’t be coming back; even Grim’s talking about staying on over there. And there’s Hakon. But that’s different.”

Eirik did not reply. It was common knowledge that Hakon’s hearing was not what it had been, not since the stunning blow to the head he had suffered in that encounter with the men of Jutland, more than three years ago. He still fought well; he played his part in every encounter, steadfast in his obedience to Thor. Nobody, not even Jarl Magnus, knew the extent to which the others covered for him, as his ears gradually lost their acuity and his confidence began to wane. All of them were glad Ulf’s venture had offered Hakon a chance to leave with dignity. Perhaps Thor himself had made this possible, as a reward for faithful service.

“A comfortable young wife, a farm, a squalling infant or two,” mused Eirik. “It’s not such a bad prospect.”