“Ye dinna say.” Ninian shifted his gaze to the Norsemen before looking back at Liam. “I told ma mon to bring the lass and yer men to ma home. Sonneta will feed them. If she needs to, she’ll ken to hide them in the cellar. We canna retire too soon, or Gunter will find rumors to start.”
“Are ye sure that’s wise? I dinna want ye in the middle.”
“It put me in the middle the moment ye brought the lass within sight of Dingieshowe. But Gunter made it ma business when he thought he might capture the lass here. I’m nae having it.”
“Thank ye, ma friend. Will ye tell the others?”
“Nae if I can help it. The fewer people who ken, the safer we’ll all be.”
“She has family in Isbister. We planned to travel there next, but I will send her and ma three men tomorrow.”
Ninian shook his head. “Part of the reason I’m bringing her inside the walls is because Gunter sent out two hunting parties yesterday. I thought it was to offer us meat for all they will eat while here. Deer and boar arenae what I think he’s hunting. Until he leaves, the lass and nay one with her are safe outside this village. Even if he discovers she’s here, there are too many chieftains who would cut off trade with Norway and find better arrangements with the Scottish. The chieftains fear losing what they already ken, but nae as much as they will fear the Almighty striking them down if I must remind them how Christ taught against slavery.”
“Ye’re a good mon, Ninian. I’m sorry to put ye and yer family in danger.”
“Haud yer wheest, lad. This is the safest place ye could come while still in Orkney. There are more people here than usual, which brings its own risk, but ye also have more leaders from across the isles than ye could meet anywhere else. If Gunter missteps, he’ll ruin his brother’s plans throughout Orkney and Shetland. Hopefully, he has the sense to ken one woman isnae worth that to him.”
“Mayhap. But I think Elene scorned him. I think this is aboot revenge.”
“I figured as much. Even brutal men like Gunter dinna condone that pagan practice. It had to be something more than just business.”
“I dinna ken all of it, but aye, it’s more than just business.” Liam watched as the Norsemen and women filed out of the mead hall. “Where are they sleeping?”
“They pitched tents in the far northern corner of the village.”
“Thank the Lord for small blessings. I’m glad yer home is at the south end. Will they be with Sonneta yet?”
“I pray so. The gates lock soon, and they dinna need to be creeping in while the Norse are crossing the village center. Come.” Ninian rose and led Liam to the door. He signaled to Dermot and the Sinclair warriors, who followed the Orcadian. They arrived at Ninian’s door just as it closed. Ninian opened it but jumped back, bumping into Liam. Three swords and a deadly knife pointed at him.
Liam placed his hand on Ninian’s shoulder and nodded to his men. They sheathed their swords, but Elene didn’t return her dirk to her boot. She waited until Liam eased past the older man and opened his arms to her. She fell into his embrace, her knife clattering to the floor. Liam guided her backwards, moving them farther into the croft and allowing the others to enter.
“I think he saw me,” Elene whispered.
“We need to get you in the cellar,” Sonneta instructed. The woman had flaxen hair, even lighter than Elene’s, tied in a bun at her nape, and her blue eyes sparkled with intelligence. She wiped her hands on an apron tied around her waist before pointing to a cowhide stretched across the floor beside the family’s table. Ninian threw back a corner and lifted a trap door. Liam looked into the darkness, knowing that many Orcadians followed the Norse tradition of digging pits to store food. The Norse would place massive lumps of ice cut from fjords to preserve food in the summer months. He didn’t have time to wonder what the Orcadians did without ice readily available.
Liam offered Elene his hand as she sat on the edge and swung her feet. She couldn’t feel the floor, but she knew it wouldn’t be deeper than her height. Elene dropped and crouched, feeling around in the dark. She found barrels that she assumed contained ale and pickled fish, maybe even root vegetables. She shifted them and wiggled behind before scooting them back to hide her. She waited to see if the men who’d been in the meadow with her would climb down.
“They can stay,” Ninian stated. “We’ll say they came later because a horse threw its shoe. They knew to come here from past visits.”
“It took three of them to deal with one horse’s loose shoe?” Elene asked. She thought it a flimsy excuse.
“We’ll say they scouted,” Liam decided. “If Gunter has his own people outside the walls, then it shouldn’t surprise him if I did the same.”
Liam lowered the trapdoor and drew the cowhide over it, once more hiding it. He wondered how many people Ninian hid, or what he hid, that he kept this cellar a secret. He knew from being a child that they had a separate one dug two yards from the back of their home. Instead of questioning the man, he pulled a stool onto the rug and gestured for his men to take the other ones. It left Ninian and Sonneta with the only two chairs. The woman hurried to pass around mugs of mead while the men settled. They were barely in their places before someone hammered on the door.
Ninian glanced around before moving to the door. He opened it, and it surprised no one to spy Gunter on the other side. He tried to push past Ninian, but the aging man stood to his full height, throwing his shoulders back. While not a regular warrior, he’d been a farmer since he was old enough to pick weeds. Years of toil gave Ninian strength and a breadth of shoulders that barred Gunter from passing without permission. A glare pinned the Norseman in place.
“No Norseman has the right to enter any Orcadian home without invitation. We are not Norse anymore,” Ninian reminded.
“I’m still a king’s brother.”
“Of a land that doesn’t rule here. What do you want?”
“I want Elene Isbister. I know she’s here.”
“No one by that name’s here,” Ninian responded, his feigned confusion convincing.
“I saw her,” Gunter argued. “She was coming down the hill as I crossed the village.”
