Thankfully, he didn’t appear to want to talk about it either, because after a moment of awkward silence he said, ‘I choose to live alone because I do not like large groups of people. Sami or Norse, it does not matter. I am happiest alone with only myself to rely upon.’
‘Oh, but that sounds so lonely,’ Embla said without thinking, and then hurried to make amends when she saw the flash of offence that crossed his face. ‘I mean... I would hate to live alone in the forest by myself. It is so cold, and such hard work—I would never survive it. What if you became ill or injured? Who would look after you? And... I love people. I think I would go mad without conversation—’
She stopped speaking, worried she had laboured her point a little too forcefully, and had also managed to make herself appear ridiculously spoiled. ‘I mean, why not winter with people, at least? It would be preferable to staying in a freezing cold cave.’
A mischievous spark lit his dark eyes from within, and she had to admit she rather liked the sleepy look of them. They reminded her of cat’s eyes, full of clever tricks.
‘But then I would be trapped inside with lots and lots of people,’ he said.
‘Gudvangen is small compared to the larger trading towns further south. I am from Bergen, and that is a very busy place.’
‘You are from Bergen?’ His tone suddenly became sharp. She wondered what he might have against her hometown, or even how he had heard of it in the first place, if he really did avoid towns and settlements.
‘Yes. Gertrud, Jarl Thorin’s wife, is from there too. When she was ready to have her babies, she sent for me. My mother trained me to help at births and with childrearing generally. So, Gertrud insisted on having at least one of us with her when her time came.’
It was not lost on Embla that she had not been sent for until after Gertrud had become pregnant. Clearly, she was a servant and nothing more.
‘You are close then?’
Embla almost laughed at the ridiculous question. But there was a hard look in his eyes when he had spoken of Gertrud that made her nervous.
Did he know her?
But Gertrud never left her chambers when he came to trade, so how could they know each other? It made no sense...
‘She is my mistress and has been good to me.’ The words came quickly to her, and he searched her face as if looking for hidden meaning. ‘I would be nothing without her. She gave me purpose and a home.’
His eyes softened, and he nodded. ‘You would never leave her then.’
‘No,’ she answered, but for some reason it pained her to say it.
There was a loud rumble overhead. Some dust and a few stones clattered to the ground from the roof of the cave. Runar grabbed her by the waist and pulled her towards him, twisting his body up and over to shelter her from the raining dust.
It was over no sooner than it had begun, but Embla was terrified. Thor must be angry.
Why would he rattle the mountain otherwise?
‘Is it over?’ she gasped, clutching on to Runar’s biceps as if he were the only solid thing she could trust, which was not far from the truth. She had hoped he would laugh at her, tease her about her silly fears, but his expression was sombre.
‘A snow bank has fallen.’
She shivered. During the winter months, banks of snow and rock would slide down the mountain regularly. If you were caught in the path of a large fall, it meant certain death.
Which was yet another reason to avoid the mountain during the cold season. Three winters ago, an enormous snow bank had dropped, carrying snow and rubble so far it even engulfed Gudvangen. Two buildings fell, and one person had died in the wave of snow.
‘A large one?’ she asked nervously, squinting at the rock above them and wondering if it would collapse on top of their heads... Hopefully, it would be a quick death.
‘Possibly,’ answered Runar, rubbing her back gently in a soothing gesture.
Instinctively she moved closer. ‘Really?’
Runar looked down at her, and she realised that the light from the cave mouth had not been blocked out fully at least. ‘No...but I am enjoying this far too much to say otherwise.’
Hissing with only a small measure of annoyance, she reared away, slapping his arm. ‘I was worried!’
‘That is why I decided to tell you the truth...eventually.’ He smiled and shrugged lazily, the gesture more comforting than she would have imagined. ‘It was only a small fall, nothing serious. But you should wait before climbing down the mountain. There could be another.’
‘So, I can go home...later?’
