‘And with any luck my mother’s camp will still be nearer this side of the lake,’ he added cheerfully.
‘So you see her most winters then, does she ever stay with you?’ asked Embla, hoping to distract herself from the bite of frost on her face and the tiredness of her legs.
‘No, she likes to stay with the tribe. But I tend to visit her at the end of autumn when they first arrive, and again in the spring before they leave. She will be surprised to see me again so soon.’
‘Will she mind?’ Embla asked nervously. ‘Seeing you again so soon...and with a...guest?’
Runar laughed. ‘Mind? She will be delighted. Prepare yourself to receive lots of gifts.Andfar more than the supplies that we will actually need. She will probably insist on giving you something...a trinket or carving, perhaps. Be warned—you cannot refuse her.’
‘Me? Why would she givemea gift?’ she asked, squirming as she remembered the bridal chest in the barn.
Runar shrugged. ‘It is her way.’
Deciding it might be better to talk of something else, she asked, ‘She cannot give us too much, for how will we bring it back?’ She gestured to the empty sledge.
She had offered to help him, but he had insisted it was easier for him to manage alone. Now she feared he was saving her strength for the gruelling return journey.
‘Do not worry. I can pull it. Besides, I might be able to convince a friend of mine to let us borrow his dogs.’
‘Oh, that will be nice.’ The thought cheered her, not only because it would be a far quicker and easier return journey, but because she rather liked the idea of sitting beside Runar’s warmth as they took a dog sleigh through the forest.
She thumped her mittened hands together and trudged forward through the snow with a little more enthusiasm. Runar had insisted on filling her boots with hay, and it had kept her feet surprisingly warm all morning. She wore a newly stitched fur hat on her head, which Runar had also suggested she make to keep her warm when she was outside. He said the cap she wore was not enough, and she had to admit he was right. She had taken to wearing an extra fur over her shoulders too, and it was far warmer than the woollens she had worn previously. But then, she had never had to stay very long outside when she had lived in Gudvangen. Her duties had always kept her inside the Hall, except for the occasional trip to the cesspit.
‘Not much further,’ he grunted as he dragged the sledge around an awkward boulder.
Through the trees in the distance, she spotted a large flat swathe of white that could only be the frozen lake. As they approached the edge of the trees, she noticed several grey wisps of smoke trailing up into the indigo sky, a sure sign of a settlement up ahead.
Embla wasn’t sure what she had expected, but as they emerged from the forest, the first thing she saw was a large group of people ice-fishing in the centre of the lake. They wore bright clothes in reds and blues, with cloaks of rich reindeer fur elaborately trimmed with embroidery. Children and dogs ran freely across the frozen water.
As her own boots thudded against the vast lake of white, she was comforted by the knowledge there would be several feet of ice between her and the sleeping water beneath. So she wasn’t worried about walking across it.
On the opposite shore sat the camp, in a flat area created by newly felled trees. Presumably used to help construct their tents and to burn as firewood. It wasn’t too far away, as this was the narrowest section of the lake. A dozen round grey tents were gathered on the outskirts of the forest; they looked like flat-bottomed rain drops. Some of them were so large they almost rivalled Runar’s cabin in size. They were made from felled pines laid together to form a coned peak, and were covered in reindeer hides.
Animals were everywhere. From dogs and goats wandering freely, to the flutter of hens in large cages. It was a community full of life, and reminded her of the bustle of Gudvangen.
Some of the children who had been ice-fishing came running towards them, the hounds yapping at their feet. Sten ran out to meet them, barking happily in greeting. Embla swallowed the tight knot in her throat, suddenly nervous to meet the people Runar considered his family.
What would they think of her?
Chapter Eleven
Children and dogs swarmed around them, and Runar greeted them in the Sami language.
The younger ones were quick to ask, ‘Have you any new toys for us?’
‘Not yet!’ he answered.
The older ones began to plead, ‘Come fishing with us, Runar. Lejo has been so dull lately. He never plays with us anymore!’
Sometimes, the parents would ask him and his patient friend Lejo to watch their children while they worked in theirlavvutents. He was surprised not to see Lejo with them, but he supposed the young hunter might be out in the forest.
‘Maybe later. Is Miljá in herlavvu? I need to introduce my new friend to her.’ Several heads nodded and gestured towards one of the elder tents.
‘I knew it!’ grumbled one of the older boys. ‘Runar has found himself a woman too, and now he will become dull and bad-tempered—just like Lejo!’ The boy scowled accusingly at Embla, who blinked in surprise at the frosty welcome.
The rest of the children cast curious glances at Embla then, and he was grateful she did not understand their words. He could feel his own embarrassment burning up his neck, but he wished hecouldintroduce her as his woman.
‘She is just a friend,’ he said sternly.
