How must her sister have felt when Embla had taken over the care of her own children?
Gertrud’s face lit up with delight, and she gave a little nod of appreciation. ‘Thank you... At first, I was nervous to scold them. But it has certainly helped with their behaviour.’ She paused before adding quietly, ‘We have always let them have their way, and I realise now that can be harmful. Maybe, if they were not so spoilt, you could have returned with them that day, rather than walking back on your own.’
Wincing at the guilt in her sister’s tone, Embla said, ‘It was my choice... I could have insisted we return together, but I didn’t.’
Gertrud nodded, her voice gentle. ‘I did not blame them for what happened to you. Rather, it showed me how I had failed them. By not teaching them the importance of putting people first...and not respecting you, as I should have. How couldyoureprimand them when their own mother never did?’
Thankfully, the Jarl drew Gertrud’s attention away before Embla could say anything in response. Her half-sister’s honesty was astounding, and she wasn’t sure if she would ever get used to it.
Was she even needed here anymore?
The question was not as frightening as it should have been, and Embla pondered it for some time as they ate. She barely listened to the skald as he recited the sagas.
After the sagas had finished, her mother leaned closer to ask, ‘What was it like, living with him?’
The question snapped Embla out of her dreamlike state. The evening meal had been a flurry of feasting, toasts, stories, and laughter. But things were finally beginning to settle down for the night, and her mother seemed to have taken this rare moment of quiet to pull on the loose threads of Embla’s own tale.
‘Runar?’ Embla squeaked, his name like a thorn in her throat.
Would she ever see him again?
Of course, he would be back to trade in the autumn, but how strange would that be? Would she queue up to speak with him, join the settlement’s line of merchants, and wait for her moment? Would he even want to speak with her, or would she be nothing more than a pleasant memory by then?
Maybe he’d find another woman he liked better from the visitingsiida. Like Lejo and Iskko had.
Had she given up her only chance to be with him?
Out of pride? All because she wanted him to fight for her?
She shook her head trying to focus on her mother’s question. ‘He was...differentto how I expected.’
Gertrud stiffened beside her, and Embla felt as if she were balancing on the edge of a cliff. She did not want to hurt her half-sister, and she feared one wrong word would close the door on this new and better relationship between them.
‘How so?’ asked Asa.
‘He was...kind,’ Embla eventually answered, taking a bite from her fresh bread.
Thickly slathered with salted butter, creamy cheese, and sharp pickles, it should have been a delicious treat. But it tasted dry and stale in her mouth, although she knew it was the finest Gudvangen had to offer. The sheer variety of dishes was as impressive as always, but Embla took no pleasure in them tonight.
‘I am glad he treated you well, Embla. He can be an abrasive and unfriendly fellow at times. He is part Sami, and they have different customs to us,’ said Jarl Thorin, leaning around his wife to fix Embla with his cool sapphire eyes. ‘You may not know it, but there was anincidentmany years ago, before you came to live here...’
Something in the way he stated this made her think he was testing her.
Gertrud’s eyes remained fixed ahead of her, as if she were not listening to her husband, but the stiffness of her spine and the tightness of her expression as the Jarl spoke told a different tale.
The Jarl continued, apparently oblivious to his wife’s discomfort, his tone mild, ‘It was only a misunderstanding, and I quickly dealt with it...so, nothing serious. But I thought it best to restrict his access here. When he comes to trade, he is not allowed past our gate. Today was an exception, as he was bringing you home to us. But in future he shall remain beyond the gate as before, until I am confident no one will be harmed by his presence.’
The last was said to the main Hall as a command, and the warriors in the Hall nodded with agreement. Poor Ottar and Dagfinn looked sick with worry for allowing him in.
Embla wondered what was widely known about the short love affair between Gertrud and Runar.
Why was there not more outrage?
Even if Gertrud had left willingly, the Jarl was entitled to have killed Runar merely for the insult, but he seemed content to have merely brushed aside the crime. She began to wonder if there was more to it than she had originally thought.
Did the people of Gudvangen even know what had happened?
Maybe they had just been warned he was dangerous without explanation, and then a couple of rumours had spread...as they always did in a settlement such as this.
