The spell was broken.
The awaiting crowd immediately began to eat, with a tide of clattering dishes and cracking of bread, the sounds running from the front to the back of the hall in a noisy wave, although most of it was from his men. Thrudheim’s people were solemn after their quick and unexpected defeat. The locals did not care to speak with his men, as if they were still uncertain and afraid of his arrival. He could understand that—he’d tried to limit the damage of his invasion, but there had still been a handful of deaths and plenty of injuries.
He carved the suckling pig, for the first time confident in his task, and grateful that it meant he had to stand up. There was a large silver trencher beside it and he laid the slices of meat and crackling on top. After he’d filled the trencher, he turned to Skadi, who was watching him thoughtfully while sipping from her glass of wine.
‘Is that enough?’
‘I should think so,’ she replied tartly, then nodded to a nearby servant who lifted the remainder of the suckling pig and took it to a nearby table to add to their offering. It was torn apart in moments by his hungry men—they’d not had fresh meat in months. The sheer glut on display was overwhelming, each table had mutton stews, or some kind of roasted joint available. They crammed it in their mouths as if afraid they would never taste it again. He knew that feeling well and smiled, which only made Skadi look at him with further disgust.
He sat back down on the cursed throne. It was somehow even more uncomfortable than before. Had she made an offering to the house elves, asking them to place tiny thorns in the stone? He swore his trousers snagged on the seat as he shifted awkwardly for the hundredth time. He offered the trencher of meat to Skadi, who stabbed at it with her eating knife and picked up one small slice, before laying it carefully on her plate.
He was sure she’d taken so little just to make him appear foolish.
‘I can get the rest,’ she said firmly. ‘There is no need to serve me every dish.’
It felt like a rebuke, although he had no idea what he’d done wrong. He had thought to show her respect. Irritated by her ill humour and his own discomfort, he began to serve himself in silence, heaping the variety of food on to his platter and then eating it with relish. He hoped that some sort of inspiration for conversation would soon flow.
Had Thrudheim become his prison now?
After everything he and his mother had sacrificed to regain his birthright, was a miserable marriage his only reward?
This was not the marriage he had imagined. No, he’d thought it would be a little awkward at first, as he would have to learn to forgive her, but he’d hoped in the end they would be comfortable together. Except, she’d not asked for forgiveness…and it was clear shehatedhim.
He’d been so focused on getting to this point—of finally winning back Skadi and Thrudheim, that he’d not actually considered what married life with Skadi would be like.
You have everything you ever wanted…and you are still not content?
But what did he want from her? Love? Such things were for lust-addled youths, not grown men and women. Besides, what could he possibly say to charm her?
Condolences for your dead husband…the one whom I killed.
Better to be practical—she would understand him in time. ‘You should make a speech to your people. Reassure them that all is well.’
Skadi stopped chewing and stared at him as if appalled by the suggestion. ‘Is it? Isallwell?’
‘Yes, as I have said before, you and your daughter are safe with me.’
Skadi leaned in close, and he caught the scent of her perfume, which was also extravagant and whimsical, like her array of pretty dishes. One of the many requests she’d made today had been to order a special perfume made and brought to her personally by her handmaid. He’d taken it—perhaps wrongly—as a sign that she might be more willing to welcome him as her husband.
However, he’d not felt particularlywelcomedsince sitting down to eat with her.
Which was proven even further, when she hissed back at him, ‘Safe?You broke into my home and forced me to marry you!’
‘It was necessary,’ He shrugged, dismissing her outrage. In his mind, he’d done nothing wrong and, eventually, once she began to trust him, his Queen would feel the same…He hoped.‘Your perfume smells nice,’ he added, hoping a compliment might ease her anger.
‘I’m not…’ She blinked, confused by his awkward flattery—she wasn’t alone. He was beginning to wonder if he would fail at the one task he’d thought would be easy…being happy. Her mouth snapped shut for a moment, before she huffed, ‘You had no right to do any of this!’
‘I do and you know it.’ He kept the statement crisp and calm, not wanting to rile her, but wanting to make his point clear. Fixing her with a heavy look, he added, ‘We were betrothed. I stood right there…’ He pointed at the bottom of the dais with his eating knife. ‘Twice!Once to ask for your hand in marriage—which wasgranted!’ He barked the last word sharply. He might have only seen six winters the first time, but he remembered it clearly. ‘And…well, we all know what happened when I came to claim you for the second time after your father’s death.’
For the first time, while speaking to him, her eyes softened with genuine sympathy. ‘You were too young.’
‘As were you.’
Her spine stiffened and her black-rimmed eyes narrowed with fury and indignation. ‘I did the best for my people and for myself! A ten-year-old boy could not rule Thrudheim, or even be a true husband to me for several more years! The petty Kings were planning to overthrow me! Do you have any idea what I was facing?’ Her voice had risen, but he knew it was fuelled by guilt as well as rage. Shehaddoubted her decision, he was now certain of it, and it gave him a glimmer of hope for the future.
‘I understand why you felt that way.’
Her face reddened, but after a quick glance at the watching and curious crowd—who’d become significantly quieter since the start of their argument—she lowered her voice. ‘You understand?Yet you still judge me for it! Killed my husband—Thrudheim’s King—and for what? A promise given to achild? You threatened the life of my daughter and forced me to marry you, all so that you could be King! Have you even considered thatperhapsthe reason my daughter does not wish to attend our wedding feast is because youmurderedher father! A father she has not yet mourned, because he died only two weeks ago!’
