The waiting, the suffering, the loss of his birthright and the sacrifice of his mother—all wasted if he failed to convince Skadi to accept him.
Shehadto accept him.
Even after preparing himself for the sight of her, she still took his breath away. A long and proud face, with blonde hair so pale it was almost white. Blue stormy eyes that observed all around her like a hawk. She was as uncompromising, beautiful and regal as he remembered.
Skadi was the embodiment of his ambition, pride and peace, filling him with desire, hope and disgust, the conflicting mix of emotions churning with grief and bitterness. But she was finally within his grasp.
Of course, she was older now, had filled out since he’d last seen her—she’d been much younger then, still not confident in her womanhood or her decisions. She was curvier now, had matured and ripened with motherhood. Rounded hips, thicker thighs, heavier breasts and muscular arms.
Strong and womanly—after all, she was a seasoned shieldmaiden as well as a queen, which unfortunately appealed to his baser instincts. He’d hoped to find some distance between them—that seeing her again would soften some of the raw emotions he’d always felt when he’d thought of her… It had not.
If anything, she was more beautiful now. She’d become a mother since he’d last seen her, but she still trained regularly by the confident way she held her sword and shield. She had grown from a confused princess into a formidable queen.
She’d killed one of his men…one whom he cared nothing for, but he had to admire her ability, considering she was in little more than a short shift. He’d been worried that he couldn’t trust Gro and Beske to follow his orders. They were not men he knew well and had asked to join with him only recently. They’d said they’d once worked in the mines of Thrudheim, so they knew the mountain well. Still, he regretted giving them the chance to cause havoc.
He allowed his hungry eyes a moment to devour the sight of her. To reassure himself that he was finally here, ready to claim her. But then his eyes had locked on to the splash of blood across her thigh, the slow trickle of crimson running down her naked leg to pool on the stone floor.
He needed her alive!That was the reason for his anger, surely?
He should have thrown both Gro and Beske off the cliff once they’d shown him the way. They had put his whole plan at risk and he could feel the murderous rage pricking along his sword arm, his muscles contracting, thirsty for blood. But he knew in his heart it was more than that. He was possessive of her, despite only seeing her twice in his life.
Skadi remained defiantly straight and proud in her stance. So at least it wasn’t a deep wound. He forced his shoulders to relax as he sought the gaze of his second, Vali, whose head shifted subtly to nod at Beske, informing him without words who had harmed her.
Rage built within him, each moment he spent in Beske’s company sparking new anger, like oil dripping on to flame.
But he would have to deal with that later. Currently, he had a murderous warrior queen facing him with a weapon in hand. Behind her, a loyal servant crouched behind an open chest, holding a trembling bow and arrow. A small white-haired girl was crouched beside her who looked just like her mother.
Skadi rolled the sword with her wrist, drawing his eyes back to her—as if they needed much encouragement, he thought bitterly—but he could see that she was wary of his focus on her child. A man never came between a mother bear and her cub, not if he wanted to live, and Agnar straightened his spine, trying his best to calm the fire in his heart.
‘You know who I am,’ he said.
‘Agnar Bjornsson,’ she replied coldly. ‘I remember you…’ A bittersweet smile twisted her lips. ‘You’ve grown into a man…finally.’
Her words were both painful and sweet to hear, like honey on a bad tooth drawing out the sad and poisonous truth. Reminding him that his only failure had been that he had been born too late.
Well, he was no longer a child. He sucked in a deep breath and her grip tightened on her sword as she shifted position, putting her wounded leg behind her and turning a little so that she could see all three men clearly. ‘I know who you are, but notwhyyou are here.’
‘For my birthright.’
‘Yourbirthright?’She laughed with disbelief, a throaty and rich sound, the voice of a woman who wore jewels and bathed in spices and rose petals. Her eyes hardened as she met his. ‘You were lucky to leave this place alive. Do you rememberthat?’
Finally, she spoke the words that opened the door on their mutual past and he stiffened at the shameful memory. How he hated her for reminding him of it. Of his helplessness…his weakness and humiliation. Everything he had fought to overcome. She had witnessed it and had turned away, breaking her promise, ruining his life and that of his mother’s, with sweet and wicked words:‘Leave him be, Heimdall…’
‘I remember.’ He would never forgive her for it.
‘You forget your current position, woman. We have you trapped!’ snarled Beske and he took a threatening step forward.
Skadi responded with a defensive position, raising her sword and shield high. Her voice was calm, ‘You are also trapped…with me!’
‘Beske, speak again and you will regret it!’ Agnar interrupted loudly, losing patience with Beske, who seemed to have forgotten that Agnar was his master. ‘Queen Skadi, I want…onlywhat was promised to me by your father…and byyourself.’ He came to stand beside Beske, lowering the foolish man’s sword with a firm press of his palm on the flat of the blade. Beske obeyed, but he felt the man’s resistance and that only angered him further, especially when Skadi showed no regret for her broken promise.
Where was her tearful apology? Her guilt?
‘My father did not expect to die so soon. He thought there would be time for you to grow into a man. That he would see us married and settled before he left this mortal realm.’ Her hand tightened around the hilt of her sword, her knuckles turning as white as her hair. ‘As it was… I had to make a choice, for the good of my land and my people.’
‘Heimdall was aterriblechoice!’ The words roared from him like thunder and he struggled to rein in his temper. A whimper from behind the chest forced him to control himself.
To his surprise Skadi didn’t argue with him. Her jaw clenched and her chin lifted. ‘I have no regrets.’
