“So we are besieged, with the King of Wessex behind these walls?”
“God’s mercy,” she groaned. “I forgot about him.”
Chapter 28
IT WAS UPto Kristen to relate to the rest of the family all that had transpired up on the wall, since Royce had not heard the whole of it. Unfortunately, King Alfred was there to hear it as well. But then, it was next to impossible to exclude him since he was involved due to the simple fact that he could not leave Wyndhurst until the dilemma was solved.
For the most part, Alfred didn’t interfere in the discussions of what was to be done. Options were few, with Selig so against the obvious one, and so adamant that he lost his temper and stalked off.
His last words on the subject were, “I will agree to whatever is decided, as long as it does not include the loss of my prisoner. I’ll even fight that giant Turgeis instead of her brother.”
No one was willing to offerthatoption to the Danes. Waiting out the siege would have been the simplest choice, if Alfred weren’t there to be confined with the rest of them. The men favored aggression, the women peaceful means. No one considered using a threat to Erika’s lifewhen they knew not how her brother might react to it.
In the end, it was Alfred who suggested the most logical solution, one that Selig’s family would never have thought of themselves. And they greeted it with differing degrees of skepticism.
Royce simply laughed.
Garrick cleared his throat to say, “I would not wish that on my son, yet is he being unreasonable in his stubbornness to keep the girl.”
“It matters not,” Kristen insisted. “Selig will never agree to it. He would go out there and get himself killed first. And who is going to suggest it to him?”
“I will,” Royce offered.
Kristen snorted. “You would not be able to stop laughing long enough.”
“Nay, I am sure the rage he is going to exhibit will sober me—if he does not simply give me his fist.” And he was off laughing again.
Kristen was glaring at him by now. “Would you mind telling me what you find so funny in this?”
“The irony,” he said between chuckles. “The incredible irony.”
Brenna had said nothing so far. Garrick, noting it, leaned near her to ask softly, “Why are you not pulling hairs and railing against this?”
Brenna shrugged. “Because I do not think he will mind so much—in the end.”
Garrick lifted a questioning brow. “Haveyou kept something from me I should know about?”
The look she gave him was pure innocence. “You know what I know. He claims to detest her, yet does she appeal to him. I believe our daughter and son-in-law had this same difficulty at one time.”
“Their circumstances were a mite different, my love. Royce was not seeking revenge.”
“And Selig has a strange way of exacting his,” Brenna replied.
He shook his head at her. “You are too much the romantic, to think his unusual behavior has more meaning than what it seems.”
“Am I? Selig will be furious at the mere suggestion, I doubt it not. But let us see how long he protests before he concedes.”
“You do not think this will force him to relinquish her instead?”
“Let us say I will be surprised if it does.”
Garrick was not so sure, but he recommended they all find Selig to tell him what had been decided, since it would take a united effort to combat his stubbornness, one way or the other. And he still had two choices. The irony that had so amused Royce was that he had refused to give the Dane back, but the alternative was to be stuck with her for good.
They found him at the blacksmith’s giving exact details on the sword he wanted made to replace the one lost during the thieves’ ambush. He was forewarned by their number that he wouldn’t like the reason they had sought him out en masse. He was right.
“Marry her?You have each lost your mind!”
Royce ended up sounding the most reasonable at that point. “Alfred wants to forge alliances through marriage. You knew that, were involved in it yourself. ’Tis not unusual that he would suggest it.”
