The moment I enter the chapel, I peer at the floor, which has been scrubbed clean of any evidence to condemn me for my sins. I wonder what happened to Jethro. But I have other pressing matters to deal with, like my mother.
“Mother, forgive me for interrupting prayer, but I must speak with you.”
She kneels, her hands interlaced, holding her rosary beads. After everything she has been through, she still believes He is salvation. She is a better woman than I am.
Once she finishes the last of her prayers, she crosses herself and stands. “What is it, Emeline? You look pale. Are you well?”
“I am fine, Mother. But I must leave Northumbria. I have agreed to marry Prince Ludwig.”
My mother adjusts her blue veil, appearing to need a moment to digest what I just shared. “Emeline, you forget I reared you in my belly. I saw you defy every man in your life and win. Therefore, tell me what you need from me.
“I do not wish to know the details of your journey. For I suspect the less I know, the better?”
She speaks freely as we are amongst friends. She understands that this marriage is just a ploy.
“In my absence, I need you to take my place as queen. I don’t know how long I will be gone. But I do not trust another. Will you do this for me? And for your kingdom?”
Mother clutches the beads in her hand, asking for strength, perhaps? “Yes, my child, I will, for I know you would not leave your kingdom unless the circumstances were dire. Your father?—”
“Do not speak of him,” I snarl, not interested in hearing his name. “He was never a father to me. Have you forgotten so soon that he sold me like nothing but an animal at market?”
I know I wounded her with my words because she, too, was at fault for not fighting for me when I needed her to.
“I’m sorry, Daughter. Forgive me. I shall do what must be done. Go in God’s good grace. I shall see you when you return.”
So much plagues my mother, and although still beautiful, that beauty is now replaced with an ever-present sadness. She too has lost so much—her husband and son, a son whom I killed. I have banished her grandchildren from ever entering the palace. But she understands why.
But that does not mean she is not resentful that her only daughter will not be tamed. She submitted to a man, which I never have. Nor will I ever. I do not cower. I learned from her that I would never be that woman.
She cups my cheeks and lays a tender kiss on my forehead. “Safe passage, my child. Godspeed.”
My mother has never shied away from affection. That is one thing I can thank her for, because if both my parents had been cruel, I do not know the woman I would have grown into.
Lord Louis assures my mother that his best men will protect her and Northumbria.
My mother doesn’t ask about Sune and Loki, and that’s because she knows they are gone. She is right—the less she knows, the better, for she will have no information to give if interrogated. But I will not allow that to befall her.
I will return soon enough.
I gather the things I need for my journey and meet Lord Louis, Catherine, and four men by the gates. I am filled with pride to see Catherine in full armor. I don’t say a word, however.
“Where do we ride, my Queen?” asks Lord Louis quietly.
He has chosen men we can trust, so I know he speaks with caution in case Lord Rufus or his spies are nearby.
Mounting my horse, I stroke over his black mane lovingly. “There is only one place.”
The men wait with breathless anticipation.
“We ride to Daneland…and hope they welcome us.”
“And if they do not?” the man with a ginger beard asks.
“Then we fight.”
I understand this means undoing all the progress made with the Danes, but nothing matters more than my finding Sune and Loki.
“If you do not wish to ride, then now is the time. I give you this now, but now only. For there will not be another chance.”
