“She foundherway ontomyship the night after her Trial! You should have seen the fierce determination in her eyes as she searched for Isabel! All to prove she was worthy ofyou!”
The Iss Drengr lifts the great axe over his head, bringing it down on the Beast, who grabs the handle, tugging it from Calder’s grasp and embedding the blade between the floorboards.
“She was not yours to fucking take! Your duty was tomenot sinking your cock into my daughter!” Sigvid regains his axes, which sing through the air.
Calder narrowly avoids the barrage. “Then perhaps it is time to share which Commander accepted her blood oath.”
His Lord Commander halts mid-swing. “What the fuck did you just say?”
“You heard me.”
Sigvid stares at him, as if his mind struggles to comprehend his meaning. A roar rumbles from the depths of the King of Treland that nearly has Calder staggering.
Almost.
Calder’s fist connects with Sigvid’s knees, causing his legs to buckle. “She is a woman who can make her own decisions!”
He dislodges his great axe from the floor just as Sigvid pushes to his feet and throws an axe at his face.
Anticipating his mentor’s motion, Calder catches the weapon by the head and embeds it into the wall behind him before blocking another hit with the great axe.
“My duty to you led to her being nearly raped three times before being captured by the Manchineel woman! Had I embraced earlier what her existence does to my fucking soul, then perhaps she would be safe in Treland!”
Sigvid’s fist smashes into his face. An explosion of pain and blood spurts from his mouth as he turns away from the blow.
Godsdamn, his halvgud blood meeting mine blow for blow.
Calder slides backward, narrowly avoiding his blade.
Sorry, Sigvid, but my might exceeds yours.
The impact of the great axe halts Sigvid’s assault, disarming him entirely. “I do not need weapons to kill you!” He snarls.
He charges again, catching Calder around the waist.
With a groan, both men tumble backward until they crash against one of the long wooden tables, splintering it at their backs. Calder kicks him off, sending his mentor tumbling violently into the wall and shattering the window above.
Shards of glass rain down upon him.
Sigvid drops to his knees. Blood obscures the permanent death tracker along the left side of his body. Calder’s massive form casts a shadow over the man he has respected for over half his life.
“You must know I would never harm Queen Avina or Princess Aura. I am your Drengr through and through! I won’t apologize,” the emotion thickens in his throat, “I won’t apologize for Aura.”
“How can I trust you?” Sigvid glances up through his crimson gaze.
“In the same way you have since I stumbled into Toftlund as a broken boy.”
Sigvid shakes his head, shoving to his feet. “Aura was just your conquest.”
Without thinking, he sinks his fist into Sigvid’s face. Before he collapses back to the floor, Calder forcefully grabs his shoulders, shoving him against the wall so they are eye to eye.
“I love Aura!” He snarls, spit splattering over Sigvid’s bloodied face. “I love her more than anything on this godsdamned continent! You can hate me for that. You can demonize me. Fuck, you can send me to the Abyss for losing my heart to her! At least I will die having known salvation in the depths of her soul!” His voice cracks at the end.
He watches Sigvid’s eyes fade back to blue from the berserker crimson. Instead of inflexible anger, he shows utterdefeat. His battle-worn body slips from Calder’s grip, sinking to the floor with a hand tugging at his warrior braid.
“My rage took over my senses, and I said something awful to Aura.” He smashes his fist into the floor and bangs the back of his head against the wall. “The last words I uttered to her were despicable. And then the Manchineel bitch forced me to watch as they took my child away.”
Calder nods, having witnessed through Aura’s memory the height of disappointment expressed by her father. “Aura deserves your penitence.”
