“What else can I do? At least you are here now to help me escape when I am ready. And if you can help the others to get away any sooner, do so. You can come back for me.”
“So be it.”
She clasped his face in her hands and kissed him. “Thank you, Selig, for not scolding.”
He squeezed her tight. “As you said, you are not answerable to me. But Odin help you when you try to explain all this to Father.”
“Oh, unfair, to remind me of that!” she cried.
He whacked her bottom playfully. “Come, we have been out here too long.”
The sky had begun to lighten, too much. “Aye.” She stepped back to the door, but hesitated there, touching his cheek once more. “I will not speak to you again for a while. And do not be surprised if I ignore you completely in the hall. He has already warned me to stay away from you.”
He chuckled. “He probably thinks I will harm you if I know you are a bloodthirsty Viking.”
“Whatever his reason, his anger is not pleasant, so do be careful, Brother.”
They were extremely quiet in entering the hall, to no purpose. Royce was there, angrily kicking several of his men awake. He stopped when he saw her. And then his eyes narrowed dangerously when he saw Selig beside her.
“We were outside for the air,” she whispered quickly to Selig as Royce approached them. “We only met on coming in.”
“Is he going to believe that?”
“He will have to.”
But Royce did not ask any questions at all when he reached them. He simply grabbed Kristen’s wrist and began to pull her toward the stairs, shouting over his shoulder at Selig: “Wait where you are.”
Kristen tried to yank her hand loose from his grip, succeeding once halfway up the stairs, but he caught her again and continued to drag her after him. “Curse you, Saxon, you had better have a good reason for handling me so!”
He did not answer. He tossed her into his chamber and locked the door. She stared at it in amazement, tested it to be sure it was locked, then banged once on it in anger.
“Oh!”
In the hall below, Royce nodded to Selig to follow him, and he led him out to the front of the hall, shutting the door behind them. Selig turned, and Royce’s fist slammed into his jaw, knocking him flat on his backside.
Royce stood over him, his face set in hard, angry lines. “I will not forbid you the hall, Gaelan, but I forbid you to go anywhere near that woman again. She belongs to me and I am careful of what is mine.”
With that Royce reentered the hall. He left the doors open. Selig could have followed him back inside. He did not. He sat there on the ground fingering his jaw, a slow grin turning his lips, then finishing in a chuckle.
Upstairs, from the window that overlooked the front yard, Kristen had watched the whole exchange. Her hands had gripped the window ledge, until she heard that chuckle. She turned away, shaking her head, disgusted with all men in general.
Chapter Thirty-eight
Apolished hand mirror sailed at his head when Royce opened the door to his chamber. A silver plate followed. He spotted Kristen across the room, digging through his coffer for something else to throw.
“You must not be angry, or you would be throwing weapons instead.”
“Do not tempt me, Saxon!”
He had kept her locked in his chamber the whole day. She had not eaten. She had spoken to no one. She had lost her temper long ago.
“Why have you confined me?” she demanded.
“I woke this morn to find you gone. I went below to look for you and you were not there, either. I thought you had broken your word.”
“You lock me in here for what youthoughtI did?” she stormed. “But you know I did not break my word, nor will I! So why?”
“What you were doing with the Celt is another matter,” he said harshly.
