The door swung wide and Gunnar entered followed by Magnus holding a frightened looking Aslaug, the server in question, and finally, Saga.
Giric was confused. How exactly had his future wife been able to leave her chamber without him seeing her? He had no idea there was a different way out of her chamber. Something was wrong.
He stood up as they approached. Giric searched Saga’s expression for any clue as to what was going on, but she was stoic and would not meet his eye.
“Go to your chamber, sister,” Gunnar said.
Saga nodded and proceeded to the chamber door without one glance in Giric’s direction, in fact her head was bowed low the entire time which was not like her at all. If there was one thing he had gleaned about her in the times since they’d met it was that she was proud. At that moment the only essence about her was shame.
Once she’d disappeared into the chamber, Gunnar turned to address the hall.
“We have uncovered the person responsible for setting the fire and for stabbing Bjorn,” he said. “This woman, Aslaug.”
“What?”
Several men in the hall, including Giric, said this in unison. She looked too small and too timid to be capable of either act. Giric shook his head. There was no way he would be convinced she acted of her own accord.
“Gunnar, surely you cannot believe this woman committed these acts alone,” Giric said.
Gunnar turned to him with a frown. “She has already admitted Einar put her to these tasks, though he had been secured.” He looked pointedly to his men. “He has managed to escape. No doubt with Aslaug’s aid. I will send more men in search of him in the morning, but for tonight she will remain in shackles and upon the morrow she will receive judgement for her crimes.”
“And what is the punishment for such crimes?” Giric asked. He was not sure he could watch a young woman suffer through a flogging. Under his laws, she would be flogged and imprisoned.
“Punishment for attempted murder and a fire set with the intention to destroy a village is death.”
Giric shook his head. “But she was put up to it as you said.”
Gunnar approached Giric and stood toe to toe with him. “This is my hall, and these are the laws by which we abide. You may be more lenient in Alba, but here we deliver our justice swiftly and decidedly. The woman may have been led to the crimes, but they were done by her hands, and she must pay the price for them.”
“And what of Einar? Will his life be taken too?”
“It will.”
“Your punishment fits the intent and not the actual crime, Gunnar,” Giric said. “No one died.”
Gunnar’s jaw clenched. “I have tolerated your inquiries up to now, Giric, but if you continue to question me, I will have you removed from my hall.”
Giric stood his ground. Something had shifted between them. While he understood the inherent differences between their cultures and the necessity for them; Giric lived on a much bigger island than Gunnar and so the need for swift justice was greater. But it seemed an extreme punishment to take a life when none had been taken.
But what could he do? Should he fight for the life of a servant who had actually committed the crimes? Or accept the judgement of the man who had up to now impressed him with his intellect and patience when it came to decision making.
Giric stepped back and bowed in concession. A part of him wondered if he would look back on this moment in the future and wish he had made a different decision.
“You are a smart man, Giric of Alba,” Gunnar said. To Magnus he said, “Secure her in irons and post two men.”
The maid’s head was bent low as Magnus pushed her ahead of him. Her body was limp as though she had given up interest in fighting for her life. Giric had seen enough punishment in his day to know when ’twas necessary and when the lines blurred between the right and wrong way to account for a crime.
“Sit with me and share my mead,” Gunnar said quietly behind him.
Giric did as he was asked, accepting the horn Gunnar offered.
After a time, he said, “This punishment worries you, greatly.”
“The whole business worries me,” Giric said. “It is clear to me Einar is working against you and has plotted to bring harm to you which benefits Short-Beard more than anyone else. By what means Einar coerced this young woman to do his bidding I know not, but I tell you that she does not carry the look of a criminal. For her to pay the ultimate price for the devious workings of another man feels wrong,” Giric said. “I know you do not agree, and I respect that your word is law here. But you asked, and I am telling you, the punishment of death feels wrong considering the circumstance.”
Gunnar downed his horn and poured another as Saga entered the hall, her head still bent low.
“Brother I wish to speak to you,” she said still not meeting Giric’s eyes.
