The little ruffian immediately screwed up his face. “I can fight too. Let me prove myself.”
Sigrid placed her hands on his bony shoulders. “That’s why we need you outside. If any of them get past us, you make sure they don’t get away. Lady Eleanor will be out there too, so you protect each other.”
I’d be dead before I let any bandits past us, but he didn’t need to know that. Let him feel needed.
Rufus gazed up at my wife adoringly, nodding his head with absolute trust. This feral child was somehow ours to protect now too, and I didn’t question it.
“The opening is only wide enough to go single file until we get into the cave,” I said.
Sigrid cocked an eyebrow, ready to argue.
“Sigrid is our strongest warrior, so she’ll go first with me immediately behind her.” I could’ve laughed at the way she relaxed. “Give us space to clear the opening before charging in behind us, or we’ll get jammed up at the back of the cave. Many of us have reason to kill these bandits and avenge people we care about…but don’t get reckless. Rufus says they’re skilled with a sword and have similar numbers to us.”
The boy tugged on Sigrid’s sleeve. “The leader. I want to be the one to kill him.”
His voice was determined, and she was careful to take him to one side to talk it through.
“You killed a man before?” she asked gently.
“No.” His eyes filled with a desolation I recognized. He was thinking that if he had been strong enough to kill a man, maybe his family would still be alive.
She knelt in front of him. “Killing someone changes you. You shouldn’t have to experience that yet. Let me do it for you, Rufus.” She put her hand over her heart. “I vow to avenge yourfamily as though they were my own. But let me spare you the nightmares as though you were my own.”
His lip trembled, but he nodded solemnly and scurried back to the trail.
Sigrid stood and grasped my hands. “If anything happens to me, you have to swear to avenge my brother.”
I didn’t bother arguing. We’d faced down four Banamaðr with fewer men than this. These bandits had no idea what was about to descend upon them.
“And look after Rufus,” she added, tossing me a look that dared me to argue.
I chuckled. “Anything for you. But if he calls you a cunt again, we’re going to have words.”
She flashed me a grin, gave me a quick kiss, and then followed after Rufus.
In the end,our careful planning wasn’t needed. Sigrid fell upon the bandits like a swift wind of death, severing heads before they’d even realized they were under attack. I guarded her flank, killing any who approached while she was already engaged.
In seconds of fury and screaming, the Shrike king and his band of thugs lay dead. None escaped to be picked off by archers. None would live to terrorize our people again.
It was over so quickly we all stood in a daze, waiting for some other foe to emerge from the darkness to attack. A sense of dread settled in my chest, as though this fight had only been the beginning.
We searched the cave and freed some slaves that Rufus led us to, then he showed us to another passageway that opened onto a room filled with coin and stolen goods. Jewelry from murderedmerchants, coins from tolls paid, an assortment of items taken from our people. All in chests marked with seals for delivery to the royal coffers.
“What do we do with it all?” Elric asked, shaking his head in disgust. “The king must answer for his crimes as these men did.”
It was a relief to know he’d chosen the path of justice. My father had to die, but we’d need proof of his crimes. Elric’s word would hold weight, but the stolen treasure would have more of an impact.
“We take some in the wagon and leave the rest here under guard. Godric, you’ll stay with most of the company. We’ll ride back to the castle and deal with my father.”
Sigrid took my hand, gripping it in resolve. It was time to avenge Axel and my mother and every other innocent life he’d ruined.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
SIGRID
It was strange to enter the castle gates and find everything exactly how we’d left it. People carried on with their business like we weren’t about to rock the foundations of their society. I didn’t know whether to pity them or envy them.
I envied them their simple lives, lives they weren’t about to surrender in the name of justice.
