I pull out my hand and slap it on his, howling with laughter.
“You wolf! I thought you were serious.”
He smiles, but doesn’t laugh.
“I was,” he says simply as he stands. “Now, show me your thrust.”
“I had forgotten,” I say.
“But first, the last piece of meat, for our most glorious lady, Kilda the… What will your Volva title be?”
He tilts his head as he looks at me, waiting for my title. I can’t believe it. This is actually happening. I don’t even hesitate for a second.
“Kilda the Wild,” I state.
“The Wild.” He claps his hands. “Love it! Very fitting.”
My eyes widen. He picks up the last piece of meat and holds it to my face. Smiling ear to ear. Rolling thunder sounds above—Thor approves of our bonding. The rain intensifies.
“The final piece, Kilda the Wild,” he says.
I lean closer to his hand, opening my mouth to receive the meat that will seal my title forever. Spontaneous ritual. Let this birth my status of Volva and write my name in the stars.
We don’t break eye contact. The moment is shared. The moment is holy.
As I enclose my mouth around the meat, my tongue glides across the rough texture of his thumb, sending a purr through my entire body. His eyes flicker to my lips from the contact. I know he felt it like I did. His finger lingers a second as I chew. A fire is kindled beneath my belly. A hunger awakened. My life begins now.
Ari has heard my name—he spoke it for the first time.
Kilda the Wild.
CHAPTER 66
“So you killed a crow?” asks Ari.
“Yes, poor thing, it was barely recognizable.”
“Wrong place at the wrong time.”
I stifle a laugh at Ari’s nonchalant comment. I feel sorry for the animal now, but at the time, it felt destined. I felt no remorse in that moment—a little unsettling. The memory floods me. What I had thought. Blood for blood. My strange hunger… I shake my head to return to the present.
“Poor thing,” I whisper.
“You called me a crow once,” says Ari as he looks into the air. “A mangy crow, if I recall correctly.”
A snicker escapes me. I twirl a lock of my hair, watching the skald search for something. My belly is full. The air is warm. The furs are soft. And I get to watch this beautiful man without fear of being called wanton. Everything’s perfect.
“Maybe I did,” I say. “You remember the strangest details.”
“A lot of your words are hard to forget,” he says, turning to me. “What was it again? Oh yes—fuck you, your kin and your ancestors.”
He points at me, fury in his widened eyes. It takes me a second to realize he’s pretending to be me. My cheeks flush in embarrassment.
“I’m so bad. Forgive me, Ari.”
He laughs and waves his arm like my insults meant nothing.
“Don’t worry, Kilda the Wild, I can’t take half the things you say seriously,” he teases.
