“It’s aknife, Mama,” Svein rasped, tapping his claw against it. “She’s going tokillhim.”
Raye’s chest seized, and she bent to look closer, her heartbeat oddly skipping. That was a knife, wasn’t it? With its sharpened blade pointed toward Kalfr’s side? And how hadn’t she noticed it before? And surely Gaelfr hadn’t noticed it either, or he would have said, wouldn’t he?
But now that Raye was staring at it, it was so obvious as to be almost laughable. A clever trick from Daisy, perhaps, a secret message for whoever took the time to look closely.
“That’s — very observant of you, love,” Raye made herself say, with an attempt at a smile toward Svein’s face. “But it’s still — just a drawing. It’s not —real.”
But Svein’s head was shaking, the urgency streaking through his still-wet eyes. “But it’s stilltrue, isn’t it?” he asked. “It still means Papa can’t trust her. She’ll pretend to be nice to him, and try tokillhim. And now Papa Gaelfr, too!”
The foreboding reverberated through the air between them, broken by a distant sound that might have been a bark. And Raye froze, glancing over her shoulder toward the door, while Svein staggered to his feet, and wiped at his nose. “She was going to kill them today, Mama,” he choked. “I had to try to help. Try to get them apart. And even if she caught me, it would still be all right, because soon you’ll have another son. A new son.”
A new son. Raye flinched all over, jerking to stare back at Svein. Had he just said — he surely didn’t mean —
But he nodded, trying to smile at her, despite the fresh tears dripping down his cheeks. “It’s all right, Mama,” he whispered. “You can have a new son, instead of me. As long as you’re safe.”
Safe.Safe. The room swayed around Raye, her stomach heaving, and she fought to gulp down air, to grip at Svein’s arms. “No, love,” she gasped. “I could never, ever replace you. We never could. You are so, so precious to me. The most thoughtful, generous,braveson in the realm.”
Svein blinked back at her, still sniffling, but that was surprise, and relief, flickering across his eyes. And in another flailing movement, Raye yanked him close again, dragging in desperate breaths of his messy hair. “I love you so much, Svein,” she croaked. “I don’t know how I would survive, without you.”
Svein sagged into her arms again, his own arms slowly curling around her neck, his breaths snuffling against her hair. While Raye’s own breaths kept coming sharp and shallow, like she was being kicked in the gut over and over again. Svein had really been trying to sacrifice himself for her, for Kalfr and Gaelfr. He’d truly thought he was replaceable. He hadn’t… trusted them. He hadn’t trustedher, all this time.
Goddess, it was so damned familiar, so brutally painful, another crushing, horrifying way Raye had failed. And how could she move forward from this, where did they go from here, and —
Another sound, closer this time. Another bark. Enough to finally cut through the grief and the pain, jolting Raye upright. Damn it, she needed to focus, to think. They were still being followed. They were still in grave danger. They had no time, and why the hell had she allowed herself to forget that? She needed to keep Svein safe. She needed him out of here, away from the men. She needed to keep the men away from the tunnel’s exit. She needed to be brave…
“Mama,” Svein said, his voice small, his eyes searching her face. “Where’s Papa? And Papa Gaelfr?”
His nostrils began flaring again, sniffing with increasing urgency at the air, and Raye took a deep breath, drew a smile toher mouth. “They’re — coming, love,” she replied. “And I need you to go meet them, all right? Papa Gaelfr’s even dug us that new tunnel, remember? It goes out from your own bedroom tunnel, so you can go meet him, and be safe.”
Svein’s eyes widened, and Raye smiled again, gave his shoulders a bracing squeeze. “Skirvir and Fengr are waiting for you, too,” she said thickly. “So you’ll go down and scent for them, run out to meet them, won’t you? While I just finish up a few things here?”
Svein nodded, distinct relief flaring in his eyes, and Raye gave him one more quick, tight hug, and sought to swallow the sob quivering in her throat. She needed to do this. Needed to keep smiling, even as she nudged her beautiful son away toward his bedroom, watched him clutch Mr. Snuggles tighter as he went. As if he trusted her again, and it was only more grief, more heartache, as she waited for him to close the door behind him, listened for the distinctthunkas the trapdoor closed…
It was just in time, because the barking had come closer, and with it, the distant sounds of voices and movement. The too-familiar sounds of trespassers on Raye’s property, marching straight toward her door, bringing loss and fear and death.
But she held herself still, braced and waiting, gripping her hand tightly at her sword hilt. Even if she’d failed, yet again, she needed to do this. She needed to do exactly what Svein had just done, what Kalfr had done, what Gaelfr had done. What Skirvir and Fengr and perhaps every other Bautul in their band had done.
She would make the sacrifice. She would offer herself up, for the people she loved. For her family.
Because — these awful men knew someone was here. Even if they hadn’t seen Svein, they had still followed his scent. They would see the smoke from the chimney. And this time, surely,they would do whatever it took to get inside — and then, they would find the tunnel. They would find Svein.
So instead, Raye would be what they found. And she would do whatever the hell it took to keep them here, focused on her, for as long as possible, so Svein and the band could escape. She would be brave. She would keep trying, keep trusting the goddess, keep trusting herself.
Even so, her heartbeat thudded as she waited, as the clattering came closer, and closer. Until she could almost smell the wrongness in the air, choking her breath…
She flinched at the sound of the knock striking the door, a demanding urgent rap. And then striking again, louder this time, while Raye gripped her sword tighter, held herself still. No matter what was behind that door, she would do this. She would drag this out as long as possible, and give Svein enough time to reach Skirvir and Fengr. She would keep standing here until they broke down the door, or burned her to the ground…
“Kalfr?” came a voice, ringing light and musical through the air. “Kalfr, love, are you in there?”
Oh, fuck. It wasn’t the mercenaries. It wasn’t the men.
It was —Sybil.
65
Raye’s body jerked to stillness, but for the thunder of her suddenly raging heartbeat.
Sybil was here. Sybil was at the door. Here.
