Page 17

He reached the village in good time and alighted from his horse. He was glad to see that Vikings had not raided this place yet, although he was annoyed that the protection offered by Sven seemed to be working. Over the past few days, he had been racking his brain, trying to think about how Caoimhe's father's ring could have found its way into the village. Currently, his only theory was that one of the Highlanders was to blame, that perhaps they had betrayed their own people for the promise of riches, although he didn't have any evidence of this.

When Egon reached Caoimhe's house, he found her outside, arranging some clothes in a basket, which he presumed were ready to be washed in a nearby river or loch. He took a moment to appreciate her beauty. Even in this simple, mundane moment, she seemed to shimmer with alluring beauty, as though the sun was shining from every part of her. Her skin was unblemished, her lips full, and being away from her had only made her more beautiful in his eyes. He hadn't realized until his gaze fell upon her again how much he had missed her. There was an ache in his heart, and he wished that he could be better at showing her his emotions, for she seemed to be blind to the truth that rampaged through his Viking heart.

“Egon,” she said, smiling, although he couldn't tell if she was excited to see him or not. She rose to a standing position, and the smile faded to a sheepish one. “I wanted tae say I'm sorry for what I said the other day. I haed no right tae accuse ye of all those things. I was surprised, and I hae nae been able tae keep my thoughts straight ever since the attack, but that's no excuse. Ye hae been kind, and it's wrong of me tae hold that against ye. I'm sorry.”

Egon waited a few moments before he replied, as he was surprised that an apology had come so readily from her, but he accepted it quite happily.

“Thank you, Caoime, and I wanted to apologize as well. I know I have not always been able to communicate my emotions correctly, and I want to assure you that I do care about your plight, and I would like to help—”

As he was speaking, he was interrupted by the presence of movement coming out of the door, and Sven emerged. Egon bristled with uneasiness at seeing Sven being so familiar with Caoimhe, and he wondered what had happened in his absence.

“Egon, it's good to see you again. Have you come with more grain or clothes?” Sven asked. His smile was slanted, and Egon thought he detected some kind of enmity in his voice.

“Actually I came to speak with Caoimhe. I wanted to tell her that I have listened to her concerns and I would like to propose that I try to find her father. It will be difficult, but even if I manage to find one piece of information, it might help to shed light on the situation.”

Caoimhe's smile widened as he said this, and this made Egon stand a little taller.

“That is a wonderful idea,” Sven said, “but I'm afraid that you're a little late. I have already made preparations to go on a journey with Caoimhe to find word of her father, and once we find him, we are to be married.” Like a master swordsman, Sven waited for the perfect moment to strike, and the emotion was naked on Egon's face. It came as such a shock that he almost staggered back.

Marriage?

He hadn't known that things had progressed so swiftly between Caoimhe and Sven. A low growl rumbled in the back of his throat as he realized the battle had begun long before he realized, and he had been summarily defeated.

“I'm sorry for making this journey a waste of time for you, but as you can see, there's really no need for you to be here. I have everything well in hand,” Sven added.

Egon was processing a lot of information. He had only just come to terms with his true desire for Caoimhe, and now she was being whisked away from him before he had a chance to find out if she could ever feel anything like this for him. Sven narrowed his eyes slightly, expecting Egon to retreat and slink back home, defeated, but Egon was never the type to surrender when there was still a chance. After all, they were not married yet. But in the back of his mind, he made a vow to himself that if he could not win Caoimhe's heart, then he would sail away far away from his home no matter what his father might think, for if he could not win Caoimhe's affection, then he would never find a way to belong in the Highlands.

“I'm glad to hear that you are taking action,” Egon said. “I would like to go with you. I think it would be better to have two of us as we don't know what's waiting for us,” he said.

Sven looked surprised at this, but before he could answer, Caoimhe had already agreed to the matter. Sven glared at her, having not expected her to so readily want Egon to accompany them, but it had been settled, and now it was Egon's turn to be smug. Caoimhe thanked him for his offer and said that it would be rude to turn him down, although Egon hoped that there was more to this than mere manners. He could sense that Sven wanted to banish him from this place, but he would not dare to go against Caoimhe's wishes if he wanted to win her hand in marriage. This was going to be an interesting journey, a very interesting journey indeed.

They decided to leave early in the morning to give them a chance to gather supplies and get a good night's rest. Egon felt satisfied as he left them, watching Caoimhe walk away to wash the clothes in the loch. He also saw Sven glaring long and hard at him as well, and he couldn't shake the feeling that it was a look that promised death.