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“My name is Gorm. Gorm Bjork, son of Ivar and leader of the Bjork clan. I am the man who holds your fate in my hands.”

“Ye are nae a god,” Douglas sneered.

Gorm smiled. “No, I suppose I’m not.”

“Where are the others?”

“The others?” Gorm said, looking lost for a moment. Then realization flashed upon his face, and he snapped his fingers. “You must mean your shipmates.”

“Aye. Are they alive?” Douglas asked. A stone of sorrow settled in the pit of his stomach as he was afraid of the answer, but his spirits lifted when Gorm revealed that they were quite alive.

“Where are they? Can I see them?”

“Unfortunately not,” Gorm said. “In fact, it surprised me because I thought that the bonds between Highlanders were stronger than anything.”

“What are ye talking about?”

“Well, Erik managed to escape from my father and came back here to rescue his other men. But you…well…he seemed to forget you. I can’t imagine what it must be like to be left behind. But don’t worry. I’ll find a use for you here,” Gorm said. His words descended into laughter as he turned his back on Douglas and left the room again. There were so many questions that were on Douglas’s lips, questions that he wasn’t going to get the answers to. His thoughts turned back to the life he had spent with Erik, to the brotherhood they had shared. Surely it wasn’t possible that Erik had forgotten him? Surely it wasn’t possible that Erik had turned his back on him?

And yet Douglas was here, alone.

Where was Erik, and why had he left Douglas behind?