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“I was about to go and address the people. My people.” She flung an arm behind her, pointing to the cluster of people who gathered around Emmel. Connell rolled his eyes. It wasn’t the first time they had had a discussion like this. He could be maddening when he wanted to be.

“They’re nae yer people. They’re Emmel’s people now,” Connell said.

“That’s not fair. They would have been my people if I had been older when Father decided he didn’t want to be the leader any longer.”

“But ye were nae, and now ye hae other things tae worry about.”

“Like getting married? And when exactly were you going to tell me this?” she asked, folding her arms across her chest. An errant lock of red hair fell across her face. She blew upward out of the corner of her mouth, a sign of frustration more than anything else.

“It should nae come as a shock tae ye, Brenda. It was always gaeing tae happen.”

“But I don’t want to leave here. This is my home. I’m happy here.”

For a moment, Connell softened and actually looked as though he had some sympathy for his sister. “I felt the same way before I left, but leaving is the best thing that ever happened tae me. Ye can be happy elsewhere.”

“But I don’t want to,” Brenda said, as though that should have been reason enough. But the older Brenda got, the more she realized how little control she actually had over her own life. When she was a girl, she had anticipated growing up with great glee as she thought about all the things that she could do, only to find that the reality was quite different than she imagined. There were so many unspoken rules and expectations placed upon her that sometimes she felt shackled by them all, and this was another one of those times.

“Sometimes we have tae dae things we dinnae want tae dae for the good of the family. Ye are the eldest daughter, and it’s expected that ye will be married. As Erik’s daughter and a Hoffstad, ye will nae find it difficult tae find a husband. Think of the boon it might grant this village. Maybe the way ye can truly help the village is tae leave,” he said, and then took leave of his own as he went to listen to Emmel. Brenda’s lower lip trembled. She didn’t know whether to weep or cry out in anger. Moments later, Lena came up to her, as soft and gentle as a summer’s breeze. She took Brenda’s hand and squeezed gently.

“Ye know he is nae being harsh on purpose. He’s just trying tae dae what he thinks is right,” Lena said.

“Oh, aye, and he can never accept that he might not be right,” Brenda said with the shake of her head.

“Ye know that marrying may nae be a bad thing. Ye could hae a love like Ma and Da,” Lena suggested.

“But I don’t want that. I want to lead this place. I want to take care of these people,” she said, although as she said this, her gaze drifted back toward her home. It wasn’t something that Lena missed.

“Dae ye mean people, or dae ye mean Da?” Lena asked.

Brenda pursed her lips. “I’m worried about him. I’m worried that we might lose him to grief. He is too vigorous a man, too strong to let himself fade into the ether like this. What would the gods think?”

“The gods should nae hae taken his brother from him,” Lena said.

“It is every Viking’s glory to die in the heat of battle, fighting for honor and the glory of the gods,” Brenda said. She missed her uncle, of course, but she was happy that he had died in the manner of their ancestors.

“Ye are welcome tae that fate if ye want it, Brenda, but I would rather die happy and old, surrounded by my family. The gods can keep their glory,” Lena said softly. Brenda stared at her. There were moments when she wondered if she was a part of the same family at all.

Deciding that she needed some time alone, Brenda walked away from the village, not wishing to hear the ramblings of Emmel. She kicked a pebble along the path toward the beach and sighed heavily, wondering how she was ever going to make people understand her way of thinking. She never wanted to make an enemy of her brother, but if he was this insistent on having her married off, then she was going to have to make a choice between her independence and the dynamic of the family. It would have helped if Erik was more active, but he was withdrawn, and Brenda wasn’t sure if there was anything that could shake him from his grief, short of Ragnar’s return.

As she followed the path to the shore, she looked out and saw men returning from a fishing expedition with a net full of fish. Her stomach rumbled, and she was pleased with the thought of a hearty feast later. That would certainly help to soothe the anguish in her soul. She walked on past them and down the slope toward the beach. The sand was warm and golden. It drifted away with every footstep. She looked behind her and wondered if her footsteps were going to lead her away from the village, if that was where her destiny had always been meant to carry her. She looked toward the opposite coast of the Highlands, wondering if there was a man there who would capture her heart. She wasn’t even opposed to marriage itself, she just didn’t want to leave her village.

Brenda’s mother had told her something when Brenda was younger—that life was made up of compromises. At the time, Brenda hadn’t understood what she meant by that, but she was learning more every day.

The sun-dappled water ebbed and flowed on the beach. It was a beautiful, calming sight, but then she spied something in the distance that caught her attention. There was a dark shape washed up ashore, and as she grew closer, she realized that it was a man.