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Isla had been wracked with guilt the entire night. Rune Dolph had been in a dark mood, and it was clear that he would not forget Emmel’s face. If anything happened to engage his ire again, Rune Dolph would have Emmel’s head. When Isla and Andrew were alone, Andrew had asked Isla if it had been Emmel. Isla had to lie to her son. It pained her to do it, but she couldn’t trust that he would be able to keep the secret from Rune Dolph. She told him that Andrew must have been missing life on the island.

“When are we gaeing back?” Andrew asked her.

“I… I’m nae sure that we are. I dinnae think yer da wants us tae. I think he wants us tae stay here. Is that what ye want?” Isla asked.

Andrew had a confused look on his face as he pondered the question. Isla told him that it wasn’t anything he needed to think about at the moment. It was a difficult question for a child to confront. Isla just wished it would all be over. At least when Emmel left, she wouldn’t have to worry about him being hurt. As much as she was angry at him for not leaving, she was glad that he had been there to stand up to Rune Dolph.

She made a point to go and find him and thank him. She crept to the stables, managing to escape the attention of the Vikings. Emmel’s face broke out into a smile when he saw Isla there.

“I wanted tae apologize for what happened this morning, and tae thank ye for helping Andrew,” she began.

“Ye are welcome. I could nae believe the way he was treating Andrew. That’s no way tae treat a boy,” Emmel said.

“I know,” Isla conceded. “But why are ye still here? After last night, I thought ye agreed tae leave.”

“I never agreed tae any such thing. I want tae know ye are safe, Isla, and I cannae believe that ye are. Nae with Rune Dolph.”

“Sae what are ye gaeing tae dae? Stay here and watch over me for the rest of yer days?” Isla asked, gasping in shock.

“Come with me. Leave this place. I promise that I will keep yer secret and that I will keep ye and Andrew safe. There is a better life for ye than the one that waits for ye here, and there is a better man than Rune Dolph for ye. Just because he’s Andrew’s da does nae give him the right tae keep ye prisoner here. He haes nae been Andrew’s da for the last ten years—doesnae that mean anything tae ye? Leave with me, Isla. We can get back tae the island, and things will gae back tae the way they were.”

Isla wished that she could believe him, but the fear in her heart was too great. “I’m sorry, Emmel, but I cannae leave. Ye should gae back. Please, let this be the last time I see ye. I can handle Rune Dolph. I am safe here, as is Andrew, but he is only gaeing tae grow more suspicious of ye. The longer ye stay here, the more danger ye are in. Leave now while yer life is intact.”

She turned away from the stable again, this time hoping that it would indeed be the last time she saw him, at least for his sake. If they had lived another life then Emmel was the kind of man she would have liked to marry. He was kind and sweet, and she could trust him to look after her and her child, but she had already cost him so much pain.

Later on, she was alone with Rune Dolph. She approached him, hoping that his mood had calmed since the morning.

“We need tae talk,” she said. “What happened this morning cannae happen again. Ye assured me that ye wanted tae be Andrew’s father, and that means ye hae tae be gentle with him. All this is new tae him. He is nae gaeing tae get it right on his first try,” she said.

“He is going to have to learn that life is not going to be kind to him. You have been too soft. On that island of yours, there is no danger, no threat. He has never learned to be hard. I am going to have to teach him this, and the lessons are not going to be easy. You have failed him as a mother, and now I am going to have to correct your mistakes,” he said.

Isla was taken aback by the coldness in his tone. Had he always been this way? Had she been blinded by the naivety of youth before, or had his charm been an act?

“I’m nae gaeing tae stand here and be insulted like this. At least I was there for Andrew while he grew up.”

“Perhaps you would like to be somewhere else,” Rune Dolph said, ignoring the insult. “Perhaps you will run to the stables again to talk to that man.”

Isla’s throat tightened. She had been so careful to escape attention, but clearly, she had not been careful enough.

“Yes, I always have men watching,” Rune Dolph continued. “Who is he?”

“I dinnae know any more than ye. He said he was a merchant who got attacked by bandits, didnae he?”

Rune Dolph narrowed his gaze and approached Isla. “Andrew seemed to think he knew the man.”

“He’s just a lad. He doesnae know what he saw. I was just thankful tae the man for coming tae Andrew’s aid.”

Rune Dolph’s upper lip curled. “See to it that you stay away from the stables. I don’t want you associating with that man again. He’s already caused enough trouble.”

Rune Dolph left her reeling. While he had not discovered her secret, he at least suspected enough to make her life difficult. She hoped more than ever now that Emmel would leave. As for her, well, she would just have to try and fight against Rune Dolph’s idea of paternal care. He might well tell her over and over again that he’s doing the best for Andrew, but she had been the one to raise the boy over the last decade. She was the one who knew him best and knew how much he could handle. She wasn’t going to let Rune Dolph dictate to her how her own child should be raised.

Emmel was seething when Isla left him. Now that he knew the truth, certain things made sense, like the way she seemed so at ease around Rune Dolph. He couldn’t believe that she was willing to live in a place like this with a man like that, though. The only explanation he could think of was that she was scared, and he couldn’t blame her. This place was a cauldron of threats, but despite her pleading him to leave and return to the island, he was more determined than ever to stay and rescue Isla and Andrew. She might be able to convince herself that she was going to be safe here, but Emmel knew otherwise. He had known men like Rune Dolph before, cruel men who wanted nothing more than to control and hurt people. The way he had spoken to Andrew had incensed Emmel just as much as if Andrew was his own son. That was no way to teach a child to fight, no way to teach him about the art of war.

No, things were only going to get worse, and Emmel wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he left Isla and Andrew. Time was running out, though. He had to act fast, so while he tended to his duties in the stables, he thought and thought, turning over plans and stratagems in his mind.

None seemed perfect, but in this situation, he wasn’t sure that he could wait for perfection to enter his mind. All he needed was a plan that was good enough.