climb out on ’em.’
A ladder was lowered into the pit and neither man needed a second invitation. Bragi was up first. Vali untied Signiuti’s sword from his belt and followed.
When he put his head over the lip of the pit, he could see Bragi looking uncertainly at the wolfman. Feileg was freeing the wolf. He untied the animal’s front paws, then took off the bag. The wolf snapped and bit but Feileg made a low noise, inclined his head and scratched at the dirt. The animal became calmer. It looked about it, first at Feileg, then at Bragi and Vali. Then it ran and was gone.
Vali pulled himself up to face the wolfman in the moonlight. His instinct was to attack him but he had seen where that had got Aegirr and Signiuti. The bandit’s hands and face were covered with blood and Vali didn’t need to be told where it had come from.
The wolfman fixed him with a stare. His eyes seemed to go right into Vali. The prince recognised the look — cold murder.
‘Where is she?’ said the wolfman.
‘Who?’
‘The girl. Adisla.’
‘I don’t know. I want to find her. Why does it concern you?’
‘I love her.’
‘What?’
‘I love her. She was kind to me. It means she loves me too.’
This was too much for Vali to take in, so he concentrated on more immediate concerns. ‘We have to leave. Now,’ he said.
‘You do what you like,’ said Bragi. ‘I’m going to find the berserk. To back down is to admit my guilt.’
Vali looked up at the stars. He couldn’t believe what Bragi was saying. ‘Who to? Forkbeard? You know he plans to make war on my father. That is your enemy, down there in those farms. The gods have proved you right by rescuing you from this pit. Don’t spite your fate by throwing your life away. I’ll need your sword where we are going, old friend.’
Vali’s reasoning did nothing to sway Bragi, but the declaration of friendship was unexpected. He had wanted that from the prince ever since they had been together.
‘Very well,’ said Bragi. He went to the ladder and started to climb back into the pit.
‘What are you doing?’
‘Getting us some clothes for wherever we’re going,’ he said. ‘We don’t want to freeze to death and I think we’d cause a stir if we turn up in Haithabyr on market day naked.’
Ageirr and Signiuti had a good deal of gear on them. Since his return Forkbeard had insisted on his warriors being fully armed at all times in case of another Danish attack. Aegirr, the richest man in the area after Forkbeard, had a good byrnie over a padded jacket, a helmet, sword, shield and axe. The poorer but still affluent Signiuti had no byrnie but a good coat, a fine knife with a whalebone handle, the sword Bragi had already taken and also a shield. Vali let Bragi take the byrnie. The old man also took Aegirr’s helmet and his other weapons. Vali took Signiuti’s stuff. He wasn’t sure how useful the shield would be but he knew its value as a shelter from the wind at sea. And it was to sea that he was going.
‘Old Brunn has a faering on the coast just a vika from here,’ said Vali. ‘It’s half a morning to get there, maybe more as we’ll have to be careful.’
‘That’s our surest way home,’ said Bragi. ‘We could be at Hordaheim within the week.’
Vali shook his head. ‘Forkbeard’s longships would run us down long before that,’ he said. ‘We’re going in another direction entirely.’ He turned to the wolfman. ‘Thank you. I don’t really see how I can pay you but, should you come to the court of my father, tell this story and say Vali the Swordless bids them receive you as they would himself.’
The wolfman just stood looking at Vali.
‘What?’ said Vali.
‘Is the girl there?’
‘No, not there. We don’t know where she is — that’s what I intend to find out.’
‘Then I am coming with you,’ said the wolfman.
‘No,’ said Vali. ‘I don’t know you.’
‘I swore to protect her. You are going to her. I will go with you.’ He said this as if it was an uncontestable chain of reasoning.
‘She doesn’t need your protection,’ said Vali.
‘Sir, I think we should move before much longer. They may come to relieve the guards,’ said Bragi.
‘Yes.’
Vali said no more. He just pulled Signiuti’s cloak — half soaked from the pit — about him and made his way to the path towards Brunn’s house. The wolfman went to follow but Vali turned and drew his sword, more in anger than cold reason. The images of the two dead men in the pit came to him as he did so.
‘I said no,’ said Vali. The prince couldn’t quite put his finger on why he didn’t want the wolfman along with him. He had no reason to mistrust him; he had after all rescued him. But still he didn’t want to take him. His talk of having sworn an oath to Adisla bothered him. Who had covered the wolfman from the sun when he was tied to the tree? Who had released him? Vali couldn’t recognise the feeling within himself because he had never had it before. He had never questioned Adisla’s love for him, nor did he now. Inside him though something had sparked to life — not quite jealousy, yet not far removed from that emotion either. He knew that Adisla could not feel affection for this man, but something seemed to shift within him at a deeper level than rational thought. It was just that there were too many uncertainties in his life at that moment. The presence of the wolfman would add more than it took away. Yes, that was it.
A look of blind fury passed over Feileg’s face. Then he composed himself. He looked from Bragi to Vali and said, ‘I will follow.’
Then he was gone, lost in the rolling country towards the beach.
Bragi and Vali watched him leave.
‘He would have made a brute of an ally, sir,’ said Bragi.
‘Or a liability,’ said Vali. ‘He’s strange and he’s noticeable. Where we’re going we’ll already stand out as foreigners. With him we might receive an even harder welcome.’
Bragi nodded. ‘But he’d be some back-up in a scrap. Ageirr and Signiuti might have been idiots but they were as good a pair of swordsmen as you’re likely to meet. He did for both of them with his bare hands. You have to respect that level of raw violence.’
‘If we survive then it’ll be wit not fighting that brings us through,’ said Vali. ‘Come on, let’s get to the boat.’
Vali had been concerned that it would be dangerous to use the path between the farms because it increased the chances of them being seen. However, he now reasoned that most of the warriors were down in the main settlement and that, if they did meet anyone on the path, chances were they would have fought with him against the Danes and be well disposed towards him. That said, they would be duty bound to go to Forkbeard and tell the king what they had seen. The only difference between friends and those who wished him harm would be how quickly they reported seeing him. They would take the path for the sake of speed.
They moved off, up the hill that led away from the sea, down the side of the copse where the battle had occurred. There was very little sign that anything had taken place there. Everything of value — from broken axe heads and spear tips to the clothes of the dead — had been looted. Only a pile of naked dead raiders had been left for the ravens and the crows.
They made their way down the back of the hill into the valley behind the port. Smoke was rising from the farmsteads, from cooking fires and dung heaps. The sun was creeping up, though the valley was still cast in a long shadow. Only one figure stirred among the houses, a wife off to tend her husband’s flock. Most of the men were still at the hall. The farm animals were braying themselves awake, though the dogs still lay asleep in the doorways.
Vali looked back and thought that he loved this place and that this was the last time he would ever see it. They climbed again. The path, as he knew it would, took them past Adisla’s house. He saw the destiny he wanted — there together with her, he to guard the flock, she to make the butter. No battles to trouble them, no concerns of
