As soon as she broke into a run, the men followed. They planned to force her to run away from the village and safety. Eira knew that she was doomed. No one knew where she was and no one would know what had become of her. The spot the arrow had grazed began to sting as she ran and she suddenly felt dizzy. Her legs gave way and she dropped to the ground, dimly realizing that the arrow must have been tipped with poison. Everything went black then and she lay still.
Halvar heard Eira’s scream as he neared the stone boundaries. He broke into a run, desperate to reach her but by the time he arrived, it was too late. She was gone. An arrow was stuck in one of the trees not far from the boundary markers. She had been on the inside of the boundary but the slave raiders had taken her anyway. He could see their footprints leading up the path. He knew they would have horses somewhere nearby. Once they loaded her onto their horses, they would carry her far, far away and he might never see her again. He turned and ran back to the village, faster than he’d ever run before.
Halvar burst into the village just as Canute and the men were bringing a load of grain to the storehouse.
“Quick! Get the horses!” he gasped. “Slave raiders have got Eira!”
The men jumped into action, grabbing horses and weapons.
Kaarina heard the commotion and came out of the house. She had come back from the farm early to start preparing food for the evening meal.
“Eira has been taken by slave raiders,” Halvar told her, still out of breath. “I heard her scream!”
“Maybe my father has something to do with it,” Kaarina answered quietly. “He asked me last night where she goes to get herbs for headaches. Then this morning she told me he’d asked her to get some for him. And today at the farm, a stranger came to talk to him. The man was wearing clothes that are different from ours.”
“Thank you, Kaarina,” Halvar said. “It does not look good for Eira. They might already have a buyer for her if this was a planned raid.” He swung onto the horse. “Pray that we get her back safely.”
Kaarina watched them go with a deep sense of foreboding in her heart. She was certain that her father had planned to get rid of Eira by arranging for her to be taken by slave raiders. She felt anger towards her father, the person who was supposed to protect Eira. What kind of person would betray his own kin this way? She shuddered as she imagined Eira living the life of a slave. Beautiful, kind, spirited Eira who deserved to be loved and happy, living in captivity. The thought was almost unbearable and tears ran down her cheeks.
Taft sang to himself as he approached the house. He could smell the food that Kaarina had gone to prepare and by now, he should be rid of an unwelcome problem. It had been a good day indeed.
“Hello, Daughter,” he greeted Kaarina as he entered the house.
“Hello, Father,” she replied in a subdued voice.
Taft wondered if she knew that Eira was missing.
“Where are the men?” he asked. “I thought they would be back from the farms by now. Did they go hunting?”
“No, Father. They went to find Eira.”
“What happened to the evil little witch? Did she get lost in the woods?”
Kaarina looked at him and her anger began to rise.
“No, Father,” she said evenly. “I believe you already know what happened to her.”
“Why would I know anything about where she is? She was going to seek plants today like she usually does.”
“She was taken by slave raiders.”
“Slave raiders? The stupid little cow probably went beyond the boundaries. It serves her right.”
Kaarina turned to face him, fury in her eyes. “And you arranged it,” she accused. “Why do you hate her so? What has she ever done to you?”
“She is just like her mother,” Taft said fiercely. “In looks and personality. That woman betrayed me and I will never forgive her. And I do not care if I never see her offspring again.”
“Father, you have so much hate in your heart that I don’t believe you can even love me,” Kaarina said, tears sliding down her cheeks. “I was lonely before Eira came here and she is my friend. Even if only for my sake, can you not withhold your hateful words about her?”
Taft grunted. “Enough of your nonsense, woman. Hurry up and serve the food. I am starving.”
Even as he changed the subject, Taft was worried that his plan might fail. He hadn’t expected the men to mount a rescue mission to find Eira, certainly not so soon after she was taken. He’d even told the slave trader that she would be an easy catch and that no one would come looking for her. No one wanted her, after all. She was just a problem for the whole village. Everyone except Kaarina, it seemed. Although he felt mildly guilty that his daughter had lost her friend, it was eclipsed by the relief of knowing that he didn’t have to live with the evil witch in his house any longer.
When Halvar and his men reached the place where the slave raiders had snatched Eira, they dismounted and followed the footprints up the muddy path. Soon, the footprints left the path and went to a small clearing where they could see fresh horse dung and hoof prints. From there, the hoof prints curved around to rejoin the path.
It confirmed Halvar’s suspicions. “They are careless slave raiders,” he said. “They were not expecting anyone to come after them. It seems that perhaps Taft did set up his
