“I do not wish to talk to you, Landwulf. Do you not understand that?”
“Kaarina, let me tell you what has happened in my life since I left!” he implored, keeping pace with her as she marched up the beach.
“Leave me alone, Landwulf. I do not wish to speak to you.”
“Then at least do me the courtesy of listening.”
“I told you, I do not want to know about your plans with your new bride.”
“Listen to me!” he commanded, authority in his tone. “You are making assumptions and you know nothing about what I am about to say!”
She glared at him then gave in. “All right, I will listen. But only this once. So you had better say whatever you need to now because this will not happen again.”
He grabbed her arm and forced her to stop. “Kaarina, there is no wife,” he said.
She gaped at him. “No wife? But did you not go to Alahsan to find one?”
“My parents sent me there. Out of respect for them, I went. But I had no desire to do so.”
“Were there no suitable girls in Alahsan?”
“Yes, there were. There were several and any one of them would’ve made a fine wife. But not for me.”
“Why? Would it not make your parents happy if you’d taken a bride from there?”
“Yes. And their families were expecting me to declare my intentions with one or the other of them. But I did not want to.”
“Why?”
“Because I do not love any of them. And I will only marry for love. I have told Mother that if I am unable to marry for love then I will not marry at all. It is my life and I refuse to marry simply to please others.”
Kaarina was taken aback yet again at the independence the Christians allowed their young people. “I am always surprised at how much freedom Christians have,” she said. “My people marry to please their families or others.”
“I returned because there was no reason to stay,” Landwulf said. “My happiness lies here.”
“Why are you building a house if you have no bride?”
He looked shy. “I am hoping that in the future there will be a bride,” he said. “Kaarina, every time I saw one of those other girls, I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I kept praying that God would comfort your heart if you were sad.” He paused and looked deep into her eyes. “I hope you can understand that I had to honor my parents by following their wishes.”
“Yes,” she murmured, “I understand.”
“But when I came home, I told them that I’d tried following the path they laid out for me but it was not for me. I am a man now, Kaarina. I can make my own decisions. And my parents must respect that.”
“What are you trying to say?” she asked.
“I love you, Kaarina. My heart beats only for you. Will you do me the honor of becoming the bride who will live in my house with me?”
Shock registered on her face, followed by delight. “Oh yes, Landwulf! Yes please!”
He grinned the biggest grin she’d ever seen then whirled her into his arms and swung her around. “I cannot believe it!” he almost shouted. “You said yes!”
“I cannot believe it either!” she exclaimed, breathless and giddy. “You are building that fine new house for me? I cannot believe it! I am so happy!”
“I am too. You have made me a happy man today!”
“Does it not bother you that I am not from among your people?” she asked.
“Not a bit! I love you just the way you are.”
“I have something to tell you,” she said. “I now share your beliefs.”
“Really?” he asked in astonishment. “Why did I not see you at the dingstat today?”
“I was baptized in the sea by your pfaffo not long before you returned to the village. I avoided the dingstat today because you would be there and I did not wish to see you.”
He whirled her around again, delighted. “This is such good news!” he exclaimed. “Now we will share the same beliefs!”
She giggled. “And so will our children,” she said slyly.
He blushed then grinned. “Our babies will be perfect,” he said.
Halvar stood beside the mound of fresh earth, watching as the men laid another body to rest. They didn’t have enough cloth for a burial shroud so they had wrapped some rags around Hella’s body as they laid her in the earth.
Poor Hella, Halvar thought. She’d endured agonizing pain from her injuries; she was such a fighter that she’d lingered long after several of the other badly injured people had died. They were hoping that she would have the strength to recover. But at last, her strength was gone; she was no longer able to fight. She’d slipped away peacefully during the night as Bodil held her hand and sponged her feverish face with a cool cloth. It was a blessing that she was no longer in pain.
“Poor Hella,” Halvar said after the simple ceremony concluded. “She struggled so hard to stay alive but her injuries were too severe.”
Canute nodded. His own injuries were healing nicely and he was getting more active again. “Hella had her disagreements with me,” he said. “But underneath, she had a good heart.”
“She made life hard for Eira,” Halvar recalled.
“She was good at stirring up trouble,” Canute agreed.
“May she have a peaceful rest,” Halvar said, turning away from the grave as the young men filled it in.
Canute fell into step beside him. “We are almost out of food,” he said. “We were fortunate that Gustav had some stored in the barn on his farm.”
“Yes, it enabled us to stay for longer,” Halvar agreed. “But
