Rule of the Shieldmaiden

by Jaime Loughran

  She nodded. “Against Erik the Dark. I won.”

  Harold looked impressed. “Well done. That should be plenty to attack Kincora. I look forward to taking the fight to them, for a change.”

  She couldn’t believe how easy it was to win Harold to her cause. She glanced past Harold to Bjorn, who sat on the other side of Harold. He gave her a single nod and a wide grin.

  With the three jarls and their men behind her, she and the warriors from her village should be able to attack and overtake Kincora. A shiver of excited anticipation spread through her. Soon, she’d have her vengeance. If only Galinn could see the progress she made toward their goal of killing the High King of Ireland and the Bishop of Killaloe.

  CHAPTER 14

  “You did well, holding your own against those jarls. I’m proud of you, Thora.” Bjorn’s eyes crinkled in the corners from the wide grin he wore.

  “I had good teachers.” Thora leaned back in the wagon behind Bjorn and closed her eyes, wishing the incessant pounding in her head would go away. She’d managed to secure alliances with the jarls holding most of the Norse territory in the southwestern region of Ireland. Her village was growing, but it still had a long way to go before she could muster the kind of force she’d need to confront Donnchadh and win. Ever since the Battle of Clontarf, the Norse tended to keep to themselves in their own villages. Because many Norse backed the losing side and suffered numerous casualties, the battle served to diminish the overall strength of the Norse in the country. Those who hadn’t left the country, or moved to the cities and integrated with the Irish, kept a low profile to avoid drawing attention to themselves. Other than trading, the few remaining Norse towns refused to have anything to do with other Norse to avoid giving the appearance of trying to organize against the Irish. “You don’t think it was too easy to get them to agree?”

  “I think there’s always a risk someone will betray you, if that’s why you’re concerned it was too easy. However, I also think the Norse grow tired of our current existence. We used to be fierce and proud warriors, feared by many. Our ancestors came here and fought to give their children a better life. Instead of striking fear into the hearts of the Irish, we live in fear of them. It’s not right.” Bjorn shook his head.

  It was difficult for Thora to imagine the glory of the Norse in the past. She was a young child when Clontarf changed the relationship of the Norse in Ireland, so the current ways were all she really knew. Still, even without that emotional connection to the better days, a small spark of yearning for more had ignited in Thora over the past couple of days. Convincing the other jarls to join her cause gave Thora a rush she’d never known. “Maybe we can change things then.”

  “You accomplish everything you set your mind to, so I have no doubt things will change, if you want them to.”

  Thora grunted. “I’m not sure where you get that idea from. I was unable to prevent Galinn from leaving.” Thora rolled onto her side and curled into the fetal position in the hay. She couldn’t wait to get back home so she could dive into whatever tasks awaited her. Idle moments, such as these, allowed thoughts of Galinn to crash through the wall that keeping busy holds in place. She didn’t want to think about him, didn’t want to miss him, and didn’t want to feel loneliness that’s wrapped itself around her since he left.

  “I have no doubt you’ll figure that one out too.” Bjorn chuckled.

  “In the meantime, what’s the next step?” Rúna’s bony elbow nudged Thora’s back until she rolled over onto her back.

  She pushed herself into a seated position and picked up a piece of straw. As she wound the straw around her finger, she tried to imagine the path she needed to take laid out before her and clearly visible. Try as she might, there was a fog preventing her from seeing the path clearly. “I’m not entirely sure,” she sighed. “When I started this, everything seemed so simple. Get enough men to attack Kincora to kill the king and the bishop. Now?” She shook her head. “Now, I find myself with more than enough people to attack with, thanks to our allies, but I’m afraid to give the order.”

  Rúna cocked her head. “You have the men you need, so attack. What’s changed?”

  “Before, the men weren’t real to me. Not really. After meeting with the jarls and winning them over, I see their people as real, and I don’t want to make a decision that jeopardizes either the men or my alliances with the jarls.” Thora tossed the bent piece of straw and picked up another. “If I make one wrong decision, I will cost people their lives and lose the respect of the jarls.”

  “That is the price of being a leader, Thora.” Bjorn spoke quietly as he kept his eyes on the road ahead. “If you intend to pursue your fight against Donnchadh, you will risk people’s lives. Even if you win.”

  The reality of what her plan meant weighed on her over the course of the ride home. She could lay the blame at Harold’s feet. If he hadn’t been such a gracious host and all around nice man, she might not have thought twice about risking the lives of his people. As it was, his people were happy and welcoming, just as he was. Harold made her care about his people, almost as much as she cared for her own. She’d never heard of a battle with no losses, or losses only on the opposing side. Going forward with her plan would get some people killed. Could she live with that? A week ago, the answer would have been a resounding yes. Now? She didn’t know.

  Rúna pressed her lips together until they were a fine line and her brown eyes held a trace of sadness and pity. “I don’t envy you your decision in this. If you give up on the idea of attacking the king, you risk appearing weak in front of your allies. Doing nothing also puts you in the position of standing by as others suffer attacks and raids that you may have been able to prevent if you’d acted. Could you really do nothing and let others die?”

  Thora let her head fall back against the side of the wagon bed and stared at the cloudless sky. “No.”

  Rúna’s hand was warm on Thora’s forearm. “I can’t imagine you could. I may be new to the training, and I’ve never fought in a battle, but I know the risks I face should you ever call me to action. I knew the risks when I decided to join in the training. I wouldn’t hesitate to answer your call to arms. I’m sure the jarls knew the risks when they agreed to join your cause, and I’m sure their men know the risks involved with going into battle.”

  “She’s right, Thora. Warriors know the risks and don’t shy away from them. Valhalla and Fólkvangr await those chosen by Odin and Freya after falling on the battlefield. You need to set aside your emotions and make the tough decisions.” He cast a sad smile over his shoulder before returning his eyes to the road ahead.

  “I know you’re both right. I never thought about the people that I would be involving in this fight. I need to forget about the individuals, and think only about the purpose of the attack. Yes, this started out as me getting revenge for my family’s’ deaths, but it’s become more than that. It’s about ridding the Norse population of a menace, and doing away with that awful man who tortures and kills for the fun of it.”

  Bjorn straightened his back when Thora brought up Travers. He wasn’t one to complain, but Thora knew he was still suffering from the damage inflicted by Travers’ hand. “I still have nightmares about that man.”

  Thora was in the dungeon when Travers tortured Bjorn and heard his screams. She didn’t have to see what Travers did to him to know how bad the torture was. She could still hear his screams as if he stood next to her screaming now. When she saw the state Travers left him in, she was amazed he survived at all with how cut up, beaten, and bruised he’d been. “We’ll get him, and when we do, I’ll let you do whatever you want to him before you kill him.” Thora originally planned to let Galinn kill Travers to avenge Rónán, but Bjorn had just as much reason and right to the job. And Bjorn was here.

  Thora twisted around to face front when the sound of water running reached her ears. “Are we almost home?”

  Bjorn nodded.

  When they broke through the trees and the gates
across the river came into view, Thora smiled. “I will be so glad to be out of this damned wagon and back home.”

  “I’ll be glad to sleep in my own bed with my lovely wife.” Bjorn slowed the horses as they neared the river’s edge and carefully lined them up to make the crossing. “Easy, boys. We don’t want to end up soaking wet now.”

  As they rode through the gates, Thora’s mouth opened. “What’s happened?” As she looked around, she expected to see the work done that she and Bjorn assigned before they left. Only, the fort looked exactly as they left it.

  Bjorn and Rúna wore similarly shocked expressions.

  “Where is everyone?” The silence of the fort was deafening. The place should have been filled with the sounds of people working.

  Bjorn halted the horses and hitched them to the post before running toward their longhouse.

  “Do you think she’s alright?” Rúna eyed Bjorn’s receding figure with apprehension.

  Other than the work not being finished, there were no signs of trouble. “I don’t think there was an attack on the fort.”

  As they waited for Bjorn to return, Thora checked in some of the buildings for signs of life. No one was around, but their belongings had been left behind.

  Bjorn came out of the longhouse with his arm around Skathi’s waist. Thora’s stomach sank at the grim expression they wore.

  “What is it?” She couldn’t wait for them to close the distance before she had an answer. As impending doom hung over her head, each step they took seemed as if it were in slow motion.

  “I’m not exactly sure how it came to be, but everyone decided to focus on the fields instead of the fort while we were gone.”

  Thora’s temper flared. She left specific instructions for the work she wanted done while she was gone. The fields were part of it, but they were not all of the work that needed to be done.

  Skathi hugged Thora and rubbed her back in the way she always did to sooth Thora. “I know you’re mad, but try to calm down.”

  Thora pulled back. “Calm down? They disobeyed me.”

  Skathi let her hands fall to her side and she looked to the ground. “Some were concerned that not enough work was being done with the fields. They hoped to work together to finish it before you got back so they could be working on what you left for them. They had the best intentions for the town.”

  Thora tried to set aside her towering inferno of anger long enough to hear Skathi’s explanation, but she couldn’t get passed the fact that they intentionally disobeyed her the second her back was turned.

  “Let’s go to the fields and see what they’ve done before we decide what to do.” Bjorn put a hand on her shoulder and guided her toward the wagon. Thora nodded, though tension had set into her whole body and the stiffness in her neck made the motion difficult.

  When they crossed the river, Bjorn turned the wagon to follow the river until they reached the area they’d set aside for crops and livestock. Once again, Thora’s mouth fell open, but this time for a good reason.

  The transformation of the land was amazing! She hadn’t been to this area in almost two weeks, but it was so much different than she remembered. Where before the area had one field cleared and tilled, the area now looked like a small farming village. Fences made of wood and stone stretched along the hilly terrain until they disappeared down a hill. Sheep and cows bleated and mooed in the distance. Several fields had been cleared and tilled for crops. A cluster of houses lined the road they’d cut from the fort to the fields. When people noticed their arrival, they rushed to the wagon.

  Beri came out from one of the homes and greeted them with a wave. His long legs covered the distance to the wagon in less than ten steps.

  “What’s going on?” Thora’s anger faded and was replaced by genuine curiosity and awe.

  “Please don’t be mad.” He held up his hands and wore a weary expression, as if he were approaching a wild animal capable of ripping him to shreds. “I know you left us with a list of what we were supposed to do, but shortly after you left, we had a group of thirty people arrive, all looking for a place to stay. I knew the people we already had in the village were more than we could feed, and we were running out of room inside the walls for more housing, so I shifted our focus here.” He held his hand out as he presented her with the fruits of their labor.

  “Did you say thirty people?” Bjorn cut in.

  Beri nodded. “And more arrived every day since.”

  Rúna climbed out of the wagon and walked to the fence where a sheep stood grazing on the other side. “This is incredible.” She reached a hand down to pet the sheep, but the skittish creature took off.

  “How many people are here now?” Though Thora saw many people tending the fields and animals, she also saw quite a few working to build additional housing down the road.

  Beri shrugged. “I stopped counting after we reached two hundred.”

  Thora nearly fell out of the wagon as she tried to climb out of it. “You…stopped counting…at…two hundred?!?” Thora’s spirit soared on joyous wings. When Jacob told her people wanted to come to her fort, she never dreamed she would be jarl of a population above two hundred.

  Beri’s cheeks turned a dark shade of red. “I couldn’t keep up with the head count and keep track of the things that needed to be done too.”

  Thora wrapped her arms around her midsection and doubled over with laughter. “Having too many people to count in the face of trying to set up homes and establish enough food to feed all the newcomers is a good problem to have.”

  Beri let out a sigh of relief. “So you’re not mad?”

  Thora shook her head so vigorously she made herself dizzy. “Quite the opposite!” She turned to Skathi, who stood with a radiant smile. “You knew! You knew, and you let me think something terrible happened.”

  Skathi winked. “The surprise was much nicer this way, wouldn’t you agree?”

  Thora wagged a finger at her. “Next time, just tell me plans changed or something. Don’t get me all worked up over nothing.”

  Skathi wrapped her in a warm hug. “I’ll try to remember that. Come, you should meet your people.”

  As Thora looked out over the growing town, she smiled. If only Galinn were here to see this. Her smile faded as an emptiness set into her heart. So much was going right; it hardly seemed fair that she was helpless to fix the mess with Galinn.

  CHAPTER 15

  “You mean to tell me you’re going to expose Galinn’s secret to everyone?” Skathi stopped braiding Thora’s hair and stared wide-eyed at her. Thora paid more attention to lining her eyes with kohl than Skathi’s incredulous tone. “Do you want to make it to where he can never come back?”

  Thora finished applying the makeup to her lower eyelid and set the kohl aside. “No, that’s not my intention at all. He left because he was worried his secret would come out and an angry mob would chase him out of town. That once everyone found out he led the last raid against us, they’d never forgive him. He’s not here, Skathi, and he’s been gone for four months. Four long, miserable months. Without doing something to address his concern, it’s doubtful he’ll ever come back. What else can I do? I’m tired of going to bed each night without him to curl up with me. Tired of having my sleep disturbed because I wake up during the night worried about him. If I don’t find a way to solve this problem, I may never see him again.” Her heart ached at the thought and a lump formed in her throat. She looked away. “I have feelings for him, Skathi, and they haven’t lessened at all in the time he’d been gone. I need him here with me. The way I see it, he’s given me two choices if I want to be with him. Either give up my position as jarl and follow him to Dublin, or figure out some way to make it possible for him to be here without worry.”

  Skathi sat on the wooden bench next to Thora. Her warm hands clasped Thora’s. “Giving up being the jarl is not possible. You’ve fought too hard to gain the support of your people. Even Ulf came around after you spoke privately with him. If you walk away
now, your people will feel they’ve been betrayed.”

  Thora nodded. “And telling everyone of Galinn’s secret betrays him because he asked me not to. No matter which choice I make, I betray someone I care about.” As difficult a position she found herself in, she wanted to put her faith in her people to be forgiving. Of the forty people from her original village, most knew Galinn when he was a child and welcomed him with open arms. The majority of the villagers felt terrible when they learned Odinkar traded Galinn to Donnchadh for an alliance that he then used to bring Irish attacks on his own people. The newcomers don’t know Galinn to have any opinion on him, though there may be strong feelings against him once they learn about Galinn’s past actions. Thora refused to believe there would be anyone who would harbor ill will toward Galinn for his actions after what he dealt with as a child.

  Skathi nodded and tucked one of Thora’s blonde braids behind her ear. “I don’t envy the position you’re in, but you have a third option… Wait. Galinn didn’t leave only because of what he did. He left because he worried his presence here would bring unwanted attention from the king and bishop.”

  Thora’s shoulders sagged. “Wait? Waiting is what I’ve done for four months, and all I have to show for it is loneliness and no end to it in sight. The town has grown enough that I think we could defend against any attack that came as a result of Galinn being here.”

  Skathi shrugged. “Maybe this is how it is supposed to be. Great leaders often make personal sacrifices.”

  Thora scoffed. “What happened to us being fated to find each other? Our union being blessed? The Norns, and Freya’s seidr? Now you’re saying us being apart may be what’s supposed to happen?”

  “That’s not fair, Thora. I do believe you and Galinn were fated to be together, but maybe that was only meant to be until you became jarl. Just because the gods brought you together doesn’t mean you’re supposed to stay together.”

  Thora held her pendant between her thumb and forefinger, rubbing it for comfort. “That’s true, but I don’t feel as if my time with Galinn is over. I feel like there are things left for us to do together.”