Rule of the Shieldmaiden

by Jaime Loughran

  Skathi held up her hands. “And that may be what your future has in store for you. If you think forcing the issue by exposing Galinn’s secret is the way to go, then I will support you in that. Before you do, consider what you may be opening yourself up to. You’re thinking that everyone will forgive and allow Galinn to come back. What if they don’t? Worse than that, what if you telling them the truth changes their opinion of you?”

  Skathi’s cautioning words had merit, and that outcome was one Thora hadn’t considered. “I don’t know if telling the truth is the right way to go. I only know I have to do something. Doing nothing hasn’t worked.” She blew out a frustrated sigh. If only a workable solution presented itself that allowed her to protect Galinn’s secret while having him here with her. Deep down, she knew that wasn’t going to happen. “If you have a better idea…”

  Skathi shook her head. “I wish I did.” She stood and finished braiding the remainder of Thora’s loose locks. “When do you plan to do this?”

  Thora’s stomach fluttered and she was thankful she was sitting down so her knees couldn’t go weak on her. “I want to do it as soon as possible. Today. I’ll arrange for a gathering near the fort and address everyone at once.”

  Skathi chuckled. “You’re going to jump right in without testing the depth first. No half measures with you, my dear.”

  Thora smiled. “No half measures here. If people are going to have a problem with what I say, I’d rather deal with all of them at once.”

  “I’ll let Bjorn know so he can spread the word.”

  ****

  Thora stared out at all the curious faces gathered before her. For many here, this was the first time she addressed them formally. Her heart pounded in her chest as she worried over their reaction to her news. She scanned their village of Dún Corcaighe, marveling at how quickly it had gone from a run down and abandoned fort, unable to defend itself against the elements, much less provide security to inhabitants, to a stronghold capable of withstanding a direct assault.

  Galinn had the idea to reinforce the palisade walls with walkways and towers to post lookouts and archers. With the River Lee acting as a significant barrier that left only a small area to cross where it was shallow, they concentrated most of the fortifications and posts on either side of the gate. The shallow crossing would bottleneck any invading force, allowing the archers to pick off a fair number as they came across the river. Her army would greet those who made it to the gates. The longhouses were built in such a way to funnel invaders who breached the gates toward the stronghold. The stone exterior walls had strategically placed slits for archers, as well as cauldrons placed on the second floor to dump boiling oil on enemies as they entered the fort or moved toward the stairs. She was extremely proud of how quickly her people finished the fortifications and homes. Everyone set aside any petty differences and dedicated themselves to accomplishing the tasks needed to secure the Fort of the Marshes. Tasks that Galinn himself set out for them. If she had any doubts about what she was going to do, seeing the results of his planning strengthened her resolve to have him here.

  She scanned the crowd until she found Ulf, who stood with his four sons, Erik, Toke, Trygve, and Odger. His brown eyes twinkled with a smile. She smiled back, wondering if his goodwill would remain after he learned the truth. He was her hardest won supporter, mainly because of his loyalty to Odinkar. She won him over when he realized her vision was in line with his and he decided to give her a chance. She didn’t take his decision lightly, because he could change his mind at any time. While Thora had won him over, even if tentatively, he never warmed up to Galinn. She hoped that was only because Galinn wasn’t around long enough for Ulf to get to know him.

  When the crowd’s murmur broke through her thoughts, she smiled at everyone. “I know you’re all curious about why I gathered you here today, and to be honest, I’m more than a little nervous to bring this issue up. You see, it’s about Galinn. Some of you know him. Many of you do not.”

  She waited as the confused utterances from the crowd faded before continuing. “Yes, he left for Dublin four months ago, and you were told he left to find people who wanted to join our village to grow our numbers. That would have been a worthy endeavor, but I lied to you about why he left.”

  The crowd gasped. Ulf crossed his thick arms, and watched her closely. “Let her finish,” he barked. “I’m sure there’s a good reason here. She hasn’t led us astray yet.”

  Thora smiled nervously at Ulf, wishing he hadn’t put himself out there on her behalf. “I had a reason, but I’m not sure it was a good one. I do hope you’ll forgive me for the deception. You see, I was bound by a promise to keep his secret.”

  “What secret?” The question came from different places within the crowd.

  Thora’s stomach tightened and her knees grew weak. She took a deep breath. “You already know how he came to be with the Irish. How Odinkar and Garmund traded him to Donnchadh mac Briain when he was a child. For those of you who don’t know, our previous jarl feared Galinn would grow up to challenge him, as his father did, so he had to get rid of him,” Thora gave herself a mental shake to get back on the subject. “What you may not know is what he did while he was with the high king.” Feeling as if she were about to jump off a cliff, she braced herself for what she had to say next. “Galinn was the head of the king’s army and led the attack on our village that saw many of our friends and family members killed, and Beri, Bjorn, and I captured.”

  She let her words sink in as her eyes flew to Ulf to gauge his reaction. Fury flashed in his brown eyes. His oldest son, Erik, matched his angry expression while his other three sons looked confused. She searched the faces of the rest of the crowd and found similar expressions of anger and confusion.

  “I think you’d better explain everything, Thora,” Beri called out from the back of the gathering. “Quiet!” He shouted to the murmuring crowd.

  Thora nodded. “You’re right, Beri. It’s not as simple as he attacked us because he was the leader of the army. Imagine this: you’re a small child. Your father’s dead and your mother believes the jarl killed him and made it look like an accident. She could never prove it and ends up wandering in the woods near where he died until she disappeared. Now you’re left alone with Garmund, your uncle. He doesn’t want you. He neglects you unless he’s beating you. My father, who shows you love and compassion, eventually takes you in. He and Bjorn train you, and you excel in your training. You’re finally starting to regain your footing after the Fates dealt you the cruel blows of taking away your parents and leaving you with a terrible uncle. Then, one day without any warning, you’re ripped away from everything you know and sent to live with the High King of Ireland. Now, the king is not a good man. He tells you the people in your village hated you and got rid of you. Meanwhile, you wonder why no one came looking for you. He uses that to twist your young brain into believing he is the only one who truly cares about you. Would you have any love for where you came from under those conditions?”

  People within the crowd spoke, some shook their heads while others nodded. Thora couldn’t make out what any one person said, so she held her hands up to quiet them down.

  “Galinn wasn’t told he was attacking the village he came from. He had no idea who we were until he captured me. He recognized my father’s sword, my pendant, and put it all together. Let me be completely honest with you. Finding out he attacked us didn’t change his feelings on the matter. It wasn’t until after I told him that Garmund told us he saw Galinn killed by wolves that he began to regret what he did. He truly believed no one went looking for him because no one cared. Finding out we did care, but were told he was dead, changed everything for him, and he deeply regretted his actions. He immediately sought to make amends. That is why he risked his life to help Bjorn and Beri escape, and to warn us of the attack the bishop was planning. Galinn left because he worried you would never forgive him for what he’d done, even with all of the information I’d just given you. He was afrai
d to trust you with the truth, because he thought it was too much to ask of you.”

  Thora’s heart beat so loud, she was sure everyone could hear it over the silence of the crowd. No one said a word. Many wouldn’t look at her. Ulf stared at her with an inscrutable expression before his lips pulled into a tight smile and he nodded his head once. He started weaving through the people in the crowd until he stood before her. She froze, afraid to move. Was he coming to challenge her?

  He gave her a hard look before he turned and faced the crowd. “Listen, Jarl Thora has revealed Galinn’s terrible secret. She’s trusted us when Galinn was afraid to. And why would he? He hardly knows us. He’s responsible for the deaths of our loved ones. That’s a difficult thing to accept, is it not?”

  The crowd murmured as their heads nodded.

  “But he did what he did because of the lies and misdeeds of others. Do we hold him accountable for the king’s lies? For Odinkar’s fear? For Garmund’s abuse?”

  Thora held her breath as her nails dug into her palms. She had no reason to expect Ulf to aid in smoothing things over for Galinn. While it sounded as if he was arguing in support of Galinn, he was at a critical point in his speech and could shift the argument against him.

  Gradually, people within the crowd began to shake their heads. Like a ripple through a smooth lake, the shaking spread until everyone was shaking their heads.

  “No. He has to carry the guilt of what he’s done for the rest of his life, and that’s no small punishment. Let’s also not forget what he’s done to help us.” He held his hands up and pointed around the village. “Would any of us be here now had he not sent word of the bishop’s planned attack? Some would have died, if not all of us. That should count for something.”

  Thora was at a loss for words. Of all the people in the village, she least expected Ulf to come to Galinn’s aid. A sheen of tears blurred her eyes and she blinked them away. She put a hand on Ulf’s shoulder and thanked him with a smile when he turned to look at her.

  “What do you say? Do we send word to Galinn that he needs to come home? To be with us?” Thora asked the crowd. In the moment before they answered, her breath caught in her throat as fear they’d say no spread through her veins like ice water.

  “If it wasn’t for Odinkar making the arrangement for the attack, Galinn wouldn’t have led an army here in the first place.” Ulf’s brother Thorston shouted from the back. Shouts of agreement rose up from the crowd. “Bring him home!” Thorston began to chant. Others joined in until everyone was shouting in unison.

  A lump formed in Thora’s throat as the forgiveness of her people washed over her. Her heart soared at the possibility of Galinn coming home.

  CHAPTER 16

  Something on the edge of Thora’s peaceful sleep jolted her awake. Sitting up with her heart racing, she peered through the darkness, trying to get a sense of what disturbed her. Everything was as it should be. The occasional crackling of logs burning in the hearth interrupted the silence of the longhouse she shared with Bjorn and Skathi. She stared at the fire as she reached her hand out beside her, knowing she’d find the spot empty, and yet still deeply disappointed when her hand felt nothing but her blanket.

  Tonight, however, she smiled into the darkness as she reminded herself that Galinn would be home soon. She settled back into her bed of furs, wrapped herself in Aesa’s wool blanket and drifted back to sleep as thoughts of Galinn’s homecoming danced in her mind. As she started to drift off to sleep once again, the reminder of how she betrayed Galinn’s trust pushed its way to the front of her mind. She rolled onto her back and stared through the smoke hole at the darkened sky.

  He couldn’t be mad at her for telling everyone, could he? He’d asked her not to say anything even after he was gone, but that was when he expected the reaction of the people to be negative. They may have been hesitant, but they came around and were willing to accept him into the village, knowing what he’d done. Complete acceptance. Wasn’t that what Galinn wanted, but was afraid he’d never get? She’d suspected as much from the very beginning, though he never said.

  What about her? Didn’t he betray any trust he had in her when he chose to leave rather than giving her a chance to see if he would be accepted? He didn’t trust her enough to have the same faith she had in her people.

  Four months had gone by, and he had been in a bad place when he left because of Rónán’s death. Thora’s stomach twisted into a tight knot at the thought of Rónán dying as he did. Killed by one of the bishop’s men on Travers’ order. Galinn took his death hard and grew more and more unreachable. Just a few days after Rónán’s death, he was a shell of his former self. She tried to reach out to him; to let him know he wasn’t alone in his grief.

  Was she pushing to get him back when he didn’t want to be here? The idea nagged at her, preventing her from falling asleep. Over the past four months of his absence, she never questioned whether he left because he was done with her. She took him at his word when he told her he was leaving to protect her.

  She sighed as the image of his pained expression during their last exchange rose up before her. No, he didn’t lie to her. He left because he thought it was his only option. He wouldn’t ask her to leave her people to be with him, and he didn’t want to risk getting attached to the village and its people if they would turn around and throw him out after learning his secret. Nor did he want to be the reason any army attacked the fort before they were able to defend themselves.

  He may be upset because she betrayed him, but when he was welcomed back with open arms, he would have to forgive her. She rolled onto her side and rubbed the empty space in the bed beside her. He’d be there soon enough.

  ****

  “I’ll ride to Dublin and find him.” Bjorn secured his sword belt to his waist and slipped his axe into the belt loop. “I’ll drag him back by his neck, if I have to.”

  Thora chuckled. “I don’t think that would be necessary. Then again, if you do have to drag him back, maybe do it by something that won’t choke or otherwise kill him.”

  Bjorn waved a dismissive hand as his blue eyes sparkled with mischief. “Oh, I’ll drag him back by something if the bastard doesn’t come willingly.”

  Skathi inhaled swiftly before slapping his arm playfully. “Thora will need that if there’s ever to be a child from their union.”

  Thora’s cheeks heated.

  Bjorn’s head snapped towards Skathi as his mouth fell open. “What? How could you think I meant that? I was thinking of his foot. Tsk, tsk. I can see I’ve got a couple of dirty minds around me.”

  Thora wasn’t buying the innocent act, and from Skathi’s narrowed eyes and crossed arms, she wasn’t either.

  Bjorn, to his credit, didn’t push any further. He kissed his wife’s forehead and hugged Thora. “I’ll be gone for a while. Take care of my beautiful wife, will you, Jarl Thora?”

  Thora gathered herself to her full height, still a head and shoulders shorter than Bjorn, and smiled. “Rest assured your wife will be safe with me.” She broke into laughter, even though she meant every word. Bjorn and Skathi, who took her in after her parents died, were the closest thing to family she had now, and she’d do everything she could to keep them both safe. “You make sure you’re careful. The roads can be dangerous with robbers.”

  He shrugged. “All I have on me are my weapons and some coin for the trip.”

  “That’s enough for a robber to consider attacking you.”

  He threw his head back and laughed. “There had better be many of them. I’m all healed after the bishop’s torture, and would love a chance to test my strength.” He mimed various slashing and thrusting movements with the ease and fluidity of a seasoned warrior.

  Thora smiled and shook her head. “I’d feel better if you weren’t going alone.”

  “I can travel faster on my own.” He put his hands on her shoulders and kissed her forehead. “I know being jarl fills you with a sense of responsibility for everyone, but you worry too much. I
promise you I will be fine.”

  Happy shouts and laughter filtered into the longhouse from outside. Thora opened the door to see what the fuss was about. Her lips pulled into a wide grin when a wagon with a familiar figure pulled through the gate and parked a short distance away from her home.

  “Turlough’s here.” She called over her shoulder as she jogged out to greet him.

  He waved with a beaming smile as he hopped down from the wagon and scooped Thora up into a hug. “Thora! So good to see you!”

  She hugged him tightly. “You too, Turlough! What brings you here?”

  He released her and ran a hand through his fiery red hair. His green eyes sparkled. “I’m on a supply run to Dublin.”

  Her brows scrunched together. “That’s in a different direction from the fort you came from.”

  “I know.” He chuckled. “I wanted to use the time away to check in on you. It’s been a while since I’ve seen you.” He looked around the fort and exchanged greetings with people who came to thank him for helping them escape before the bishop’s attack. “You’ve done a lot with the place. It’s a real fort now.”

  Her eyes looked over the longhouses and defenses, pride swelling her heart. “Yes, there may have only been forty of us when we started, but everyone worked hard to make this home. Now look at it. People have come from all over to live here. You should see the rest of the town.” Thora smiled as she thought about how she and her people built a home that others wanted to enjoy. She’d never dreamed of swelling their population so quickly.

  Turlough looked around. “I don’t see Galinn. Is he busy somewhere?”

  Thora’s smile faltered and she shook her head. “He’s in Dublin, as far as I know. He told me he couldn’t stay here, knowing it was a matter of time before everyone found out he led a raid on the village five months ago, and with Travers out to get him. He couldn’t go back to Kincora, not with Bishop Travers and the king itching for the chance to get their hands on Galinn for being a traitor. I understood his reason for leaving, but I didn’t like it. I begged him to stay. Being jarl, I even offered to step in to help if Galinn decided he wanted to let the truth be known and face the consequences, but he turned me down and left.”