by Lee Savino
She cannot stay here. She is not meant to live in cave.
I cursed to myself, but Svein was right.
We will return her to the pack. Today. The pelt slipped from one white shoulder and I covered her again, though it pained me to do it. In summer I would refuse to allow her to dress. I’d make her lay naked within the line of my sight, just so I could have beauty to look upon in every moment.
If I lived to summer.
When she wakes, we will bundle her up and carry her to the nearest scouting post. Perhaps we have a few friends among the pack who will vouch for us.
A twig snapped outside. The few winter birds sheltered in the bushes nearby flew away. Someone was approaching the cave.
“Or they will come to us,” Svein said, and cursed.
“See to our mate,” I rose as a Berserker called for me.
“Dagg the Black. Come out and show yourself.”
I rose, deliberately leaving my axe.
“Come out if you have honor.”
“I have honor,” I called and stepped out of the cave.
An arrow flew and lodged itself in my right shoulder. I grunted. It burned but hadn’t hit anything vital. Not that it mattered. My Berserker healing was back, returned to me by my mate.
As I pulled the arrow from my flesh, the leader, a strong warrior named Knut, turned and grabbed the bow from the attacking warrior. “You fool, why’d you shoot him? He isn’t a threat.”
“It’s all right,” I said, showing them I could be calm. “I don’t blame Grimr for being afraid of me. Besides, he’s a poor shot.”
The ensembled warriors chuckled, some of them nervously.
“So, Dagg.” Knut fixed me with a hard look. “You are well.”
“Well enough.”
“We are here because you are camped too close to the mountain. The Alphas wish you to move.”
I shrugged. “I am happy to go. Svein will come. It is only…” Gasps told me Svein had emerged, carrying Fern. “Our mate is very sensitive to the cold. And she wishes to be close to her friends. You understand.”
“You will hand the woman over,” Knut’s tone had changed. Become more dangerous.
“No,” Fern said softly. “I won’t go. Tell them, Svein.”
“She is our mate,” I declared.
“Lies,” the man who’d shot me called out. Grimr. He had not gotten a woman in the raid, and he coveted mine. I ignored him, and so did the rest of the warriors.
“This is not the place to keep a mate,” Knut said. He would try to carry out his orders and do the right thing. A good man, and a good warrior.
“I agree. We were upset when we learned she had come down the mountain to find us.”
“She came to us in a blizzard, Knut,” Svein added. “We had hoped the pack would take better care of her.”
A warrior, tall and lean with a tanned face, stepped out. “She was well cared for. She snuck out in the blizzard and her friends kept her absence a secret. Fern, come to me. Your friends are worried about you.”
“I won’t go,” she said, clutching Svein’s shoulders. “I am where I belong.”
Knut sighed. “I do not wish to spill blood.”
“I do not wish to fight, either. Our mate is delicate. She does not belong around violence.”
“But you will not give her up.”
Svein and I exchanged glances. We had a decision to make. One that might mean our death.
But Fern’s life was more important.
“Take us to the Alphas,” I said. “Let them pass judgement.”
29
We were halfway up the mountain when it happened. A choking sound rose up. I whirled and found three spears pointed at my chest. They let Svein carry Fern, but we were surrounded.
“What is happening?” I bellowed to him.
Our mate lay limp in Svein’s arms. Her eyes rolled back, showing only whites under her lids. Her entire body convulsed.
We could only watch helpless as the vision took her.
Svein cradled Fern to him.
“Get them away from her. They’re hurting her.”
“Stop,” the warrior Jarl cried. He pushed through our guard to get close. “One of the spaewives says she often falls into trances. It happened before we raided the abbey.”
“What sort of fit is this?” Knut growled. I tried to step between him and our mate, sensing the threat in his voice. Simple warriors would distrust anything strange. Natural wolves would put a rabid one down.
Weapons swung toward me before I took two steps.
“It is not a fit,” Svein said. “Do not touch her.”
“Quickly,” I barked, frozen with my hands out to show I meant no harm. “We must get her to a witch.”
“Up the mountain,” the warriors ordered. I growled in frustration and the spears pricked my skin.
“There is a witch there. One of the Alphas mates,” Knut said quickly.
“How do we know they haven’t done this to her?” Grimr muttered but as we sped up the path, he fell behind. Knut’s friends, Leif, Rolf, and Thorbjorn, clustered around Svein.
I followed, gritting my teeth. My mate was in the throes of a vision, and I could not help her. The wind blew by, carrying the stench of corpses. Damn, but I did not like the mage’s hold on my mate.
We burst into the clearing, where the Alphas already assembled. Samuel sat on his throne, his mate sitting on a smaller rock beside him, holding his hand. The rest of the leaders stood beside them. Judge, jury, and executioners, all arrayed.
Svein came to the center of the circle and crouched with Fern still his arms. I pushed to their side, helping him arrange her, supporting her head until someone said, “Enough.”
I growled, and an axe came to my throat. Just then Fern opened her eyes.
“Dagg,” she whispered.
“It’s all right,” I told her gruffly. “We are here on the mountain. You had a vision. The Alphas will ask you what you Saw.”
Her face went white.
“You do not have to tell them anything,” I spoke carefully around the axe edge at my throat. “But if you do, they will not hurt you, I swear it.”
30
My worst nightmare had come true. I’d fallen into a trance and woke up in the middle of a crowd. No one spoke, and everyone seemed to be watching me.
The Alphas were there, and all the warriors, death written on their faces. If someone gave the kill order, Dagg and Svein would not survive.
I had to speak. I had no choice.
“I will speak,” I said, and on the ledge beside the rocky mountain face, my voice carried.
Under the pelt I wore as a cloak, I found Svein’s hand and gripped it. His face betrayed no tension, but he held tight.
“I am Fern, a spaewife. I have... dreams.” Someone slipped to the lead Alpha’s side, leaned in and whispered. Perhaps explaining who I was, or perhaps giving an argument for my mate’s death. I had to say something that might sway the pack to my mate’s side.
“The Corpse King comes to me at night. In my dreams. I have met him there for some time. Ever since I left the abbey.”
Murmurs went around the pack, and one of the Alphas barked for silence.
That’s it, little dove. Tell them everything. We will keep you safe.
“There was a time when the dreams were under control—the days I was with Dagg and Svein. But then the Corpse King attacked them, and drove them mad, and they were banished.”
“They attacked a group of us,” a warrior spoke up. “Vik and I were there.”
On his throne, the lead Alpha waved his hand for silence.
“When I was separated from my mates,” I raised my voice. “My dreams returned. They plagued me during the day.” I sought Jarl’s face in the crowd. “Ask my friends... they will tell you what they saw. The only way for the visions to stop was to return to my mates. So I left and found them.”
A deep growl thundered from one of the warriors who’d come for Dagg. “You climbed down the
mountain, alone?”
I wouldn’t have the courage to answer him if Svein had not been near.
“Yes.” I turned to Jarl. “I found my way down slowly. I snuck out when the guards were busy with the snow. They would not notice me. It’s not their fault.”
The Alpha on the throne planted his elbows on his thighs and leaned forward. Everyone held their breath, waiting for him to speak. All except the brown-haired woman who sat beside him. His mate put her hand on his leg. One touch and the Alpha seemed to think better of what he would say. “Speak on,” he commanded. His tone wasn’t unkind.
“I found Svein... and together we convinced Dagg to stay with us.” I smiled, remembering those few days when the hardest battle was the snow and cold and wolf who would not come near the fire. “My mates grew strong. Their beast was under control. They never hurt me.”
Someone was muttering, “She doesn’t know her own mind.”
Growls broke out around me. I clutched at Svein.
Calm yourself, little red. They are angry on your behalf. The Alphas bade you speak and none should interrupt.
The men around Dagg had lowered their weapons. He nodded to me, encouraging. I stood up, keeping a hand on Svein’s shoulder to steady me.
“Listen to what I have to say,” I shouted, and the ensemble went dead silent. They would listen, and they would decide whether to kill us.
“I had another vision, even by my mate’s side. And again, while I was coming up the mountain.” The wind rose as I spoke, and goosebumps rose on my arms. I shouted louder. “The Corpse King is waiting to attack. He gathers his strength. He tests our defenses, looking for weakness. I was weak because I did not trust my own mind. I needed the protection of my mates. But together, we will stand strong.”
I looked dead in the eye of the lead Alpha. “The mage seeks a stone, this big,” I showed him my fist. “And milky white. It glows sometimes. I Saw it lying at the bottom of a deep pool. The mage will use it... somehow.” I slumped a little, the energy leaving me. I did not have all the answers they would seek, but I had done my part.
The wind had risen, tearing at my face. Ice like needles fell from the sky. The Berserkers raised their shields against the sleet.
A cry rang out. A woman stood, arms outstretched over the assembly, chanting loudly. The wind whipped her honey blonde hair and skirts. Two Alphas stood behind her, hands out to support her.
The storm left as quickly as it’d blown up. On the throne, the Alpha had wet hair and cuts on his face from the ice that were already healing. He checked on his mate, who’d crouched with a second Alpha. They all straightened, faces calm and unshaken.
“She speaks of the moonstone,” the blonde woman said. She’d stopped the wind, so she was something of a witch. She’d be Sabine, one of the first Berserker mates. A spaewife with great powers. “The witches have all gathered to find what might defeat the mage. The moonstone is our only hope, but we must find it. Now we know it can be found, and that it lies at the bottom of a pool.” She looked straight at me. “Thank you, Fern.” With that, she wobbled a little on her feet, and her two mates came to support her. One, a burly man covered with bluish tattoos, swung her into his arms and strode into the cave.
“The moonstone,” the lead Alpha mused.
“I have heard only a spaewife can find it.” A silver-haired warrior said. “Perhaps this is her.”
“Our mate sees visions only. She is not the one to leave the mountain, but perhaps, in time, she will know more clues.”
“Truly, she has a gift from the goddess. She is not mad,” The one-eyed warrior said. “She has a gift.”
“Enough,” the lead Alpha said. “I have heard enough.” He stood, and his mate stood with him. Her eyes on mine were kind.
I waited, trembling for what judgement would fall.
“Fern of the Berserkers,” he said. “You have a sacred place in this pack as a seer, and our protection. Any wolf will defend you to the death, for someday, your visions may save all our lives. Thank you for speaking. You honor us,” he added, in a quieter tone, as if it was meant only for me.
Tears pricked my eyes.
“Dagg and Svein. Stand for your judgement.”
My mates stood. I reached for their hands. Whatever judgement fell we would face it together. If they were banished, I would leave with them. If they tried to keep me from them, I would escape. I would find a way. My destiny was twofold: to be a seer, and their mate. I would not stay with a pack that kept me from them.
It’s all right, Fern. Dagg squeezed my hand.
“You fought long and hard for this pack. Another fight is coming—the greatest battle we have known. But you have a special role.” He pointed at me. “The goddess has blessed us with a seer. A treasure, indeed. You are to be her guardians. Keep her safe, above all.”
“Above our lives, Alpha. So we pledge.” Striking their fists to their hearts, they turned and carried me away. I grabbed at their shoulders to steady myself, surprise and relief running through me.
The warriors around us shouted—some with glee, some angry. Some called for an attack on the Corpse King, some on my mates. The Alphas were on their feet, trying to restore order.
Dagg and Svein kept walking. A few of the warriors who’d brought us here closed around us, offering protection.
“This way,” one waved us at a fork on the mountain path. The group broke into a run and I clung tight to Dagg.
“Where are you taking me?”
“You’ll see,”
“What about the cave? Our things…”
“We’ll send someone to get them. Do you wish to stay there, or in the lodge we built for you?”
I jerked in Dagg’s arm. “What?”
“Did we not tell you we would bring our mate to a lodge? We built it before we came to find you.”
Stunned, I held on as the warriors veered off the path, kicking through the drifts. They seemed lighthearted, chatting and calling each other as they forged a new route through the snow. It seemed my journey had come full circle, once again being carried to my new home, safe in my mate’s arms.
“There,” Svein pointed up to a ledge where a log building rose from the snow, smoke drifting from a hole in the roof.
“As soon as the Alphas passed judgement, we sent word to make ready,” one of the warriors explained to us.
“It’ll be quite a climb,” observed another. “Why did you build it on such a high ledge?”
“Privacy,” Svein said with a grin that made my cheeks heat.
The warriors fell silent then, focused on the climb. I noted landmarks—a twisted tree here, a great boulder there, as we wound up the mountain to the home my mates had built.
The lodge was built with a sharply sloped roof, jutting out from the side of the mountain. A fresh trail broke through the snow to the doorstep and as we grew close a dark-haired woman stepped out to greet us.
“Fern!” Laurel called. She stood swathed in a long cloak, her cheeks rosy above the fur collar. Her two mates followed, greeting their warrior friends.
Dagg let me down just as Laurel rushed up and threw her arms around me.
“I’m so glad you’ve returned. We were so worried.” She drew back. “Let me look at you. You are well?”
“I am.”
She hugged me again. “I’m glad. We left bread for you,” she whispered in my ear. “My mates smelled the crumbs and realized what you were doing. They approved.”
“Thank you,” I whispered back. She had left the bread and the honey.
“You must be exhausted. We’ll leave you now. I just wanted to leave you a welcome gift.”
She drew me inside the dark lodge. The place smelled of new wood and smoke. Someone had started a fire in the stone firepit. Warriors streamed in and out, carrying wood stacking it close by.
“Here,” Laurel pointed out two baskets covered in clothes. “Sweet bread and meat pies. That should be enough until your mates are ready to hunt again.”
Laurel hugged me again and left with her mates, holding their hands as the helped her through the snow.
“The Alphas will want to speak to our seer again,” the warrior Knut said to my mates. “The witches, too. They want to find the moonstone, so we are prepared for the Corpse King’s coming attack. We have until spring.”
“Later,” Dagg said. “Once our mate is rested.”
With final grins and slaps on the back, Knut and the rest of the warriors marched away.
“Well, Fern?” Svein stood in the center of the lodge, one boot resting on the stone ring around the fire pit. Smoke drifted up and out of a hole in the roof. “What do you think of your new home?”
I nodded, tears pricking my eyes. Tears of happiness.
“Lost her voice again,” Svein commented.
“It’s all right,” Dagg said gruffly. I knew he felt as overwhelmed as I did. “We will help her find it again.”
There was a bed in the back of the lodge, already heaped with pelts. Dagg propped me on it and cupped my head in his great hands.
“You did it. You spoke loud and clear.”
Swallowing hard, I nodded.
“And you will do it again. We will stand by you when the Alphas call you to consult.”
“Our mate, seeress for the pack,” Dagg spoke with great pride. He kissed my forehead, his beard tickling me.
“Were you frightened?”
“Yes,” I tried to remember. Once I’d opened my mouth, the words had flown out. “But after I spoke, I was not afraid.”
“We will call the witch Yseult. She will come and teach you how to use your gift. She will help you find your voice.”
“I’ve already found it.” And I had.
My mates had given it back to me.
The End
Thank you for reading this book! I have several more Berserker bride books to write, including books for Sorrel, Juliet and Rosalind! Much love to the Berserker fans who motivate me to continue the series. I appreciate you.
Smooches,
Lee
