Daughter of Fire and Ice by Marie-Louise Jensen Page B

in the darkness. But before I could do anything else, strong arms grasped me from behind, pinioning my arms to my side. The man in front wrenched my knife painfully from my hand.
    ‘Bjorn!’ I yelled with all my might. ‘Bjorn, beware!’
    A rough hand was clamped tightly over my mouth. It seemed unlikely anyone from our still-distant ships would have heard my desperate cry above the pounding of the sea on the rocks and cliffs around us.
    Still struggling uselessly, I saw Erik knocked senseless by a blow to his head. Kai fared worse. Slashing wildly with a knife, he caught a huge man a blow on his arm, opening up a long deep cut. Before he could do more, he was caught and pinioned as I was, by two men. They had no need to hurt him. But the man he’d injured came at him out of the fog and ran him through brutally with his sword. There was a hideous slicing, gurgling sound, and Kai collapsed and fell forward into the water with a splash.
    It was over.

CHAPTER NINE
     
    The earth was cold and hard, my nose pressed into the dirt. Ropes bit into my wrists and ankles, far too tight to struggle against. The gag in my mouth choked me. I’d lost track of how long I’d lain blindfolded in the darkness. They’d carried me up the hill to the house. That much I knew because I’d recognized the smoke and fish stench. What did they want with me? They must want something or they would have killed me at once. I lay trying to sense something, anything, but my mind wasn’t calm enough. I felt only my own emptiness and despair. Fear was crawling into every part of me. I was afraid for myself, but also for Bjorn and the others.
    I could hear distant, muffled voices, and then after an eternity, I heard the sound of shouting. My heart bounded with a mixture of hope and fright. Some sort of altercation was going on. The sounds drew closer. I recognized Bjorn’s voice. My hope seeped away into the cold earth beneath me. What was to become of us if they’d captured him? I lifted my head painfully off the ground, trying to hear what was being said.
    ‘What have you done with Thora?’
    That was Bjorn, loud and clear. And so very close.
    I tried to shout but all that came out was a strangled moan that I could hardly hear myself. I fought my bonds, thrashing my whole body from side to side. I strained at the ropes with all my might, but they were strong and I only succeeded in hurting myself. Wherever I was, I was obviously hidden. I couldn’t make my presence known.
    ‘The woman stole from us,’ I heard a voice answering Bjorn. ‘She took water without payment and stole medicinal plants from our land. She’s a thief and subject to our laws.’
    The voice was rough and hoarse. It spoke authoritatively. As though its owner were used to giving orders and having them obeyed. I guessed he was head of the household.
    ‘I’ve brought you a gift in exchange for the drinking water we took, as I always intended to do,’ Bjorn replied. His voice sounded reasonable. It was clear he hoped to negotiate.
    ‘A gold bracelet?’ I heard the leader’s voice say scornfully. ‘A paltry trinket. You are a wealthy man—a friend of the king of Norway. You can afford better than that.’
    ‘I’ll be happy to give you gifts worthy of your generous hospitality … when I have experienced some of it,’ said Bjorn. ‘Instead of welcoming us, you have hidden away like cowards and spied on us. Instead of offering us food and mead, you begrudge us even the water in your streams. You offer us no shelter from wind or rain, but you sneak up on us in the night, kill our men and kidnap one of our womenfolk. Where is the honour in that, that I should reward you with kingly gifts?’
    ‘How dare you question my honour?’ shouted the islander. ‘We’ll have fair terms. And our terms are that you are free to clear off. And I’ll keep the bracelet, as it’s all you are offering.’
    ‘And Thora?’ demanded Bjorn.
    My heart thumped painfully in my