Total pages in book: 65
Estimated words: 59320 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59320 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
I felt my blood run cold, and I looked to Erik in shock.
“Or,” he went on, “there’s the guard’s chambers next door to the dungeon. It’s not too warm, but I’ll assume it’s a lot nicer than the pigsty she had to grow up in. What do you think, my beauty?”
I am not your beauty, I thought, but I placed a false smile on my lips and said, “I’m sure that will be a fine place for me to sleep.”
Rolf eyed my hands curiously and then looked to Erik for explanation. “I suppose we should tie her up again.”
“She won’t try and escape,” Erik assured him.
“She could try conspiring with the baron,” Rolf mused, rubbing at his chin.
“I will not,” I told him. “I don’t know this baron. He means nothing to me.”
“And we do?”
It was a dangerous question, and I could feel Erik tense up, waiting for my response.
“The Vikings are the only family I have now,” I said as diplomatically as possible.
Rolf laughed. “You have her trained well, old friend. Come now, let’s go explore our new palace.”
Erik got off the table and led me out of the shop, following Rolf onto the blood-stained streets. I would have felt better if, when Rolf laughed, the smile had actually met his eyes.
For the life of me, I could not fall asleep. The guard’s chambers were more comfortable than Lord Bouchon’s dungeon. At least here, I had a straw bed and some thick, woven blankets. But despite the comfort, I couldn’t get my brain to quiet. I kept thinking about everything and anything, from the bloody images of fallen men to their strangled cries, a tortured baron in the room next door to me, Rolf’s leering eyes, Erik’s surprising softness.
Oh, it was mainly Erik I kept dwelling on, and I couldn’t stand it any longer. Knut was posted at my door as a guard (Erik had told me it was for my own safety, not because he didn’t trust me, and for once, I decided to believe him) but he wouldn’t be much of a deterrent. I quickly got out of bed, shivering at the cold floor beneath my bare feet, and made my way through the darkness to the door.
I opened it a crack, and Knut fell back against it. He had been sitting on the ground, sleeping. He jumped to his feet in surprise but was unable to hide his embarrassment at being caught.
I smiled, hoping I looked pretty enough in the light of the hall’s torches, pretty enough to woo Knut and let me slide past. It worked. I put my finger to my lips, and he nodded in response, doing the same.
I leaned forward and kissed Knut on the cheek. Before I had a chance to feel his skin burn underneath my lips, I ran off down the hall, my nightshift flowing behind me like a white sail.
I got to the main floor and tried to remember the brief tour Rolf had taken Erik and me on. Most of the Vikings were now settled throughout the village, since no natives of Saint Martin remained alive, but I didn’t want to walk into a room that wasn’t Erik’s.
Making my way to the second floor, I spied Rolf’s chambers at the very end. A strange thrill ran through me as I tried to imagine if Rolf would sleep naked or not. I was a bit disgusted with myself for thinking that.
I counted the doors as I went toward it. One of the doors was open, leading into the bed chambers of the lady of the house. Erik and I had quickly rifled through the clothes earlier, finding me things to wear. At that moment, I was wearing a dead woman’s nightshift.
When I reached the third door from Rolf’s, I recalled its gleaming handle and remembered it was the room he had told Erik to take.
Holding my breath in my lungs, I slowly turned the handle and opened the door.
To my surprise, the room was lit. There was a fireplace in the corner, where a large copper pot stood. Nearby was a long wooden tub, and inside that was Erik, soaking in the steaming water.
He was facing me, his eyes glinting in the low light, watching me intently. I raised my finger to my lips to show him I was being quiet and slowly shut the door behind me. My nerves felt like they were on fire as I walked, slowly, step-by-step, across the plush rugs and over to Erik.
“I couldn’t sleep,” I explained when he hadn’t said anything.
“Neither could I,” he said, his voice thick like cream. His eyes remained hard, and I yearned to break through that steel.
“How is your wound?” I asked, trying not to peer into the tub to see. If I did so, I would also see him naked. I didn’t need any encouragement. “Is it wise to get it wet so soon?”