The hearth fire was at a low burn. The twilight beyond the hall could not penetrate within, so the flames danced a weak yellow light over the gathered men. Ulfrik scanned their faces around the table: Snorri, Ari, and Thorvald, all his closest men and confidants. None smiled. Toki huddled in a dry cloak beside the hearth, his head bowed and his bedraggled hair covering his face. His wet cloak dried by the hearth. Ulfrik heard Gunnar squealing outside in the distance where Gerdie entertained him while Runa went to Toki's home to care for his two women.
"Friends," Ulfrik began, "we have important decisions to make. All of Nye Grenner might be affected by what we decide tonight."
"Too late for leaving us out of it," Thorvald said, casting a scowl at Toki from the high table. "He's already done the deed, and one of our own is dead for it."
"Don't you think I suffer for that?" Toki twisted to face them. "I will take that guilt to my grave."
"Before this is done you'll have more than one to think about in grave, that's for certain."
"Mind yourself," threatened Ulfrik. Of all the men he called together, only Thorvald had never sailed with Toki. He was the least inclined to understanding, though Ulfrik valued his opinions. "None of us agree with what Toki did. He broke an oath to the gods. That will be repaid as the gods deem fit."
Ari rubbed his face with both hands. His gnarled and thin form filled with shadow, making him appear carved from wood. "He broke an oath to you, too."
"And you broke your oath to Jarl Kjotve to serve me," Ulfrik replied. "Let's not throw spears at each other tonight. I gathered you to help decide the best response to this crisis. Hardar will consider this kidnapping his daughter. Toki sees it as rescuing a woman from a cruel man. What is the best response?"
His words echoed around the hall. Ulfrik smiled again, otherwise he wanted to scream. Toki had broken an oath, and oath-breakers were scum. But Toki was an old friend, a brother-in-law, and a good person. Ulfrik knew him to be a man of high passions, guided by his sense of honor and duty. But his passions too often ruled him. Combined with the thrill of lust and danger, Ulfrik understood why Toki had been unable to resist Halla.
"Do you think it's a plot?" Snorri broke the extended silence. The thought hit Ulfrik like a hammer. Others sat up straighter at Snorri's question. Ulfrik faced Toki, and the others followed.
Toki shot to his feet, throwing his unbound cloak to the dirt floor. "Then it would be some piece of work! I saw Vermund pursuing her at the festival. She told me at the festival about her fears. Halla is innocent of a plot."
Thorvald snorted at Toki's protestations. But Ulfrik held up his hand. "I believe Halla to be innocent of guile. But that does not rule out Snorri's suspicion. Maybe Hardar planned this to ruin my reputation, or worse."
"He will be searching for his daughter," Snorri said, running his fingers through his gray beard. "He will come to at least ask for your help. The sensible thing is to turn her over immediately."
Ulfrik stared at Snorri, and could no longer force a smile. "And Hardar will demand justice. And justice for kidnapping his daughter would be Toki's life."
Everyone exchanged glances, but soon all turned to Toki. He stood trembling, pale and eyes wide, his mouth working soundlessly. Ulfrik felt a derisive laugh bubble in his throat, but swallowed it. He suspected Toki had never considered where his actions would lead. He stood from the bench and stepped down from the high table.
He gripped Toki's thick arm and squeezed. "I should hand you over. But there is another way, and one I think Hardar much prefers: gold. It will be the second time I buy this fool's life for him."
Toki turned his head away and closed his eyes. Ulfrik released his grip with a shove. Thorvald drank from his mug, standing to challenge Ulfrik. "And what if Hardar won't accept gold?"
"Then it's war."
"War because this one wants a tumble with a jarl's daughter?" Thorvald jabbed his finger at Toki. "Don't we all want to fuck a princess? Should every man's blood be spilled for that?"
"Silence! I asked you here for your clear thinking and all I'm getting is poison. If Hardar refuses gold, he is being unreasonable. That shit of a man has been courting a fight since the festival. If that is his wish, then I will nail his head to my mast and sail it around the islands until it rots off. Like all of us, I pray the gods it will not come to that."
"Hardar is not alone. Others desire our wealth and will join him to steal from us. It's more than a fight between you and him. It's us against everyone else." Thorvald's voice was low and grave.
"I have allies as well, Ragnvald for example. You exaggerate the threat."
Ulfrik folded his arms over his chest. His head throbbed as he glared at Thorvald. The blacksmith's gaze faltered and he sat down again. Snorri and Ari both nodded in approval. Ulfrik then turned to Toki.
"I'm sorry, old friend. We cannot interfere in a father's plans for his daughter. And I can't accuse Jarl Vermund of being a murderer without better proof than third-hand rumor. The life of a jarl's daughter is a difficult one, particularly with a jarl like Hardar. I am going to return Halla to her family, and again I forbid you from ever seeing her again."
Toki looked at him and swallowed. He nodded and clasped Ulfrik's shoulder. "I'll not defy you again. I have been chastened."
"I sincerely hope you are," Ulfrik said, his expression flat. "For if you defy me, you may never set foot on my land again. I will declare you an oath-breaker and outlaw. I have to protect my people, Toki. All of them."
Hardar arrived within a day of Toki pulling ashore with Halla and Dana. Ulfrik never doubted he would show, but he hadn't expected such dire news. The man before him wrung his hands, eyes darting around the hall. The exertion of frantic rowing had matted his hair flat. He repeated himself when Ulfrik did not respond. "All three of Hardar's ships are coming. Beast heads are mounted and shields are off the rails. We could see the gleam of their mail. Do you hear, Lord Ulfrik?"
Ulfrik watched the sweat trickle over his twisted nose. Runa sat next to him, frozen over her breakfast of salted whale meat. The hirdmen lining the tables held still and silent. Warm sunlight from the smoke hole framed the hall in a bright block.
Blinking away the shock, Ulfrik regained himself. "Gather the people to the hall. Summon the rest of the hird to the slope."
Ulfrik's wooden voice lacked power, but men snapped to their duties. Meals were abandoned and drinks spilled as they rushed to retrieve their weapons. Already a horn sounded. Ulfrik closed his eyes at the sound. "War again. How far must a man travel to escape it," he spoke to himself, rubbed his face, then faced Runa and Gunnar.
"What's happening, Father?" Gunnar's eyes were wide behind his dark bangs. He sat on Runa's lap, watching the hirdmen rushing from the hall.
"You will stay with your mother." Ulfrik looked into Runa's eyes, her face taut with fear. He brushed her cheek and whispered to her. "It may only be a show. Do not worry, wife. He is eager to embarrass me."
"I hope that is all he is eager for," she replied.
Ulfrik had no more time to spare. Snorri was behind the last of the hirdmen squeezing out of the hall. Ulfrik heard shouts and hurried voices. He pulled Snorri's arm. "Hold on. You need to get Toki and those two women. Bring them to the slope as fast as you can. I will stall Hardar, provided he isn't seeking battle."
Snorri nodded. "He didn't waste any time getting here. Do you think he knows already?"
Ulfrik shook his head. Snorri jogged off while a line of women and children queued at the entrance. Ulfrik returned to his room to wear his mail and helmet. He snatched them off the rack, toppling it in his haste. He gave the hall to Runa, who was organizing and calming the confused people cramming inside. Nye Grenner had never been raided, and many had never experienced that terror before. Ulfrik hoped they wouldn't experience it today.