"You've both had all morning to think on what you've done," Ulfrik said. "What do you have to say for yourselves?"
Hakon peeked at his older brother for a sign, but Gunnar knelt with his head hung in shame. At the first light of dawn, a group of Ulfrik's hirdmen had found the two of them at the edge of the woods. After reuniting with his boys, neither Ulfrik nor his sons spoke a word the entire trip home. Once inside the hall, Runa had examined their wounds, judged them healthy, and kissed each their heads before consigning them to a corner of the hall.
"So you've nothing to say?" Runa asked, her voice far calmer than Ulfrik knew her mood to be.
"If you call yourself a man, Gunnar, then behave like one." Ulfrik straightened in his chair, his back protesting with a stripe of pain that made him grunt. "You defied me, lied to both Konal and Snorri, and took your brother into danger. What kind of punishment does a man deserve for defying his lord and betraying the trust of his friends?"
Gunnar did not stir and Hakon continued to steal glances at him. Ulfrik gripped the armrest of his chair and pulled himself forward, screaming. "Answer me! I am your father and your jarl! Would such insolence come from another, I'd have him whipped until I could count his ribs. My father would have had no hesitation to do the same for you. So do not tempt me further. What were you thinking?"
Never before had Gunnar received such fury from his father, and the shock of it raised his head and widened his eyes. Runa's hand drifted to Ulfrik's arm and she squeezed it as if to ask would he truly whip his son.
"I wanted to participate in the victory over Clovis," Gunnar said, his eyes darting between his parents.
"So I remember," Ulfrik said. "Let's not cover what we both know. You lied to Snorri and Konal, and defied me. I trusted you with defense of Ravndal."
"You never expected an attack," Gunnar dared as he met Ulfrik's eye. Despite his aching body, he leapt out of his chair.
"Do you dare question my decision? If you are so clear on what I expect, then you should never have spoken those words. You shame yourself. Tell me why you took your brother."
Gunnar again bowed his head but now glanced sidelong at Hakon. "For that I am truly sorry. He wanted to go, and threatened to tell everyone what I had done if I prevented it. I thought I could protect him and still take part in the battle. We followed close behind, and no one paid us any mind. But once in the woods, everything became confused. When the fight started I did not know where to go. The fight was everywhere and there was no one to stand with me. I covered Hakon with my shield and we fled."
Pausing to swallow, Gunnar closed his eyes and remained still. Ulfrik returned to his seat, and Runa glanced worriedly at him. They both waited for their son to resume his story.
"I had to flee because Hakon was too vulnerable and the battle too wild. We ran until the sounds of battle faded, but then became lost. Whatever paths men left behind, I could not tell if they were from our own or the enemy's. After night fell, we slept until I found the edge of the trees and the rest you know. That is the whole truth of it."
"I saw Odin," Hakon said, standing up and forgetting himself. "He was walking between the warriors and he saw me. He had one eye and Hugin and Mugin sat on his shoulders. He smiled at me!"
The revelation froze Ulfrik to his seat. Hakon beamed while Gunnar remained on his knees with his head down. Runa gasped and leaned forward. "Are you certain of what you saw?" she asked. "Few people ever see the gods, and fewer still are recognized by them when they do."
"As soon as he smiled at me, I never feared." Hakon touched his chest with a dirty, scabbed hand. "Odin blessed me with his smile. It's true."
Ulfrik looked over his shoulder to see both Konal and Snorri peering at Hakon as if he were standing before the setting sun. "And what did Gunnar see?" Ulfrik asked.
"I saw nothing. But Hakon did call out for Odin and he was calm after that moment."
Silence filled the room and both Ulfrik and Runa sat back in their chairs. The battle had been fierce and Odin reveled in such carnage; he could easily have been drawn to the ferocity. Perhaps his son had been seen and preserved by the All-Father. Such an amazing event bespoke of a great destiny, and presented everyone with a puzzle. When so many grown warriors had died, why had Odin favored a child? He could not answer the question, and soon roused himself from the same thought in which the other adults were doubtlessly absorbed.
"We will put that matter aside for now," Ulfrik said. "The gods do as they please, and we cannot understand them. For now, there is only the matter of punishment. Hakon, you are young and foolish. Other children are still knocking you out of the shieldwall during practice. Do you believe you could stand with men?"
His moon-bright face darkened and he lowered his head, shaking it. Ulfrik let the silence linger a moment, knowing Hakon was only acting like any other boy his age. The true issue was Gunnar, who now raised his head in anticipation of the punishment.
"You have gravely disappointed me, son. I understand your eagerness, no matter how confused you believe me to be. But I did not jest about my father's whipping. He would not have stopped to ask what was in your head, but just drag you to a post and whip you bloody. Could you bear such punishment?"
Gunnar raised his chin and wore the same defiant look he so often saw on Runa or his Uncle Toki. "I will bear whatever punishment you give. I am a man, Father. I will take it."
Ulfrik stood, and Runa grabbed at his arm with wide eyes. He pulled free and stepped down to where his son watched with shimmering eyes and a trembling lip. "Stand up."
Gunnar stood, and Ulfrik held his gaze steady. His son swallowed and sweat formed on his brow.
"Give me your sword." Ulfrik held his hand out for the weapon. "Until you can behave like a man, you will not carry the weapons of man."
"But … what of the whipping?"
A vision of Ulfrik's long-dead brother, Grim, and memories of his father's murder passed through his thoughts. "I don't believe everything my father did was right. Besides, this hurts you more than any stripe across your back, doesn't it? You'll remember this longer. Give me the sword. You'll get it back when you prove you honor your words."
Unbuckling the weapon, Gunnar let the sword crash to the earthen floor. Without a word or a glance to anyone, he stormed from the hall. Hakon remained on his knees beneath his father, quivering as if he had been left in a snow storm.
Facing the others, he could not read their reactions. Runa sat holding her hands tightly at her lap, while both Snorri and Konal met his inquiring look with nothing more than flat expressions. He turned from them and followed Gunnar's exit from the hall. Now he understood why his father preferred the whip and decided next time he would follow his example.
Chapter 13
Runa stopped short when Konal stepped onto the track leading from the main square to the hall. Wooden longhouses flanked both sides, laughter and curses echoed deep inside. The women attending her did not notice and continued several paces before they also paused. They lowered their baskets of wool as they waited for Runa to regain herself. Konal smiled from behind them, his cowl drawn to soften the horror of his scars. His hand held in place against the cool morning wind, and for the first time she noted the red and white scars on the back of his hand. One of the women followed her gaze and soon others turned to face him.