“Seriously?” I ask. “But things can be grown here?”
“Yes. Ash from the volcanoes has actually enriched some of the soil. On the western side, it’s rich with moss. Fields and fields of it.”
“Huh, interesting. Are there active volcanoes on the island right now?”
He nods. “Yes, Loki is constantly flowing with lava.”
“Loki, as in . . . the biological son to the frost giants in the Marvel movies?”
“No. Loki, as in Norse Mythology, a god of fire.”
“Well, look at that, you learn something new every day. Here I’m thinking Torskethorpe has been inundated with Marvel fans. So, we could go see this active volcano if we wanted to?”
“Yes, we could.”
“That seems fascinating. I’ve never seen a volcano before, in real life, that is. You always see them bubbling on shows and you wonder how much of it is real—”
“It’s real. Very real.”
“Fascinating. So, there’s an active volcano on the island of Torskethorpe. What else is there? Is it inhabited by animals? Should I be concerned about a bear lurking around the corner?”
“The only native land animal on the island is a Nordic fox.”
“Wait.” I pause on our walk. “You’re telling me there’s nothing else on this island besides Nordic foxes?”
“Key word being native,” he says, continuing to walk. “There are wild reindeer that you can spot every now and then.”
“Wow, so I shouldn’t expect a rabid puma to spring from the moss and claw my eyes out?”
“No.”
“No alligators waiting to snatch your leg when you’re least expecting it?”
“No.”
“What about a snake waiting to scare the ever-loving shit out of you when you leave your house?”
“There’s not one single snake on the island.”
“Now that’s something I can get on board with. Florida has trained me to be on the lookout at all times for snappy alligators, sneaky snakes, and jumping lizards. Not to mention the bugs. What about whales, do you see them a lot on the coast?”
“Marine life is a different story. You’ll probably see more mammals in the ocean than you’re prepared for.”
“That seems fun. I like the ocean.” I nudge his shoulder with mine. “See, look at us having a conversation without arguing. I’m proud of us.”
“I’m sure it won’t last long.”
“Not with that kind of attitude. Now, tell me, what is the island food here? Anything special I should try?”
I see the smallest of smiles tug on the corner of his lip. “Yes, Torskethorpe is quite known for one thing in particular. It’s their pride and joy. The island is actually named after its main ingredient.”
“Torskethorpe means something?”
He nods. “Yes. Torske means cod and Thorpe means settlement.”
“This beautiful island is named cod settlement? As in, the fish?”
“Correct. We are surrounded by cod, and with fishing sanctions implemented in our water space, we’ll never have a shortage.”
“Well, cod is . . . nice. Dare I ask what the delicacy is?”
“Fermented cod cakes.”
“Fer-fermented?”
He nods.
“As in, like . . . brined fish?”
“Yup. I’m sure you’ll get your fill while you’re here.”
I highly doubt that’ll ever enter my mouth. Brined fish cake doesn’t really scream appetizing to me.
“Think you can run again?” he asks.
“I mean, I know I can. The question is—do I want to?”
“The answer is yes,” Keller says while getting behind me and pushing.
“Hey, watch it, handsy.” I swat at him. “I don’t need you touching my sweat.”
There is something incredibly humbling about taking a sitting shower in a wooden bathtub. And I use the term bathtub pretty loosely—some might call it an oversized bucket, or perhaps the receptacle used for laundry. It’s just missing a washboard.
After we returned to the castle, I secretly watched Keller do lots of variations of pushups while I pretended to stretch my legs. Regular pushups, wide pushups, narrow pushups, one-handed . . . pushup jacks. You name it, he did it. He asked if I wanted to join him in his ab routine, and of course, being well versed in an ab workout, I felt confident enough to say yes. That was, until we were seesawing what felt like a boulder back and forth. After five up and downs, I was spent.