The warrior who’d killed him went still, then looked up, his eyes fixing on me.
Instinctively I crouched, but he only grinned and pointed at me. Blood dripped from his axe as he took up a torch, walking toward the great hall. If he set it ablaze, everyone inside would either burn or be forced out the doors to face the rapidly approaching wall of warriors coming from the rear.
It would be slaughter.
Pulling out another arrow, I ground my teeth and drew the bowstring, cursing my weakness as my arm shuddered. The arrow flew, striking the ground at the warrior’s feet, and though I couldn’t hear him, his shoulders shook with laughter.
I tried again and missed, a shriek of frustration tearing from my lips because I couldn’t keep the bow steady enough to aim.
I drew another arrow, but the warrior stepped out of my line of sight, hidden by the edge of the roof. “Shit,” I snarled, praying to all the gods that the wood would be too damp to burn even as I heard his mockery from below. “Turn over the shield maiden,” he crooned. “Hand her to me and I promise we’ll let you live.”
A lie if I’d ever heard one, so I didn’t bother responding.
Could I jump down and kill him? I moved to the midpoint of the building to eye the distance, my heart beating manically in my chest and my palms slick with sweat.
It was too far. With my luck, I’d break an ankle and that arsehole would cut off my head while I was writhing in pain. Besides, killing him wouldn’t solve the problem, for as I looked south, it was to see that the rest of Gnut’s forces now stood before the great hall, their shields raised high. “Give us the shield maiden,” one shouted. “Give her to us and we’ll go in peace.”
More lies.
They’d slit my throat and then set the great hall on fire just for spite, killing everyone they could before Snorri and his warriors arrived to drive them back. Given the silence from within the great hall, those inside knew the same. Ylva was likely biding her time, praying her husband would arrive to save her.
And me.
Yet as Gnut’s warriors stepped closer to the great hall, torches in hand, I knew rescue wouldn’t come soon enough. At least, not from where Ylva expected it.
Crawling to the north end of the roof, I stared through the haze of smoke to the fjord where the enemy’s ships rested against the beach. Then I moved my gaze to the building nearest the great hall. A long jump, but not nearly as long as the drop to the ground below.
I could do it. And then it would only be a matter of climbing down to warn Bjorn and the others.
Standing, I hooked the bow around my shoulders and carefully backed up several paces. I was an easy target for any archer, so I didn’t hesitate. My shoes thudded against the wood as I sprinted down the beam, but the sound seemed distant as I stared at the gap between the buildings, my fear demanding that I stop. Begging that I not take this risk.
Born-in-Fire.
I jumped.
Cold wind whistled past my ears as I flew through the air, the roof of the building rushing to meet me. My feet struck first, jarring my spine, then I toppled forward to land on my hands and knees, thatch flying everywhere.
I crouched in place for a heartbeat, gasping for breath.
Then the roof collapsed beneath me.
A shriek tore from my lips as I fell, cutting off as I landed on my back, the wind knocked out of me.
My desperate gasps for breath were deafening, my body aching from the impact and my ears full of the panicked squeal of the pigs whose pen I’d landed in. They raced around me, their hooves clipping my arms and legs, but it wasn’t the pig shit that made my skin crawl. It was the certainty that I was running out of time.
Drawing my sword, I scrambled to my feet even as my eyes latched onto a shadowy figure coming through the open door.
“Have you lost your bloody mind?” Bjorn hissed, stepping into the light filtering through the hole in the roof. “What were you doing on the roof?”
Ignoring both questions, I stepped over a pig, cringing as one of my braids slapped me in the face, the hair covered in shit. I was lucky Bjorn had already given me a moniker because this was prime fodder for his humor. “There’s another force at the south end of the great hall. The attack from the water was a diversion.”
Bjorn swore. “We had guards stationed in the woods watching. That none brought warning means someone told Gnut where they were hidden and they’ve been killed.”
I swallowed hard. “They’re demanding Ylva hand me over or they’ll put fire to the hall.”
“They’ll do that regardless.” Bjorn reached into the pigsty and hauled me out. “You were right to escape. When my father discovers you gone, he’ll believe you dead or that Gnut took you, which he can’t take out on your family. Head south and don’t stop until you’re out of Skaland, and then never come back.”