She’d been wise remaining in the woods the last five years and even wiser wedding Arran before returning home.
“What if Brynjar and Arran don’t fight?” she challenged, hoping her husband might see the truth before it was too late.
“Then he’ll return home to find a Northman’s spear in his beloved wife, and Quiver, and your annoying animals dead. I wounded your dog and Quiver just enough for them not to cause me any problems while I found you. Your father never got to suffer like I wanted him to. His death was quick and more painless than I intended. But given the circumstances, I had no choice. You, however, will pay for the misery your father caused me. You will watch me kill that useless archer, your dog, and that annoying cat before your turn comes. Now come out here and get that cat of yours to come to you.”
King. He hadn’t found King.
“He may not even be in here,” she said.
“He’s here. I saw him. Now come out. I want this over. I’ve wasted far too many years here, listening to your father tell me that he would make sure Wolf never got this land and that my kind were nothing more than savages.” Freen laughed. “And what does he do? He goes and marries you to the worst savage of all. I can’t wait to be rid of all of you. Hopefully, one day Wolf will see how unwise it is that his sister remains wed to Royden and he does what he should have done from the start—kill him and wed her to a Northman so that all the surrounding land belongs to us.”
“Never,” she said.
“Enough!” he shouted. “I want done with this now.”
“So you can discover our bodies like you did with Wolf’s warrior and Orvin, though you made certain my father sent you to speak with Orvin so it didn’t appear odd that you found another dead man. Then there was my father. You found him and quite fast and no one gave thought to it.” That’s what she had missed. She hadn’t paid enough attention to the discovery of the murders themselves or she would have realized Freen had been the one to discover all three bodies, something that would have definitely seemed odd to her.
“I knew you would be a problem as soon as I met you. You weren’t the shy, obedient lass your father spoke of with such disdain. You’re a confident, determined woman that posed far too much danger to me.”
His remark about how her father felt about her hurt, though she didn’t want to let it, but that Freen thought her confident and determined gave her the courage to do whatever was necessary to survive until help came in one way or another.
“I’ve had enough,” Freen shouted.
His fast footfalls let her know he was headed her way and she remained crouched down and moved as fast as she could. It was a game of cat and mouse around the tables until…
Purity let out a yelp when his hand reached over the table and he grabbed her braid. He yanked it, forcing her to her feet.
“I’ve got you now,” he said gleefully and grabbed her by the arm before releasing her braid and dragging her across the table to stand in front of him. He didn’t waste time in pulling her alongside him as he walked, and her heart pounded viciously in her chest when she saw where he was headed. On top of one of the tables laid a Northman spear.
Purity struggled to break free, but his grip was too strong.
“A quick, deep jab to your side will hold you still for a while, then you can watch as your beloved pets and friend die,” Freen said.
Purity saw it coming, but Freen didn’t, and she ducked her head down as King came flying through the air, his claws spread. The cat let out a screech as he swiped at Freen’s face, his claws tearing at his eye, cheek, and lip. Freen screamed and his hand lost its grip on her.
She yanked her arm free and ran, King on her heels.
“I’m going to make you and that damn cat suffer until you beg me to end his and your life,” Freen screamed.
She thought to run to the solar. Her father kept weapons there. At least with a weapon she had a chance of defending herself. But he would expect her to go there, it being the closest choice. She had to get a weapon and return to the Great Hall and protect Quiver and Princess before he could use them to threaten her to surrender. She looked to King before turning down the passageway to the kitchen. “Go keep Princess and Quiver safe until I return.” He took off without hesitation and so did she. She found a knife and she quickly examined the bowl of spices until she found the spicy one she had tasted and grabbed a handful.