Balder by Camille Oster

Author:Camille Oster [Oster, Camille]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-05-29T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20

SITTING BY THE MAIN fire, Balder nursed his mead, wishing it was something stronger. Things had gone sideways today and he had trouble accounting for it. It was hard to determine what Nanna said and wanted. She had severed their connection today, saying they were no longer husband and wife.

As hard as he tried, he had not done enough to earn her forgiveness. Everything he proposed, she rejected. The offer to build her a hall, the offer to spend time with her. No question of spending the night with her. Everything he did, she rejected. Anything she wished he would do. He'd be up for any quest she'd ask of him. Fighting a dreadful monster was easier to deal with than simple rejection.

Her rejection had not stopped him in the past—he'd pushed past it and had prevailed. He had earned her love, but things were different now. He would even go so far as to say he had been brutish back then. It had perhaps not been wise, but it had worked, in the end. There had always been a spark there, even if her loyalty had been elsewhere. Now, though, a show of force would not impress her. Now she wanted nothing to do with him.

Perhaps this meant he simply had to work harder to earn her back—to earn the forgiveness he needed.

Soft footsteps made him look up hopefully, but it was Lily rather than Nanna returning to pledge her forgiveness and love. There was a smile on Lily's face—the smile of a woman in love. How many millennia had it been since he'd seen that smile? Her hand was on her belly, protecting the child that grew inside her. A spear of yearning ached inside him. That had been Nanna once. She had been happy and contented, their child growing inside her.

Why could he not have that back? He simply had to try harder.

"Balder," Lily said. "Why are you looking so glum?"

For a moment, he didn't know what to say. He was beyond glum, but he didn't know if he should confide in her. There wasn't really anyone else he could confide in. Hel had been the only one for such a long time. The thought made him snort sharply, and Lily looked at him, misunderstanding the gesture.

"Today Nanna said she wasn't my wife anymore," he admitted.

Gently, Lily sat down. She had such a pretty, open face. It wasn't hard to see why Vali had fallen in love with her. "I'm sorry," she said. It wasn't a surprise to her. Had she seen this coming, or had Nanna confided in her?

She simply sat there and waited for him to speak, which was a bit annoying—perhaps clever. "We've been here before, of course," he said. "It was easier then. I slayed her husband and stole her from his house."

Lily opened her mouth and floundered as if she didn't know what to say. Balder did enjoy retelling the story.

"There is no husband to slay now—other than myself. I don't know what to do.

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