Love's Fury by Violetta Rand

Author:Violetta Rand [Rand, Violetta]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Medieval
Published: 2016-04-19T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

AS KONAL TOSSED and turned on his furs, he tried to banish Silvia’s last words from his mind. Did she find him inadequately sized? A virgin who’d never been kissed, much less seen a man naked. No. She’d intended to plant a seed of doubt in his bedeviled head. The girl knew how to make him suffer. He sighed and closed his eyes.

Hours later, smoke choked him awake. He threw his furs off and scrambled to his knees, surrounded by a raging fire. The air reeked of pitch. Asleep only feet away, Konal screamed for Silvia to awaken.

“Get up!” He grabbed what gear he could save and walked through the flame and smoke meant to claim his life.

Then he rushed to Silvia, lifted her into his arms, and carried her to safer ground. “Stay here,” he said, then turned to the nightmare behind them.

The horses were gone, probably scared away by whoever penetrated their camp. Konal cursed himself for sleeping so heavily and for relying on the protection of men he didn’t completely trust. Of the five guards, only Jahn had earned his respect on the battlefield. But he was nowhere to be found.

With a full moon overhead and the flames consuming the dry vegetation around him, Konal had no problem identifying the bodies of three of his men. All murdered, throats cut with their swords still sheathed at their hips. Careless bastards. They’d never expected an attack judging by the half-empty wineskins scattered about. Though he never wished this type of death on anyone, had the Danes taken their responsibilities seriously, perhaps they’d still be alive. He rubbed his face with both hands, wondering who dared attack in the middle of the night.

Before he returned to Silvia, he walked the perimeter of the camp, checking for any signs his enemies had left behind. Perhaps he was overthinking things. Raiders were everywhere, desperate Saxons and marauders who preyed upon unsuspecting travelers. But why cover the ground in pitch and set a fire?

His destination wasn’t a secret in Jorvik. And as Prince Ivarr had observed, only half his men loved Konal and the rest wished him dead. After he claimed Ulf’s head, Konal was sure he’d made new enemies amongst the Danes, too. Then there was the matter of his lovely captive…

Many reasons existed for someone to try and end his life. But tonight the gods had been generous, not only sparing him, but the beautiful Silvia as well.

He found her wrapped in a fur and pacing nervously.

“What evil has befallen us?” she asked, a look of relief on her face as soon as he appeared.

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “But I have my suspicions. And in time, the guilty will be brought to justice. I swear it.”

“You’ll find a sympathetic ear with me,” she said. “For I’ve lived my whole life under the threat of danger from the Danes.”

“Aye.” She never missed an opportunity to lay her grievances at his feet.

“Where are Jahn and the other guards?”

“Three are dead, murdered where they sat.

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