Vanquishing A Viking by Nancy Dillman

Author:Nancy Dillman [Dillman, Nancy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Nancy Dillman
Published: 2013-02-05T14:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 12

“Esme, you must help!” Ulla shouted, running into the room, arms flailing.

“What’s happening?” Esme’s heart rate ratcheted into high gear. “Is Stein all right?”

“The fire is out of control.” Ulla picked up Esme’s shift from the floor and threw it at her. “Dress quickly and come outside. We need everyone to help douse the flames.”

The scene outside the hall was chaotic. Men, women, slaves, and some older children had been pressed into service. Formed into two human chains, they passed bucket after bucket of water from the fjord back to the burning hall in a continuous loop. The younger children grabbed the buckets as soon as they were empty and delivered them to several adults standing knee-deep in the water, who filled them and handed them to the beginning of the line.

Esme just shook her head. The building was fully engulfed, and nothing would change the outcome. It all seemed so primitive and useless. If only she could dial 911 on her cell phone. A couple of firemen with a high-pressure hose could quench the fire in ten minutes. She looked around for Stein, but he was nowhere to be seen. Her stomach knotted with worry.

“Get in the line,” Ulla shouted.

Inserting herself between a teen-aged boy and a very old woman, she threw her back into it, passing the heavy wooden buckets down the line. Each one weighed a ton, and she marveled that the others handled them with apparent ease. She really needed to work out more.

Twenty minutes later, just as her arms were about to fall off, the line slowed. Craning her neck, she looked toward the hall and was relieved to see smoke, but no more flames. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much left of the once imposing building.

The bucket brigade broke up, and she joined the people gathered around the smoky ruins. Eavesdropping, she learned the fire had been caused by an overturned oil lamp. Although a few furnishings had been rescued, all that was left standing were several of the floor-to-ceiling support beams, a bit of wall, and the iron tripods that had perched over the central fire pit. A smoke-stained chest had been dragged off to the side. Otherwise, the rest of the building and its contents were a total loss.

She searched the crowd, looking for Stein, but didn’t see him anywhere. Glancing at the longhouse next to the ruins, she saw several women carrying white linens and small lidded pots to the entrance. Of course there had been injuries. Feeling a hand on her shoulder, she turned.

“Come, Esme. Stein is in there.” Ulla’s turned-down mouth and dejected voice spoke volumes.

“Is he...all right?” Esme bit her lower lip.

“He is injured, but with the gods' help, he will recover.”

Esme felt queasy as they entered the longhouse. The mood was somber, and conversation between the healers was limited to whispers. Three men were laid out on wooden tables placed end-to-end down the length of the building. She didn’t recognize two of them, but she would know the third one anywhere.

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