The Bride of a Viking

Chapter Eleven

"I do not care." Colden brushed off the jarl before him, returning to his conversation with the women around him.

Tove's face became a furious shade of red. "Get up you coward!" His large frame towered over the sitting man.

     The women around Colden quickly moved away from the two men, wanting nothing to do with what was about to take place. The dark haired man's face grew sour as he stared up at the brute in front of him. "Why are you doing this?"

     "Will you accept my challenge or are you the coward we all know you to be?" A crowd began to gather around, some eagerly waiting for a fight.

     "Why do you feel the need to fight me?" Colden pushed himself off the ground, dusting off his trousers and his wrinkled shirt. His face expressed boredom, bordering on irritation. "This was supposed to be a fun event for everyone and now you are ruining it."

     "You really are as pathetic as that whore you call sister."

Colden's face darkened like Aila had never seen before. He pounced so fast, she hadn't seen it coming until he was on top of Tove. He managed a couple punches to the face before Tove threw him off and had him pinned to the grass. Tove's grip was firm on the other man's throat. Colden clawed at Tove's hand, drawing blood. His grip faltered and Colden didn't waist a second as he jumped up and landed a couple more blows.

"Is nobody going to stop this?" Aila was appalled at the scene before her. The crowd cheered and booed as they watched, most of which seemed to favor Colden.

"Not unless it gets bad," Nadine responded. The woman sounded as if this were a completely normal event.

"This isn't bad?" Aila rushed toward the crowd, trying to get a better view. She wasn't sure what she'd prefer the outcome to be. All she knew was that she didn't want Colden to be killed, and she was afraid of what would happen to her if Tove was killed. Would his people let her go?

"It could be much worse," Nadine followed Aila into the crowd, squeezing their way through.

Sounds of punching and grunting filled Aila's ears. She lost sight of the two as she continued fighting to get to the front. Dagfinn stood in the crowd, his eyes finding hers. He moved for her, his hand locking around her wrist. "Where's your guard?" He asked. Aila had lost sight of the shadow of a man who had been watching her.

"Aren't you going to stop this? They're hurting each other!" She yelled, hoping he'd hear her over the cheering.

"They will be fine! You need to get back to your room in case the crowd erupts into chaos." Dagfinn pulled her along as he shoved his way out of the circle. Aila tried to break free, but his grip was too strong. Nadine followed along, keeping up with them.

     "What if they kill each other?" Aila said.

     "They won't," he said simply.

     "How do you know?"

     "Do you think this is the first time this has happened?" Dagfinn stilled, looking at her with a stern expression. "This happens quite often. When Tove is angry, he goes looking for a fight. And Colden being extremely sensitive when it comes to his sister is an easy target for our jarl. Typically it doesn't break out into a physical match, but on occasion it will. And it never lasts long."

     "Why not?"

     "Because Colden is no match for Tove." Worry for Colden crept into her gut. She didn't want anything bad to happen to him

     "Then why make me go back to my room?"

     Dagfinn rolled his eyes. "You ask a lot of questions," he sighed. "Sometimes when fighting occurs, the crowd joins in and it gets chaotic. People can get hurt, killed even. But Tove will not kill the son of a jarl, he does not want to start a war."

     Aila released a breath she hadn't known she was holding.

     "Please let me escort you back to your room, Tove would be furious if something happened to you." Aila allowed him to lead her back into the manor. Silence fell between them until Aila was securely closed into her bedroom, Nadine with her.

     "They'll be alright," Nadine reassured her. Aila wondered at how everyone could be so calm. These people could be so brutal. She supposed they could be back home too. The memory of the Viking she saw as a child surfaced. How the men in town had all gathered together to slay the one man.

"This place is crazy."

***

Aila sat with the women as they sewed and embroidered. Yrsa was at the heart of the room, everyone gathered around her wanting her approval. It disgusted Aila how the woman had everyone under her control. She could practically ruin a woman's life with one sentence, had even seen it happen.

Days ago, Yrsa had a disagreement with one of her ladies and had taken it upon herself to spread rumors about the poor girl. The woman's reputation was now in question, her engagement cancelled as a result.

     Aelsfi, one of the women sitting next to the queen asked: "When will the wedding be?" Most of the ladies looked up, horrified that she would mention the wedding in front of the jarl's wife. Aila's face reddened as eyes turned on her. She had no desire to talk about the upcoming nuptials, especially in front of her fiancées wife.

     Yrsa kept her face neutral, keeping that anger at bay. "There is no date yet. It is still being discussed whether it will even be happening." Aila wished her words were true, but she knew Tove was set on her bearing him children. It was clear Yrsa had no intention of giving up the attention she gained from being the jarl's wife.

     "So you will just be the jarl's whore?" Aelsfi said.

     Aila took a deep breath, attempting to stop herself from snapping back. She wondered if Yrsa had put Aelsfi up to this.

     "Aila will bear children for the jarl," Nadine said in a sweet voice. Aila was grateful for her friend.

     "That wouldn't make her any less of a whore," Aelsfi responded. The girl seemed to be playing dumb to the whole situation. Or maybe she was just dumb, Aila thought.

     Yrsa laughed in response, causing all the other women to laugh along in order to gain the woman's approval. Aila wondered if they would do that to her when she was married to the jarl.

     "You should not speak that way to the jarl's fiancée," Nadine said fiercely. She stood, motioning for Aila to follow. "We shall retire." She stuck up her nose to Yrsa. A couple of the women watched, intrigued.

"That was amazing," Aila said after they exited the room. "You were great in there. How do you remain so calm?"

"Well for one, it wasn't my reputation they were going after, and two, I have been here for a lot longer than you. I am used to their behavior. It would suit you well to not let your anger show to the ladies here. Anger is a weakness, and if they know your weakness, they have power over you."

     "Well then we shall learn Yrsa's weakness and use it against her," Aila said. How Aila would do that, she had no idea. One thing for certain was, she knew she needed leverage over the woman, lest she be used as a pawn for Yrsa's amusement.