Page 10 of Her Dark Viking
Mairead gave him a wan smile, and might have said more had the silence between them not been rent by the growling of a hungry stomach. The boy blanched and shrank even further into his mother's embrace. She looked up at Gunnar and spoke quietly to him.
"The boy has not eaten since yesterday," Steinn put in. "She asks that he be permitted some of the meat we have on the spit."
Shit.Gunnar called to another of his men, and the karl approached their little group.
"How many rabbits do we have?"
"Three, Jarl. I can but roast them one at a time though."
"The first is for the prisoners as they have not eaten this day. Bring me bread now, and cheese if you have it."
The man nodded and went to do his chief's bidding. He returned moments later with a hunk of rather stale, flat bread. "We have no cheese, Jarl, but these are good. And sweet." He held out a metal dish containing a dozen or so gooseberries.
It did not escape Gunnar's notice that the boy's eyes widened at sight of the fare. He thanked the karl and took the food, then held it out to the lad. The boy hesitated, but Mairead did not. She took the proffered dish and placed it in her son's hands. The boy took no further persuading and the berries were gone in moments.
"Thank you," murmured Mairead. Gunnar was glad this was one of the few phrases he did understand of her tongue. He found himself smiling again.
"You shall have meat also, when it is ready. You will not go hungry, either of you." He rose to his feet. "Eat, then sleep. We leave at first light."
Gunnar strode away as Steinn repeated his words in the Gaelic tongue. It was enough, for now.
He woketo the sound of panting and a shrill squeal of distress.
What the fuck?Gunnar sprang to his feet and reached for his sword. In the hazy pre-dawn light he could just make out the shapes of his men, still sleeping. Across the camp, on the other side of the dying embers of their fire, his captive rolled heavily from side to side. She was the one making the peculiar noises.
Gunnar moved around to investigate. Was she ill? Seeking to escape?
The lad lay stiffly at her side, his eyes wide and frightened. He peered up at Gunnar anxiously, but did not cower from him this time. It was amazing the effect a full belly would have on a small boy, the warrior reflected as he bent to better scrutinise his prisoner.
As he peeled back the blanket which covered her, Mairead let out a sudden shriek. It was enough to alert the entire camp. Suddenly his men were awake and demanding to know what was amiss. Gunnar had an unhappy feeling he knew the answer to that.
"The baby is coming." Steinn had appeared behind him and gave voice to Gunnar's fears.
"Is it time?" Gunnar looked up at his karl. "Ask her when the child is due."
There followed a brief exchange between the karl and his writhing captive.
"The child was due in three weeks’ time, Jarl. It is early, but not especially so. The stress..."
"Yes, yes." Gunnar dismissed the explanation irritably. This was all he needed, and it was entirely his own fault. That march yesterday...
Fuck. Fuck.Fuck!
"We will need blankets. And mead. Steinn, you will assist as you can speak her tongue."
"Aye, Jarl. We shall not be breaking camp then?"
"What do you think," growled his chief, already cradling the stricken woman in his arms. "Find someone to keep an eye on the boy. He cannot remain here."
Mairead mumbled something, clinging to his arm in seeming desperation. She appeared even more distressed than her current condition would account for. Gunnar looked to Steinn for some sort of explanation.
The man frowned. "She is begging you not to leave her here, Jarl. She asks that you not abandon her and her children."
Odin's balls, what had he caused? What sort of a monster did she believe him to be?
Gunnar took Mairead's hand in his and squeezed it tight. He cupped her chin in his hand and brought her face around so she had to meet his eyes. "We will take care of you, " he promised. "We will take care of all of you." His words were in Norse and Steinn did not translate, but Gunnar believed she had grasped his meaning because her delicate features relaxed. At least they did, until the next contraction gripped her.
The next few hours passed in a blur. Mairead screamed, moaned, panted and grasped at his hand with the brute strengthof a mountain bear. All the while Gunnar remained by her side as his men hovered nearby. Childbirth was not their natural environment, this was women's work and best left to the mysterious skills of the midwives. The hardened Viking warriors looked on with a curious blend of horror and fascination as events unfolded.
