Cenric trembled beside Brynn.He made a low snorting sound.
“Are you laughing?”Brynn demanded, turning an accusatory glare at her husband.
“You are amazing!”he crowed, grabbing her waist.“Wonderful, wonderful woman.”
Brynn could hardly believe it.“You’ve gone mad.”
Cenric laughed harder at that, pulling her against him.They were drenched in sea water and the blood of the serpent swirled in the waves, staining them both.He squeezed her in his arms.
“How can you be celebrating?”
“My wife just killed a beast that not even the First of Fathers could vanquish,” Cenric said, exultant.“If that’s not worth celebrating, what is?”
“You stood there!Smiling when that thing was chasing you!”Brynn pushed him away, jabbing a finger into his chest.
Cenric shrugged.“I knew you would kill it.”
“And if I hadn’t?”Brynn wasn’t sure why she was angry, but her temper flared.
“Better to die with you than live without you,” Cenric said, echoing her words back to her.
A lump formed in her throat.“Cenric.”
He rested a hand on her back.“Come on, love.Let’s get out of the water.”
Brynn glanced over to the limp corpse of the serpent.She could feel that the poisonous life force that had inhabited the thing was gone.Now it was just an ordinary corpse of an animal, itskaleaching out by the moment.
All the same, she moved past it uneasily.From beside the beast’s haunches, it seemed possible that it was just resting, waiting for the moment to roar back to life.
Brynn and Cenric made their way back onto the shore, soaked in saltwater, serpent’s blood, and caked in black sand.Cenric had not removed his boots or leg wraps and his steps made wet sucking sounds.Brynn walked barefoot, her own stockings, leg wraps, and boots soaked through as well.
These clothes were ruined, Brynn decided.Needing to have new feasting clothes made for herself and her husband was a small problem in the grand scheme of things.All the same, Brynn’s mind wandered to where she would find the time to embroider a new tunic for him before Blydmoth.He would need it for the autumn feasts.
She would need Esa’s help…
“Esa.”Brynn pressed her hand against Cenric’s shoulder.“And Kalen.What about the Wulfwir?”
22
Cenric
“We’llseetoallthat.”Now that the exhilaration of victory was wearing off, Cenric started to feel the strain of the past hour or so.Weariness was taking over.Snapper?he sent out.
Cenric?the dog’s answer came faint, but eager.Brynn?
Brynn,Cenric answered, assuring the dog she was safe.Vana?
Vana,Snapper answered.Snapper protect Vana,he confirmed proudly.
Good dog.
Snapper’s pleasure echoed across the distance.
Cenric and Brynn trudged onto the beach to find the king’s band of warriors staring at them.Ovrek stepped forward.
“You greedy bitch!”Ovrek shouted.It was hard to know if he was serious or not, but he spoke Hyldish, intended for Brynn.“Had to take the beast for yourself?”
Cenric bristled.Why did people keep calling his wife a bitch?Was he going to have to kill Ovrek after all?
