Sandra Hill - [Vikings I 03] by The Tarnished Lady

their hands as she passed; the men eyed her with disdain.
    Eirik’s eyes narrowed angrily. There would be some prices to pay when this wedding feast was over, he vowed.
    “So, my brother,” Tykir drawled, “now that I have spoken with Eadyth, I better understand your change of mind about marriage. Are you happy in the match?”
    Eirik raised an eyebrow skeptically at Tykir’s approval.
    “Did you notice the sway of her hips when she walked in front of us through the chapel doors this morn?”
    “Sway! Your mind must be muddled with mead. That woman never swayed a day in her life. Besides, she has no hips to speak of.”
    “And her lips! By all the gods! They certainly look kissable.”
    “Did our father perchance drop you on your head when you were a babe?”
    “Oh. Mayhap I was mistaken.”
    Eirik could see the spark of deviltry twinkling in his brother’s eyes. “What are you up to now?”
    “Me? You wound me, brother, with your mistrust.”
    “Hah! I would wound your head if I thought ’twould shake up your senses. Where in bloody hell have you been these past years?”
    Tykir shrugged. “Here and there.”
    “I have been worried, you lackwit, especially after I met up with Selik in Jorvik last month. He and Rain told me you were raiding in the midlands with Anlaf. Canst you not stay home in Norway where you belong?”
    “Home? I have no home.” Tykir’s face turned somber.
    “Tykir, I have told you repeatedly that Ravenshire is your home if you do not want to live in Norway, but—”
    Tykir put a hand up to halt his words, then forced a lightness into his voice as he commented, “Did you know that Rain is breeding again? Hell’s flames! Selik walks around like a lackwit all the time with a smile plastered over his face. You would think he had invented the making of babes.”
    Eirik nodded, with a smile. Their father’s friend Selik had looked over them protectively after their father’s death when they were only boys. Later, he’d married their half sister.
    “Those two breed babes like rabbits,” Tykir continued to grumble. “Five of their own, including the one in the oven, and dozens of orphans.”
    “Yea, the noise in their orphanage is enough to make one’s ears bleed, but I give them credit. Selik and Rain seem to love each other as much as the day they wed almost ten years ago.”
    “Mayhap if they loved each other a mite less, Jorvik would be a little less crowded.” Changing the subject, Tykir asked, “Have you noticed how well my leg has healed since Brunanburh? I have only a slight limp now. And the maids seem to like it greatly.”
    Eirik shook his head in mock despair and gave his brother a playful shove on the arm. God’s Bones! He wished Tykir would be more careful. After all, other than his daughters, Tykir was the only close family he had left. He corrected himself immediately. Nay, he had other family now. He had a wife. And a son.
    Would they be a blessing or a curse? he wondered.
    “You asked if I am happy in my match with Eadyth. The answer is nay, but I have resigned myself to the marriage in the three sennights of Eadyth’s absence,” he said warily. “You know the true reasons for my decision to marry.”
    Tykir nodded. “Do you think you will ever be able to put Steven and his evil misdeeds behind you, brother?”
    “Not ’til the worms are eating his putrid flesh. Not ’til his soul languishes in hell.”
    “Selik was able to give up his quest for vengeance. Why cannot you?”
    “Would you?”
    “Nay, but I am the bloodthirsty brother. Remember?” He flashed a teasing grin, then turned serious again. “Will you use the boy as bait to lure Steven out into the open?”
    “Yea. Steven apparently needs a son to ensure his Odel rights to his grandfather’s lands in Frankland. I truly believe John will be the means for Steven’s downfall. But, Tykir, do not think I would sacrifice the child. John is not to blame for his father’s evil. I will guard