AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He set his daughter down and came over to where Sayrid stood. Nothing in his demeanour gave her a clue about what had happened at the harbour. She concentrated on breathing deeply. Demanding to know if he’d found the proof of Regin’s innocence would only inflame the situation.
‘Your daughter is an accomplished seamstress,’ she said instead.
He held out a deep-red tunic and a pair of wool trousers. ‘I believe you will find these more to your taste. When we get to the hall, you will have plenty of time to use your needle and thread.’
Sayrid stared at the tunic and trousers in shock. He was offering her clothes which would fit far better than the rags she currently wore. ‘Yours?’
‘I can only wear one set of clothes at a time.’ He shook his head. ‘That dress is all wrong. Go inside and put them on.’
‘What made you change your mind?’
He shrugged. ‘Call it a peace offering. Whoever attempted to sabotage the ship has nothing to do with us.’
Sayrid fingered the tunic. A peace offering. The unexpectedness of it made her heart turn over. She wanted to hate him, but he kept giving her reasons to be grateful to him. He had given her clothes she could feel comfortable in.
She caught her upper lip between her teeth. The fact that he had come on his own without warriors or his bodyguard was a good sign. ‘I will be a moment.’
She went into the house and rapidly changed. The gown’s final threads gave way as she pulled it over her head. She was pleased no one else was in there so she could strip off her undergown as well. She slid the tunic over her bare shoulders.
Hrolf’s clothes were well made and the material finer than she normally wore and it felt good to be in trousers once again…even if they were a little larger than she was used to. She tied the belt tightly about her waist.
‘She makes far too big stitches,’ Inga was saying with a giggle when Sayrid returned. ‘It is very easy to fool her, but then she is a giantess. I mean, her gown…’
Hrolf’s face instantly became stern. ‘Who gave you permission to criticise your new mother?’
The girl gulped twice. ‘I…I…thought it was best to speak the truth.’
‘If I ever discover you had a hand in playing a trick on Sayrid or her being publically humiliated, there will be consequences. Do you remember what I said the last time you told tales?’
Inga appeared close to tears as she threw her arms about Hrolf’s knees. ‘You won’t send me away, will you?’
‘Inga speaks the truth,’ Sayrid called out, acting on impulse as a warm spot grew within her. Hrolf was defending her.
They turned towards her. Inga’s eyes widened. ‘You’re wearing men’s clothes! My far’s clothes.’
‘They fitted me better than the gown.’
‘I agree about the clothes, but continue,’ Hrolf said. ‘You intrigue me. Why does Inga speak the truth?’
‘Every time I start to sew, I seem to get the colour wrong or the stitch in the wrong place. Inga might have tried to trick me, but truly, she needn’t have bothered. I know my limitations. Ask Auda or, better still, ask my stepmother if you ever encounter her,’ Sayrid admitted with a laugh. Long ago she’d learnt to laugh at herself before others did. It took some of the pain away. And now she was back in her usual uniform of tunic and trousers, it was easier. ‘But I did warn you of that…before we married. I’ve little talent with such things.’
‘Running a household takes more skills than sewing a fine seam,’ Hrolf said to Inga, frowning. ‘Sayrid will teach you. She is being falsely modest. Her estate is one of the best in all of Svear.’
Sayrid concentrated on the ground. Despite everything, he still believed she had something to offer and, unlike her stepmother or her father, he praised her. He was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. It meant more than it should. Silently she promised that she would try, and not just for the promise of going east should he go again.
Inga gulped twice. ‘I didn’t want to make you angry, Far. I was playing a game, but it went too far.’
‘I expect better from my daughter. Telling tales and playing tricks. You were supposed to leave such things behind in Rus. It is high time you were brought up in the Svear way! Perhaps Magda should go if she cannot control you.’
Both the nurse and Inga cowered.
‘Did you find the culprit?’ Sayrid asked to defuse the tension. She might not particularly like Inga’s nurse, but getting rid of her would destroy any chance she had of developing a relationship with the girl. She would not lower herself to behave like her stepmother. ‘Inga knows not to play tricks on me now. And I’m pleased to have such a clever stepdaughter. I wish I could sew like that.’
