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“If you do not believe me go walk through the village and hear it for yourself.”
Bhric grumbled to himself, Sven having walked away leaving him no choice but to walk through the village alone.
Snow had begun falling not long ago and chores were hurrying to completion in preparation of the snow turning worse. Everyone would seek shelter out of the cold and would spend the day settled before the heat of a blazing hearth. Bhric would not mind spending it in bed with his wife.
He scowled and grumbled as he walked, paying heed to no one and failing to notice how all who saw him scurried out of his way.
His sister Ingrid spotted him headed in her direction and though she was a distance from him, she did not hesitate to turn and take a different path that had her accidentally bumping into Tavia.
Fen growled and Ingrid froze.
“Easy, Fen, Ingrid means us no harm,” Tavia said with a pat on the hound’s head. Fen kept a watch on Ingrid and Tavia understood why. She had made no mention of Ingrid being a friend or else Fen would have sat or gone off a short distance to sniff around, knowing all was well.
Tavia would have liked to call Ingrid a friend, but the woman had showed no signs of wanting to be one.
“I am sorry, my lady. I was not watching where I was going,” Ingrid said, casting a quick glance over her shoulder.
“Please call me, Tavia, after all we are family,” Tavia said in an attempt to befriend the woman.
“That is not proper, and my brother would not like it.” Again, Ingrid cast an anxious glance over her shoulder.
“When is your bairn due?” Tavia asked, hoping to see if Ingrid would at least converse with her, something her sister-in-law had avoided doing since they met.
“About two months.” She scowled like her brother. “You should not make my brother angry. He can be a bear when he is angry, growling, threatening, and frightening as well.”
“He inflicts pain on others when he is angry?” Tavia asked, thinking she had been unwise in what she had said last to him, and upset to hear she might be the cause of him behaving badly.
Though she questioned Ingrid’s remark. Since arriving here, she had watched her husband deal with problems with authority and not once had she seen him use brute force. So, Ingrid’s warning made no sense.
“Nay, unless someone is foolish enough to throw a punch at him. But his growling and threatening way is enough to frighten people away from him or be caught in his lashing tongue. You do not want his tongue to lash out at you. You would be wise to be a good wife.”
She was trying to be a good wife, but her husband did not make it easy, and she spoke her mind, annoyed that Ingrid thought the fault all hers. “With little to no experience when it comes to men and a husband, nonetheless, I will accept some of the blame for his surliness, but surely, he bears some of the responsibility himself.”
“Do not lay any blame on my brother he is a good man,” Ingrid snapped.
Tavia wondered if all Northmen and women were prone to snappish natures. “I never said your brother was not a good man. But I will not take all the blame for his surliness.”
“Bhric can be surly when something troubles or annoys him. He can dictate far too much as well. He is the oldest of my two brothers and thought to order me about when I was young, much like my father did.”
Though Ingrid complained about her brother, she smiled as she did so, leaving Tavia to believe she cared very much for Bhric.
“I suppose if I were truthful, it was because I could be a bit of trouble on occasion,” Ingrid said with a grin.
“Only on occasion?” Sven asked, causing both women to turn as he came up behind them. “You were a hellion. Wait let me rephrase that… you are still a hellion.”
“The reason why you fell in love with me,” Ingrid said, curling her arm around her husband’s.
“I married you because I thought I could tame you… a big mistake,” Sven said with a hardy laugh. “Now come home with me. It is cold out and I will keep you warm.” He hugged her close and Ingrid melted into his arms eagerly.
Tavia watched them walk away, though after only a few steps, Ingrid hurried to return to her.
She kept her voice low as she said, “Keep my brother satisfied and he won’t be a snarling bear.”
Tavia stared after her, wondering over her advice.
She barely turned when Wilona was upon her, Fen busy sniffing at the falling snow and not concerned with the woman since she was known as a friend to him.
“My lady, please, you must help us,” Wilona pleaded.
