Page 12 of The Barbarian's Claim
I gaped at him, but he disappeared out of the tent without another word. I guessed I was going to be carrying around a rock. And not a small one either. It was heavy, a bit smaller than my head, and I was pretty sure he’d taken it from the circle of rocks that surrounded the fire because it was still warm. Resigned to my fate, I tucked the rock into the bottom of the bag and closed it up tight to keep bugs and weather out. When I shrugged it on, testing the weight, it was heavy, but not so much that I couldn’t handle it. I’d just hate myself later for agreeing to it.
I joined Einar outside, where he was filling up a flagon of water from a pot on the fire. I frowned, edging closer to ask, “W-why?”
“It is cold in the forest. You are small, like a child. You will need warmth. Put this on.” He handed me a fur to tie around my shoulders. I resented the child-like comment—I wasn’t this small on purpose—but I didn’t comment on it. He wasn’t the teasing type. He was stating his beliefs as facts. It would do me no good to argue with him.
He was checking my bag to make sure it wasn’t too heavy when Uttin approached us. He looked confused, studying us both with a deep frown.
“What are you doing?”
Einar didn’t even look in his direction when he said, “We will go into the forest. Be back in a few days.”
Uttin’s mouth fell open in shock, and he looked to me for more explanation. I pressed my lips together tightly. Einar never made me talk in front of others. He wouldn’t start now, would he?
“You are not serious,” Uttin demanded. “You cannot take a tribute into the forest. It is too dangerous.”
Straightening to his full height, Einar turned to face Uttin. “You made me his protector. I will go on this journey. He will go with me so that I can protect him.”
Uttin looked incredulous, but I thought Einar’s plan was sound. It was his job to protect me. He couldn’t do that if we were apart. So I would go with him. I didn’t mind. Going hunting with him the past few days hadn’t been bad. I liked to watch. He never missed a shot.
“No, Einar. You can leave him with another. He will not?—”
“He will go with me,” Einar growled, glaring at Uttin. Then he said something in their language too fast for me to comprehend. Uttin’s cheeks flushed with anger at whatever he’d said, and he answered back in a snarl that made the hair on my neck stand on end. I moved without forethought, putting myself at Einar’s back and out of Uttin’s line of sight. I’d learned growing up that if I did not want to be punished along with whoever was getting into trouble, it was best to get out of sight.
“Leave,” Einar demanded in the common tongue again, his voice deadly quiet.
“No. If you wish to do this, you will seek permission from Orthorr first. Matthew is not your bondmate. You cannot take him from the clan.”
Surprise made my stomach lurch. I definitely wasn’t Einar’s bondmate. He treated me as his charge and nothing more. But sometimes when I cuddled against his back at night to stay warm, I wished I were. I would be happy with the relationship we had. For the first time since my family was lost to me, someone cared about my well-being. I didn’t want to give that up.
Eight
EINAR
Irritation over Uttin’s interference made me seethe as we headed for the clan leader’s tent. Orthorr had been moved from the healing tent a few days prior, but still had Uttin doing the job of clan leader in his stead. He was getting older. The aftermath of the attack was more grave than if the same treatment had been given to a younger male. But until he held trials for a new clan leader, it was he who decided if I would take Matthew with me on the journey. And I would not be going without him.
Uttin went in first, while Matthew trailed behind us both. He was wary and uncertain, and silent as the grave. He would not speak unless I made him. I would not demand it unless necessary. Orthorr was sitting up on his bed, a scowl on his face as several women fussed over him. He’d told me once after he took over from the clan that he didn’t like to be coddled. His age didn’t make him weak, and he was getting sick of the special treatment.
His gaze flicked over to us, and I saw his eyes light up as he seized the opportunity to be free of the women. He cleared his throat, his voice filled with false appreciation as he bit out, “Ladies. I am needed on clan matters. I will be fine for the time being.”
They looked put out being shooed away, but none could protest with Uttin and me waiting. Once they were gone, Orthorr eyed us suspiciously.
“I want to thank you for giving me an excuse to have them leave, but given the looks on your faces, I don’t think I’ll like what you have to say.”
My grunt of acknowledgment made him sigh. We had been friends long before he took over the clan, despite our age gap. I was much older than Uttin, though, and didn’t appreciate his intervention.
“I will go on a journey north.”
Orthorr blinked, confused. “Okay… What is the problem?”
I gave him a bland look. There was no problem. But Uttin didn’t see it that way.
“He intends to bring Matthew with him. I told him tributes cannot leave the clan, but he will not listen to reason,” Uttin snapped.
As we didn’t speak in the common tongue, I knew Matthew didn't understand us. He hovered half behind me, watching us with a deep frown on his face. I would need to teach him more. It would grow tedious to translate for him.
“He is right, Einar,” Orthorr said. “He is a tribute. It would be unsafe to bring him into the forest. He is untrained.”
I gritted my teeth. Orthorr was my clan leader, so I could not speak to him the way I spoke to Uttin. “I am his protector. He is safe with me.”
