Chapter 7
The knock on her door came so softly that she barely heard it.
“Svanhild? We need to talk.”
She got up from the pile of luxurious blankets and cushions that she'd enjoyed so much and opened the door to let Aleks in.
“What's so urgent that you had to disturb me?”
“Per has news. Klaus has called a secret meeting of selkie lords at the Icy Shores. It looks like he's trying to build a rival alliance.”
“I'd hardly call it rival when we hardly have any allies yet,” Svanhild pointed out. Aleks just shrugged.
She pretended to stretch and surreptitiously rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Aleks didn't need to know that he'd woken her from a nap.
“We need to find out what happens in that meeting,” she said, exhausted just at the thought. “Defeating Klaus will be impossible if we have no idea what he's doing.”
Aleks's nodded grimly.
“I knew you'd say that, but it's going to be difficult.”
The first attempt saw them sneaking around the edges of the Icy Shore fasthold, already tired from the long, hard swim through Per's lands and across the forests of the Icy Shores.
As Svanhild had feared, more guards than she had ever seen before watched the log palisade and magical net that surrounded the fasthold. Aleks looked up at the walls with a frown, and she wondered if he remembered all the times he had stood guard up there. Icy Shores had been home to both of them for so long.
Following Aleks's lead, she crept through the kelp forest that stretched almost up to the palisade itself, seaweed fingers stretching out towards the wood. How could they possibly swim up and through the net without being spotted? From the look on Aleks's face, he had the same thoughts.
“Who goes there?”
The magical cry rang out through the murky water. They could not know if it was directed at them, but Svanhild instinctively shrank back against the palisade. What if they were spotted? Klaus had never been a merciful man.
“We need a better plan,” Aleks said, the words for her only. She nodded, then jerked her head towards the seaweed forest. He slipped off immediately, fading into a dark shadow behind layers of black plants. She paused for a second to calm her racing heart, then went after him.
She spotted Aleks up ahead, lurking in the shadows and made straight for him. Her senses tingled suddenly and she froze, desperately hoping that the depths of the black seaweed concealed her well. Could her hair still be seen? Curse that red shade- always more trouble than it was worth.
Moving slowly and carefully, she rotated her head, poised to flee - and held back a gasp as a shark slid through the weeds, barely an arm's length away from her. It swam past, vanishing into the darkness, and she almost collapsed with relief.
“Per is waiting on the border for us,” Aleks said, coming up beside her. He did not touch her, but his presence still warmed the water around her, safe and comforting. “We should listen to his ideas.”
If Per had no ideas, this plan might fall apart before it began. When Svanhild's father was alive, comfort and laughter had filled the Icy Shores fasthold, its hall always a welcoming place. Back then, the defences had made her feel safe. But with Klaus, those defences felt like a trap - and now they kept her out of her own home. Her father would have been heartbroken.
Thankfully, Per did have another idea, although it did not immediately win Svanhild’s approval.
“Are you absolutely sure that no one there knows your cousin?” she asked. “What if he turns up after all?”
Per sighed and spread his arms wide. “What else can we do? But yes, I am sure.”
Svanhild bit her lip, taking another moment to consider. Such a bold and risky plan could easily go wrong. But Per was right - what else could they do?
“Besides,” Per said, “Klaus won't want to confront me directly. He knows that could lead to trouble. You should be safe enough with me.”
“I just don't see why I have to pretend to be Aleks's wife,” Svanhild said.
“Klaus knows I'm not married,” Per said, exasperated. “It will cause too much of a fuss if I suddenly appear with a wife.”
“I suppose,” Svanhild said. Walking back into the Icy Shores hall would be bad enough. Imagining herself as Aleks's wife added an unwelcome extra layer of pain.
Aleks rested one hand on her shoulder, lightly squeezing, and she almost smiled at the warmth and comfort spreading from his hand. She couldn't be selfish. He faced the same difficulties.
On their second attempt, they swam straight up to the front gate of the fasthold, Per's men surrounding them. Svanhild’s fiery hair lay tucked under a tight-fitting wimple, and she kept her eyes downcast. With any luck, no one would recognise her in such an unexpected place. After all, they thought her an outcast.
As they approached the guards, her fear surely showed on her face. What a terrible idea. But the guards waved her straight through, barely casting a glance at her as they greeted Per. Aleks managed to slip through as well, half hidden under a helmet and hood. The familiar sights of the fastness greeted them, the gates slamming shut behind them.
Svanhild gazed about the hall, just as she remembered; warm, comforting, and a little dirty, draped about with ropes and covered in faded wall paintings. The familiar smells of fish stew and unwashed pet dolphins mingled with the fancy perfume of the visiting selkie lords and ladies.
They had arrived late, unsurprisingly, given the time it had taken to disguise Svanhild and Aleks. It appeared that everyone else had been waiting for them, so Per stepped forward to attract all the attention. He greeted Klaus elaborately, and bowed low to kiss Margit's hand. Katrina stood just beside her, glowering. What a shame that woman hadn't disappeared.
The lords settled into a rough arc around Klaus, their followers and ladies massing behind them. Everyone stood silently, waiting.
“First,” Klaus said, an expression of excessive concern on his face, “I need to confirm the rumours you have no doubt already heard about my niece.”
Svanhild stiffened. Aleks lay one hand on her arm, sending her a silent warning. This might be even harder than she had expected.
“Unfortunately, while I am of course fond of her, my niece has turned out to be as treacherous and foolish as her father,” Klaus said, shaking his head in mock concern. “I had hoped to fix her with a good marriage, but it appears that she was beyond redemption. Please, join me in ending this foolishness that she has started – this ridiculous notion of bringing all selkies together. I know that none of you wish to be the inferior of any man, and that is exactly how it should be. We are independent people, and may we always be so! No power hungry woman will change that!”
Svanhild's mouth opened as she pushed forward, but Aleks wrapped her in a blanket of magic so thick that she almost collapsed. A few surrounding selkies looked at her oddly, but no thoughts left her mind.
“Don't be a fool,” Aleks said silently. “You expected these kind of lies.”
“Not about my father,” Svanhild said, feeling the prickle of tears in her eyes. How dare Klaus betray his own brother, and then make accusations of treachery?
When Klaus began to talk again, she could hardly bear to listen to him. Instead, she let her attention drift around the hall. Few familiar faces remained. Had Klaus got rid of everyone who had once supported her father?
She glanced towards the corner of the hall, and met the eyes of Gunnar. Her father's old court magician stared back steadily, his dark eyes never wavering. He recognised her. She sent an urgent nudge to Aleks, already beginning to move back towards the door of the hall. They needed to leave right now.
Klaus kept talking, lies and nonsense, but Svanhild knew she couldn't let the rage get the better of her. The main doors to the hall were shut now, guards barring them. She needed to go through the back door, but that meant passing Klaus.
“I propose an alliance of free lords,” Klaus said, throwing his arms theatrically into the air, just Svanhild tried to slip past him unnoticed. She kept her head down and swam straight ahead, never looking at his face. She felt the heat of his eyes on the back of her head, but then the first handful of Lords began to swear friendship and agreement to his pointless, empty alliance, distracting him at the perfect time. She and Aleks made it to the back door unnoticed, and out into the empty lane beyond. Per appeared a moment later, shaking his head.
“If everyone in there believes Klaus, then you don't have a chance of finding allies,” he said. “He's a persuasive man.”
“I don't care what he says, or how many friends he makes,” Svanhild said fiercely. “He is a filthy, murdering, traitor, and I will see to it that he faces his punishment.”
Per shrugged. “I won't argue that he doesn't deserve it, but these are terrible odds. I don't know what else I can do for you.”
“You can't abandon us now,” Svanhild said. Did the words sound like an order, or a plea? “I'm the only person who can rebuild the old kingdom, and you know it.”
“It's a very big kingdom for a very small woman,” a voice said behind her.
Svanhild turned, and looked straight into the eyes of Gunnar.