Authors: Constantine De Bohon
Valhalla Wolf (14 page)
"Ulfr still should have mentioned he had brought back a warrior woman," Rollo grumbled.
"There was no ruse on my brother's part!" Hott bellowed.
"I taught the woman how to defend herself so she could one day defend her daughters. I am teaching my wife as well. If there are any other interested women in the camp I will teach you, too."
"Great, now once we've been tossed on our asses ,we'll be run through," Rollo grumbled.
Vicki saw Valerie snicker behind her hand.
Ulfr strode to Vicki and gripped her hands. "Is this true, about fighting? You learned that move from Hott, didn't you?
That's how you drew Falkor's blood, isn't it?"
"Yes," she replied. "After the men attacked me, I needed to do something to feel safe."
"Then it wasn't me who helped you through your ordeal,"
Ulfr said.
"It was because of you I wanted to learn," she began and he looked confused. "You have asked me to wed you; will that alone keep me safe? What happens when I have a baby or babies? What if I was too fearful to defend them? What would you think if I had given in to Falkor's demands and you found out? Or worse, never found out? I can't stay here if I'm always terrified. I can't live my life huddled in a corner. You showed me that I am safe with you while in your arms. What about the other times?"
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"I have kept you safe," Ulfr said.
Vicki became angry. She pulled herself away from him and glared at him. "I was attacked when you left me alone. You know what the men here are like. Still you left me bound and gagged without thought to my safety and look what happened. I was attacked again in the hut now while you were out just getting breakfast. I need to protect myself. I need to feel safe. More importantly, I need to know I alone can keep me safe, no matter where you or Hott are."
Ulfr was frowning. "All women have some fear, that is what keeps them out of harm's way," he mumbled.
"You're a dumbass!" Vicki howled in English.
He frowned at her words not understanding and she heard Valerie's obviously explain the derogatory statement. Ulfr blinked in surprise then scowled and reached for her arm and Vicki tossed him on his ass. She glared down on him.
"You will never smack my behind as punishment again!"
she bellowed.
A few of the men chuckled and some of the women nodded and glared at their men.
"You Valkyrie women of the mist are too much of a handful for me. Praise sunny days and snowstorms," a young man declared and strode off.
Ulfr was now on his feet. "I only did it to keep you protected!" he yelled.
"You only did it to keep me in line," she retorted. "You want to be the big man and protect me. So protect me. Help me learn to fight better."
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The two stood glaring at one another for a moment and Vicki spun on her heels and strode away. She still held her sword in her hand and placed it into a new sheath Hott had made for her. There was new surety in her step.
"Where are you going?" Ulfr demanded.
"Breakfast!" she stormed over her shoulder. "Some of us haven't eaten today."
* * * *
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Chapter 8
Vicki swung her sword in an easy, fluid motion. She was in the clearing where she trained with Hott. She was alone and wasn't afraid or worried at the thought. She heard the whoosh, whoosh as she waved her weapon back and forth.
The day had turned crisp and clear, the leaves had either turned or fallen and the scent of snow was in the air. Her grip on the weapon was easy, not tight. It became an extension of herself. Human and steel worked as a team.
She had done it. She had empowered herself. But at what cost? While eating breakfast she had been privy to many looks, amusement, worry and most importantly—respect. But it had hurt her to see the look on Ulfr's face. Why couldn't he understand? She heard the rustle of feet behind her and she knew it was Ulfr. She knew how he sounded, his gait. She continued her exercise for a few moments more.
When she stopped, her breath was heavy and she was sweating. She turned to face him. "I need this," she simply said.
"You were right about the men. I should have known," he began. "I thought because you were mine no one would dare."
"And you thought because I was yours, I wouldn't dare.
But I have. If I stay it will be on my terms," she told him. "I am not your captive. I'm a person. If you can't deal with that then I need to leave and find my way home."
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Ulfr stood before her. He looked so sad. "When those men forced you they turned you into a possession. Theirs for the taking. You took yourself back without me. What am I if not your protector?"
Vicki looked equally sad. "You're not ready for an equal, a partner in life. You seem to think all women should be weak and defenseless."
"I am used to control," he replied.
"I need some, too," she whispered.
"But you have control. When you said yes to me, to what we did. Will Falkor and the others destroy us?"
"You took me back to the rape and made me face my fears. I don't fear you. I only feared you when you were swinging your sword at me. Your touch has been patient. I wasn't rushed by you. I never thought I would enjoy sex the way we have it, especially after what happened. But because of your excitement and sweet coaxing I wasn't afraid to try.
You can't keep me tied and bound forever at your side to make me feel safe and to make you feel in control. I don't know what to do," she admitted.
"If I could take it back, what happened with those men, I would. I don't know what to think about you being a warrior woman. When we make love, when we play, you let me have control but it's an illusion. I know now it's an illusion, but to be faced so directly with it," he said pleadingly.
"But it doesn't mean you would force me. I know you would stop if I asked. Wolf, I feel strong and yet broken. I want to feel your power, it makes me feel safe, but at the same time I still need to know I make myself feel safe. Don't 126
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be hurt, please, it's not a reflection on you or your manhood,"
she said pleadingly.
He nodded and looked lost in thought. He took her by the hand and began leading her away. Farther and farther they went and the entire time Vicki could hear him muttering words of prayer to Odin. They passed the hot springs and still he went further. To Vicki's surprise she began to see the mist swirl, surrounding them. Ulfr stopped and cupped her face in his hands for a moment. He then took her sword and studied it.
"Only you can decide where home is," he told her.
She took her sword back. "And I can only find it with this.
I'm sure of it," she declared.
He looked so frustrated and angry and she jumped when he bellowed loudly, "Odin I beg you to fix this!"
The rolling mist began to billow in heavy thick sheets. It enclosed them both and the foliage soon vanished, hidden in the mist. Vicki's thoughts grew hazy as though invaded with the steaming surroundings. Ulfr began to blur in her vision.
Her feet grew shaky and the ground beneath her seemed to move and sway. Ulfr gripped her hand tighter and he led her further into the mist. She couldn't focus. What was happening? Where was she? All around her, the world began to darken.
But it's midday.
Her heart began to pound and she felt terrified. The sword was suddenly glowing in her hand for a few seconds, before extinguishing. She couldn't feel Ulfr's fingers clasped in hers anymore. Where was he?
"Wolf?" she called. No answer.
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She ran farther into the woods in confusion. The full moon shone overhead to give her ample light. It wasn't anywhere near to being a full moon when they left. The scent of snow was no longer in the cool night air. She shifted her tight bra and scratched at her fur coverings and when she looked down, she was back in her Halloween costume.
What the hell
is going on?
When she stopped, breathless, Ulfr was before her. He struck the sword from her hands with a brutal thrust from his own. He then snatched her weapon from the ground.
"Wolf? What's wrong?" she asked, feeling wary. His look was stern and she felt a cold chill race up her spine. He looked like he didn't know her.
"Yield, Valkyrie," he demanded.
He was speaking English, but how was that possible? It was just like before when they first met.
"Wolf?" she whimpered.
He leveled his sword at her, pointing it at her heart. She realized, fearfully, he didn't remember her. She moved further back into the mist with him following.
"I yield, Wolf. Please, I'm yours." Her hands splayed pleadingly before her and she begged him not to hurt her.
She knew she would be safe if she was completely submissive. He wouldn't ever harm a frightened unarmed woman.
He came closer and closer while the mist rolled and billowed about. Vicki continued her retreat until suddenly the mist cleared. Her eyes blinked in stunned surprise. As she watched, Ulfr began to lose his clothing. It aged and withered 128
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and crumpled, falling to the ground as dust before her eyes until he was completely nude.
* * * *
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Chapter 9
Ulfr shook his head. He was stumbling about in the mist.
He could hear Vicki ahead of him gasping and panting, racing through the woods. Worried for her safety, he raced to her with his sword drawn. He was filled with confusion. It was so dark out. It hadn't been dark a few moments ago. Perhaps that was why she sounded so harried. He ran faster in his need to get to her. Ulfr was stunned when he reached her.
She was nude, holding her sword in front of her and she was terrified.
"Vicki?" he asked.
She whimpered up at him. She was shaking and sobbing pitifully, a trembling hand was splayed. He said her name again, but she cried harder. She began to speak in her strange language and he tilted his head with some frustration. He wondered why she had switched to her home tongue; she knew he couldn't understand her. By her pitiful tone she was obviously pleading for her life. Why was she so afraid of him? She knew he would never hurt her, he loved her.
Ulfr looked around. It was night, and oddly warmer, like the first night they met. The moon was full—it wasn't time for a full moon yet. Vicki was looking at him like she had no idea who he was. He felt the hair rise on the back of his neck—
it
really
is the first night we met.
Odin had done this, he had put time back to set things right. But why did Vicki not remember and he did? It was an obvious gift from Odin. The 130
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God had erased her memories to spare her, so she hadn't been raped, or terrified into submission. Ulfr was given a second chance to save her.
Grinning he moved toward her. She screamed in terror.
Her sword slowly slipped to the forest floor. Her knees buckled. Ulfr grabbed her before she could hit the ground. He carried Vicki within his arms. The poor little thing was shivering with cold. He was heading with her to the hot springs to warm her as he had the last time. His breathing was rapid. She looked up at him terrified and he said soothing words. Her face ducked into his neck as if to hide. When they reached the springs he set her on her behind near a pool of heated spring water and he stripped. The water splashed when he jumped in. He tugged her into the pool with him.
Ulfr was delighted. As before, he cupped the heated water over her to get rid of her chill. He hadn't meant to take his captive originally until they reached the village the first time they had met, but she had been so responsive to his gentle touch. It was different now, so much better. He knew she had wanted him and he felt himself harden in anticipation. He didn't think of her as a captive any longer but as his soon-to-be mate. He could start again with this knowledge. Only now he knew everything about her—her wants, her naughty desires. Her heated sexual needs were as hot and lusty as his own. And best of all he already knew he loved her.
Ulfr tasted her skin, nipping at her and suckling her sweetness. She pushed at his hands but he knew she was aroused, as he could see it in her eyes.
Just like last time.
She had shyly told him in their furs one night she had wanted 131
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him in the hot springs the first night they met. He had been so gentle and sweetly coaxing. Ulfr's fingers slid inside her and pumped with care. She was a virgin—he knew she would be. He had begged Odin to set things right and give him a second chance.
He had let his little Valkyrie be raped by accident and she had turned warrior. A woman was never supposed to take up arms. Ulfr would protect her like he should have before. He knew where her anger had stemmed. Nothing she could do would ever make him so angry as to leave her alone and defenseless. He had learned his lesson. Never again would she be placed in a position of vulnerability. She was no longer a warrior woman, but his timid little gift. She was as unskilled as the first time they met. She would have no memory of how Hott had taught her to wield a sword. It was up to him to take care of her again, and by the Gods he would.
