Chapter 15

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

W ere it not for his nephew’s incessant chatter, the atmosphere might have been tense. Moon’s mind was still reeling from the events of the afternoon, and his body still limp from the pleasure Eyja had coaxed from him. Had Elwyn guessed that they had been engaged in licentious activities when he had burst in on them? It was hard to tell, as he’d seemed to accept the claim that they had been practicing with the sling easily enough. There had been the jest about them covering up a lie, but that might just have been the usual banter two brothers exchanged as a matter of course. One thing was for sure, if Elwyn did believe they had come to the meadow for a tryst, it was doubtful he was imagining such a crude interlude.

Moon barely repressed a sigh. How had he allowed himself to give his desire free rein thus? Never had he treated a woman in such a way before, forgetting everything, including her comfort, in his bid to reach his pleasure. But then again, no other woman had pleasured him in that manner before, or been so generous. It was a lot easier to be assertive and selfish in such a situation.

Thankfully, the brazen imp had not taken exception to it. She had even seemed to like this side of him. Typical... No one was fiercer or bolder than she was and she’d always enjoyed being treated as an equal who did not need to be cosseted.

Bedding her would be explosive, he was as sure of it as he was of his ability to hit an ox-size target with a sling. And now that he knew it... How was he going to resist putting the theory to the test? They had already given each other pleasure with their mouths, perhaps the most intimate act two people could share. After that, lying together would only be?—

“Look at those flowers!”

The little boy, probably tired of extracting more than three words at a time from the adults, started to run ahead to explore his surroundings. Moon prayed his nephew would not see even the tip of a snake’s tail. He would not be able to endure another discussion about what Eyja would do when faced with a snake, because he knew only too well what she would do.

Swallow it whole.

He groaned when his groin tightened at the thought. Damn it, this wouldn’t do!

Gunnar pointed to a yellow patch in the distance. “I want to get some of those for Mama.”

“All right, son, but don’t go any farther than that, I need to be able to see?—”

Before Elwyn could finish his sentence, the little boy vanished in front of their eyes. The three of them froze. What on earth had happened?

They darted forward at the same time and quickly found themselves on the edge of a crevice that had been hidden by vegetation. It was obvious the little boy had not seen it either, and simply slipped inside the crack. That was why it had appeared as if he’d been swallowed up by the ground. Because he had, in a way.

“Gunnar!” Elwyn’s shout was unlike anything Moon had ever heard. Not that he could blame his brother for panicking. His own heart had given a jolt when he’d seen his nephew disappear into the crevice. He could not imagine how he would feel if it had been his son. “Can you hear me? Are you hurt? Answer me.”

“Father?” The little voice, hesitant though it was, sent blood pumping back through Moon’s veins. The boy was alive, at least. Was he injured?

“Are you all right, son?”

“Yes, there are leaves everywhere here. It’s soft.”

Moon exchanged a glance with his brother and both of them visibly relaxed. It could have been so much worse.

“Can you move, Gunnar, wave to me?”

They saw a white little hand flutter in the darkness, much closer than they had first dreaded. The hole seemed to be no more than fifteen feet deep. It would be easy enough for himself or Elwyn to jump down there without hurting themselves. Except... Except that there was no way a fully grown man could fit through the crevice where the little boy had slipped. It was just too narrow. Moon could almost span it with two hands.

“We could throw him the rope you used for climbing the rocks to haul him up,” he suggested, nodding toward the rope wrapped around his brother’s chest. “But I’m afraid he won’t be strong enough to hold on while we hoist him up in the air. And if he lets go...” He didn’t finish the sentence but there was no need. If the little boy fell from such a height a second time, this time on his back, he might not survive the drop. They had been lucky once, they might not be so lucky twice. It was obvious from the way Elwyn’s jaw tightened that he was thinking the same thing.

What could they do? Could they perhaps?—

“Let me go down.”

They turned around as one.

“Eyja?” Elwyn said, as if he’d forgotten she was even here.

“I’m small enough to fit through the crack, I think.” She glanced down, as if to evaluate the width of it. Yes, Moon agreed, she might fit inside. Just about. “Once I’m in the hole I’ll be able to wrap the rope around Gunnar’s waist and hoist him up at least part of the way while you lift him and I’ll be there to catch him if he falls. Then once he’s out you’ll haul me back up in turn.”

The two brothers looked at each other.

“She’s right. It’s the only solution,” Elwyn said eventually.

It was. Still, Moon hesitated. Without knowing why, he didn’t like the idea of her in that dark pit.

“Please, let me go. I hate the idea of Gunnar being all alone down there in the dark, scared, when I know I can help. ”

That decided him. If she was brave enough to attempt the rescue, he would not stop her.

While the two men untangled the rope, Eyja knelt by the crevice to examine it while she talked to the little boy. “I’m coming down to get you now, Gunnar. Can you wait a little longer? We’ll get you out in no time.”

The little voice coming from underneath seized her gut. “Yes. I’ll be brave. Like I was with the snake.”

“Of course you will. I trust you. Good boy.”

The hole appeared to be no more than fifteen feet deep. Holding on to a rope, hauled by two strapping men, the little boy would be out in no time. As for herself, she wasn’t worried. If she could go in, she would be able to go out.

“Here.”

She stood back up, eyeing the rope Elwyn was handing out to her. He had tied a loop at one end.

“Put your foot here and hold on to the rope,” he instructed. “We’ll lower you down. It’s better than you jumping down and twisting your ankle when you land on soft ground.”

She nodded. The whole point was for her to reach the bottom unscathed, so she could help the little boy. This was an ingenious way of ensuring she did. “Very well.”

“And, Eyja? Thank you.”

The expression on her friend’s face had never been more intense. Moved, she gave him a small smile. “You can thank me when I come back. Let’s get Gunnar out first.”

She sat down with her legs dangling over the ledge and sighed. It would be a tight fit, even if she’d always been on the slender side, she was not quite the same size as a small child. As if to prove it, her buttocks soon got stuck. Nevertheless, it was not enough to make her lose all hope of fitting through the crack. She wiggled and bit back a groan when a sharp piece of rock ripped along her hip bone. It stung something fierce and would most likely bleed, but at least the hardest part was done. She was through. Her stomach was flat and her bosom, which had never been very generous, would pose no difficulty.

Indeed it didn’t and soon she was dangling in the air. The men, who must have felt the jolt on the rope, started to lower her down slowly. Almost immediately she felt the ground under her feet. It was, like Gunnar had said, soft and carpeted in leaves.

“I’m down!” she shouted to the men, even if they had probably felt the slackening of the rope.

Disentangling her foot from the loop, she knelt down and took Gunnar in her arms.

“It’s over. We’ll soon get you out of here,” she murmured in his ear. “Your father is waiting for you up there.” The little boy nodded against her neck and she wondered for a moment if he was not crying. But, of course, being brave, he would never allow her to see it. So she simply held him and pretended not to notice the wetness on her skin.

“Have you got him?” Elwyn’s voice reached her.

“Yes. He’s all right. I will tie the rope around his waist and chest and explain to him what he has to do.”

Once she’d explained the plan to Gunnar, she told him to hold on as tight as he could while the men hoisted him up. Then she lifted him up into her arms and gave him a kiss before calling out to the men to start pulling. A moment later she felt the little boy leave her arms. He disappeared through the crack and soon she heard his father’s voice, gruff with relief.

“Gunnar. Good boy. I’m here.”

Eyja hugged herself and wiped a tear from her eye.

“Are you all right?” Moon’s face appeared at the edge of the crevice.

“Yes.”

“Hold on, we’ll send you the rope in a moment.”

While she waited for the men to untie and reassure the little boy, Eyja looked around and saw that she was not, contrary to what she had first believed, in a closed chamber. There was an opening to her left that seemed to lead into some sort of tunnel. Perhaps she could leave that way, instead of being lifted through the crevice? Or perhaps it was only a cavity that led to another enclosed space. Even if it did lead out, it might become too low for her to use, or be miles long and take her somewhere she would not recognize. It would also be dark and she didn’t have any light with her. No. Better to stick to their original solution, even if she dreaded the moment she would have to squeeze through the narrow, sharp gap again. For sure it would cost her another nasty cut to the hip. The first one was still throbbing. Oh well. At least it would be over in a moment, and cuts healed. She knew that better than most.

The important thing was that the little boy was out and safe.

Presently, the rope was thrown to her. She wrapped it around her waist and chest much as she had done for Gunnar, tied the knot securely and placed her foot in the loop. The two brothers would be strong enough to haul her up but, unlike the little boy had done, she decided she would put her feet on the wall while they did. It would stop her from dangling helplessly in mid-air.

“I’m ready!” she called, taking a firm hold on the rope.

There. She would be out in no time at all.

It all happened in the blink of an eye.

One moment Eyja was climbing, and everything was going well. The next, Moon felt a jolt, and the rope went down a few inches, as if someone had tugged on it. When he heard a dull thud, he understood what had happened. A piece of rock had been dislodged by the rubbing of the rope over the ledge and fallen down.

Right where Eyja was.

Holding on for dear life, he approached the hole carefully. Was the whole thing about to crumble under his feet? “Eyja!” he shouted, looking over the edge.

No answer. She was dangling limply, suspended by the rope she had been smart enough to wrap around her chest. It was a frightening sight but at least she hadn’t fallen flat on her back.

“Lower her down!” he cried to his brother. “Gently.” The last thing he wanted was for her to hit the bottom hard and damage herself further.

They soon felt the rope slacken, indicating she was now lying at the bottom of the crevice. He knelt by the edge again and peered inside.

“Eyja!” he called again, his voice little more than a terrified bark.

Nothing.

She was lying on the soft leaves, utterly still, arms flayed, legs akimbo. The stone hitting her skull had knocked her cold and now... Now he didn’t know if she was still alive. Fear such as he had never known gripped his guts. Even when he’d faced the invading Norse army he had not felt this icy cold in his middle.

“We have to get to her! Now!”

Elwyn put a hand over his shoulder. “We can’t. You know we can’t fit through the crack. If we could, I would have gone down there myself to get Gunnar.”

“We can make it bigger. If it’s falling apart anyway, it shouldn’t be too difficult. We could?—”

“No. We cannot risk having any of the falling rocks hitting her.”

His brother was right. Of course, he was right. They could not afford to hurt her if there was any chance she was still alive, they could not bury her under the rubble falling from the ledge.

Moon tore at his hair in powerlessness. How had it come to this? Only earlier this afternoon they had been in the clearing together, locked in the most intimate of embraces, and now he was wondering if she was still breathing. What would he do if she was dead? How would he face her family? How would he bear it?

“We have to do something!” he cried out. “We can’t just stand there!”

“Why don’t you use the other entrance to get to the girl?”

For a moment Moon didn’t understand why Elwyn’s voice had become so nasal. Then the meaning of the words hit him. “What do you mean? What other entrance?”

He turned and found himself face-to-face with a stranger. Of course, he had spoken in the nasal voice. But where on earth had he sprung from? And who was he?

“Forgive me,” the man said before Moon could ask any of the questions jostling in his mind. “I could not help overhearing you and it seems to me that you?—”

“You know of another way of accessing the cave, then?” Elwyn cut in.

“Oh, aye, though not many do, I daresay.” The man chuckled as if the situation was amusing. It wasn’t, not in the least. “I know that because one of my son’s goats got herself trapped in that very hole one day. It was his prized beast so naturally we wanted to?—”

“Will you show us where the entrance is?” It was Moon’s turn to interrupt him. He was not even remotely interested in the goat right now. He just wanted to go to Eyja.

“Of course. It is well hidden but my memory doesn’t fail me.”

They followed the man down the slope and round the hillock. Moon was doing his best not to let his impatience show. It was not his fault the man moved at the pace of a snail, as he was old enough to be his grandfather, but still, he could feel his nerves slowly being ripped to shreds. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, they stopped in front of an unassuming boulder.

“Here. If you move the vines and brambles, you will access the tunnel. It’s been years since anyone has used it by the looks of things, but with luck it will still be clear.”

The two brothers started to tear the vegetation apart, heedless of the thorns clawing at their flesh. Against all odds they had been allowed a way to get to Eyja. It was all that mattered.

“Will I be able to stand to get to where my friend is?” Moon asked the man when the way was finally clear. It would be of little use if he had to crawl to reach Eyja, for then how would he get her out? He could not shove her or drag her through a tunnel for yards on end.

The man cackled. Moon almost snarled at him. Why the hell did he think this was amusing? “A strapping lad like you will have to stoop in a few places, for sure, but you should be fine. Even better, you will see where you’re going as it is not so long and rather straight. There’s only a short section in the middle where you might have to grope around to find your way.”

Elwyn nodded to him. “Will you be able to carry her on your own? Shall I come with you?”

“No.” He would get her out, if it killed him. “You stay here with Gunnar.”

Without wasting another moment, Moon ran inside. It seemed to take him forever and he did have to stoop in places and grope around in the middle of the tunnel, as the man had warned, but eventually he found himself in the small chamber.

“Eyja!” he cried, falling to his knees next to her.

Her position was still as unnatural as that of a dislocated skeleton. She hadn’t moved an inch the whole time it had taken him to reach her. Panicked, he brought his face to her mouth and nose and felt her breath against his cheek. Alive, thank the gods. He was only very marginally reassured, however, because she was in a pitiful state. There was a deep cut to the side of her head and her dress was ripped at the hip, the skin underneath, torn and bleeding.

“Eyja!” he repeated urgently. How long had she been unconscious now? Too long for comfort. “Can you hear me? Imp, wake up. Please. Now is not the moment to be contrary, do you hear? Just... wake up!”

He carried on shaking her by the shoulder, careful not to jolt her too much. After a moment, she started stirring.

“Moon?”

Relief almost floored him. She was not dead. She could talk. She had recognized him. Perhaps he could start to hope. “Hush. Don’t talk. I’ll get you out of here. I will carry you and we’ll get you home. Everything will be fine. I’m here.”

Gently, he lifted her into his arms. His heart skipped a beat when she did not protest at this treatment. The usually brash, indomitable woman lay against his chest as calmly as a sleeping babe. Oh, this was not good. What would he not give in this moment to have her swat his arm or snarl at him the way she often did!

Without a word, he entered the tunnel again. His progress was much slower than he would have liked, as it he didn’t want to risk knocking her against the walls and he had to feel for the way with an extended leg in the dark section. But still he plodded on.

“When we get out of here I swear I’m never going to?—”

He stopped, not quite knowing what he had meant to say.

By the time they exited into the light again, he found a horse and cart waiting for them. Elwyn had cajoled the old man, who didn’t live far, into lending them what they needed to take Eyja back to the village. Grateful beyond words, for he wanted to get her seen by the healer as soon as possible, Moon settled her in the back, holding her securely in his lap while his brother drove on.

Once they were off, he allowed the back of his head to rest against the side of the cart and let out a long, shuddering breath. What had just happened?

Life with Eyja, always somewhat unpredictable, had gone downright hectic of late and he could hardly keep up. In the past month, they had walked to the other end of the country, faced an army of invaders, fought and survived a battle to the death, shared intimacies only lovers shared and almost been forced to wed.

Today had been another example of how things went between them. One moment he was teaching her how to throw stones with a sling, the next he was emptying all he had into her mouth. Then, before he’d had time to recover from the shattering release, he’d had to watch her rescue his nephew and almost die in the process.

No one he knew could have made him experience such a dizzying series of events in such short a time and he wasn’t sure how his heart was supposed to deal with it all. The imp might well lead him to an early grave at this rate.

Everything had been turned on its head and now he didn’t know what to do or think.

In the last few weeks he had discovered someone he had known all his life. He’d seen her in a man’s garb and, ironically, it had made him realize that she was more woman than all his other conquests put together, more fascinating, more essential to him. Lovers came and went, but she was the only constant. He’d started bedding women some ten years ago but she had been there from the beginning. It struck him that he wanted her to be there till the end as well.

Being with her was as natural as breathing, soothing, as in her presence he didn’t have to pretend or hide what he thought. She knew him for the man he was, and still liked him. This acceptance seemed like the greatest gift anyone had ever given him. With her, there was no calculation, no constant efforts, no pretence, just pleasure and peace of mind.

His hold around her tightened.

She had to make it, she simply had to.