CHAPTER 21
The next Wednesday morning was a warm spring day, the sky full of sunshine and even the wind off the lake not too unbearably cold. The meadows were still all brown, dead grass, but a few birds were calling to each other cheerily.
My grandmother and I stood at the very edge of the promontory between the back of the cabin and the straight fall down to the lake below. The council was with us. Valki looked worn out from all the extra patrol and guard work he had done around Villmark since his sons, the Thors, went north. Brigida was as coldly aloof as always, but she clutched the head of a sturdy walking stick in her beringed hands.
That was a new addition. It was like everyone in the council had aged years just in the few months I had known them.
And that included Haraldr, the
