Fire and Ice

Chapter 6



Juliana’s nerves were so on edge when she was close to this man that she felt like running away. She had never felt like this with Erik or with any other man she had known, but knew that there was a dangerous attraction between Ulfric and herself. It was almost tangible and that frightened her. But how could she explain why she kept her distance without encouraging his attentions further?

She was so aware of his presence that her ears were ringing and her mind could not concentrate on his words. She was surprised he could not hear her heart beating against her ribcage. He still held her hand and lifted it once more to his lips but she pulled it away, causing his eyes to change to that cold steel grey she had seen so many times in his anger.

“Why do you hate me so much, Juliana? What have I done to you that you should reject me so?”

“I... I do not hate you sire, but I will never forgive the Normans for their callous and cruel treatment of my father. I loved him and my brother so much, and my father in particular was taken from us in such a cowardly and dishonourable way.”

Ulfric watched as tears began to fall onto her pale cheeks and it took him all his effort not to pull her into his embrace and whisper words of love in her ear. He wanted so much to comfort her and tell her that he would look after her forever, but old habits die hard and he still did not trust women, especially soft, beautiful women who cried out their heartbreak. Instead he said, “Juliana, I am not a Norman and I certainly did not kill your father. As for your brother, he died an honourable death in battle and you should be proud of him.”

“Proud! You think I should be proud of Aldred? Who are you to tell me who to be proud of? I loved my brother but where does pride get you when you’re lying dead on a battlefield and your loved ones are grieving? Nowhere, absolutely nowhere! Don’t tell me how to mourn my family – I’ll do as I please. As for your attempts at seduction – well, I’ve never given you any encouragement in that direction or sought your attentions. My mother and father taught me to expect marriage from a man, not whoredom!”

With those words ringing in his ears she rose to her feet and gave Ulfric a look of pure contempt before turning her back on him and blindly running further into the woods. Ulfric sat still and wondered what had happened in those short moments to turn Juliana into an angry ball of fire. He shook his head once again at his utter lack of tact and leaned back against the recently vacated tree. He could have sworn she was softening to him when he kissed her fingers. He had felt the energy flow between them, seen the spark in her eyes and felt her tremble at his touch. Could it be she was afraid of him? Perhaps Thorvald was wrong in his assumption and it was fear that showed in her eyes and not the attraction he had hoped for.

He sat for a long while trying to work out how things always went wrong for him when it came to Juliana. He was so engrossed in his musings that he did not notice the darkening sky, or the wind beginning to pick up. The previous summer days had been too perfect and now a downpour was about to happen and Juliana had run off. He presumed she had gone back to the Hall by another route and decided to seek shelter himself until the rain finished. Thunder began to rumble and lightning flashed as he entered the Hall and looked around, only to see de Gant asleep at the table and the servants busy with their work. Hilde was supervising the cooking of a pig hanging on a large spit over the fire. The young boy who was turning the beast looked over as he approached warning Hilde of Ulfric’s presence.

“My lady, Hilde,” he said to get her attention. “Is your daughter in the Hall?

Hilde dropped a curtsey, “I haven’t seen her, my lord, but she may be in your chamber.”

Thorvald entered at that moment and brushed the rain from his tunic.

“The thunder is unsettling the horses, Ulfric, but I’ve managed to settle them for now.”

“Good,” was his curt reply and he flew up the stairs to find Juliana and hope she had recovered her good temper. He opened their chamber door but one glance was enough to inform him that she was not there. He searched her mother’s room too but there was no sign of her. He leaned on the window ledge and looked out through the rain for any glimpse of her but again there was no sign. He went to the big bed and lay down thinking of shining red hair framing a beautiful face and bright green eyes flecked with orange which sparked red when angry. His tiredness caught up with him and he fell asleep amid the thunder claps and lightning forks hoping Juliana would return soon.



***



Juliana was deep in the woods when the thunder and lightning began. The canopy of foliage from the trees helped shelter her from the downpour but as it became harder and the thunder grew louder she crouched down and looked for shelter somewhere else. There was a tree nearby which offered some cover as, unlike the others, it had a hollow trunk just big enough for her to crawl into and wait until the storm passed praying that the lightning would not strike. She hoped there would not be any woodland creatures seeking the same security as she squeezed into her temporary shelter.

After some jiggling and wriggling she managed to find a comfortable spot and relaxed. Thankfully the tree was not hollow all the way up and she looked out onto the woodland and as usual despite the rain and thunder it calmed her mood. Immediately, thoughts of Ulfric suffused her imagination and she wondered if he would come looking for her, and then decided that he would not after their latest argument. She wondered why they could never have a real conversation without it always turning into misunderstandings and hurt feelings. She tried to think rationally about why she always felt uncomfortable with him when they were alone and then had to admit to herself that she was nervous around him because she was attracted to him. If she let herself go to him then her reputation would be sullied and she would never find a husband from the nobility, she would always be thought of as Ulfric’s mistress, and any ensuing children would be illegitimate. That was not the life she had planned for herself. She would have married Erik and been happy if only Ulfric had not entered her life so dramatically, and she wondered why she could so easily dismiss her feelings for him. Tears began to roll down her cheeks as she realised that she liked Ulfric more than any man she had ever known. He had made her want him without even trying, but it was useless because all he needed was a mistress and had no interest in marriage. She had to give him credit for not forcing himself on her since he had arrived, when men like de Gant would have taken her forcibly. It was true that any other woman would have considered it a privilege to sleep with the new lord of the manor and she had noticed some of the younger servants looking at him coyly from under their lashes when they served him food. How would she feel if he took one of these girls to his bed? She felt sick at the thought.

Taking a deep breath she realised that in order to keep Ulfric happy she would have to give in but she would fight him for her honour at every opportunity. She would give in to his demands she knew that, but he would know that it was with reluctance on her part and she would not give herself fully until he married her. That was her plan - but how she would resist him until then she did not know.



***

Ulfric heard the door open and was on his feet with his sword drawn in a split second. He saw Juliana was wet through and shivering although whether through fright or fear he could not tell. Was it cold she felt in her body or fear she was going to be cut down?

“My lord, please, put down your sword. I am wet and cold from the storm and I need to change my clothes,” she said through chattering teeth.

Ulfric put his sword down at the side of the bed and went to call the servants to bring hot water for their mistress to wash but changed his mind and went in search of his men. Within half an hour he had returned but by this time she had dried herself as best she could. Her teeth were still chattering even though she had wrapped herself in her cloak. Ulfric began dragging a large keg which had been split lengthways down the middle into the centre of the room. He then instructed the servants to bring as much hot water as possible and fill the keg in order that Juliana could bathe.

She laughed when she saw how it rocked from side to side but he was not to be outdone and pushed the chest to one side and a large bench to the other to stop it moving. He then left her and went down to the Hall below finding Hilde stitching in front of the fire.

“Hilde, please see to your daughter before she catches her death of cold.”

Hilde flew up the stairs and entered the bedchamber and helped Juliana to step into the hot water. She lowered herself into the make-shift bath and laughed.

“This is marvellous, mother. I love this contraption Ulfric has made for me. You must try it.”

“No, daughter, I will wait and see how you are afterwards. Shall I bring you some soap?”

“Oh, luxury – yes please!”

Juliana soaped herself all over and Hilde washed her hair for her, shouting to the servants to bring fresh water and leave it outside the door. Afterwards, Juliana felt refreshed and cleaner than she had for a long time and vowed that she would use the bathing keg again. Hilde left her alone wrapped in animal furs and she began to drag her fingers through her hair to dry it, thinking how thoughtful Ulfric had been to think of such a wonderful thing.

A knock on the door brought her back from her musings and she opened it to find the servants waiting to empty the bath. They filled buckets and then dragged the keg away out of the room. Ulfric walked in when they had finished, anxiously looking to see if she had stopped shivering.



***



Juliana looked so relaxed when she smiled and held out her hand to him to sit beside her both of which he took to be a sign of encouragement.

“Did you enjoy your hot water bathe, Juliana?” he asked. “It must have been better than diving into a cold beck.”

“It was the most beautiful experience of my life, Ulfric, and I want to thank you for providing it for me. I was thinking that we could have something made that would stay here in the room and I could use it every day. Our carpenters both went to war with my father and have not returned, but I am hoping others will come to take their place. Perhaps we could ask in Lincoln if anyone would like to make their living here.”

“There are carpenters among my men. We need many skills within an army and carpentry is one of them. I’ll ask what they can devise. The keg was their idea but only a short term solution.”

“Then I am indebted to them for their skill,” she smiled.

Ulfric was acutely aware of her nakedness beneath her furs and looked into her eyes for a long moment, trying to gauge her mood. He took a cloth out of her hands which she had used to dry her hair and let it fall to the floor, leaving her wild red curls in disarray around her shoulders. He gasped at her beauty as her deep pink lips curved into a smile and her eyes softened as she met his gaze. He touched her hair and then cupped her face between his hands, his heart hammering against his chest as he moved towards her. She closed her eyes and parted her lips to receive his kiss and as their lips met for the first time a spark ignited a flame which could not be quenched by one kiss alone. He stood and pulled her up to stand in front of him, and felt her tremble in his arms as she sought to keep herself covered. He lowered his head for another kiss and felt one of her arms creep around his neck. He groaned aloud when she pushed herself against his body and he felt her curves through the fur. When she at last pulled away he looked at her questioningly.

“Juliana, you have bewitched me. Tell me again that you would rather sleep on the floor than share the comfort of my bed.”

“Sire,” she said, her voice languid with longing, “at this moment I care not where I sleep but I must ask you to take pity on my hunger and allow us to go down to our evening meal.”

“My hunger will not be satisfied until you come to me willingly, but I will allow that you need your strength,” his voice was husky with emotion.

Ulfric noticed that the black clouds of the storm had been overtaken by the darkness of night and they were indeed late for their meal. He moved away from her and stood by the open window, allowing his blood to cool.

“I’ll go downstairs and allow you time to dress. I don’t think I’d be able to control myself let alone de Gant if he saw you like that.” He smiled at her state of undress, even though the furs were held high and covering her; she smiled in return at his joke.



***



Downstairs in the hall Thorvald raised an eyebrow when he saw Ulfric’s brisk step as he descended the stairs. Hilde was in her place at the table and de Gant sat with his back to the fire, sucking his fingers clean after eating pork ribs. Alice came to the table to serve Ulfric and placed meat and vegetables before him but Hilde noticed her pallor and caught her arm as she made to move away.

“Are you ill, child?” she asked, but Alice shook her head and averted her face.

Hilde let her go but frowned, hoping that Alice was not coming down with a malady of some kind.

“Enjoy your nap, Ulfric?” Thorvald asked grinning from ear to ear.

“Indeed, it was very pleasant, thank you.”

“And the bath? Did my lady Juliana enjoy that?”

“Er... yes, she seemed to enjoy it very much.”

“Bath? What bath?” de Gant asked between mouthfuls of meat.

“Juliana felt unwell after being out in the rain so I organised a bath for her with hot water.”

“You indulge that girl too much, Ulfric. She is no longer the lady of this Hall but part of a conquered nation and should be treated as a servant at the very least.” He looked over to Hilde, “And why you allow that old hag to sit at the table and eat with us, I’ll never know. She should take her place in the kitchen with the rest of the slaves.”

Ulfric felt his anger rising and snapped, “You should hold your tongue at my table and if it doesn’t suit you to eat here with us, then I suggest you go and eat with your men outside and make your bed in the stables with the horses to warm you.”

De Gant threw a bone into the fire behind him but said nothing else. When he turned back his eyes were caught by a vision in a lilac gown. Juliana was walking down the stairs looking radiant, her hair coiled with ribbons of lilac and white. Her head rail held back a lilac veil matching the pale lilac shift which could be seen under the bodice of the gown.

Silence fell in the room as she reached the bottom of the stairs and Ulfric scrambled to his feet to escort her to the table. He was glowing with pride at his lady and Hilde was amazed as she noticed the intimate glances between the two. De Gant scowled and Thorvald smiled,

“Your bath appears to have agreed with you, my lady,” he said, looking questioningly at Ulfric.

“Thank you, Thorvald. I can recommend bathing in hot water rather than a cold beck. I might never go near it again,” she answered good-naturedly.

Ulfric looked meaningfully at de Gant, “Sir Richard, perhaps you could do with a dip in hot water too. It might relax you and make you smile as it has Juliana here.”

“He doesn’t need to bathe in hot water, Ulfric – he’s always in hot water with some woman’s husband!” Thorvald chortled, causing uproar at the table.

De Gant said nothing but his eyes were fixed on Juliana’s happy face. When she caught his glance he made a cursory bow before grabbing more meat from the trencher in front of him. Juliana stopped smiling and looked at her own trencher, picking out the tasty pieces of meat but saying nothing. His message had been clear that he would not forget her rejection and she shivered slightly as she watched him from under her eyelashes continuing to stare in her direction.

No one else had noticed their exchange and Ulfric was in high spirits thinking of the night to come. Thorvald picked up on his mood and sagas were told while they ate and drank. Hilde rose from the table and went in search of Alice who had been noticeable by her absence throughout their meal, another servant having taken her place to pour wine and ale, and to bring bread and meat when asked.

Hilde found Alice sitting outside enjoying the fresh evening air.

“Are you feeling unwell, Alice?” Hilde asked, hoping that her suspicions were unfounded.

Alice began to cry softly but then her shoulders shook with sobs, “I am having a child, my lady. I cannot stay here and let everyone see my shame. I don’t know what to do. My mother and father will not have me back like this - they would disown me if they knew.”

Hilde felt pity for the young servant girl and put her arm around her to give her comfort. “Alice, don’t worry about all that. I’ll speak with Juliana and she will speak to Ulfric. We may yet find a husband for you.”

Alice’s eyes opened in horror, “No, my lady, not de Gant – I don’t want to marry him. I hate him so much I could never lie with him again, even if he beat me senseless.”

“No, not de Gant, I wouldn’t see you with him. Let me speak to Juliana and we’ll see what we can do.” Hilde smiled and tried to encourage Alice to do the same, but she was too miserable to respond.