Beware of Jezebel

13. Regina

The great hall was busier than usual, but ever since Benedicta returned to the longhouse from her exile to her hut last summer, it rarely grew rowdy. Benedicta kept her gaze lowered while her thoughts ran. It had been a year since Freydis had gotten a grip on Ivar, a year since Benedicta (and entire Kattegat) saw Ivar at his worst. What would people think? Was she another Freydis? Will she make Ivar look weak, easily influenced by a second woman that came to his life? Will they hate their king, hate her, or grow worried and lose faith in him?

She heard Ivar strain as he stood up from his throne. He was smirking confidently as he observed the people.

"My dear friends, loyal warriors, and my fellow Norsemen!" Ivar's voice echoed through the hall, cutting through the chatter. The room gradually fell silent as all eyes turned to him.

"As promised, I have an announcement of great importance," he continued, his gaze briefly shifting to Benedicta, who sat beside him. She sat ramrod straight and kept a tight smile, not realising that her upbringing in Saxon court was beginning to show more and more.

"Your beloved healer, sister Mary, has renounced her vows. She left her god and reclaims her true name- Benedicta, by which you all shall address her from now," Benedicta was itching to interfere that she, in fact, did not renounce her faith. If anything, she prayed for God's help even more.

Ivar turned halfway towards her and continued, "All on her own, she had made herself queen of my people. And now, it is time to make her my queen."

After those words, Ivar surprised Benedicta greatly, as he took an unsteady step towards her, gently took her hand and raised it to his lips, placing a chaste kiss. The gesture was unusual and Ivar's eyes told her so- honest. The blues stared straight into her soul, and she quickly turned back to the people, hoping her careful smile held.

"In one moon's time, I will make this woman mine and marry her, and the gods will be witnesses," Ivar declared gleefully.

A hush settled over the hall and Benedicta felt the weight of everyone's eyes on her. As the silence lingered, Ivar's gaze swept across the room, gauging reactions, as did Benedicta's. To her relief, people didn't appear upset; rather, they seemed surprised. Shocked expressions painted the faces of the guests, their eyes flitting between Ivar and Benedicta. Hvitserk and Ubbe didn't look taken aback. Ivar must have told them, Benedicta thought. Torvi, who was standing very close to Ubbe, seemed curious. Thora had frozen with her cup mid-way to her mouth.

Rather dramatically, Hvitserk lift his horn and said, smiling, "Skol!"

Ivar grinned, looking at his brother. Benedicta noted that he was wearing the same smile like when his maneuver on the battlefield succeeded.

The tension evaporated when many shouts of Skol resounded. Benedicta shifted in her throne as she raised her chalice too. She swallowed the ale, which felt particularly sticky- despite the satisfaction of the public, she could sense a storm brewing. 

***

Viking wedding had been nothing like Benedicta could imagine. The ceremony happened three weeks ago, but the memory, and, frankly, the terror, was still fresh on her mind: she was sure the devil himself had risen from the ground when the priestess sprinkled her with blood. Currently, Benedicta was sitting on her throne in the longhouse. She wished to be in the woods, gathering herbs, but it was announced that unknown ships were spotted, and she had to wait for news. Ivar had just returned from the watch post.

"Saxons," he said simply. "But not enough of them for attack. We'll see what they want here."

Hvitserk came in first and said that there were three Saxon ships with men, but little cargo, and her Viking emissaries had returned with them. Not long after, Ubbe led in eight men, most of them of older age, and three emissaries she had sent four weeks ago. Ivar turned to Benedicta and waited for her opinion. She didn't need to study the men for long- she had been absent from England only for a year and a half, and the people didn't change much. Those standing in front of her had frequented the royal court often, being favored by the late King Aethelwulf. They all stood rather awkwardly, pressed in a group by the wall, eyeing Vikings uneasily and stealing glances at Benedicta, while then thralls carried in six heavy chests. Once the silence settled, one of the Saxons beckoned another to follow him and together, they unlocked and opened the chests.