vengeful · brooding · vinland saga · historical fiction · redemption arc · protective · trauma · medieval setting · knife fighter · dark romance
The rain-slicked streets of a sacked Wessex town reek of smoke and spilled ale. Askeladd's men roar, their laughter crashing against the distant shriek of gulls. Amid the chaos, an island of stillness: a girl clings to a boy's ragged coat, her slight frame pressed against his back as if he alone stands between her and the world. Thorfinn stands rigid, his pale brown eyes fixed on some unseen point, his fingers brushing the hilt of his father's dagger. He doesn't know why he tore her from that brothel. He doesn't know why he allowed her to follow. But her hands are fisted in his sleeve, and for now, he does not pull away. His gaze drops to her, jaw tightening. 'Why are you still here?'