"I sent for you on needful matters," she began again. "I die here--I!--in
this black house, in a bleak island, far from all decency and proper ways
of man; and now my treasure must be left. Small pleasure have I had of
it, and leave it with the less!" cried she. "Good woman, as the saying is, needs must," says Finnward, for he was
nettled with that speech. "For that I called you," quoth Thorgunna. "In these two chests are much
wealth and things greatly to be desired. I wish my body to be laid in
Skalaholt in the new church, where I trust to hear the mass-priests
singing over my head so long as time endures. To that church I will you
to give what is sufficient, leaving your conscience judge of it. My
scarlet cloak with the silver, I will to that poor fool your wife. She
longed for it so bitterly, I may not even now deny her. Give her the
brooch as well. I warn you of her; I was such as she, only wiser; I warn
you, the ground she stands upon is water, and whoso trusts her leans on
rottenness. I hate her and I pity her. When she comes to lie where I
lie--"  There she broke off. "The rest of my goods I leave to your black-
eyed maid, young Asdis, for her slim body and clean mind. Only the
things of my bed, you shall see burned." "It is well," said Finnward. "It may be well," quoth she, "if you obey. My life has been a wonder to
all and a fear to many. While I lived none thwarted me and prospered. See to it that none thwart me after I am dead. It stands upon your
safety." "It stands upon my honour," quoth Finnward, "and I have the name of an
honourable man." "You have the name of a weak one," says Thorgunna. "Look to it, look to
it, Finnward. Your house shall rue it else." "The rooftree of my house is my word," said Finnward. "And that is a true saying," says the woman. "See to it, then. The
speech of Thorgunna is ended." With that she turned her face against the wall and Finnward left her. The same night, in the small hours of the clock, Thorgunna passed. It
was a wild night for summer, and the wind sang about the eaves and clouds
covered the moon, when the dark woman wended. From that day to this no
man has learned her story or her people's name; but be sure the one was
stormy and the other great. She had come to that isle, a waif woman, on
a ship; thence she flitted, and no more remained of her but her heavy
chests and her big body. In the morning the house women streaked and dressed the corpse. Then
came Finnward, and carried the sheets and curtains from the house, and
caused build a fire upon the sands. But Aud had an eye on her man's
doings. "And what is this that you are at?" said she. So he told her. "Burn the good sheets!" she cried. "And where would I be with my two
hands? No, troth," said Aud, "not so long as your wife is above ground!" "Good wife," said Finnward, "this is beyond your province. Here is my
word pledged and the woman dead I pledged it to. So much the more am I
bound. Let me be doing as I must, goodwife." "Tilly-valley!" says she, "and a fiddlestick's end, goodman! You may
know well about fishing and be good at shearing sheep for what I know;
but you are little of a judge of damask sheets. And the best word I can
say is just this," she says, laying hold of one end of the goods, "that
if ye are made up to burn the plenishing, you must burn your wife along
with it." "I trust it will not go so hard," says Finnward, "and I beg you not to
speak so loud and let the house folk hear you." "Let them speak low that are ashamed!" cries Aud. "I speak only in
reason." "You are to consider that the woman died in my house," says Finnward,
"and this was her last behest. In truth, goodwife, if I were to fail, it
is a thing that would stick long in my throat, and would give us an ill
name with the neighbours." "And you are to consider," says she, "that I am your true wife and worth
all the witches ever burnt, and loving her old husband"--here she put her
arms about his neck. "And you are to consider that what you wish to do
is to destroy fine stuff, such as we have no means of replacing; and that
she bade you do it singly to spite me, for I sought to buy this bedding
from her while she was alive at her own price; and that she hated me
because I was young and handsome." "That is a true word that she hated you, for she said so herself before
she wended," says Finnward. "So that here is an old faggot that hated me, and she dead as a bucket,"
says Aud; "and here is a young wife that loves you dear, and is alive
forby"--and at that she kissed him--"and the point is, which are you to
do the will of?" The man's weakness caught him hard, and he faltered. "I fear some hurt
will come of it," said he. There she cut in, and bade the lads tread out the fire, and the lasses
roll the bed-stuff up and carry it within. "My dear," says he, "my honour--this is against my honour." But she took his arm under hers, and caressed his hand, and kissed his
knuckles, and led him down the bay. "Bubble-bubble-bubble!" says she,
imitating him like a baby, though she was none so young. "Bubble-bubble,
and a silly old man! We must bury the troll wife, and here is trouble
enough, and a vengeance! Horses will sweat for it before she comes to
Skalaholt; 'tis my belief she was a man in a woman's habit. And so now,
have done, good man, and let us get her waked and buried, which is more
than she deserves, or her old duds are like to pay for. And when that is
ended, we can consult upon the rest." So Finnward was but too well pleased to put it off. The next day they set forth early for Skalaholt across the heaths. It
was heavy weather, and grey overhead; the horses sweated and neighed, and
the men went silent, for it was nowhere in their minds that the dead wife
was canny. Only Aud talked by the way, like a silly sea-gull piping on a
cliff, and the rest held their peace. The sun went down before they were
across Whitewater; and the black night fell on them this side of
Netherness. At Netherness they beat upon the door. The goodman was not
abed nor any of his folk, but sat in the hall talking; and to them
Finnward made clear his business. "I will never deny you a roof," said the goodman of Netherness. "But I
have no food ready, and if you cannot be doing without meat, you must
e'en fare farther." They laid the body in a shed, made fast their horses, and came into the
house, and the door was closed again. So there they sat about the
lights, and there was little said, for they were none so well pleased
with their reception. Presently, in the place where the food was kept,
began a clattering of dishes; and it fell to a bondman of the house to go
and see what made the clatter. He was no sooner gone than he was back
again; and told it was a big, buxom woman, high in flesh and naked as she
was born, setting meats upon a dresser. Finnward grew pale as the dawn;
he got to his feet, and the rest rose with him, and all the party of the
funeral came to the buttery-door.