By the strength of hands they drove the keel against the seas, and
with skill and courage Eyolf won upon the skerry and climbed up, There
sat his father dead; and this was the first vengeance of Thorgunna
against broken faith. It was a sore job to get the corpse on board, and a sorer yet to bring it
home before the rolling seas. But the lad Eyolf was a lad of promise,
and the lads that pulled for him were sturdy men. So the break-faith's
body was got home, and waked, and buried on the hill. Aud was a good
widow and wept much, for she liked Finnward well enough. Yet a bird sang
in her ears that now she might marry a young man. Little fear that she
might have her choice of them, she thought, with all Thorgunna's fine
things; and her heart was cheered. Now, when the corpse was laid in the hill, Asdis came where Aud sat
solitary in hall, and stood by her awhile without speech. "Well, child?" says Aud; and again "Well?" and then "Keep us holy, if you
have anything to say, out with it!" So the maid came so much nearer, "Mother," says she, "I wish you would
not wear these things that were Thorgunna's." "Aha," cries Aud. "This is what it is? You begin early, brat! And who
has been poisoning your mind? Your fool of a father, I suppose." And
then she stopped and went all scarlet. "Who told you they were yours?" she asked again, taking it all the higher for her stumble. "When you are
grown, then you shall have your share and not a day before. These things
are not for babies." The child looked at her and was amazed. "I do not wish them," she said. "I wish they might be burned." "Upon my word, what next?" cried Aud. "And why should they be burned?" "I know my father tried to burn these things," said Asdis, "and he named
Thorgunna's name upon the skerry ere he died. And, O mother, I doubt
they have brought ill luck." But the more Aud was terrified, the more she would make light of it. Then the girl put her hand upon her mother's. "I fear they are ill come
by," said she. The blood sprang in Aud's face. "And who made you a judge upon your
mother that bore you?" cried she. "Kinswoman," said Asdis, looking down, "I saw you with the brooch." "What do you mean? When? Where did you see me?" cried the mother. "Here in the hall," said Asdis, looking on the floor, "the night you
stole it." At that Aud let out a cry. Then she heaved up her hand to strike the
child. "You little spy!" she cried. Then she covered her face, and
wept, and rocked herself. "What can you know?" she cried. "How can you
understand, that are a baby, not so long weaned? He could--your father
could, the dear good man, dead and gone! He could understand and pity,
he was good to me. Now he has left me alone with heartless children! Asdis," she cried, "have you no nature in your blood? You do not know
what I have done and suffered for them. I have done--oh, and I could
have done anything! And there is your father dead. And after all, you
ask me not to use them? No woman in Iceland has the like. And you wish
me to destroy them? Not if the dead should rise!" she cried. "No, no,"
and she stopped her ears, "not if the dead should rise, and let that end
it!" So she ran into her bed-place, and clapped at the door, and left the
child amazed. But for all Aud spoke with so much passion, it was noticed that for long
she left the things unused. Only she would be locked somewhile daily in
her bed-place, where she pored on them and secretly wore them for her
pleasure. Now winter was at hand; the days grew short and the nights long; and
under the golden face of morning the isle would stand silver with frost. Word came from Holyfell to Frodis Water of a company of young men upon a
journey; that night they supped at Holyfell, the next it would be at
Frodis Water; and Alf of the Fells was there, and Thongbrand Ketilson,
and Hall the Fair. Aud went early to her bed-place, and there she pored
upon these fineries till her heart was melted with self-love. There was
a kirtle of a mingled colour, and the blue shot into the green, and the
green lightened from the blue, as the colours play in the ocean between
deeps and shallows: she thought she could endure to live no longer and
not wear it. There was a bracelet of an ell long, wrought like a serpent
and with fiery jewels for the eyes; she saw it shine on her white arm and
her head grew dizzy with desire. "Ah!" she thought, "never were fine
lendings better met with a fair wearer." And she closed her eyelids, and
she thought she saw herself among the company and the men's eyes go after
her admiring. With that she considered that she must soon marry one of
them and wondered which; and she thought Alf was perhaps the best, or
Hall the Fair, but was not certain, and then she remembered Finnward
Keelfarer in his cairn upon the hill, and was concerned. "Well, he was a
good husband to me," she thought, "and I was a good wife to him. But
that is an old song now." So she turned again to handling the stuffs and
jewels. At last she got to bed in the smooth sheets, and lay, and
fancied how she would look, and admired herself, and saw others admire
her, and told herself stories, till her heart grew warm and she chuckled
to herself between the sheets. So she shook awhile with laughter; and
then the mirth abated but not the shaking; and a grue took hold upon her
flesh, and the cold of the grave upon her belly, and the terror of death
upon her soul. With that a voice was in her ear: "It was so Thorgunna
sickened." Thrice in the night the chill and the terror took her, and
thrice it passed away; and when she rose on the morrow, death had
breathed upon her countenance. She saw the house folk and her children gaze upon her; well she knew why! She knew her day was come, and the last of her days, and her last hour
was at her back; and it was so in her soul that she scarce minded. All
was lost, all was past mending, she would carry on until she fell. So
she went as usual, and hurried the feast for the young men, and railed
upon her house folk, but her feet stumbled, and her voice was strange in
her own ears, and the eyes of the folk fled before her. At times, too,
the chill took her and the fear along with it; and she must sit down, and
the teeth beat together in her head, and the stool tottered on the floor. At these times, she thought she was passing, and the voice of Thorgunna
sounded in her ear: "The things are for no use but to be shown," it said. "Aud, Aud, have you shown them once? No, not once!" And at the sting of the thought her courage and strength would revive,
and she would rise again and move about her business. Now the hour drew near, and Aud went to her bed-place, and did on the
bravest of her finery, and came forth to greet her guests. Was never
woman in Iceland robed as she was. The words of greeting were yet
between her lips, when the shuddering fell upon her strong as labour, and
a horror as deep as hell.