Rise of the Warrior of Everfen

Chapter 48: Family, Love, and Freedom

"Right here?"

"No, slide it over a little bit, closer to the bed but-"

"Erinne, you realize it's going to have to be moved when you're in labor, right? Cold Hammer can't squeeze past this to be next to you if it's in the way."

"Ugh, fine, fine, leave it there. After the baby comes we'll move it closer. I want to be able to reach him easily...and I don't want him that close to the window either. It's too drafty and he'll catch a cold."

Lohke chuckled and finally released his hold on the edge of the cradle Cold Hammer had built. It rocked back and forth gently as he let it go, awaiting the arrival of her child. She stared at it now, uncertainty filling her. What if she lost her son? What if she had no child to lay in the cradle at night, rocking him to sleep?

She shook her head, trying to dislodge those gut wrenching thoughts and focused on what Lohke was saying to her. She understood now why the Ancestors had chosen to tell her this, it was truly the way to torture her, to punish her for brazenly speaking to them. It broke her heart every day.

"Is this my punishment?"

"What?" She hadn't been paying attention to Lohke at all despite her best efforts. Had she accidentally mentioned her punishment out loud?

"To move all your things around? This is how you get back at me for sending Cold Hammer away."

"I can think of several ways to punish you and this is hardly it, Lohke." She was strangely sincere in her answer and he must've heard it in her tone.

"I am sorry, Sheobulf," he began and she threw up a hand to silence him. She understood Cold Hammer had a duty, but she was still angry. Lohke couldn't even understand the full extent of her anger and fears because she didn't dare tell him her prophecy, that one day she would lose her son. She didn't know when or how. Perhaps they meant in the womb, perhaps stillborn, perhaps thirty years from now. How was she to know?

"I want that shelf out." She pointed and when he followed her indication, she quickly wiped at her tears that had sprang up suddenly. She didn't think he saw them.

"It's a perfectly good shelf."

"There were rats all over it when we got here. It's got a hole on the bottom corner." She called as he lifted the old shelf effortlessly and walked out the door. He'd argued with her that the old shelf was perfectly fine, no need to replace it but she'd demanded a new one and, since Cold Hammer was no longer available, he had to do it. He'd grumbled good naturedly and made her a new shelf, but swore he was taking the old one home.

She could see him through the open shutter window as he dropped one and picked up the other and returned. It was so easy moving things with an orc around. Nukbrik used to let her struggle to do everything on her own.

"See? If you hadn't sent my mate away you wouldn't be doing all this work."

He laughed. "I'll never hear the end of that one."

"Til the day you die." She examined the shelf as he set it down. "That looks good. Thank you."

"You don't have to thank me, we are family, this is what we do for each other." He turned to face her. "Especially our expecting mothers. The children they bear are our future."

"Indeed. Perhaps I'll have a dozen more so you can put in more work around here."

"Ha." He wiped his hands off on his pants and moved to the table sitting down. In a way, she was glad he was back from his business at the neighboring clans. It'd taken him a week. She'd spent the time with Kitchka, the twins, and one night Chigun had stayed with her to keep her company. Lohke had made certain they understood she was not to be left alone in case the baby came. Now that he was home, he'd spent the last three days with her. "Do you have everything you need for the baby?"