Read Vanquished by the Viking for Free Online

day.”
    “Reinn!” a voice shouted from the other boat, just as Gunnar Geirsson appeared in a break between the shields.
    A huge man with hair the color of straw, he wore a heavy gray fur with a wolf’s head draped over one shoulder.
    Eva shivered at the sight of him, remembering the way he’d coldly taken over her home. Demanded her hand. Demeaned her father. He had killed more than he needed to in the battle, securing the keep by using fear as a weapon.
    “Gunnar, my forces wait nearby. I would keep this between us and not ask our men to wage a battle that is personal.”
    “What battle?” The blond behemoth laughed. “I have come to thank you for capturing my wayward wife. She will be punished for the trouble she’s caused, I assure you.”
    Eva could not find any of her usual courage. She had all she could do not to shrink away from the conquering invader even though a strip of sea separated the two vessels.
    Reinn, however, only appeared more determined. His hand tightened on the hilt of his ax. His chest leaned forward, as if he would leap right over the sides of the ships to tackle his sibling.
    “She is not your wife. Eva belongs to me.” His words sounded calmer than he looked, his jaw jutting. “I do not wish to battle my own brother, but I will if you threaten her in any way.”
    * * *
    Reinn did not fear his brother. He would not even fear his own death if not for Eva sitting vulnerable behind him.
    He cursed himself for not securing her earlier. But then, he did not imagine his brother’s desperation to rule her lands.
    He would have to defeat Gunnar to keep Eva safe.
    “Return her to me,” Gunnar ordered, his jaw flexing and his cheek ticking in a sign of annoyance that had been a habit since their boyhood days. “You may still fight for me without consequence for this betrayal, but if you do not put her on this ship immediately, you are no longer my kin.”
    A flag snapped in the breeze on the sail mast behind him, a banner in the Angle tradition with a gold dragon. Seeing this symbol of authority in a corrupt man’s hands steeled Reinn’s will, preparing him to fight for his family’s honor.
    “It seems we have not been kin for some time.” Reinn readied his ax, knowing the moment to act was upon him. “No brother of mine would send bloodthirsty hounds in pursuit of a defenseless woman.”
    He felt Eva’s gasp more than he heard it, her anxiety a palpable thing. He prayed she would seek the safety of shore.
    “You would let a faithless whore turn you against your family?” Gunnar’s lip curled in distaste. “I will treat this one no differently than any other female captive.”
    “I did not realize you’ve resorted to purposeful cruelty.” Reinn would not allow anyone else to suffer Gunnar’s overzealous bloodlust. He hefted his ax, brandishing it in the sun. “It is time to pay the price for preying on the weak.”
    Eva made a small sound in the back of her throat, a soft protest that tugged at his heart.
    He wanted to survive this for her. To hold her in his arms again. To ask her to wed him instead of informing her of the fact. He should have been kinder after what they’d shared, but he’d been focused on the battle to come.
    Gunnar leapt from the deck of his ship with a mighty warrior’s cry, landing in the shallows between them with a furious splash.
    * * *
    Eva scrambled backward in the faering as Reinn jumped overboard to follow his brother.
    Double axes raised, the weapons clanged together even before Reinn had fully landed. The sharp clank reverberated through her. Gunnar was broader in the chest, but his sword arm seemed hampered by the soaked wolf pelt around his shoulders. Reinn recovered quickly from his landing. He found his footing in the water while the men in the long ship lowered their shields to watch the contest.
    A smaller long ship had arrived in the cove, filled with more men and shields to witness the battle. Eva guessed they were Reinn’s men who