Chapter 11

Magnus and Eskil were sitting by themselves in the accounting room in the tower, and the topic they were discussing was not an easy one. It suited them that Arn was busy these days. He spent most of his time a short distance out on Lake Vänern, where he sawed blocks of ice shaped the same as building stones for walls. The ice blocks were pulled on a sledge back to Arnäs and stored in his ice cellar between layers of shavings from the carpentry shops. He had firmly announced that it had to be done now before the ice was too thin. It was just as well that he had this urgent task to do; it would have been hard to have this conversation if he were with them.

   Both Magnus and Eskil knew from their own experience that young men, and apparently also young women according to what they'd heard, were struck by temptations that could be rather difficult. This was part of life, and there was not much to be done about it other than wait for it to pass, like a head cold in the spring. Magnus recalled such things from his early youth, and as he thought back he also turned sentimental and confessed to Eskil that the woman who had been the first mistress of Arnäs, and mother to Eskil and Arn, at first had meant no more to him than a pair of beautiful chestnut horses or other fine acquisitions for the estate. But over time Sigrid had become more dear to him than anyone else. What Arn called love could grow with prudence if a couple lived well and sensibly together. When Magnus thought about it more closely, he'd noticed that Erika Joarsdotter had recently become fairer and easier to deal with too, and sometimes downright pleasant. At least it had never been as easy to have her in the house as now. That's how things went with what Arn called love.

   But this was the wisdom of an elder, which could not be transmitted in words to the younger man. It was meaningless to try and talk sense in such situations, because sense was beside the point. It was the same as telling someone who had just lost a kinsman and laid him in the ground that time heals all wounds. It was true but meaningless at a time when grief was at its worst.

   So what should they do with Arn and his talk about wanting to rush off to Husaby tomorrow and celebrate his betrothal ale?

   Eskil thought that cooler heads ought to prevail, which would be much easier when Arn was not present, since he was like a red-hot iron. There were certain things that spoke for the betrothal and other things that spoke against it. These things and nothing else had to be weighed like silver to ascertain in the end which weighed the most.

   Against Arn's proposal, more than anything else, was the fact that right now no one knew who would hold the power of king during the next two years. Nevertheless, as long as Karl Sverkersson was king, Algot Pålsson would have to be wary of binding his clan to the king's enemies, at least if he was a wise man. And for their own part it was also ill advised to unite by marriage with a clan that was an enemy of Knut Eriksson, who might well become king.

   On the positive side, Forsvik on the shore of Lake Vättern belonged to Arnäs, and they controlled the entire northern part of Western Götaland—the section south of Tiveden Forest where the trade route between four countries would be established. The weakest part was the stretch near Kinnekulle, where Algot's land began. If Magnus could acquire Kinnekulle and the shore of Lake Vänern south of there, it would be worth a great deal. And if an opportunity arose to make such a deal, Algot would be hardpressed to say no and might even be persuaded to give these lands as dowry, though the value was twice as much as was customary.

   It was inconceivable that this could be accomplished as long as Karl Sverkersson was alive. But Algot would be all the more amenable to doing business if Karl Sverkersson left this earthly life as swiftly as Knut Eriksson intended.

   That was the situation. As long as King Karl Sverkersson sat safely in his castle in the middle of Lake Vättern, there was nothing to be done. But if he departed this life, an important deal for Arnäs could be concluded at once.

   Eskil could see only one weakness in his calculation. It was the question of whether Birger Brosa and the clan ting might have other plans. That's what had happened when his own father Magnus had considered celebrating a wedding ale with either Cecilia or Katarina, for precisely the same reasons that they had just discussed. Instead, Erika Joarsdotter had been chosen, because the clan ting found that marriage more beneficial.

   But Magnus said that he hadn't heard mention of any plans of that sort. As things now stood, they had formed a good alliance with the Erik clan through Erika Joarsdotter. Knut did have a sister, whose name was Margareta, but she was already married to King Sverre of Norway.

   Since Magnus's own brother Birger Brosa was married to Brigida, who was the daughter of King Harald Gille of Norway, the Norwegian bond was very strong. No, right now Magnus could see no marriage that would be considered more important for Arnäs or for the clan than with either Katarina or Cecilia, it didn't matter which.

   It remained to decide who would convey their decision to Arn. The message was simple. As long as King Karl was alive there would be no betrothal ale.

   But though the words might be easy to formulate, it would be no easy task to say them to a young son or brother living in the fever or madness called love.

   Magnus ought to tell him, since he was Arn's father and the power over all wedding ales was rightfully his. Or perhaps Eskil should do it instead, since he was Arn's brother but had no power; he could not be talked out of it, but merely explain. For a while they twisted and turned this matter, like a tender joint of meat, and then decided that Eskil would be the one to tell Arn how matters stood.

A week before St. Tiburtius's Day, April 14th, when the ice still covered the lake but was beginning to soften, Knut Eriksson arrived at Arnäs without announcing himself in advance. He had traveled fast, accompanied only by Geir Erlendsen, the bard Orm Rögnvaldsen, and Berse the Strong. They had traveled far and wide in Western Götaland, where the bard had a chance to justify the good wages he was paid, and they had just come from Skara, where Knut had many eyes and ears. There they had purchased particularly good information from a man who had just left Karl Sverkersson's service at his castle out on Visingö in the middle of Lake Vättern.

   Knut didn't reveal the purpose of his visit other than to say that he was looking for Arn, whom he found moping about among house thralls in the cookhouses, a place and a situation hardly worthy of a man like Arn, in Knut Eriksson's opinion.

   To Arn's perplexity Knut immediately wanted to challenge him to an archery contest, so a target was made of straw bound together and set up in the castle courtyard. Arn didn't want to refuse, but he found no joy in this exercise. They set the target at a distance of forty paces, which Arn thought seemed too difficult for Knut, but that was what he ordered. They selected the best and strongest bows, and everyone at the estate gathered to watch, for they all knew that this might be the country's next king who was about to shoot arrows with one of the sons of Arnäs. And no one wanted to say afterward that he had failed to witness the contest.