Viking Ecstasy Read Online Free PDF Page B

thing that she was absolutely certain of was that occasionally Tabor's tone became low, resonating with a confidence and warmth that touched Tanaka deep within her own being in a private and tender place. The tone seemed to imply that whomever Tabor chose to protect would be protected for life. No harm could ever come to anyone under Tabor's protection. It whispered this —and something more: that enemies of Tabor died harsh, violent deaths.
    As they headed back to the shelter Tabor shared with his men, Tanaka wondered whether she could continue to receive protection from this great Viking leader without having to share her body with him in return.
    ❧
    Ingmar the Savage looked over the high wall surrounding Hedeby, standing atop the small, solid-roofed structure that was populated mostly by women who traded passion for financial survival. There were many ships at anchor near the sea entrance to the Danish trading port, but those boats didn't interest him. Ingmar was looking for the large square blue and white sails and the high wolfs head frontpiece that so clearly defined his raiding boats.
    If his younger brother Hugh had followed the instructions and plans Ingmar had devised, within hours Tabor would be nothing more than a memory of troubles that once plagued him. If. . .
    The trouble was that Hugh had a habit of creating his own battle plans, and thinking had never been one of his strengths. He lacked Ingmar's size, power, and cunning. But what he lacked he made up for with savagery, a lust for cruelty, and a willingness to commit any heinous crime against humanity he deemed necessary. As such, he had the skills to support Ingmar if he were to rule the Scandinavian seas, since every captain needs a mate to carry out his orders. But Hugh's inability to understand his limitations made it impossible for Ingmar to put complete faith in his brother.
    "What is so interesting out there?" an intoxicated woman of questionable virtue asked from the top rung of the ladder that led to the roof. "There's more to look at down here."
    Ingmar examined the woman. She needed a bath and smelled of soured wine. When she ran a hand suggestively up and down her side, he scowled. On principle, he never paid a woman to have sex with him. If a woman didn't want to sleep with him, he forced her; he never paid. That was for powerless men who were not in control of their own lives.
    "Leave me, woman, or I'll make you suffer for disturbing my concentration."
    The woman instantly disappeared from view. Ingmar turned his attention back to the water, looking for the approaching boats that signified the return of his fleet . . . and the first stage of the total destruction of Tabor.

Chapter 4

    T anaka could tell that Tabor was disturbed by the postponement of his meeting with Ingmar. He was not a talkative man even under the most favorable conditions; since receiving the request from Ingmar's servant that their meeting wait until dawn, Tabor had been stony in his silence.
    "He drinks much," Tanaka said quietly, kneeling on a thick wool blanket near the fire in the center of the hut. "Perhaps he has had so much wine that he is afraid."
    Tabor cast Tanaka a sideways glance. It surprised him that she could know him for such a short period of time and yet be able to read his thoughts and moods with startling accuracy. Her grasp of his language — though she spoke with an accent — shocked him, too; and he wondered whether she had really learned it during her captivity with Ingmar as she had claimed.
    "Sometimes you speak like a witch-woman," Tabor said, slowly twisting the handle of the double-bladed dagger between his palms. "Perhaps you know more than you say?"
    Tanaka shook her head, sending her damp, unbound hair back and forth over her shoulders. "No, I am no witch from the underworld. I do not pretend to see into your heart, but to look into your eyes is to see a man who is thinking many thoughts . . . troubling thoughts."
    A grin pulled up the