"Well," he said curtly, "do you join me? Mind you, I would not give every man the chance, but you and yours are men."
Before I could say aught, and it was on my mind to tell the pirate what I thought of him, if I spent my last breath in doing it, the courtman who had spoken with me just now answered for himself.
"We do what the young jarl does," he said; "we follow him."
"The choice was whether you would follow me or not," answered Heidrek coldly; "I will have no leader but myself."
Some of his wilder followers cried out now that we were wasting time, and that an end should be made, while a sword or two were drawn among them. It was the way in which Heidrek's crew were wont to deal with captives when they had no hope of ransom from them. That I and my men should join such a crew was not to be thought of, if for a moment I had half wondered if I ought to save the lives of these courtmen of ours by yielding. Both I and they would be shamed, even as Dalfin had said.
So I made no answer, and Heidrek was turning away with a shrug of his broad shoulders, while the men were only waiting his word to end the affair. Then Asbiorn, whose face was white and pitying as he looked at us, gripped his father by the arm and faced him.
"I will not have it thus," he said hoarsely. "The men are brave men, and it were shame to slay them. Give them to me."
Heidrek laughed at him in a strange way, but the men yelled and made a rush at us, sword in hand. Whereon Asbiorn swung his round shield into place from off his shoulder, and gripped his light axe and faced them. It was the lightness of that axe which had spared me; but the men knew, and feared it and the skill of the wielder, and they shrank back.
"What, again?" said Heidrek. "I thought we had settled that question. What would you with them?"
"That is to be seen. Let me have them."