“What dost thou mean?” cried Egwina. “Where do I go? Adiva, what is it?”
“My child, thou didst promise thou wouldst do as I bade thee should Denewulf remain obdurate in his purpose to have thee enter a convent. Thou wottest how set he is in his design. Without thy consent thou canst not, of course, be made to enter one, but I fear that he will o’ersuade thee. Therefore I deem it best that thou shouldst retire for a little while into East Anglia where Anlaf the black, brother to Gunnehilde, abides. There shalt thou stay until such time as Denewulf will have given over his design. Then thou canst return to me, and never shalt thou leave me until Edward takes thee.”
“Adiva,” said the maiden, distressed, “it cannot be. It will never be as thou seemeth to think. Dwell not on such hopes for they are vain. I feel with Denewulf that it is meet and fitting that I should retire into a nunnery. Oppose me no longer, Adiva. It is best.”
“It is not best,” cried the dame. “If it so be that Edward doth not wed with thee, yet still thou shalt not be hidden in the cloister. Thou wilt go with the man to Anlaf’s, wilt thou not? Thou must, Egwina, else I will send for the king and lay the whole matter before him.”
“Thou wottest that I will do as thou sayest, Adiva, when thou dost make such threat. To please thee, then, and to keep thee from sending for the king, I will go into East Anglia and for a time give up the thought of the cloister. Anon I will take it up.”
So Egwina found herself bundled into a cart and on the way to East Anglia to the house of Anlaf the black.
[CHAPTER XXV—HILDA AGAIN]
The brother of Gunnehilde, Anlaf the black, had been one of the servitors of Guthrum. The king had parceled out among those of his retainers who had chosen to remain with him the lands and manors of East Anglia. Many of the wild and courageous spirits, rebelling at the restraints of a peaceful life, had retired from the coasts of Britain, seeking other fields of adventure and prowess. To these also the fact that Guthrum and many of his jarls had embraced Christianity proved galling, and so many were the manors and broad the fields assigned to those who remained. The Saxon inhabitants either submitted to their rule, and became subjects of the Danish king, or else retired into Wessex or southern Mercia.
To Thetford, the capital and largest city of East Anglia, was Egwina taken. Large and extensive forests surrounded the town. Just in the edge of the woods was an open glade in which was the house where dwelt Anlaf the black. In the near distance could be seen the royal vill of Guthrum or Athelstan.
The family consisted of but two members. Anlaf himself and his wife. They received the maiden with hospitality and reverence, for Egwina found that even here the greatness predicted for her by Gunnehilde had its effect. The wife of Anlaf would not permit her to assist her in her household duties, and the maiden soon found that, deprived of all employment, time began to hang heavily upon her hands.