Affinity, p.1
Affinity, page 1
Affinity
The Viking Tales, Volume 4
W.J. May
Published by Dark Shadow Publishing, 2025.
This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
AFFINITY
First edition. February 15, 2025.
Copyright © 2025 W.J. May.
ISBN: 979-8227094339
Written by W.J. May.
Copyright @ 2025 by W .J. May
THIS E-BOOK OR PRINT is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book/paperback may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the arduous work of the author.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual person, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
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Copyright 2025 by W.J. May
Affinity, Bk 4 of the Viking Tales
Cover by: Book Cover by Design
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Have You Read the Kerrigan Series?
The Chronicles of Kerrigan
Book I - Rae of Hope is FREE!
BOOK TRAILER:
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How hard do you have to shake the family tree to find the truth about the past?
Fifteen year-old Rae Kerrigan never really knew her family's history. Her mother and father died when she was young and it is only when she accepts a scholarship to the prestigious Guilder Boarding School in England that a mysterious family secret is revealed.
Will the sins of the father be the sins of the daughter?
As Rae struggles with new friends, a new school and a star-struck forbidden love, she must also face the ultimate challenge: receive a tattoo on her sixteenth birthday with specific powers that may bind her to an unspeakable darkness. It's up to Rae to undo the dark evil in her family's past and have a ray of hope for her future.
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The Viking Tales
PREQUEL: Adversity
Bk 1 - Warrior
Bk 2 - Defender
Bk 3 - Contender
Bk 4 - Affinity
Bk 5 - Heroine
Book 6 – Victory
Book 7 – Harmony
Book 8 – Champion
Book 9 – Savior
Book 10 – Ambush
Book 11 – Forebear
Book 12 - Supreme
Affinity Blurb
“YOU’RE UNDER ARREST, by order of the king.”
After escaping from the prison tower the day before her execution, Liv thought the worst of her troubles were over. She and the handsome bannerman who’d rescued her had made it into the forest, the hounds of the king were behind them, and there were nothing but open horizons as far as the eye could see. But the northern realm is a dangerous place, and their problems are only beginning.
When a pack of wolves catches their scent, Liv and Erik must fight for their lives with nothing more than the sparse possessions they’ve brought with them. They manage to scrape their way towards a mysterious cabin, only to discover the little sanctuary is nothing like it seems.
Partnerships splinter at fresh betrayals, old secrets are dragged into the light. Winter is coming, and the shadows behind them are getting closer. They must fight if they want to live, but are they fighting on the same side?
Trust, once broken, is a difficult thing to repair...
Contents
Have You Read the Kerrigan Series?
Find W.J. May
The Viking Tales
Affinity Blurb
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
The Viking Tales
Find W.J. May
More books by W.J. May
Chapter 1
IT TOOK AGES FOR THE splinters to fall.
I watched them drift in a silver cloud, hovering for what felt like an eternity, each pale shard twisting to catch the light. They reminded me of moonstruck birds, or perhaps a school of fish, clustering unnaturally close, before pooling on the ground where the door used to be.
My lungs opened and I sucked in a reflexive gasp, one that went straight to my head. The air was sharp with the scent of pine.
“You’re under arrest, by order of the king.”
The soldier’s words still rang in my ears. I could not tell which one had said it. There were six of them in total, a round half dozen, and each one looked the same to me, standing tall and faceless behind their glinting crescent of spears. They had entered like a wave—a single rush, and they were through. Now they took up every bit of space; not moving, not speaking, just standing in silent anticipation, every line of them carved and ready, waiting for whatever was coming next.
What’s coming next?
I wondered in a dull shock, unable to keep pace with things. Only a few moments before, the room had been warm and my skin had been flaming, pressed hot and smooth against Erik, ready for the first time to take those next steps. Then came the cold shock of his betrayal, a rush of space between us, and now this. The soldiers brought the chill with them, radiating off their metal vests.
They were wearing full armor, suited up for battle. We were mostly naked, stunned silent and staring with enormous eyes in the flickering light of the candle by the door.
“How did you...?”
The words fell loose from Erik’s lips, exhaled in a single breath. He was still half-kneeling on the bed in front of me, skin painted in the moonlight, silver locks spilling down his bare chest. The night had flipped upside-down, and it was like some vital part of him had frozen, wanting to move, but forgetting the knack of it. Only his eyes darted between them, flying from one man to the next.
How did you find us?
The quiet that trailed after seemed to swallow the room. A single thrust from any direction would have skewered us forever silent, putting an end to the story of the troublesome witch who’d set fire to a brothel at the king’s birthday celebration. But it seemed the soldiers had come with a different set of orders. They made no move to get closer, only stood there in a curved line.
“I had seven penningar this is what we’d find you doing.” A guard near the center stepped forward, tracing the tip of his blade down the muscular line on Erik’s chest. You could practically see the younger man’s heart pounding, yet I’d never known him to be so still. “The others thought maybe she’d bewitched you, and would dispose of your corpse as soon as you cleared the forest. But I knew it was this. You will buy drinks for my company at the tavern.”
Erik stared in astonishment, unable to form a coherent thought.
“Girl—put your hands down!”
My eyes flew to the man who’d spoken, going suddenly rigid under his gaze. I felt like one of those poor animals who’d been sighted by a predator, caught in the stillness of a larger shadow, before all the teeth and blood. My arms were still clasped across my naked chest. I was still recoiling from Erik’s confession, angling backwards on the bed. My cheeks flamed as I stared at the guards.
How can I l ower my hands?
There was a menacing clink of metal as the spear tips knocked together, and Erik hazarded a quick glance over his shoulder. Our eyes met for a fraction of a second.
“She needs clothes,” he managed, lowering his feet unsteadily to the ground. In an act of sheer madness, he took an unthinking step towards them. “We weren’t—”
There was a blurring swish, followed by a sharp impact, as the guard who’d spoken raised his spear and smashed the grip into Erik’s head. It struck him near the hairline, spilling a bright torrent of blood down his face. He staggered backwards with a muted cry, then caught himself at the foot of the bed, staring at the ring of soldiers with a kind of uncomprehending disbelief.
A part of him could not believe it. That they were there. That they would strike him. He was a lord’s son, who’d never known a raised hand unless it had come from the arena.
The guard was more than willing to disabuse him of the notion.
“You think you have protection because the king smiled at you?” he mocked, having heard the cheers from the stadium. They had spoken bitterly of it in the barracks, having not gotten leave to attend. “We will drag you back to that unforsaken settlement and see what he thinks of your sins.” He took a step closer, almost smiling. “Or perhaps you think your uncle will save you.”
His uncle.
The hair lifted on the back of my neck, as I remembered Erik’s soft-spoken confession, the one that had ended our dreamy night before it could begin. His uncle had given him the key to my prison cell. His uncle had directed us to this cabin.
His uncle had sent the guards.
I couldn’t imagine Erik failing to reach this conclusion.
And yet...
“No, I...you are mistaken,” he stammered, eyes lighting with a trace of sudden fear. Not for his safety, but that things had gone off track in some terrible way. “My uncle—”
“He will be standing at the king’s side,” the guard interrupted, taking another step. “They already built one pyre.” He paused, eyes dancing with a little smile. “It will be easy to build another.”
There was a stilling in my chest, as his words echoed into silence.
A pyre.
A loud snap roused me to attention.
“Bind the witch.”
It was only then I realized what was about to happen next. They would tie my hands, and probably bludgeon me. They would take me back to the settlement, to be burned at the stake.
And I...had no intention of letting that happen.
Get out of the way.
The command leapt to my mind at such volume, it was a miracle Erik didn’t hear the words out loud. He was standing with his back to me, utterly motionless, the same unfortunate progression playing out in his own mind. Twice, I saw the flicker of tendons, like he was preparing to spring, but they hadn’t left him many options. The guards might have caught us at an inopportune moment, but they had also come prepared. One didn’t go hunting witches without bringing the proper supplies.
The spears were an obvious precaution, and a smart one. It didn’t matter how good your opponent was at fighting if they were trapped four paces away. But I wasn’t interested in the spears, they wouldn’t stop me. Neither would the rope, for that matter. There was just one thing that would.
Get out of the way.
“Let her get dressed,” Erik said softly, keeping his body in between me and that glistening arch of spears. “You serve at the pleasure of the king—”
“Stand aside,” the guard interrupted, leveling his blade to match, “or I will tell the others you were gutted trying to do something brave.”
I froze in silence behind them, praying for him to listen.
Yes, stand aside.
My powers might have been relatively untested, but they would answer me now, I was certain of it. A single blast, and we could run to freedom through the wreckage. I had no qualms about the ripples of witchcraft. We were alone in the woods. They simply wouldn’t come back.
“Use your blade.” Erik held the man’s gaze and spoke with a perfect calm, despite the spear tip beneath his chin. “Pick up her cloak, and drop it on the bed. There is no need to lower your—”
“But our young lord is very brave, isn’t he?”
A door swung open and a voice cut through the tension in the room, making the guards fidget restlessly, as we followed the telltale creak of footsteps across the house. Just a moment later, another man appeared behind them, dressed warmer than the others and wearing a commander’s sigil. I actually remembered him from the feasting hall, laughing at stories and calling for ale.
He wasn’t carrying a spear, but a long sword—which he kept steady as he walked.
“He might just do something to surprise you, and the tale you spun would come true.” He took a few steps closer, watching us over the shoulder of his guards. “I would imagine it’s the reason he caught the girl’s fancy. Except...what’s this?” He saw the scratches on Erik’s cheek and clucked his tongue chidingly, fighting back a smile. “Don’t tell me the two of you have started fighting.”
My cheeks burned and I bit fiercely at my lip, trying my best to keep from trembling. I had lashed out after Erik’s confession and struck at his face, my lips still warm from kissing him.
The man stepped closer still, replacing the spear with his own sword. “It makes me wonder if she still cares...”
It was such a strange thing to say, I couldn’t immediately parse it. But no sooner had the man spoken, than he reached suddenly forward, dragging the edge of the blade along Erik’s neck.
There was a quiet gasp, and a spill of blood.
I was still reeling in horror, anchored helplessly in the center of the bed, but the man had never stopped moving. With the skill of a dancer, he slipped behind Erik and pulled him off balance, wrapping an arm around his waist, and keeping the sword like a chokehold against his neck.
“No need for two,” he murmured, slicing deeper.
No!
A strangled sound burst past my lips, something between a gasp and a scream. Erik thrashed in a panic, clawing desperately at his wrist, but the man was already loosening his grip.
“That’s what I thought,” he said again, smiling with satisfaction. The rest of the guards had burst through the door in a fit of confidence, but he’d dealt with witches before and had learned to be cautious, hanging back and assessing the situation first. He dug into his pocket and pulled out a coil of rope, tossing it towards the nearest soldier. “Bind them together, her hands to his chest.”
Together?
My trembling limbs went suddenly still, as every hint of color leached from my face. Once I’d made up my mind to escape, it had seemed a matter of time. A single moment of opportunity, that was all I needed. A single moment, and a clear shot. But that was all different now.
It would kill him.
My eyes strayed to Erik, bare skin flickering in the candlelight. A few minutes before, he’d been flushed and wanting. Now, I was unable to tear my eyes from the vivid stains of blood on his face. It had dripped to his shoulder, carving a slow path. Our eyes locked for a silent moment.
What am I supposed to do?
“Are you really so afraid?” he panted, unable to see the man directly. “An unarmed girl, against seven trained men. Have you such little faith in yourselves, or perhaps—”
He went suddenly quiet, when the commander grabbed him by the jaw.
“That is clever,” he said softly, “playing upon our ego. This is the one, am I right?” He twisted around so they were facing, turning the younger man back and forth. “The one who dazzled everyone in the arena? A young Thor, I heard him described.” He assessed Erik again, smiling at his murderous expression. “But he’s really more of a Baldur, isn’t he?”
The man was teasing him.
Baldur was often said to be the loveliest of our gods, rivaled only by the sun itself. His death was one of the first signs of the coming apocalypse. He was killed in a cruel trick of the gods.
