#other than Uhtred and Finan sassing each other a little

[soulhollow]

We were skirting a creek that twisted from the wide river and his horse stumbled, almost unsaddling the king. He recovered himself and patted the stallion’s neck. ‘It must be an accidental fire,’ he said, and spurred on.

I let him go. A half-dozen of his own men rode with Alfred, but Steapa, their commander, fell in beside me.

‘He’s not happy.’

‘He’s only happy when he’s praying,’ I said sourly.

‘He was looking forward to this journey.’

‘So he can pray over Hoskuld?’

‘He was looking forward to seeing you,’ Steapa said, ‘for some reason he likes you.’

I said nothing.

-Bernard Cornwell, Uhtred's Feast 'The Gift of God'