The Greenlanders - Jane Smiley [166]
“It seems to me that Gunnar Asgeirsson is but a murderer and a fool, and Vatna Hverfi district is the more pleasant for his leaving.” These men continued to laugh, and none more loudly than the man who was speaking.
Now Kollgrim stooped and picked up a large rock, and raised his arm to throw it, but another man, who was standing not far off, caught his arm and deflected the missile so that it hit a nearby boulder with a sharp smack.
Now the man who had been talking said, “The pup is like to the dog, then. Well, here is one you should meet.” And he stepped aside to reveal another man sitting on a rock behind him, eating his meat. This man now looked up. He was a burly dark fellow, but withal he had such a beautiful countenance that Kollgrim was content to look upon him for a few moments. The loud man yelled at him, “This is the one to throw your rock at, boy, this is the fellow who lives at Gunnars Stead, Jon Andres Erlendsson, and a wild fellow he is. ’Tis not a rock that will stop him if he cares to have something he wants.”
“Right now, Ofeig Thorkelsson, what I wish to have is my meat, and you are making a great deal of noise,” said Jon Andres. Then he looked at Kollgrim. It was the case that although Kollgrim was large for his age, he was still a boy. Jon Andres Erlendsson was just become a man, with a man’s stature and a man’s breadth. He looked sternly at Kollgrim for some moments while spooning up his food, then he put aside his bowl and said, “Do you know, boy, that your father injured my three brothers, so that they lay in torment before they were fortunate enough to die, and that this fellow Finn Thormodsson was the fiend who concocted the scheme of their destruction?”
“I know that your father and mother gave three sons so that they might have our great steading. It was a small price to pay, or so folk said at the time.” But indeed, Kollgrim could not take his eyes off Jon Andres. “Here is another tale. That your father and his second whore were gnawed by dogs. What neighbor do you blame for that?”
Now the man Ofeig began to laugh again, and he said, “I truly think this boy is half fox. He would rather bite than live.”
Now Kollgrim looked at him. “Are you intending to kill me, then, Ofeig Thorkelsson? Will it be by pushing my head into your belly and suffocating me?” And it was the case that Ofeig was somewhat fat. Now Kollgrim stooped again and picked up another rock.
Now Jon Andres spoke up and said, “It is not my wish to start a fight with a boy. You came upon us unexpectedly, and we only wished to know who you might be, little thinking that it would have anything to do with us. You had best go back to Finn Thormodsson and forget that we have met.”
Now Kollgrim glanced around, and in the late dusk, for this was not long before the feast of St. Kolumkilli and the days were very long, he saw some birds down by the shore, picking among the leavings of the Greenlanders, and he shouted and raised his arm, and the birds lifted a little off the strand, and he threw the rock and felled one of them, as Finn had taught him to do. And after this he turned to Jon Andres and said, “This is the sort of boy that I am,” and he walked off, but as if reluctantly, and he looked back two or three times. One of the men with Ofeig, whose name was Mar, went down to the water and picked up the bird. When he brought it back to Ofeig, they saw that its head was smashed in.
The next morning Finn Thormodsson tied Kollgrim’s hands to the gunwale of the boat once again, and they set out. On this, the third day, it was intended that the seals would be herded into Hvalsey Fjord and Kambstead Fjord, but it was the custom that all the hunters would follow the seals until the end of the hunt, to make sure that the northerly farmsteads would have as much sealmeat as the southerly ones. Even so, Finn intended to stop at Lavrans Stead and get another suit of clothes for himself, as the ones he was wearing were wet and soaked with blood and melted blubber.
Before the sun was well up, they