Hey, everybody! I hope we're all having a good day so far. I'm so glad it's finally feeling like Autumn where I am.

Here's our new chapter, and we dig a little deeper into Ubbe's mind a little. I hope we're all enjoying it. I love writing for him.

There will be more notes at the bottom.

So enjoy!

Shifted

The first thing they did before settling in for the night was to cover up the windows that were still intact. The ones that weren't had been painted over so that very little, if any light could penetrate them. Lagertha found a few canned items and three bottles of vodka in the back room to go with her own food, which would have normally been seen as a good thing, but right now, they needed water. Ubbe had no idea where they would find it.

"If need be," Lagertha determined, "in the morning, I will walk to the lake to collect more water. We cannot use the road, and it will be at least morning before Ragnar makes contact with the other members of our crew. Our job right now is to lay low and wait."

Ubbe didn't argue, sorting through the canned food, and Alfred came to help him. Athelstan spoke when no one else did.

"Is that safe?" he wondered. "If we're being watched. Won't they see you?"

Ubbe glanced at Lagertha as she looked at him, and she grinned just a little before speaking.

"The important thing right now," she said and turned to Athelstan, "is that you and your son are safe. Now that we are moving against Ecbert, your survival is paramount. Because you have the final piece to this puzzle that will put everything into perspective."

He glanced at his son, responding softly. "Because of Alfred," he said and clenched his jaw.

Lagertha too turned her gaze to Alfred, still grinning slightly. She looked at Athelstan and claimed his shoulder, squeezing gently. "No," she said. "Because of you. You have dealt with Ecbert even longer than Ragnar has, and you know him better. You will help to take him down. Ubbe and I will help you."

Despite Lagertha's confidence in him, Athelstan still looked uncertain. Before Ubbe could move in to reiterate her words, Lagertha picked up one of the bottles of vodka and smiled.

"We'll use this to boost your confidence," she asserted. "Perhaps it will even give you a little more courage, though you have plenty of that already."

Finally, the dread and worry faded from his face, and he exhaled softly, grinning himself.

"First we will eat," Lagertha announced.

To ration their new food, only one can was opened which consisted of smoked salmon in a traditional Norwegian sauce. There were no plates, so they had to pass around the can along with a bottle of vodka Lagertha opened. Alfred drank his water even though he seemed old enough to drink.

Ubbe wasn't really hungry, allowing Alfred and Athelstan to have larger portions. When he was on a job, Ubbe usually ate less in favor of staying hydrated. It was a habit he'd developed over the years of going to remote locations where food was not always abundant. This time was only unusual because they had been stationary for nearly 24 hours.

"We haven't camped like this since I was twelve," Alfred said as he drank his water. "It was a good holiday."

Athelstan nodded. "It was. Even after you found out we weren't staying in Melbourne where you could go to the beach every day. I was fairly certain you drove our guide a little crazy," he chuckled.

Ubbe took a short swig of the vodka, passing it to Lagertha. "How many places have you both been?" he asked.

Alfred looked at his father, prompting him to speak as Lagertha handed him the bottle.

"Our first summer was when Alfred was five," Athelstan began and took a drink. "We didn't go far. But we spent almost a month in Edinburgh, and we stayed with my older sister. I wanted to take Alfred to as many new places as possible. Spain. Germany. India. Last year, we went to a retreat in France. No one else in Alfred's class has been so many places, and I'm glad for it."

He passed the bottle to Ubbe, who took a drink and set it down as he sat up and addressed Alfred.

"Quel a été ton truc préféré en France?"

Alfred smiled and reached for the bottle. Ubbe hesitated just a minute before handing it over, grinning slightly as the young boy took a drink. Then he answered.

"Partout où nous sommes allés, il y avait des boissons gratuites et personne n'a jamais demandé quel âge j'avais. Et je n'ai jamais bu."

Ubbe laughed, impressed, surprising Lagertha as she took the bottle and took her drink.

"Well, you will not be getting drunk here either," she stipulated even as she grinned and took another drink. "My favorite place to travel was always Italy. Tuscany is beautiful in the summer. What about you, Athelstan?" she asked and passed him the bottle. "What was your favorite place to travel?"

A small smile lifted the left corner of his mouth. "Iceland," he said and took a drink.

"Why is that?" Lagertha asked.

Athelstan took another drink before answering. "It was the first country I went to that didn't feel like I was still home. I had never really been anywhere foreign, not even when I was a child. My parents couldn't really afford going on holiday with me being the youngest. By then, we were barely making it. I was only able to go to college because of a scholarship, and in my senior year, I was chosen for the exchange program to go to Germany for a year. But I wasn't able to go because I couldn't afford it. So when I was able to travel with my son, I not only wanted him to experience it. I wanted to as well."

He handed the bottle back to her, glancing at Alfred and Ubbe before bowing his head quietly.

Ubbe gazed at him curiously, trying to understand this unassuming man and almost realizing why he was so. While most of their clients and marks had been wealthy and connected, Athelstan was the first mark that had nearly no wealth and no connections. He had his job he went to every day, and he had his son. Nothing more. Ubbe was certain a few people would miss him if he died, but in the grand scheme of the world, his death would effect nothing. And it was clear that he knew this.

"I enjoyed Paris," Ubbe said and took the bottle from Lagertha. "Madrid was also nice. But mostly, if I had to choose a place, I would choose Japan, and more specifically, Tokyo. I have always enjoyed immersing myself in new and unfamiliar cultures. When I have the time between jobs, of course."

"It must be amazing," Athelstan said before anyone else could. "With unlimited resources. The best Alfred and I could hope for was to have a roof over our heads. Except for the few times when Ecbert was feeling generous enough to book us a good hotel or to rent us a decent car — when he didn't have some agenda, obviously."

Ubbe again glanced at Lagertha, remembering the details Bjorn had discovered about Ecbert changing the hotel Athelstan and Alfred had checked into as well as the car he'd arranged for them to have from the airport. Both of those things had been equipped with the best security for them to be tracked and monitored, and despite being suspicious of Ecbert, it didn't appear that Athelstan knew why those things had been done.

Before anything else could be said, Alfred yawned and stretched his arms above his head. "What time is it?" he asked and yawned again.

Lagertha looked at her watch and chuckled lightly. "It is already eleven-thirty. Definitely time for bed for some of us. Ubbe, help Alfred with his sleeping bag. We all need our rest before we get moving again. Athelstan, come with me to the back. I'll help you."

The four of them stood up together to perform their separate tasks, and before disappearing into the back room, Lagertha picked up a bottle of vodka, grinning slightly. Ubbe watched her as he unfolded his sleeping bag, thinking maybe they should have paired up differently. But then she pushed the door closed, leaving a small sliver of light.

Ubbe sighed softly, laying his sleeping bag on the floor and noticing how much smaller Alfred's was compared to his. Without saying anything, he reached over and began zipping the two sleeping bags together. Alfred only hesitated a little, smiling and then helping complete their new task. It only took a minute, and once the sleeping bags were ready, Ubbe brought over a lamp and slipped inside the left side. Alfred followed and slid into the right side, relaxing after a minute.

It was so quiet that Ubbe could hear the wind whistling through the holes in the broken windows and rustling through the trees. Only an owl or two called each other, filling the air with just enough sound to keep it from being silent. Alfred's even breathing folded into the soft symphony, drawing Ubbe's eyes to his side to see the young boy staring up at the ceiling.

"What else are you thinking about?" he asked gently.

Alfred pulled in a deep breath, sighing as he exhaled. "How boring my life was before this happened," he scoffed. "Literally. Nearly six days ago, I was playing video games with my older brother, getting packed and trying to assure my mother that this trip wouldn't be any different than the last one. Now I don't know what I'm going to tell her about this holiday."

Ubbe listened carefully, remembering when his own mother had hovered over him and almost smothered him before he began working with his father. He glanced at Alfred, sighing as well. "I don't suppose you'll be able to tell her the truth," he suggested. "When this is all over, perhaps it won't be so difficult to believe."

Alfred scoffed. "That's not likely," he argued. "My mother has never had to let go of me. Not even when I'm traveling with my father. I know she doesn't trust him. The only reason she agreed to this was because my grandfather made it part of the custody agreement. I'm sure if it was up to her, I wouldn't be here in the first place. That's how it was when I was younger."

"That sounds like how my mother was when Ivar was born. He was born the way he is, and it was not known for many years if he would survive. She eventually had to relinquish her hold on him. He would not have had it any other way."

Gently, Alfred laughed. "I can see that. I got the impression that not much has ever succeeded in slowing him down."

Ubbe laughed as well. "A correct assumption," he nodded. "Sometimes it annoyed Bjorn, but after the last year, we've all grown accustomed to it. As much as possible, anyway."

Alfred laughed louder, and then Ubbe did, turning his gaze to see his charge yawning again.

"You should rest," Ubbe urged. "We have quite a bit of walking to do tomorrow, and once my father has secured our safety, we will make our way to the nearest town."

"You're right," Alfred agreed and laughed. "But if I do that, something else will happen."

"No matter what happens next," Ubbe said, "I will keep you safe. You should sleep. I will keep watch."

Alfred yawned again, covering his mouth and lifting his eyes to the ceiling. "Do you think my grandfather planned all of this?" he asked as quietly as he could.

"I do not know," Ubbe replied. "I don't know how he would be able to. Even if he could predict your movements, how would he predict ours?"

"I don't know. But it's becoming quite obvious that he's been able to do just that. My father has always taught me not to overlook things, and well, this is impossible to overlook. I just wish I knew if we're doing all this on our own, or if he's pushing us to do it."

Ubbe shivered without intending to, clenching his jaw as he glanced at Alfred. "Regardless, I am here, and Lagertha is here. Sleep. It will be time to leave soon."

That was the last thing that was said as Alfred turned to his side so his back was to Ubbe, and the wind outside overpowered everything else.

After a few minutes, Ubbe lifted his watch to check the time. It was barely midnight as he sat up and scooted out of the sleeping bag to keep an eye on the rest of the cabin. As he did this, everything Alfred said circled around his head.

Ubbe wasn't so well-versed in the friendship between his father and Ecbert West, and he couldn't predict how any negative interaction between them would end. But they had been friends for almost a decade. Surely, Ecbert West would not jeopardize that by double-crossing his friend. But Ubbe could not stop thinking about what Alfred said. What if they were all playing into Ecbert's plan? If they were, what plan had he devised so that it included them all, and not just Ragnar?

To satisfy the knot in his stomach and to verify the suspicion he could not quell, Ubbe sat up with his tablet and looked at every file they'd received from Ecbert. Normally, he would need a WiFi connection or at the least, a hotspot on his phone to download the information. But thankfully, he's already done that before separating from his mother and Floki, so everything he needed was catalogued on his tablet.

Of everything Ubbe had researched about Ecbert West, none of it had pointed to him being deceptive this way in the slightest. He was a business man, yes, but he also appeared to be innovative and open-minded, which was rare for a man of his stature. He valued loyalty, just like Ragnar, and he rewarded his employees generously. He was undoubtedly devoted to his work, but he also loved his family. That was especially obvious in the safeties he had in place if anything happened to him or his son Aethelwulf. Oddly, there was no inheritance for his eldest grandson Aethelred, but there was a guaranteed position for the boy in his grandfather's company.

Ubbe's attention was piqued the moment he read the part of the file concerning succession. He remembered what Athelstan had said the day before about Ecbert grooming Alfred to take over for him, and seeing a clear confirmation of this in Ecbert's personal files allowed a new theory of events to fall into place in Ubbe's mind.

It was not uncommon for large companies to have their CEO's all within the same family, but those usually passed from father to son. In this case, Ecbert had a contingency for something happening to him and his son, and he had excluded his own grandson from the possibility of taking over the company in favor of a boy who was his relative only because the boy's mother was married to his only son. Would Ecbert really eliminate his own son and his grandson, along with Alfred's father to ensure he was the only one to take his place in the company?

So far, the answer appeared to be yes. But what about everything else? How could he have known Ragnar would not be able to kill Athelstan? How could he know they would move against him to protect Athelstan and Alfred? Who was helping him?

His watch pinged loudly with a text before he could answer any of these questions. So he wouldn't disturb Alfred, Ubbe stood up and stepped out onto the porch, skimming the darkened horizon as he looked at the text.

Why is your phone turned off? It was his brother Hvitserk.

Ubbe sighed and pulled up the voice recorder. "I'm in the middle of nowhere," he replied. "That means no phones. It is the middle of the night. What do you want?"

Father's here, and you're not. Can't I check on my big brother to make sure he's staying out of trouble?

Ubbe smirked. "Did Uncle Rollo put you up to this?"

A few seconds passed before Hvitserk replied. Why would he? I haven't talked to him in weeks!

That gave Ubbe the longest pause he'd ever felt in his life. He distinctly remembered Rollo telling Ragnar that Hvitserk had called him and told him about this job before they had left Copenhagen. "He said you called him and told him about this job," Ubbe huffed to the microphone of his watch.

I didn't! I swear! Why would he say that?

Instantly, Ubbe looked up and skimmed the trees again, his heart stuttering a little as he came to another unexpected realization. "Don't contact me again," he hissed, taking off his watch and dropping it before he smashed it with his boot heel.

He backed up into the cabin and closed the door as quietly as he could without alerting anyone to his movements. If he was right, he knew who had betrayed them. If this was true, then they had been set up from the very beginning.

And Ubbe might have just shown them exactly where their target was hiding.

Oh no! Is it true? We'll have to wait to find out.

This is going to be the last chapter in Ubbe's perspective, and next we'll switch to a character we haven't gotten in the mind of yet. There are a few possibilities.

Also, I'm unfortunately putting this story on a short hiatus until I can finish posting the second part of my main Vikings story. I'm already a few chapters ahead on this one, but I want to have it better pulled together before we finish it.

So thanks to everyone who's been reading, and stay tuned. We'll find out what happens soon enough.

Until next time!