Prologue
The first thing Niklaus had noticed about Freydis were her eyes. She was always smiling, but the smile never reached her eyes. Those eyes were burdened with sadness. She wasn't happy and how could she be when she had been married off to a man old enough to be her father. A cruel man who mistreated her every day.
Niklaus knew better than anyone how cruel that man could be. Especially now when Esther wasn't here to calm him down anymore. She had left the village without saying a word. Without explaining why. Mikael had waited for her to return for many moons until it was clear that she wasn't coming back. He had needed a woman to run the household, so he had reluctantly remarried.
Freydis had been 17, a little older than Rebekah who had been 15, but Mikael had ordered all his children to call her mother. She was a kind young woman who had fulfilled all her duties without ever complaining. She had taken care of Henrik, been there for Rebekah whenever she had needed her, treated all her stepsons gently, respected her husband despite the constant abuse, fed the whole family day after day and worked tirelessly from dawn to dusk.
Anyone else would have called her a good wife, but not Mikael. Nothing Freydis did was ever good enough for him because she wasn't Esther. It wasn't fair. Freydis was a good woman, she would have deserved something much better. Yet she never complained. She cried when she thought that no one could see her. Niklaus saw her, just like he had many times before.
She was sitting on the ground in the woods, her back leaning against a tree. Tears were coursing down her cheeks as she sobbed hopelessly. Seeing her like this broke Niklaus' heart. She didn't deserve any of this. Once again, he hoped that he would have enough courage to go to her. Pick her up. Wrap his arms around her. Tell her that everything would be alright. He would look after her. Take her away from here. If only he could. If only he wasn't so weak. He gritted his teeth and looked away. She deserved something so much better.