w thou art
in very sooth guilty of that which I have laid to thy charge; and thou
wilt have to put forth all thy might in this case, if thou art to get
this thrust from thee."

She said that that was in nowise against her mind, and therewithal
they parted.

Thereafter was Thorstein ever with the Varangians, and men say that
he sought counsel of Harald Sigurdson, and their mind it is that
Thorstein and Spes would not have taken to those redes but for the
trust they had in him and his wisdom.

Now as time wore on, goodman Sigurd gave out that he would fare
from home on certain errands of his own. The goodwife nowise let him
herein; and when he was gone, Thorstein came to Spes, and the twain
were ever together. Now such was the fashion of her castle that it
was built forth over the sea, and there were certain chambers therein
whereunder the sea flowed; in such a chamber Thorstein and Spes ever
sat; and a little trap-door there was in the floor of it, whereof none
knew but those twain, and it might be opened if there were hasty need
thereof.

Now it is to be told of the husband that he went nowhither, save into
hiding, that he might spy the ways of the housewife; so it befell
that, one night as they sat alone in the sea-loft and were glad
together, the husband came on them unawares with a crowd of folk, for
he had brought certain men to a window of the chamber, and bade them
see if things were not even according to his word: and all said that
he spake but the sooth, and that so belike he had done aforetime.

So they ran into the loft, but when Spes heard the crash, she said to
Thorstein,

"Needs must thou go down hereby, whatsoever be the cost, but give me
some token if thou comest safe from the place."

He said yea thereto, and plunged down through the floor, and the
housewife spurned her foot at the lid, and it fell back again into its
place, and no new work was to be seen on the floor.

Now the husband and his men came into the loft, and went about
searching, and found nought, as was likely; the loft was empty, so
that there was nought therein save the floor and the cross-benches,
and there sat the goodwife, and played with the gold on her fingers;
she heeded them little, and made as if there was nought to do.

All this the goodman thought the strangest of all, and asked his folk
if they had not seen the man, and they said that they had in good
sooth seen him.

Then said the goodwife, "Hereto shall things c