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  ‘My master recognises no jaarl,’ came the spirited answer. ‘We will defend what is ours without assistance or interference. If the Northmen want anything, they will have to pay for it in their blood. You have wasted our time and your breath, Lady Eilidith, if you thought any different.’

  Aedan’s men banged their swords against their shields at the end of the speech.

  ‘These men behind me are not your enemy.’

  ‘They are from the North and therefore they are not our friends.’ The man gestured to a basket and said loudly in Gaelic. ‘These are the mackerel we pulled from the sea today. We fish where we please.’

  ‘Aedan should have a care. This lord is half-Gaelic. He understands our ways better than most,’ Liddy said in an undertone.

  ‘If it is a battle they want, I am prepared to give it,’ Sigurd said.

  ‘Give me more time.’ She glanced over her shoulder. Sigurd’s bodyguard had drawn their swords. ‘Please. Aedan simply wants to demonstrate that he won’t be cowed.’

  Sigurd’s face became grim. ‘Then they should keep the peace.’

  Liddy turned to face Aedan’s men. Many of them had been Brandon’s. She resisted the temptation to hunch her shoulders and hide her mark. She had nothing to be ashamed of. She was not cursed. Sigurd had shown her that. She made her own luck.

  ‘Fetch Aedan and refrain from this madness. I know he is here and he is not one to skulk behind warriors like a toothless old woman. He wanted Sigurd here on account of me,’ Liddy said, holding out her hands. ‘I beg you. You know me from the time I was lady here. Do you want me to curse this place?’

  ‘It is fine, Aleric, I am here. I can defend this place. Lady Eilidith speaks true. The jaarl Sigurd is here at my instigation.’ Aedan strode out of the hall, wearing his battle armour. A priest Liddy particularly disliked followed three paces behind him with his eyes piously lowered.

  ‘Sister, you have returned to us.’ Aedan bowed low, completely ignoring Sigurd. His blue eyes flashed in his wind-burnt face. ‘Will you be staying long? Do you wish sanctuary?’

  Liddy squared her shoulders and resisted the temptation to hide her chin. ‘I wish to visit my children’s graves.’

  ‘When have I tried to stop you?’

  She quickly glanced at Sigurd. ‘You gave me reason to think I would be unwelcome.’

  ‘You misinterpreted my words.’ He pressed his lips together. ‘Why are you here, Northman?’

  ‘Lady Eilidith desires to spend time at her children’s graves.’ Sigurd inclined his head. ‘I wish to ensure my property remains safe.’

  Aedan’s eyebrows rose. ‘Your property?’

  ‘My lady certainly is not yours. Nor is she for sale. I wanted to make sure the message is understood and we have no more incidents over...fishing rights.’

  Liddy quickly glanced at Sigurd. The pair were certainly as stubborn as the other. ‘Please, Aedan, I want to visit my children. You know who caused me to lose my freedom and it was not a Northman.’

  ‘Your father and I have had words.’ Aedan clashed his fists together. ‘It is never right to sell your children.’

  ‘You cannot unmake the past.’

  Aedan winced. ‘Totally unnecessary. You should have enlisted my aid. When we last spoke, I informed you that you could always count on it.’

  Liddy bit back harsh words. Aedan had accused her of being cursed, an accusation she’d been too ready to believe. ‘I will bear it in mind for the next time.’

  Aedan’s cheeks became rosy pink. ‘I would see you properly settled. I still consider you part of my family. There are things we need to discuss.’

  Liddy shook her head. She wasn’t going back to the woman she’d been, and she wasn’t going to abandon the island she loved to go to a convent in Ireland where they’d beat the curse out of her as Brandon had threatened. ‘In the past, Aedan. We have little to say to each other now. Allow me to visit the graves. Then we will depart. Keeping the peace is important. We must keep the truce which was negotiated.’

  As he continued to stand there, blocking her way, Liddy held out her hands. ‘They were my children. I’ve not visited them since I left here.’

  ‘Will you allow Lady Eilidith to visit the graves?’ Sigurd stroked the hilt of his sword. ‘You are vulnerable here. There is but a narrow strip of land.’

  Aedan drew his sword half out of its scabbard. ‘Easy enough to defend.’

  Behind him, his men beat their swords against their shields again.

  ‘Easy enough to starve,’ Sigurd retorted. At his signal, his men gave a cheer.

  ‘Do not underestimate my little ships.’

  ‘They are no match for my longships.’

  Liddy’s blood ran cold. They were nearly at each other’s throats. She coughed and they both turned to stare at her.

  ‘We are here because I wanted to visit the graves, not because there was a fight to be had.’

  Sigurd bowed low. ‘Of course. I am trying to ensure it happens without incident.’

  Liddy put her hands on her hip. ‘I will not have this used as an excuse for bloodshed.’

  Aedan was the first to blink. ‘Very well, you may go, but to the graveyard, no further.’

  Sigurd gave the briefest of nods. ‘It is good that you have seen sense.’

  ‘Wait!’ the priest thundered. ‘I will not have pagans defiling that sacred space! Aedan, have you not heeded my sermons?’

  Aedan gave an apologetic look. ‘Lady Eilidith is hardly a pagan, Father Columba. You gave her mass many times when she lived at Kintra.’

  The elderly priest gave her a long look up and down as if he were undressing her. Liddy fought the urge to pull her cloak tighter about her. Finally, Father Columba sniffed. ‘She consorts with one. Her cursed mark has brought shame on this place again.’

  Liddy clenched her fists. She had never cared for that priest. He had always turned a blind eye to anything Brandon had done. She tensed, but the old feelings of inadequacy did not wash over her. Instead a deep-seated rage filled her.

  ‘You wrong me,’ she cried. ‘I have never shamed this place.’

  The words hung in the air. Everyone was looking at her.

  The colour drained from Aedan’s face. ‘You have overstepped, Father. Apologise.’

  Liddy stared at Aedan, astonished. He had taken her side. He had made a concession. It was so different from their last conversation, the one where she had stammered and kept giving mumbling apologies until she had slunk off.

  The priest mumbled something inaudible.

  ‘Lady Eilidith may go to the graveyard on her own.’ Aedan bowed low. ‘Northman, I pledge my word no harm will come to her and she will return.’

  ‘She had better,’ Sigurd growled.

  ‘I will return. I give my word. I don’t want anyone dying on my account.’ She stared at both of them. ‘On either side.’

  ‘I will take your word,’ Sigurd said. ‘It is but a little thing. I will keep my temper until you return.’

  The priest made noises about showing her the way, but Liddy glared at him and he backed away.

  ‘I go alone.’

  * * *

  When she arrived at the windswept graveyard, her eyes widened and her steps faltered. A large stone cross stood guard over the two tiny graves. She went over and traced her children’s names. The cross was carved with a profusion of birds and animals, including a dog which could have been Coll. In the centre was a mother cradling two children. The entire scene swam before her eyes. She had had no idea that it was there. Why had Aedan done this? Why had he put up such a fine cross? And why had he forced the priest to apologise?

  She stood, taking it in, holding the scene in her heart.

  * * *

  ‘Eilidith is out of ea
rshot,’ Sigurd remarked, clinging on to his temper. He wanted to tear the Gael from limb to limb for being disrespectful to Liddy. He’d been about to after the priest gave his speech, but the man had changed his mind. ‘Explain why you broke the truce. Be quick about it and I may be merciful.’

  Aedan mac Connall asked, ‘Why did you come by land?’

  ‘Does it matter why?’

  ‘I believe it does. Humour me. We have time.’ Aedan’s lips turned up into a slight smile. ‘You gave Eilidith your word.’

  Sigurd ground his teeth. ‘Lady Eilidith was determined to come, but she still fears the water so we came by land.’

  Aedan’s brow creased. ‘A pity. I hadn’t realised she still fears it.’

  ‘She blames herself for the accident. Your brother—’

  ‘I will not speak ill of the dead.’ Aedan’s hand went to his sword. ‘There are things which need to be said, but I intend to say them first to Eilidith, not to the man who enslaved her.’

  Sigurd ground his teeth, regretting his promise to Liddy. ‘We speak of fish, then. You stole from me.’

  ‘Are you going to continue the alliance Thorbin had with Ivar the Boneless? His men have driven us from our fishing grounds. We have no choice. Either that or starve.’

  Sigurd stared at the warrior. Those vague rumours were true. Thorbin did have an alliance, but it sounded more like he had taken gold rather had been given it.

  ‘I know of no alliance. Ivar and his Vikings from Dubh Linn remain Ketil’s enemies.’

  ‘Even so...they fish and they raid. Until it ends, we fish where we like.’

  Sigurd choked back his anger. Aedan the so-called king of cennell Loairn and laird of Kintra, needed to learn a lesson about manners. ‘If it is as you say...then steps will be taken. Ivar is no friend of mine.’

  Aedan shrugged. ‘It is your problem, not mine.’

  ‘Malcolm returned the gold,’ Sigurd said, changing the subject to the true reason why Aedan was behaving in this fashion.

  ‘I’ve had your message and I know why you made her your mistress.’

  ‘Do you?’ Sigurd crossed his arms. ‘Enlighten me.’

  ‘To provoke and humiliate me.’

  Sigurd stared at the man, dumbfounded. ‘You are joking? I bedded Liddy because she is passionate and fights for what she believes in. She is also a highly attractive woman. Believe me when I say you and your kin played no part in my bedding of her.’

  Aedan opened and closed his mouth like a fish. ‘You made her your mistress because you desired her?’

  ‘What other reason is there?’ Sigurd shook his head. ‘It is hardly my fault if you are blind to it.’

  Aedan’s colour rose. ‘I had never thought of her in that way. She was my brother’s wife and I know why he married her.’

  ‘We obviously know very different women, but then her dog trusts me with her. Did he ever trust her with your brother?’

  ‘My brother disliked that dog, but recognised its virtues. It saved Eilidith from raiders once.’ Aedan’s jaw jutted out. ‘A dog’s devotion is easily purchased with a bit of meat and a space beside the fire. Is that how you accomplished it?’

  Sigurd reined in his temper. If he had not given his word to Liddy, he would start a fight with this man. ‘You should know that Liddy is not for sale. Nor will she be going to a convent here or in Ireland. She will not be forced to travel on the sea until she is ready.’

  ‘As long as she remains with you, I will work to free her.’

  ‘She wants to stay with me.’

  ‘Oh, you have given her a choice?’ Aedan crossed his arms. ‘The Eilidith I know is concerned with propriety. She will be dying on the inside. Do you have plans to marry her?’

  ‘I have no plans to marry.’

  ‘These things change.’ Aedan gave a derisory laugh. ‘Rumours have reached here, and since when do Northern jaarls ever marry their slaves? Who will you honour—your mistress or your wife?’

  Sigurd ground his teeth. He shouldn’t be surprised that Aedan had already heard the rumour. ‘Your spy network is to be congratulated. No doubt you know before I do the name of the bride and her nature. Why should you care? You were the one who called Liddy cursed.’

  Aedan scuffed a line in the dirt. ‘I don’t want Liddy hurt again. That’s all. She left on bad terms and I mean to make it right. Brandon implied some things about her which were untrue. I discovered my mistake this summer and vowed to make things right.’

  ‘It is Liddy you need to speak to, not me. Now, I will get my woman and go.’

  ‘Wait, give me time to speak with her.’

  ‘Will you fish according to the treaty?’

  ‘You drive a hard bargain. I will see what can be done.’

  * * *

  ‘I’m pleased Father Columba had the idea of not allowing your master in,’ Aedan said, breaking the graveyard’s peace. ‘You and I need to talk.’

  ‘Who put this up?’ she asked, keeping her eyes on the cross. Faint praise from Aedan was not required. And the last thing she needed was a lecture from him or Father Columba.

  ‘I did.’

  ‘Unexpected. What do you hope to accomplish with it?’

  Aedan’s cheeks reddened. ‘I owe you an apology. This goes some way towards it.’

  Liddy crossed her arms. ‘For what?’

  ‘Brandon lied.’ Aedan began to pace up and down. ‘That boat design of his has a major flaw—it capsizes easily when people are shifting about in the bottom. It goes upside down with barely a breath’s notice.’

  The stone carving dug into her palm, but she knew she couldn’t let go. Brandon had lied about the boat. He bore some of the blame. ‘The boat I used, the one he swore in front of the priest could not capsize in a little wave?’

  ‘The very same. Five good men drowned earlier this year because I listened to his advice. They had no chance to escape.’

  ‘How does this change things?’

  ‘When I returned I spoke to Aline, the nursemaid. She and the twins were having a game of sliding about on the bottom when the wave hit. They were not sitting still as she told Brandon.’ He put his hand on her shoulder. ‘You did your best, Liddy, to save them. You nearly did. You got them all breathing back to shore. Then Brandon arrived. He was more concerned with the boat than the children. He threatened Aline if she said anything. You are not cursed. The one who was cursed was Brandon.’

  Liddy traced the intricate carvings on the cross. Once it would have mattered, but now she felt sorry for Brandon’s wasted life and self-serving lies. She silently gave thanks for Sigurd’s belief in her. That had been what had saved her.

  ‘Whatever you say, it won’t bring my children back, but I’ve spent far too long hating and not living. It has been three years since Keita and Gilbreath died. And I’ve learned that it isn’t important how others view me, but how I view myself.’

  ‘Then the cross was worth the trouble it took to bring it over here. I’m pleased it opened your heart. Father Columba thought it might.’

  The mention of the priest caused a red mist to form in front of Liddy’s eyes. ‘It has nothing to do with the cross and everything to do with that pagan as you called him.’

  Aedan’s mouth flew open. ‘How could you have feelings for one of them? He will destroy you. He believes things totally different from us.’

  ‘Not so very different. Underneath, it is the person who matters and he is a better person than you think.’

  ‘If you say so...but I must say I am dubious.’ Aedan held out his hands. ‘You have a home here. Always. Not a convent over the water, but some place near your children.’

  ‘I used to think my whole heart was buried there, but I know now it was only part of my heart.’ Liddy stared out to sea rather than taking
his hands. ‘I don’t belong here.’

  His arms fell to his side. ‘I beg to differ. Let me show you that I can put things right. I can right some of the wrong Brandon did to you. You don’t have to be a slave for ever, Liddy. But I think you are right—your Northman cares for you in his own fashion.’

  Liddy ran her hand down the carved stone cross. Perhaps Aedan was right. They had both made mistakes. Arguing about it was not going to bring her children back. Just as arguing about why she’d been made a slave was not going to change that either. ‘Thank you for placing this here, but my mind is made up.’

  ‘My pleasure.’ He bowed slightly. ‘Now, will you tell me why you are here? I know why he is here, but not you.’

  ‘I wanted to see the graves and to make sure you had received my message.’ She turned to the sea. She could hardly confess about Beyla’s imminent arrival and her fears. ‘Sigurd will free me in time. I’m sure of it. He is a man of his word.’

  ‘He is a Northman.’

  ‘Northmen can be honourable.’

  ‘He should marry you if he is honourable.’

  Liddy focused on the waves coming into the shore and the screech of the seagulls rising up from the day. ‘It is complicated. He will need to marry a woman who is worthy of ruling this island.’

  ‘And you are not? What more could he want?’

  ‘A woman from the North with a dowry. Several are coming. I know he will need a wife and I will not have done to her what was done to me.’

  ‘I can rescue you and keep you safe from all Northmen.’ Aedan pressed an intricately carved pendant into her hand. ‘Send this to me when you need me. It belonged to my aunt, the one whom the Northmen kidnapped. She would approve of it being used like this.’

  Liddy closed her fingers about the carved pendant. The woman’s passing, over twenty-five years ago, had nearly destroyed the family. It was one of the reasons Brandon had hated the Northmen. But no one knew what had ultimately happened to her. Liddy hoped that she had found some measure of happiness.

  ‘And what about the people left behind? If I run away, Sigurd would be in his rights to take revenge on my family.’ Liddy shook her head. ‘I won’t have that happen.’