It was a cool, clear day; the air was crisp and the wind was strong from the east, driving the longboat towards the familiar shore of the largest island in the Brenci chain. Bluebell remembered the moment she had first come here, in desperation and doubt, and despite the heavy losses she had endured since then, she could not regret her action. Blicstowe was once again returned to her family; war had strengthened Thyrsland. She now had a united force from the south to the northern border, allies across to the eastern kingdoms, and her traditional enemies, the Is-hjartans, were relieved of the yoke of Hakon and keen to make peace. There were still many things to be resolved. Wengest’s killer had to be found and brought to justice; Rowan had to be convinced to marry Renward; and Bluebell had no idea where Rose had gone. But she had lost her kingdom and won it back: all other problems were simple by comparison.
Sighere sat beside her and Withowind in the prow, craning her neck around to see the island. Alongside them, the giants’ longboat, laden with five lifeless bodies, and ably commanded and manned by a team of experienced shipmen she had hired at great expense. Bluebell had brought a mixed band of Ælmesseans and some of the uruly half-bloods from Renward’s train, eager for adventure.
Bluebell smiled as she saw Ash riding down to the shore on her ghost horse, Wraith. She dismounted, waving both arms vastly. Withowind had reassured Bluebell that Ash would be here, but until she saw her sister with her own eyes she had held a little doubt. Now it washed away with the smell of salt and seaweed, as the longboats slid ashore with a crunch and skid. Bluebell was already leaping out, taking Ash in her arms.
‘You saved us!’ Bluebell cried.
‘The gods saved you.’
‘You went and fetched them.’ She turned back to the longboat, where Withowind was slowly stepping over the side and onto the shore. She moved like an elderly woman now, frail and a little stooped. ‘The giants saved us too.’
‘It was a group effort,’ Ash said, and her eyes had gone over Bluebell’s shoulder to Sighere.
‘Yes,’ Bluebell said with a grin. ‘You get to keep him.’
‘Have you spoken to him? Is he sure he wants to stay?’
Bluebell glanced over her shoulder at Sighere. ‘Can you not see the answer to that question in his expression, sister? Has magic made you blind?’ Bluebell stood aside while Sighere strode forward and grasped Ash’s hands in his own, brought them to his mouth and kissed them.
By late evening, her war-hardened and sea-hardened teams had brought Withowind’s ship up onto the headlands and laid the giants’ bodies inside it. They had brought stores of kindling and fire oil from Thyrsland, and the pyre was constructed and lit. The flames roared up to the sky and Bluebell and Ash stood by it, their arms around each other, as the fire grew so bright it dimmed the stars.
‘You will come to visit me and Sighere from time to time, will you not?’ Ash asked.
‘I will. I will have a little surprise next time you see me.’ Bluebell smiled.
‘What kind of surprise?’
‘If I told you, then it would not be a surprise, sister.’ She thought about travelling all that distance over the sea with a baby, or perhaps a little fellow with sturdy legs. It would be difficult, but best he get used to hardship young.
Bluebell glanced over at Withowind, who sat very close to the fire, staring mournfully into the flames. ‘She wants to die alone,’ Bluebell said. ‘Do not let her.’
‘I don’t tell gods or giants what to do,’ Ash replied.
They both watched the giant for a while, then the men and women Bluebell had brought with her, drinking and carousing by the fire. One of the sailors – an enormous woman with bosoms seemingly bigger than her head – was dancing a surprisingly graceful jig, while another fellow played a tune on a pipe. The wind gusted over, lifting the flames higher. Bluebell imagined they could be seen for miles, though there was nobody to see them. Like men on earth: a bright light to dance by, spectacular and hot up close, but ultimately nothing more than a brief flash in the distance to gods.
‘Where will you go after this?’ Ash asked.
‘North to Hrafnsey. We will flush out any of the last of Hakon’s supporters.’
‘Then home?’
‘No. I have a country to rebuild.’ She turned to Ash and smiled. ‘Don’t worry about me.’
‘I know your surprise,’ Ash said.
‘How?’
‘I guessed. Just then.’
‘Then tell nobody. Not even Sighere.’
‘Who will he tell it to? The gulls?’
Bluebell didn’t answer.
‘You’ll show eventually. Then everyone will know.’
‘I have time,’ Bluebell said. ‘And I will have time again after. Many more adventures wait for me, sister.’
‘I have no doubt.’
They fell into companionable silence, as the bright flame blazed on the headland.