Cadla’s rough treatment of Aífe caused concern among the flaith. Since she did not complain or cry out, everyone assumed she had accepted the role of concubine. It was not uncommon for a woman to take such a position, especially at Lugnasad, when contracts for the job were written up by the Brehons. A woman could agree to be a concubine for one turning of the sun or sign on for a lifetime. But the young woman was strangely silent, and as the days passed, dark circles grew under her eyes.

Since Aífe no longer resisted, Cadla bullied her more, openly insulting her by slapping her bottom at the feast while everyone watched. He enjoyed these petty acts of humiliation, thinking they were a just reward for her earlier disrespect.

The women of the flaith were scandalized; a royal concubine might bear a child who would be as eligible for the throne as any prince of the blood and deserved more respect than this. With the intuition of women, they pieced together that Cadla was punishing the beautiful woman for scorning him. But they could not fathom why she stayed mute; this was not the usual behavior of a woman of the tribes.

“He must have some mysterious hold over her,” one said.

“If I were her, I’d claw his eyes out,” said another.

“I think she is just getting what she deserves, for her pride in rejecting him last spring,” sniffed a recent convert to the Cristaidi faith.

By the time the funeral procession neared the rath once more, the flaith and the villagers were divided into firm factions on the subject. Some supported Aífe in her plight, and others felt the Ard-Ri had every right to control her as he wished. The latter faction was mostly Cristaidi; those who adhered to the old religion were of the former frame of mind.

Ethne, Ruadh, and Lucius had told their story to the warriors, workers, and clergy who had remained behind in the rath, and everyone except Tanaide and Eógan had listened respectfully. The princes were quick to grasp that Lucius, now called Prince Ruadhán, was a threat to both of them. If he succeeded in persuading the tribes that he was the son of the old Ard-Ri and Ard-Rígain, he could compete for the throne. Tanaide and Eógan wanted no one else to believe he was thus entitled.

Martinus felt powerless in the face of Ruadh and Ethne’s rescue of Lucius. If he could have, he would have simply had them killed. But Ruadh and Ruadhán were always wary, sword at the ready, and Ethne never walked anywhere without a dirk in her belt and another in her boot. To make matters worse, they had been roaming the tuath, telling their tale to anyone who would listen. It was fast becoming the most exciting news of the day.

They would not go quietly, that was certain. And the memories of the reign of Crimthann and Ethne were still strong with the people. They would be outraged if anything happened to Ethne or her husband. Their deaths would bring certain chaos to In Medon.

Besides, their son had been raised by the brothers at Inissi Leuca. Perhaps he would still make a Cristaide king. There might yet be a way to twist these events to favor the true religion.

Everyone waited tensely for the Ard-Ri’s return.

“It can’t be!” the old Abbott Germanus said, rubbing his eyes. He had come upon Ethne, Ruadh, and Ruadhán as they walked under the apple trees outside of the gates. He thought he must be seeing things, or perhaps his mind was finally breaking under the strain of age. He reached out to touch Lucius, now called Ruadhán, and see if he was real or simply a vision.

“Crimthann?” the old abbott inquired softly, with a look of wonder.

“No, sir, I am not he. I am his son.”

Germanus had been absent from the rath for a few days because his joints and bones had hurt too much to brave the out-of-doors, but the old man remembered clearly the schemes that he and Albinus had set in play so many sun-tides before. It seemed to him that God had fulfilled yet another of his grand designs and brought the now-Cristaide prince back to take the throne. Even better, his Drui mother, that bothersome old queen, actually seemed happy for once. Everything was finally going according to plan.

“Deo gratias,” he murmured piously as his eyes looked the handsome prince up and down. But he wondered why the prince was dressed as a Drui. Perhaps it was a disguise. It was a mystery still to be unraveled.

“Are you actually grateful for our son’s safe return?” asked Ruadh sarcastically.

“Of course, of course I am,” Germanus said in an oily tone. He suspected that the young man’s parents must not be aware of the master plan after all. He would have to speak with the prince in private and ferret out how much he knew about the great destiny that had been set for him since infancy. All in due time.

“Prince Ruadhán, I will champion you with the flaith and the people, should you decide to seek the throne,” Germanus added quickly, wanting to firmly cement his ties with the intended future Ard-Ri.

An unspoken look flashed between Ethne, Ruadh, and the prince, who had already worked out a plan of their own.

After supper, when most had retired for the day, the old abbott found an excuse to separate the prince from his parents and bid him come to examine the construction site.

“What do you think? Is it up to the standards of Inissi Leuca, my son?”

“I suppose so, though it is rather smaller than the chapel there.”

“We do what we can with what we are given to work with, you know,” the abbott replied. “We’re acting in haste because we want the foundation to be firmly laid before the Ard-Ri and the others get back. We don’t want anyone to reverse our plans.

“Now we’re in need of a strong Cristaide leader to pull the tribes together and steer them on the right path. You are trained for the priesthood and are a prince of the royal line. Who is there better than you to take up this task? You are the perfect candidate to complete our mission.”

Ruadhán noticed that the man was clutching his hands unconsciously, as if he were grasping for something priceless, just beyond reach.

To the abbott’s pleasure, Ruadhán assented.

“I am trained in the ways of Inissi Leuca, and I understand your wishes. But it will be many years yet before Cadla is ready to step down.”

“Don’t you worry about that. All things are possible in the eyes of the Lord.”

The abbott went off to find Martinus, Isidore, and Teilo and bring them the good news.