CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
Aine followed Eoghan south through town, where he turned off the noisy and crowded thoroughfare onto a quieter residential street. She had insisted on trailing behind him like a meek serving girl, even though Eoghan hadn’t seemed pleased with the suggestion.
She had an ulterior motive, though. She had managed to conceal just how badly the dark magic in the city affected her, but the longer they stayed, the sicker and weaker she became. Eoghan was coddling her more than Ruarc ever had, and she didn’t want to give him more reason for concern. Until they were free of the reach of the worst concentration of magic, she would not draw an easy breath.
She thought she was managing well until she stepped into a particularly cold pocket, a sign that a sidhe was nearby. She stumbled on shaking legs and barely caught herself before she went down in the dirt. Instantly, Eoghan was at her side.
“I’m fine,” she insisted, but Eoghan shook his head.
“You can’t go on like this. The sidhe affect you too strongly. We’re going to need horses.”
“Don’t say that aloud.” But Eoghan seemed to be thinking. “Our best choice is to send my friend back to purchase them. It’ll draw less attention, and he’ll know where we’re least likely to be cheated.”
“Can he be trusted?”
“With my life. And yours.”
“I can make it. Just let me rest a few moments.”
Eoghan looked unconvinced. She didn’t need to read his thoughts to know he saw through her charade.
He kept up the pretenses to the edge of the city, his pace slow and steady for her benefit. Then, without a word, he swept her up in his arms.
“Please, put me down.” It was an uncomfortably intimate position, pressed against his chest, his arms under her back and legs. She’d never thought she would be this close to any man but her husband.
“It’s miles,” Eoghan said. “You would never make it. And you weigh not much more than this bag.”
Aine shifted in his arms, but that only made him flush. She stiffened. “I don’t suppose I’m going to convince you otherwise.”
“No.” He grinned at her.
She relaxed a little and returned the smile, purposely blocking out his thoughts. She didn’t want to know what he was thinking about this arrangement. She had to admit she was grateful for the rest, though. She curled her arm around Eoghan’s neck and tried not to think about how it must look.
The shaky, ill feeling that had dominated since they came in sight of land began to fade the farther away they got from the center of the city. She closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep. At least then she wouldn’t have to make awkward conversation with her husband’s best friend, who was holding her far too close for comfort.
Eoghan sensed the moment when Aine went from pretending to be asleep to actually being asleep, her muscles relaxing and her head falling forward against his shoulder. He managed to relax as well. It was more than awkward to be carrying Conor’s bride in such a way, and they both knew it. But she was exhausted and would not have made it more than a few steps outside the city’s borders.
Aine was clearly uncomfortable with the situation, but she couldn’t possibly understand his own uneasiness. Until he ventured out of Ard Dhaimhin, he had never met a woman. Not that he had been ignorant of the full range of male-female interaction, but for a man raised among men, it was an odd experience. No one could blame him if he looked on a capable, beautiful woman such as Aine with a spark of interest, his friend’s wife or not.
You’d do best to remember that, he reminded himself and shifted her in his arms.
After several stops to rest —Aine was light, but not that light —they came to a croft on the outskirts of the city. The glow of candlelight seeped from one of the windows. Eoghan gave Aine a little shake. “Time to wake up, my lady.”
She murmured something unintelligible against his shoulder, but her eyes remained closed.
Eoghan shook her a little harder this time. “My lady, we are here.”
Aine’s eyelids fluttered and she looked straight into Eoghan’s eyes. A flush immediately tinged her entire face and neck. “You may put me down. I’m awake.”
He set her gently on her feet and stepped back while she straightened her dress and regained her composure. “We’ll be safe here. Criofan was a member of the brotherhood. He chose to leave Ard Dhaimhin to protect his family after the city was attacked.”
Aine’s eyes widened. “When did that happen?”
“I’ll explain on the way, my lady. It’s over two weeks to the forest’s edge by horseback.”
“And you expected us to walk?” She arched an eyebrow, reminding Eoghan she was a lady, unaccustomed to traveling by foot. She would have endured, no doubt, but she did not have the benefit of his Fíréin training.
The door of the cottage opened to illuminate the silhouette of a tall, muscular man. Criofan stepped outside and closed the door behind him, dropping them back into near-darkness. “You found her.”
“Did you think Comdiu was surprised by her arrival?” Eoghan hadn’t given Criofan the full story of how he’d known she would be arriving that afternoon, only that they would need a safe place to stay, away from the city.
The brother chuckled. “Come inside. My mother has supper on. You look as if you could use it.”
Inside, the Fíréin brother gave Aine a little bow. “I am Criofan.”
Eoghan realized he probably should have made formal introductions. “This is Lady Aine.”
Aine swept back her hood and smiled. “Thank you for your hospitality, Brother Criofan. You cannot know how much I appreciate having a safe place to stay outside the city.”
Criofan just stared for a moment, as if mesmerized. Then he shook himself. “It is our honor, my lady. Let me introduce my mother, Nola.”
A surprisingly young woman set a pot of stew at the center of the table and strode toward them, wiping her hands on her apron. “You are most welcome, my lady. We know what you did for our fighting men in the last days of the war. We are most grateful.”
Aine took her hand. “Did you have a husband or sons fighting with Faolán, Mistress Nola?”
The woman seemed to crumple. “My husband. He never returned home to me. Did you know him, perchance? Lugaid Ó Murchadha?”
“I don’t think so. What company did he fight with?”
“He was part of Lord Gainor’s company, my lady.”
Aine clasped the woman’s hand in both of hers. “I did not know him personally, but the men with Gainor fought valiantly. It was only because of them that my brother survived the retreat.”
Tears streamed down Nola’s face. Aine put her arms around her. After several moments, the woman pulled away and wiped her eyes. “Forgive me. You will be hungry from the road. Please sit. Eat. It’s not much, but you’re welcome to it.”
They huddled around the small table, where Nola had set out stew in her few scarred wooden bowls.
Eoghan ate in silence for a few moments, then set down his spoon and turned his attention to their hosts. “Tomorrow we’ll need to buy horses in town. Do you know of a merchant who’s trustworthy?”
Criofan chuckled. “In Ballaghbán? You’ll find that a difficult task. There’s a brother in town who might know. We can see him in the morning.”
“Only one? There were half a dozen brothers when I passed through before.”
“And all those who have identified themselves with the shield knot have been arrested and executed. The new lord at Lisdara takes great pleasure in making examples of the Fíréin they manage to capture.”
Eoghan took in the information silently, though it sickened him. “I’m surprised they’ve managed to capture any.”
“Word is they lost so many guards in the first attempts, thinking a half dozen would suffice to subdue a single warrior, they had to start sending a full company of men. Twenty years away from Ard Dhaimhin they might have been, but they were still Fíréin at heart.”
“Is it only Fíréin they target?” Aine inquired.
They started at her soft voice. She had been so quiet that Eoghan had almost forgotten about her.
“No, my lady. All Balians are at risk. You need only travel to Lisdara to see. Lord Keondric has decorated the road to the fortress with their heads on pikes.”
“Lord Keondric? How is that possible?”
“He seized the army from Fergus,” Eoghan said. “He’s the one who controls the men now.”
Understanding surfaced on her face. She clearly understood the subtext of the statement even though few people knew the truth outside of the Conclave. Her throat worked. “Then we must find a way to reinstate the wards around Ard Dhaimhin. Balians need a safe haven. What better place to bring them than the city of our first Balian king?”
“My lady,” Eoghan said, “Seanrós and part of Róscomain is burned. Our barrier is gone.”
“If the wards are rebuilt, the Fíréin cannot hold the city?”
Eoghan and Criofan exchanged a glance, and Eoghan saw the same spark of hope rising in the other brother’s eyes. “Perhaps, but the harp is gone. Destroyed.”
“Where did the harp come from?” Aine asked.
“No one knows. Like all objects of power, it dates back to the Great Kingdom.”
“Then it can’t be the only way to reinstate the wards.” Aine stood. “Mistress Nola, may I assist you in washing up?”
Eoghan watched Aine clear the table with the widow. She spoke with such conviction, it was impossible to believe that things could be other than she said. The only other person who seemed to believe so strongly in the impossible was Conor.
Could it be, Lord? Can it be done?
Comdiu did not answer directly. Still, a deep conviction crept into Eoghan’s heart, a feeling that could be described only as affirmation.