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Back A Burning Sea
Chapters (54)
  1. CAST OF CHARACTERS
  2. PART ONE
  3. CHAPTER ONE
  4. CHAPTER TWO
  5. CHAPTER THREE
  6. CHAPTER FOUR
  7. CHAPTER FIVE
  8. CHAPTER SIX
  9. CHAPTER SEVEN
  10. CHAPTER EIGHT
  11. CHAPTER NINE
  12. CHAPTER TEN
  13. CHAPTER ELEVEN
  14. CHAPTER TWELVE
  15. PART TWO
  16. CHAPTER THIRTEEN
  17. CHAPTER FOURTEEN
  18. CHAPTER FIFTEEN
  19. CHAPTER SIXTEEN
  20. CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
  21. CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
  22. CHAPTER NINETEEN
  23. CHAPTER TWENTY
  24. CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
  25. CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
  26. CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
  27. CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
  28. CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
  29. CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
  30. PART THREE
  31. CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
  32. CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
  33. CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
  34. CHAPTER THIRTY
  35. CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
  36. CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
  37. CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
  38. CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
  39. CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
  40. CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
  41. CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
  42. PART FOUR
  43. CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
  44. CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
  45. CHAPTER FORTY
  46. CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
  47. CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
  48. CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
  49. CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
  50. CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
  51. CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
  52. CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
  53. HISTORICAL NOTE
  54. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

He saw her bright, frightened eyes glance out to sea. He followed her gaze and there, winking on the black water, was an orange light. But the next thing he knew was pain exploding in his groin and ripping through his bowels like a starburst. He lost his grip on her, toppled forwards straight into her small fist driving into his jaw. He was on his knees like a sack of shit.

‘Stop her!’ yelled Erlan, his voice rising from somewhere on the staircase. Fine for him to say, thought Einar. That was easier said than done.

Anyway, she had already thrown herself at the wall. Einar launched after her, lunging with his seax. He felt the long blade connect, twisted his wrist and rolled onto his back, but she was over the wall and dropping with the confidence of a cat down the other side before he could blink. By the time he’d shoved his head through the embrasure, she was already at the foot of the wall. He watched her stumble across the rough ground and the rocks to the small cliff edge where the sea was gently lapping. Even from there, he could see her back heaving and she was clutching her left side. She stopped to glance back up at the wall, then turned and dived into the water.

Einar’s forearm was smarting like he’d shoved it in a hornets’ nest.

‘Where is she?’ gasped Erlan, wide-eyed.

‘Where is she!’ snarled Einar. ‘Where the Hel were you?’

‘I thought you had her.’

‘I did! But now she’s gone. There.’ Einar jabbed his seax south at the dark head bobbing on the swell, slowly closing the distance to the little light. Soon she was just another shadow in a sea of black.

Erlan squinted, straining his eyes against the darkness. ‘Did she make it?’

‘I couldn’t tell.’

Erlan cursed.

Einar looked down at the blade in his hand, then held it up for Erlan to see. Six inches of steel from the tip were slick with blood. Erlan shook his head in disgust and turned away.

Meanwhile, Einar’s balls were throbbing like war drums. Gods, but that girl could kick. He was about to follow after Erlan when his foot knocked against something on the flagstones, making it roll. He stooped down and picked it up. Peered at it.

‘Here, lad,’ he growled. ‘Look at this.’

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

Illustration

Erlan had come to her before dawn. She knew he had to go, knew in her heart that it was for her that he went. But the parting was hard.