Up, up the hill. Where was the spot? It was so dark I risked toppling over the edge to plunge into the water as Ciar had. I might end this remarkable day as a fish or a frog or anything at all. Grim, you fool, why would you do such a thing?

The rain abated. For a moment, the veil of cloud parted and moonlight shone down, showing me the narrow entry, the patch of soft grass, and at the far end, standing on the very edge of the drop, the dark, still bulk of a man.

I froze, not daring to speak. Startle him and he’d go right over. Say the wrong thing and he’d jump. He’d commit himself to that pool, knowing what it could do.

There was a right way to go about these things. Speak quietly and calmly. Don’t approach, keep at a slight distance, go on talking. I knew how to do it; I’d done it before, more than once. But all of a sudden my eyes were streaming and my nose was running and the words came out broken and unsteady and out of control. ‘Grim! Don’t! Please!’

His whole body tightened. He was going to jump.

‘Grim, you wretched man! Do as I bid you right now or I’ll turn you into a fat rabbit and eat you for supper, I swear!’

He took a step back from the edge. Turned toward me. Muttered something.

‘What was that?’ My heart was thumping fit to leap out of my chest. ‘What did you say?’

‘No good to you. Never was. Only took me on because you had no other choice. True, isn’t it? Let me tag after you because if you hadn’t, it would have been another year on Conmael’s bargain.’

I was right. This was all about Conmael’s accursed bargain.

‘True, isn’t it? Don’t lie to me. Don’t honey-coat the truth.’

‘You’re saying that to me? Have I ever lied to you, Grim? Have I? You’re the one person I can’t lie to. You’re the one person who knows me too well to be taken in by it. Why do you imagine I asked you to come with me to confront Branoc that day, instead of waiting to go there with men-at-arms? Why do you think Conmael sent you after me when I was running away, instead of following me himself? Why do you think I needed you to stay at Winterfalls with me to solve the puzzle of Lady Flidais?’

‘Don’t know,’ said Grim. ‘Never did know, really. Just happy there was something for me to do. Somewhere for me to go. Somewhere near you. Thought you knew that, Lady.’