There was a pause; he wiped away more tears, but they were in his voice when he spoke again. “Any wrong you did me in life, I forgive you now. I do not know if you can forgive me, for I repaid your kindness poorly. You were slain in your prime for one reason only: that you were brave enough to be my friend.” He bowed his head.

“You’re doing well,” I murmured.

He looked up, eyes streaming now. “We had good times together,” he said simply. “In the bad times, we stood by each other. Farewell, my brother.” He knelt and laid his palm against the bare soil a moment, then stood in silence.

“Farewell, Aidan,” I said as the birdsong swelled into a jubilant chorus of recognition. “You were a fine man. You lived your life well. Go safely on your new journey.”

Spending my wedding night under my parents’ roof might once have seemed an awkward prospect to me, but Cathal and I cared nothing for that, only for the precious gift of time alone together and the astonishing maelstrom of feelings that had built and built between us. It was a night of sweet tenderness and explosive passion, of brief pain and long pleasure, of tears and of laughter. Laughter was good; it had been scarce enough of recent times. We did not sleep much, but that did not matter; there would be little opportunity for intimacy on the journey north, with our escort close at hand and the need to reach our destination safely driving us fast. With that in mind, we made energetic use of the time we had. Before dawn we rested, entwined in each other’s arms, a sheen of sweat on our skin and a blissful weariness in our bodies, and felt the beating of our two hearts, as closely attuned as verse and melody, drum and dancing feet. With the rising of the sun we stirred, and woke, and readied ourselves to face the new day.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Juliet Marillier was born in Dunedin, New Zealand, a town with strong Scottish roots. She graduated from the University of Otago with degrees in languages and music, and has had a varied career that includes teaching and performing music as well as working in government agencies.

Juliet now lives in a hundred-year-old cottage near the river in Perth, Western Australia, where she writes full-time. She is a member of the druid order OBOD. Juliet shares her home with two dogs and a cat.

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Acknowledgements

CHAPTER 1

CHAPTER 2

CHAPTER 3

CHAPTER 4

CHAPTER 5

CHAPTER 6

CHAPTER 7

CHAPTER 8

CHAPTER 9

CHAPTER 10

CHAPTER 11

CHAPTER 12

CHAPTER 13

CHAPTER 14

CHAPTER 15

CHAPTER 16

CHAPTER 17

ABOUT THE AUTHOR