His son was staring straight at him.

A long silence passed between them, something unspoken communicated, and then, finally, Evnis nodded to Vonn, a small incline of the head, nothing more. Vonn saw and looked away.

Edana was still talking, something about peace and good men banding together.

‘Can someone please kill her,’ a voice shouted from behind Evnis.

Morcant, of course.

And I think I should oblige.

Evnis roared an order, oars and paddles splashing into water and they were moving again.

Edana, Roisin and Lorcan were all sitting down in their boat now, Halion and Vonn rowing hard, a sprint for the sunken fortress. From gaps in walls and towers other boats appeared, men in them, but for each boat with people in there was one that they towed by rope, empty. Evnis noticed it but did not have time to think too hard about it. He was closing on Edana.

Then he heard a huge tearing whooosh behind him, followed closely by screaming. He twisted around, rocking his boat, to see a wall of flames igniting along the lake shore, crackling through reed banks and somehow spreading across the streams and rivers that they had travelled upon.

How the hell have they done that? We’re in a marsh, with more water than land.

Some of his boats were on fire, men jumping overboard, human torches, and separated behind them, on the far side of the flames were roughly half of his warband.

He cursed himself for a fool and set his mind on killing Edana.

CHAPTER EIGHTY-FIVE

CAMLIN

Camlin watched as Meg tugged on a long rope, dragging a rolled mat of dried rushes and reeds across a stream between two boat-loads of warriors.

Camlin touched his arrow-tip into the small fire he had crackling, the linen soaked in fish oil catching alight with a hiss. He raised his bow, drew and released, his arrow arcing and dropping into the mat of reeds. That, too, had been doused in fish oil and so the whole thing ignited in a heartbeat, flames roaring, men screaming, leaping from the boat, flames searing the flesh from warriors before and behind it.

Meg appeared at another spot on the bank, alongside the forms of other men hidden in the reeds. Clay pots filled with fish oil flew through the air to smash into boats. Camlin released another flaming arrow and a boat went up in flames. Along the bank other huntsmen fired flaming arrows and more fires were igniting, roaring into the air, more men screaming.

Camlin heard screaming all about him, the same happening on a dozen inlets.

He glanced out to the lake, saw Evnis leading over a score of boats towards Dun Crin, Edana a dot before them. Other boats were appearing from the walls, moving towards Evnis’ splintered fleet.

Going to plan, then. That’s a pleasant surprise.