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Back The Darkest Shore Save as PDF
Chapters (76)
  1. Cover
  2. About the Author
  3. Also by Karen Brooks
  4. Title Page
  5. Dedication
  6. EXPLANATORY NOTE
  7. PART ONE
  8. One
  9. Two
  10. Three
  11. Four
  12. Five
  13. Six
  14. Seven
  15. Eight
  16. Nine
  17. Ten
  18. Eleven
  19. Twelve
  20. Thirteen
  21. Fourteen
  22. Fifteen
  23. Sixteen
  24. Seventeen
  25. Eighteen
  26. Nineteen
  27. Twenty
  28. Twenty-One
  29. Twenty-Two
  30. Twenty-Three
  31. Twenty-Four
  32. Twenty-Five
  33. Twenty-Six
  34. Twenty-Seven
  35. Twenty-Eight
  36. PART TWO
  37. Twenty-Nine
  38. Thirty
  39. Thirty-One
  40. Thirty-Two
  41. Thirty-Three
  42. Thirty-Four
  43. Thirty-Five
  44. PART THREE
  45. Thirty-Six
  46. Thirty-Seven
  47. Thirty-Eight
  48. Thirty-Nine
  49. Forty
  50. Forty-One
  51. Forty-Two
  52. Forty-Three
  53. Forty-Four
  54. Forty-Five
  55. Forty-Six
  56. Forty-Seven
  57. Forty-Eight
  58. Forty-Nine
  59. Fifty
  60. Fifty-One
  61. Fifty-Two
  62. PART FOUR
  63. Fifty-Three
  64. Fifty-Four
  65. Fifty-Five
  66. Fifty-Six
  67. Fifty-Seven
  68. Fifty-Eight
  69. Fifty-Nine
  70. Sixty
  71. Sixty-One
  72. Epilogue: Autumn 1706
  73. AUTHOR’S NOTE
  74. GLOSSARY
  75. LIST OF CHARACTERS
  76. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Not wanting his last memory of her to be of red, swollen eyes and a miserable mouth, she pushed her sorrow away, climbed out of bed and warmed some milk for him, adding the last of the whisky to his cup.

When the time came to say goodbye, they stood in the middle of the room and said nothing. They simply cleaved to each other — Sorcha, as if she were drowning and he her only chance of salvation.

His kiss, when it came, was chaste and warm, soft, yet in it were a thousand promises, and she knew in her soul he intended to keep them all. Kissing him back, she made sure he knew she felt the same. Her body was pliant against his, but her mind was unyielding as she railed against God and the fates that once more someone was being taken from her, that her love was being cruelly tested. She wanted to shake a fist at the heavens, rain curses upon Him and any who professed Him good, but was afraid that if she did, Aidan would be punished.

While she might deserve the wrath of the Lord, he did not.

Just as he had the first night she met him, almost a year ago, he disappeared into the gloom. If he looked back, she didn’t know, but stayed by the door all the same. It wasn’t until she finally went inside and stood by the fire that she felt cold.

Cold and alone.

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As she dressed for kirk the last Sunday in November, two weeks after Aidan departed, Sorcha wondered, as she did every moment of every day, what he was doing. Had he reached Marlborough’s forces yet? Not knowing exactly where he was to join the general, she had no idea of the distance he had to cover or how long it would take. In her mind, he was with the great man, drinking whisky, enjoying a coffee, safe and warm in a tent, Liath and a corporal with him. The one blessing in all this was that Sergeant Thatcher had remained and been placed in charge of the troops until a replacement arrived; she knew Aidan had asked him to watch over her.

She wished Nettie was here to help lace her best dress — an emerald green and turquoise creation her mother had made for her. Her mor always said it reflected her eyes. Smoothing the skirts, she ran a comb through her curls, winding her locks into orderliness at the nape of her neck. Pinning a scarf over her head, she studied herself in the looking glass.