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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

She could be the child’s mother, someone’s wife, only she wasn’t. Stubborn, the woman refused to contemplate remarrying — even when a perfectly respectable suitor was found — going so far as to leave the village. Good riddance, he’d thought. One less wanton to worry about. But what does the lass do? Returns. Bolder and, he had to admit looking at her now, more tempting than ever. Now she was back, she posed an even greater threat to the village’s peace of mind — to his, too — than when she first became widowed.

No matter what it took, he would bring Sorcha McIntyre to heel. Since she chose to remain, he would see her safely wed. If not to his eldest, then to someone he considered enlightened enough to take his advice on how to handle her. Only with a husband to answer to would she cease to disturb him; to pose a risk to his reputation — to the other menfolk, he corrected himself. Aye, that’s what he must turn his attention to, he thought, as he took the path that ran along the top of the braes, descending towards the High Street. He would put his mind to how to tame Sorcha McIntyre. Her and the rest of the fishwives.

And if he couldn’t fathom how to do it, he knew in his soul God would show him the way.

Eight

EIGHT

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Garred dress is ill tae grow.

(Trying to force someone against her will is rarely successful.)

Being able to resume her old work, including the running of her boat, meant Sorcha was busy. In consultation with the captain of the Mistral, Cameron McDougall, an experienced seaman from Anster whom she had hired to command the vessel, they decided to send it up to Inverness and then, if the seas allowed, on to Stornoway again. It was dangerous, but when the only option was to starve, they didn’t have much choice but to brave the North Sea. The lease arrangement Robbie had entered into ended when they learned of his capture, so it was Sorcha’s responsibility to pay the crew what she could from the profits, which they in turn gave to their families. The rest she spent on resupplying the boat and repairing the sails, but even then, it wasn’t enough. Captain McDougall would have to use the additional funds she gave him to purchase extra stores en route.