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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

There were many among the fisherfolk who were grateful to Sorcha for what she did, and many said that without her intervention, speaking directly to the captain, justice would never have been served. Most ignored the blether that went around afterwards about the real reason the captain had listened. Sorcha McIntyre might be many things, folk would whisper, but a whore she wasn’t.

Aware of the rumours swirling around about her and the captain, Sorcha reasoned this was why he was foremost in her thoughts most days. Much to her bemusement, rarely did a day go by when she didn’t see Captain Ross. He would oft stir from the house where he was billeted — a large one on the Eastern Shore close to Nettie’s husband’s and owned by the collier, Malcolm Moray — as the fishwives made their way to the pier each morning. Standing on the stoop, he would greet the women and flash a smile. Arms folded, he’d watch them through a cloud of tobacco smoke. After he appeared several days in a row, Nettie whispered to Sorcha, ‘He’s only started doing that since you came back, you ken. More so since the bad business with Margie.’

Sorcha did know. She just didn’t want to think about what it might mean. Yet, she did. In fact, Captain Ross began to occupy the space in her thoughts once taken up by the other men in her life: her da, her brothers, Andy and Kennocht. For all she tried to prevent his intrusion, thinking about the captain, who was neither dead nor an unwelcome memory, wasn’t an unpleasant way to witter away time. She wondered if he missed his home on Skye and what he really thought of the Weem. One day when the chance arose, she might even ask him. The very idea made her blood sing. It wouldn’t be that difficult either. Ever since that day he’d escorted her back into town and then, a few weeks later, helped bring the culprit who hurt Margie to justice, they’d taken to meeting. At first Sorcha thought it was a happy accident that he’d appear just when she was walking back from the harbour after she’d finished sorting the catch, or returning from Anster way with an empty creel. Sometimes she was with another fishwife, but more often she was by herself. They would fall into step and talk as if they’d known each other for years rather than being recent acquaintances.