‘See this, people of the forest and river, see this, people of the plains, see this, people of the seashore, and the swamp, see this, people of the sky, of the rain, of the sun, all the people who have run from the mouth of the Great Hare and who run over the land that He made. Suckahanna, our daughter, went to the very edge of the dark river for this man. He owes her his life. She has given him life, he has a Powhatan mother.’

The people nodded. ‘He has life from a Powhatan woman.’

John felt Suckahanna tremble down the length of her lean body pressed against his. He saw her shaking hands come down on either side of the executioner’s block and clench white as she forced herself up to kneel and then stand before her people. He thought he should stand too, beside her, but he doubted his legs would hold him. Then he thought again that if Suckahanna could dive towards him to have her head smashed in his place then he should stand for her. He should probably kneel to her.

He heaved himself to his feet and found that his legs were trembling and his body icy with sweat. Suckahanna turned to him and took his hand.

‘I take you as my husband,’ she said shakily. ‘I take you into our people. You are one of the People now and you always will be.’

There was a silence. John feared that his voice would shame him with a squeak of terror. He cleared his throat a little and looked at the girl who had become a woman and who had now twice become his saviour.

‘I thank you for my life,’ he said, speaking their language haltingly, mixing in English words when he was at a loss. ‘I will never forget this. I gladly take you to my wife and I gladly join the People.’

‘I take you,’ she stressed very slightly.

‘I am glad that you take me to your husband, and I am glad that the People admit me,’ John corrected himself.

There was a ripple of pleasure throughout the crowd and then everyone looked to the werowance, dark in his dark feathers, hunched like a heron in a pine tree, brooding over the couple. He raised his spear.

‘Eagle!’ he shouted.

There was a roar from the braves, and then the women and the children took it up. ‘Eagle!’ ‘Eagle!’ ‘Eagle!’

John felt his knees give way and he grabbed for Suckahanna as she swayed too. The women were at her side, the braves bore him up, Attone among them.

‘Eagle!’ Attone cheered, and with a swift sideways grin at John: ‘Eagle! who kills by diving on his deer and pisses himself at his own wedding.’