‘True.’ Macro eyed the Icenian warrior thoughtfully. ‘Strikes me our man might just have been holding out on us. Ask him, Boudica.’

She turned to her kinsman and translated. The warrior’s expression changed completely. He shook his head.

‘Na!’

‘Someone’s not very happy. What’s the matter?’

‘He says there is no such sacred place.’

‘He’s lying. And he’s no good at it. You better tell him. And tell him I want the truth, right now’

Prasutagus shook his head again, and started to shuffle away from Macro, until the centurion’s hand shot out and trapped the Iceni warrior’s wrist in an iron grip.

‘No more of your bullshit! I want the truth.’

For a while the two men stared at each other, faces taut and uncompromising. Then Prasutagus nodded, and began to speak quietly, his tone resigned and fearful.

‘There is a sacred grove,’ Boudica translated. ‘He was trained there for a while.. . It’s where he failed the initiation into the second ring. The Druids call it the grove of the sacred crescent. It’s the place where Cruach will rise and reclaim the world for himself one day. Any day. Until then his spirit hangs like a black shadow over every stone, leaf and blade of grass in the grove. You can hear the cold rasp of his breath through the limbs of the trees. Prasutagus warns you that Cruach will sense your presence at once and will show no mercy to the enemies of his servants. No mercy.’

‘I’ve seen enough of this world to know that the only thing anyone needs to be afraid of is other men, said Macro. ‘If your cousin’s afraid, tell him I’ll hold his hand for him.’

Boudica ignored the last comment and continued with Prasutagus’s warning. ‘He says that the grove is on an island at the centre of a large marsh two days’ ride from here. There’s a small causeway leading to the main entrance, and that’s always heavily guarded. We’d never make it in that way.’ .

‘Then there’s another way in,’ Cato guessed shrewdly. ‘A way in that Prasutagus discovered?’

‘Yes.’ Boudica glanced quickly at her kinsman, and he nodded for her to continue. ‘He used it to visit the daughter of the man commanding the Druids’ guards. She got pregnant and as soon as the Druids discovered he had broken his oath of celibacy he was thrown out of the order.’

Macro roared with laughter, causing the others to glance anxiously around, but nothing stirred in the surrounding trees.

‘Oh dear!’ Macro wiped his eyes and grinned at Prasutagus. ‘You just can’t resist a bloody challenge, can you? You got kicked out on account of a piece of tail — what a prat! You know, I think we might just get on after all.’

‘This way in.’ Cato leaned closer to Boudica. ‘Does anyone else know about it?’