“You speak no more than my own thoughts, Kinart. My dagger cries out to taste their flesh. Let them come on, we’ll give them a dose of their own treatment, a little surprise.”

Perhaps he died alone, out on the hills…perhaps the tide carries his body even now, dark weed, bright hair drifting on the swell…but this is foolish. It is not for him that I return to the women’s place. It is for the Calling. And the Calling will take all my strength. Into the darkness, into the hidden places, that is a journey to test the most dauntless spirit. I must think of that. I will not think of him.

“It is hard to wait until spring,” Kinart said as they neared the place where the two men must halt and let Nessa go on alone. “Father holds us back when our bellies hunger for vengeance. If I were in charge, I would make an army of my own. I would take the fight to Somerled’s door. While we hold back, while we wait, he strengthens his force, he tightens his grip. We should act now. I tell you, the first sight I catch of one of those butchers, there’ll be no stopping me.”

“Kinart, you must leave me now,” Nessa said. “There’s no need to wait; the day moves on swiftly and the time of darkness is long and cold. You should go home while tide and light allow it, and come back for me tomorrow.”

Kinart’s mouth was grim; he showed no sign of moving. “Not this time. I’ll keep watch on the shore; Ferach will stay up here on the eastern side by the dike. And when you come out, bring Rona with you. That’s what the king wants.”

Nessa sighed. For all he was a year older than herself, sometimes this manly young warrior still showed he was a boy. She shivered as a wave of cold, a shadow of something not quite seen, passed over her. “I know what the king wants, Kinart, I don’t need you to tell me. If you must stay, stay then, but keep your distance. Do not be alarmed if there are voices and lights from the women’s place. I am here to conduct a deep ritual tonight; I may awaken forces thus far unknown to us. Rona will help and guide me. I will not come forth until low tide tomorrow afternoon, and for the whole of that time we must not be disturbed. This is an ancient rite. If it is to be attempted, it’s important that you heed my instructions.”

Kinart nodded, his features somber. “If it helps us win our war and drive these barbarians from our shores, a night standing out in the cold is a small price to pay,” he said.

“What about the Hidden Tribe?” Ferach sounded less confident.