The Last Quarrel (The Complete Edition) (23 page)

“Don’t do this, Cavan. Don’t walk away. You will live to regret it,” Swane appealed.

But Cavan was in no mood to listen any more. He hurried away, his guards falling in behind him, and went to find his father.

“Highness, is this wise?” Eamon asked softly as Cavan stormed through the corridors. “Whenever you have confronted your father it has not gone well.”

Cavan was almost running but he stopped suddenly, reaching out to grab his bodyguard’s fine tunic. “My brother is in league with Zorva. He’s the one behind the missing children and probably even the disappearing people in Lunster. And you think I should just ignore it?”

“That’s not what I said,” Eamon replied gently. “But is the wisest course of action to confront your father?”

Cavan hesitated, but only for a moment. His father rarely liked an idea that was not his own and his temper, as always, could boil over into fury in a heartbeat. But this was not some childish squabble. The fate of the entire kingdom was at stake. “I am beyond doing what is wise,” he said raggedly. “I did what was wise back at the west gate and let an innocent woman be burned at the stake. No more. I have to do what is
right
.”

He let go of Eamon’s tunic abruptly and hurried off, forcing the guards to break into a trot to keep up with him.

After speaking with Swane, he felt more sure of himself than he ever had before. The doubts had disappeared and his fears had a name and a face. A small part of him was also exultant: finally Swane would be punished for his crimes.

He burst into the throne room, feeling as though he carried the force of truth and righteousness with him. It took him but a moment to spot his father, who was sitting down with Finbar, while his chamberlain Regan hovered at their elbow, a pair of servants close by, holding pitchers of Kottermani wine.

“What is the meaning of this, Cavan?” His father leaned back in his chair. “Are you here to join us in a cup?”

“No, Father, I have news of the gravest import. News you wanted brought to you at once.”

Cavan kept walking until he was but a pace away from his father. He sensed, rather than saw, Eamon and the guards slow down and stop a discreet distance away, as his father’s Captain Kelty and his guards stepped out of shadows and from behind columns to hover closely, spears held loosely but pointing unmistakably at Eamon. “Indeed? And what is that?” Aidan leaned forwards, setting down his wine cup.

“I think it would be better if just the two of us spoke,” Cavan said, glancing at the servants and also at the guards.

Aidan stared back at him for a long moment and Cavan mentally braced himself for an explosion of anger. But then the King glanced at Finbar and across to Kelty. “Stay here,” he ordered. “Let none approach us, on pain of death. Walk with me, my son.”

Cavan followed his father across to the other side of the throne room. Voices could echo in the vaulted stone chamber but his father stepped under a gallery and leaned against the wall, beckoning Cavan in close.

“Have you discovered something already?” he whispered.

Cavan took a deep breath. “It is Swane. He just admitted that he is working with a Fearpriest. He told me himself. Just then. He tried to recruit me to his evil cause. He wants to overthrow you and be the power behind the throne. He said I should take the Crown and be the mask behind which the evil will flourish. While he sacrifices children, I will pat others on the head. It is foul. And have you not seen his face? He is not the same Swane as he was before. He flaunts his alliance with Zorva. Now I have refused him, he must know his plan is exposed. If we do not act fast, he or the Fearpriest he has hiding away in his rooms will strike and he will seize your throne by force.”

Aidan placed his hand on Cavan’s shoulder. “My son, do you have any proof other than your word? Did any overhear what Swane said to you?”

Cavan tensed at the weight of his father’s hand, which had often been the prelude to a blow. “No, Father,” he said.

Aidan’s face tightened for a moment and his hand fell away. “I appreciate what you have done, coming straight to me and showing your loyalty,” he said. “But I cannot make such a public accusation. To announce my own son is in league with Zorva? Can you imagine what will happen – the panic on the streets, the uproar among the nobles?”

“But if we –”

“And there are other things happening as well. The heir to the Kotterman Empire will journey here to discuss our relationship soon. He must not find out any of this. We have to be careful. Let us look at the problem. Do you really think your brother will be so foolish as to let a Fearpriest be found in his rooms? I could order more searches now and find nothing and only warn him to be more careful.”

“What should we do then, Father?”

Aidan smiled. “We must be cleverer than your brother. You are right – he will need to act soon, but he is on his guard now. We must lull him, we must watch him and then we must stop him when he makes his move.”

“How?”

“He is too clever to leave evidence lying around. But I shall look for it, discreetly, nonetheless. Meanwhile he will think I have ignored you and he will grow bold enough to strike at me. The moment he does that, I can trigger my trap and end this.”

Cavan nodded happily. Even better than hearing that his evil brother was going to pay was the feeling of being taken into his father’s confidence. “What do you want me to do, Father?”

“In a few moments I am going to pretend to lose my temper and shout at you. You will storm out of here, with my angry words ringing in your ears. Word of that will get back to Swane and he will naturally think I have arrogantly dismissed your warning and refused to believe you. After a day or two, he will relax and believe he can plot again. As soon as he makes his move, he will fall into the trap I have set. Trust me. I shall deal with him.”

“But what if the Fearpriest’s magic is too strong? Archbishop Kynan does not stand tall in Aroaril’s favor and may not be able to stop them,” Cavan said cautiously.

“There are more priests running around than just Kynan. And we always have Finbar at hand. And Kelty will have plenty of guards ready,” his father said confidently.

“What should I do?” Cavan changed the subject swiftly, still wanting his father’s approval.

“Stay in your rooms. You have guards; you have everything you need. And, if you are right, he will not strike at you. I am the real target.”

“But what about the people? While we sit and wait, Swane will keep preying on them,” Cavan protested.

“Sometimes sacrifices have to be made for the greater good. It is a painful lesson but one you have to learn before you take the throne.”

“Still –”

“My decision is made! Now obey me!” Aidan growled.

“Is this the angry outburst you promised?” Cavan asked.

“Yes! Now get out of here!” Aidan said, his voice rising suddenly with his last few words, making everyone in the room turn towards them, from where they had been pretending to talk among themselves.

Cavan turned abruptly and walked away, as his father’s voice rose higher and higher.

“You are a fool! Don’t waste my time any more! If I see you out of your room again before the next full moon, so help me Aroaril I’ll have you flogged!” Aidan was bellowing.

“I see that went well, highness,” Eamon said as he fell in beside him.

“Let’s get out of here and then I’ll tell you about it,” Cavan said as, behind him, his father continued to bellow.

Cavan thanked the priest, a young man from one of the smaller churches in the city’s east.

“It was a pleasure to serve you, highness,” the priest said respectfully, but Cavan could see he was itching to ask why the Crown Prince wanted a holy seal placed across the door of his rooms. Cavan was not about to tell him.

“Do you think that will hold, highness?” Niall asked nervously.

“Who knows?” Cavan said. “But it can’t hurt.”

“Should we lock the door now?”

“We have to wait for Eamon to get back. He was scouting around to see if there was another way into here,” Cavan said absently.

“What if he has already been attacked?”

“We would have heard it. Swane may think he is in control but he doesn’t have anyone who can match blades with Eamon.”

No sooner had he spoken than Eamon and a pair of guards hurried down the corridor towards them.

“It’s all clear. We’ve sealed off this wing of the castle, so there’s no way Swane can get in without us knowing,” Eamon said with a smile. “Now we just wait until Swane acts against your father.”

Cavan sighed. “Not quite. We will give it a couple of days and if nothing has happened we need to get back on to the streets. Now we have enough guards, we should be able to set a trap for Swane’s child snatchers.”

“Highness, I don’t think that is a good idea,” Eamon warned.

“I don’t care. We are doing it. I won’t allow more children to be snatched off the streets while I sit here, shivering with fear.”

Cavan left them and strode over to the window, looking out over the city below. Perhaps it was foolish to go out looking for trouble. But he feared that Swane was ahead of them. Only by catching him red-handed would he be stopped.

The ship was not silent. No wooden ship was. Between the creaking of timbers, the groaning of ropes and canvas sails and the hiss of the water rushing past the hull, there was always noise. But there was little talk.

The men hidden in the hold and in the stern cabin were talking softly, their voices occasionally heard out on the deck, but the men on duty were silent, eyes staring into the darkness. As was common practice, there were lanterns at the masthead, bow and stern. If they were to attract the raiders then they needed to pretend all was normal. But there were several extra lookouts staring out and listening as hard as they could, hoping to pick the sight or sound of another ship in the darkness from the slap of the waves.

Fallon stood with his friends around the tiller. It was long enough for three men to hold, for those times when the wind or waves were against the ship and more than one set of hands was needed to hold the ship on track. But tonight there was little wind or current and Gallagher held the timber lightly, steering the ship so they could see the lights on the shore but not so close that they would be caught by a sudden change in the weather.

“So you’re staying then. Bridgit would’ve been pleased,” Brendan said.

Fallon grunted at that.

“Why did you come back? Captain of the Crown Prince’s guards. That’s just like saying open my trousers and pour gold in there until I start burping up coins,” Devlin said.

Fallon looked around but they were all careful not to meet his eyes. “That prick of a bodyguard showed me I wasn’t good enough. I thought I was trained and ready but he put me down like I was a child.”

“But he would, wouldn’t he? He makes his living by the blade. There wouldn’t be ten men like him in all Gaelland,” Brendan said wisely.

“Maybe so. But it showed me what a waste all those years of chopping at sword posts has been. I would be responsible for the Crown Prince and later the King. He’s the hope of this country and I’d be putting him at risk every day because I’m not good enough,” Fallon said in a rush.

“That’s being a bit hard on yourself, man,” Devlin said softly. “There’s few better with a crossbow than you and there’s not many men who could’ve taken those spineless guards, put some backbone into them and led them into Killarney.”

“They don’t need that in Berry. They need someone who knows how to eat at a banquet with nobles and can dance with Duchesses,” Fallon spat. “I’m just a country sergeant.”

They stood in silence for a long time.

“Well, we’re glad you’re staying,” Gallagher said finally.

“I’ll be happier once we’ve caught a few of the bastards who are attacking us,” Fallon said.

He could sense them exchanging looks behind his back but knew they would not question him further. That was the kind of friends they were.

“When do you think they’ll show up?” Brendan asked.

“When we least expect it,” Fallon predicted.

“So the trick would be to have everyone on board head up to the bows and take a dump at the same time. That should bring them running.” Devlin grinned.

“We should throw you overboard and use you as bait for fishing while we wait,” Brendan said.

“When they come, it will be sudden,” Fallon said. “As far as we know, Caley is the only creature to have escaped them. So they know how to spring an ambush.”

“It’s a lot harder to do that out here,” Gallagher said. “If they approach from the land side we’ll see them outlined against the shore lights. So they will have to come from our sea side. And we’ve got more than enough lads looking out there to see them.”

“But they won’t have lights like we do,” Devlin pointed out.

“Doesn’t matter. Look over there. As each wave breaks, it leaves a white trace that you can pick up in the moonlight. Even if they have black sails and black timbers, they can’t stop themselves leaving that sort of mark as they cut through the waves,” Gallagher said confidently.

“Then all we need to do is wait,” Devlin said. He sat down with his back to the ship’s rail. “I can see this is going to be a long night.”

“It might be boring now but it could get more exciting than we would like,” Fallon said. “Keep a sharp eye out. I’ll go and check on the others.”

His first stop was Gannon and his squad of men, who were waiting in the Duke’s former cabin. A handful were playing dice on the Duke’s table, while Gannon and most of the rest sharpened already bright blades and a couple snored on the floor.

“I hope they will be ready to go at a moment’s notice. We’re not going to get much time if they do attack.”

Gannon kicked his men awake. “We’ll be ready,” he promised.

“See that you are. We are depending on you,” Fallon told him. “My men are farmers and fishermen first. I work them hard when we prepare for the fyrd but that’s not the same as training properly. Remember what will happen to our homes and families if we fail.”

“What do you mean?” one of the sleepier guards asked.

“The King wants to raise our taxes to pay for guarding against these so-called selkies. You might think you are safe enough, wearing the Duke’s uniform, but there will be no escape from it. Prices will go up and I’ll bet you a gold coin to a stick that your pay won’t follow. Your wives and children will be paying double for their food and clothes. Everyone is going to suffer unless we stop these bastards.”

“What if they really are selkies?”

“Then they’ll find out that there’s worse things out here than them,” Fallon said harshly, his eyes sweeping the room. “And anybody who doesn’t follow me when we go for them had better throw himself overboard, because otherwise I will come back and rip his guts out.”

Gannon stood. “Do you want our help or not?” he asked. “Because you locked us up on this ship as soon as we got here and now you’re treating us like we’re pieces of shit.”

Fallon smiled but there was no humor there. “I put you in here because someone is telling our attackers our plans and I didn’t want to risk it being one of you. But now you’re on board, I either learn I can trust you or your body will be thrown over the side.”

“Hagen trusts me. And so will you,” Gannon said, pointing a chunky finger at Fallon’s face. “Nobody’s called me a backstabbing traitor before.”

“I never called you that. But I need to know you’ll obey my orders instantly. If you don’t think you can, then let’s go outside now and sort it out.”

Gannon shook his head. “I’m here to serve you, like Hagen told me to.”

“What did he say to you?” Fallon asked, curious about the big man’s change in attitude since their first meeting.

“Hagen said you were friendly enough usually but you were a nasty bastard when you got angry. Said years of living out here had taken the edge off you but there’s something in you that won’t bend or be broken, just gets stronger the more you get pushed.”

“Hagen talks too bloody much,” Fallon grunted, although he was secretly pleased by his old friend’s words.

“We won’t let you down,” Gannon said strongly.

Fallon smiled coldly. “Then stay awake. And stay alert.”

He left them and walked down to the mast, where Padraig and Sister Rosaleen sat together.

“You have nothing to fear,” Padraig announced confidently as Fallon approached. The old man was more animated than he’d been in years.

“And why’s that?”

“I have a pair of seagulls circling us, ready to fly down the moment they see another ship near us. Magic shall protect you tonight!”

“Seagulls,” Fallon said suspiciously.

“They have excellent eyesight. Much better than mine!”

Fallon nodded doubtfully. He was not sure that birds could see well at night and suspected that most seagulls slept at night, rather than looked for prey. But they might see something and at least it kept Padraig from bothering him.

“How are you, Sister?” he asked Rosaleen.

“Tired,” she yawned. “But I am ready to stand with you. Although –”

“What? You’re not still worrying that you are defying the Archbishop by coming out here like this?”

She smiled faintly. “Actually, I do think it is men behind this. And if it is, I wonder how much help I can be in a ship battle.”

“Perhaps not much in the fight itself, but I fear you will be needed afterwards, to try and save as many of us as possible,” Fallon said.

He went to walk on, to see how the rest of the men in the hold were doing but Padraig pushed himself to his feet and held out a hand to stop him, guiding him over to the ship’s rail.

“What is it?” Fallon asked, exasperated. “We could be attacked at any moment and I need to check on the men.”

“I wanted to thank you for looking after Bridgit. And I wanted to remind you how much she loves you,” Padraig said.

“And what’s that supposed to mean?”

“That it’s not easy to be married sometimes. Aroaril knows I was not an easy man to live with. And when there is so much going on around you, you need to focus your mind on what is important.”

Fallon remembered only too well the arguments they had been having. “Well, I need to focus on how we’re about to be attacked,” he said brusquely, and hurried away.

But Padraig’s words stuck in his mind as he clambered down into the hold. The hatch cover was off and Gallagher had rigged netting on all sides so a dozen men could climb out at a time. The air down there was thick and foul compared to the deck: someone had obviously been sick, while there was a definite stink of fear. It didn’t help that the motion of the ship was much worse down here.

“Not long now, lads!” Fallon said loudly as he jumped down to the floor and staggered, just a little. “Who was it that’s been puking their guts up? And please tell me I haven’t just slipped in it!”

The chuckles rose out of the darkness and he peered around the hold. “If you’ve brought lanterns, then light them up. They can’t see what’s going on down here like they could on the deck, so why sit in the dark?”

In a few heartbeats, half a dozen lanterns had been lit and everything seemed to lighten, even the smell.

“That’s better! Now you lads have it lucky down here. Don’t have to do any work, just lie back and enjoy a nice cruise through the night and think how you’re going to spend the Duke’s money!”

There were smiles on faces now and he grinned round at them. “That’s better. From the look of you, I thought you’d all been told that you’d agreed to marry Devlin’s mother – you know, the one with a better beard than he has.”

He leaned against the side of the boat. “Still, a bit of fresh air wouldn’t go astray. Keep an eye on those candles in those lanterns. Six of you come up on deck now and when you reckon it’s been a turn of the hourglass, change with another six. Unless you hear the bell ringing, of course, in which case everyone up and hiding by the side rails.”

The faces had been looking more cheerful but a few looked downcast again at his words so he clapped his hands together. “Don’t worry. All that training we do with the fyrd, which you all complain about behind my back – that’s twice as hard as anything you’ll face tonight. They tricked the Duke but they can’t trick us. Trust me and you’ll come through this.”

He stared around the hold and everyone met his eyes, which he took to be a good sign.

“Come on then. Six of you, the ones who look like they’re about to puke, follow me up. And make sure you drop a bucket or two of seawater down here to clean it up!”

He led the way up the nets, using the rocking of the boat to help him up, then pulled himself back onto the deck.

The lookouts were all alert and he did not spend much time with them, afraid they might miss something in exchange for a few pleasantries. He walked back towards the stern, feeling happier that his motley crew of warriors would be ready when the attack came – only to groan as Padraig hurried over towards him yet again.

“More fatherly advice?” he asked.

Padraig shook his head. “One of the birds has seen a big ship a few miles away, out to sea and coming this way,” he said urgently.

Fallon felt every sense come fully alert in that instant. “How big? And how far away?”

“They can’t tell distance like we do. I tried to see through its eyes but it made me feel sick. What I could see told me it was probably twice our size and heading towards us.”

Fallon’s stomach gave a little lurch at that news. But he reminded himself these mysterious attackers were used to surprise attacks and had probably grown arrogant with their success. They would not expect to be attacked themselves.

“Keep the size of the ship to yourself. I’m going to sound the alarm,” he said grimly. “Make sure you are ready.”

He left Padraig and hurried back to the stern, walking fast but not running, wanting to give the appearance of confidence.

“What’s up?” Devlin asked as soon as he rejoined his friends.

“Padraig’s birds have seen something off to our right, out to sea. A big ship heading towards us,” he replied. “Sound the bell.”

Brendan nodded and turned to the ship’s bell. It was used to sound the change of watches, so would be a normal sound for a ship to make – except they had not been using it until now. Brendan rang the bell three times and the ship came alive around them.

Fallon drew his sword and checked the edge: he had done so a dozen times already that night, but he knew he might really need it now. Men poured out of the hold, rushing to the rails and ducking low, keeping out of sight. Fallon had told them to do it quietly and he cursed now as there was a mixture of excited and fearful chatter, as well as thumps and bumps as men fell or dropped their weapons.

“Maybe we should have practiced this a few times,” Devlin said dryly.

“Do you think they might suspect something if they see all those heads?” Gallagher pointed to where men were poking up to glance over the rail every few moments.

Fallon swore. “I’ll go down there,” he growled.

The door to the stern cabin was open, with Gannon and his men poised just inside.

“Big ship sighted coming for us. Stay out of sight until they are upon us, then form a tight line. The fyrd will join on you,” Fallon told them.

“We’ll be there.” Gannon nodded.