her fears. If he went away, she would have to face all the questions that she didn’t want to answer.
Outside, the wind whipped at the thatched roofs. The night sky was dotted with stars and all around them were the mingled voices of Irish and Viking.
Trahern stood with his back to her, his tall form silhouetted in the darkness. The outdoor fires cast a slight glow, barely enough to see. An invisible weight bore down on his shoulders, and, like her sister, he appeared to stand apart from the others.
Moreen stepped nearer to him, keeping her tread loud enough to be heard. There was a restlessness brewing within him, of a man who didn’t want to be here. He needed his freedom, and she had no right to ask him to remain.
‘You don’t have to stay on my behalf,’ she offered gently. ‘There’s nothing to keep you here.’
He turned, his massive height overshadowing her. His grey eyes locked onto hers, and the fury seemed to drift away. With each breath, he grew calmer. ‘That isn’t true.’
Colour rose to her cheeks. Though she knew she meant nothing to him, his tone suggested otherwise. ‘We’ll be all right.’
‘I left Ciara behind, thinking she would be safe.’ He took a step forward. ‘I said goodbye to her, believing that the others would protect her.’
The night air prickled the back of her neck, and she took a step backwards. ‘You couldn’t have known what would happen. They set our homes on fire in the middle of the night. No one was expecting the attack.’
‘You’re asking me to do the same thing again. To leave you and your sister behind, at the mercy of these Lochlannach.’
She drew the edges of her brat tighter. His face was determined and fierce, his entire body rigid with pain. ‘It’s not the same. Some of my cousins and friends are here.’
‘I promised your sister I wouldn’t let any harm come to you.’ Trahern reached out and drew her brat over her head for warmth.
Morren wanted to step back, but she found herself unable to move. Something about his protective air held her locked in place.
‘Do you want me to escort both of you to the abbey instead?’ he asked.
She knew Trahern meant to bring her to safety, but she couldn’t hide among the monks forever. She had to return to her clan, for the sake of Jilleen. And that meant staying here.
‘Thank you,’ she told Trahern, ‘but no. It’s best for my sister if we remain among our people here. When the rest of the Ó Reillys return to Glen Omrigh, we’ll go with them.’
‘I don’t like it, Morren.’
‘My kinsmen trust the Dalrata people well enough, and they’ve been here for months.’ Beyond that, she saw no other choice.
‘What happened to your chieftain?’ he asked.
She lifted her shoulders in a shrug. ‘Lúcás died, I suppose. I don’t know which of the men is leader now.’
‘And neither do they.’ Trahern pointed back to the dwelling. ‘Haven’t you seen the way they look to each other, waiting for someone else to lead? Were Lúcás’s sons also killed?’
‘I don’t know. They aren’t among the survivors. But even so, there are a few men who might fill Lúcás’s place.’
Their chieftain had not been the strongest leader, often preferring to let the others make decisions. Morren had never particularly cared for him, though she couldn’t say why. For now, perhaps it was best if her clan remained blended with the Lochlannach.
Trahern led her across the longphort, towards the gates. ‘Until someone becomes the chieftain, your tribe has essentially fallen into the hands of the Lochlannach.’
‘The Dalrata weren’t our enemy,’ she pointed out. ‘Several of our women married them. It isn’t as though we have no ties.’
Trahern stopped and surveyed the entire structure, which dominated the landscape. Easily as large as his brother’s kingdom, the Viking holdings stretched out to the western sea.
‘I wouldn’t trust them. And neither should you.’
She crossed her arms and regarded him. ‘You don’t trust anyone any more.’ She exhaled, not understanding what had happened to him. Had one woman’s death affected him this profoundly?
She remembered his laughing demeanour, the way he’d always had a story to tell. The way he would swing a child up onto his shoulders, teasing and joking with others. That man was now gone.
‘I’ve reason to be angry,’ he responded. ‘Until I’ve had my vengeance, I don’t care how I appear to others.’
‘You’re letting it destroy the man you were.’
‘And are you the same woman you were?’ His words cut her down, and she looked away in shame.
‘Neither of us will ever be the same. But I’ve chosen to bury my feelings about what happened. I can’t indulge myself in anger or weeping. I have a sister to take care of.’
‘Do you really believe that you can simply forget about what happened?’
‘I don’t have a choice.’
His tone altered, turning gentle. ‘It’s a poison, Morren. It festers inside you, until you think you’re going to go mad.’
She shivered, for there was a truth to his words. Every time she pushed away the nightmares, they only returned stronger than before.
‘I tried to forget and go on with my life,’ he continued. ‘I have a family. Four brothers, all married with children of their own. And every time I looked at them and saw their happiness, I thought of Ciara. She was taken from me, and I’ll be damned if I’ll let the raiders find happiness of their own.’
She pulled away, feeling even colder. ‘Your need for revenge has changed you. Ciara wouldn’t have wanted that.’
Turning her back on him, Morren strode back to the house where she’d left her sister. The autumn air shifted against her hair, sending the cold onto the back of her neck. Behind her, she heard Trahern’s footsteps trailing her. He wouldn’t let her alone, not even for a moment.
Before she reached the house, he said, ‘Morren, wait.’
She stopped walking, but didn’t move to face him. He could say what he wanted, but it wouldn’t change anything.
‘If you intend to stay among the Lochlannach, then I won’t leave. Not until I know you’ll be safe.’
His sense of honour was so strong that she suspected it would be some time before he’d leave her. The thought made her feel even more like a burden. ‘I’m not your obligation. If you stay, it’s for your own reasons. Not because you feel some need to guard me.’
She kept moving forward, but Trahern intercepted her, standing in her path. He looked into her eyes, folding his arms across his chest.
