‘What has happened?’ he demanded. ‘How did you find me?’
‘Continue with your story first,’ Fidelma urged.
‘Well, you were right. When the wagons finally halted, they were within a large store house. I was taken out and placed here, in this cellar-like room and here I have stayed in the dark until you discovered me.’
Fidelma sat back, her mind working rapidly. ‘Well, the first thing to do is to get you out of here Brother Bardan and to a place of safety.’
‘What danger am I in, Sister?’
‘I think you are in considerable danger. Had Samradan mentioned your presence to the raiders, when he spoke to them, you would already be dead. Fortunately, as much as the raiders thought that Samradán’s s illegal mining was none of their business, Samradan thought the same. He thought that you had merely stumbled on his illegal mining activity. As it is, you are witness to a conspiracy which places you in the gravest of danger. We shall take you to a friend and you must stay there until tomorrow evening.’
‘Why tomorrow evening?’
‘Because then we will come for you and smuggle you into the palace at Cashel. I do not want anyone to know of your existence here.’
‘Samradán will know when he finds me missing.’
‘A good point,’ Eadulf muttered.
‘I have not overlooked it. Once Brother Bardan is lodged safely, we will go and have a word with Samradan.’
‘But what of Brother Mochta and the Holy Relics?’ protested Bardan. ‘What of Finguine’s protection? Did Brother Mochta receive it?’
Fidelma shook her head and smiled thinly. ‘At the moment, you are under the protection of Cashel and you will find Brother Mochta in the place where we are taking you — together with the Holy Relics.’
They climbed out of the cellar and Eadulf replaced the trapdoor behind them and shot home the bolts. Then he reluctantly blew out the candle. The clouds seemed to be dispersing, however, and the moon, still bright and full, was this time constant. Fidelma led the way through the shadows to the door and they exited behind the warehouse.
With Eadulf helping Brother Bardan, who was not able to walk well, having been tied for so long, Fidelma conducted them as quickly as Bardán’s weakness allowed, from the back of the warehouse along the outskirts of the town, trying to avoid bringing themselves to the attention of the guard-dogs whose barking could still be heard not far off.
‘Thank God, it is probably a wolf or some other scavenger venturing too near the town limits that has distracted their attention,’ whispered Fidelma, as they paused a moment for Brother Bardán to recover from his cramp.
It took them fifteen minutes to reach their destination: the house of the female recluse, Della.
Fidelma knocked quietly on her door, giving her the special signal which she had arranged.
Hardly a moment passed before Della appeared in the doorway. Her face was pale and fearful in the light of the hanging lantern inside the door.
‘Fidelma! Thank God you have come!’
‘What is it, Della?’ asked Fidelma, surprised at the trembling anxiety of her friend.
‘It is the man whom you brought here … Brother Mochta …’
Fidelma led the way into the house and stood facing Della. The woman was trembling almost in hysteria. Something was frightening her.
‘What about Brother Mochta? Where is he?’
She suddenly noticed that the room was in chaos.
‘He has been taken!’ gasped Della.
‘Taken?’
‘He and that reliquary he was always clasping. He and the box were taken away. There was nothing that I could do.’
Fidelma reached out her hands to grasp the woman’s shoulders.
‘Get a grip on yourself, Della. You are unharmed anyway. This-’ she waved one hand to encompass the chaos — ‘can easily be tidied and repaired. But what of Mochta and the reliquary?’
Della caught her breath and steadied herself. ‘You left him in my care and he has been taken.’
Fidelma struggled to retain her patience. ‘So you say. Taken by whom?’
‘By your cousin. By Finguine, Prince of Cnoc Aine.’
Fidelma let her arms drop from Della’s shoulders. Her expression was one of dismay.
Brother Bardán’s reaction was of relief. ‘So you brought Brother Mochta here with the Relics? Well, thank God that Finguine has finally taken him into protection. We can rest easy now.’
Fidelma swung round as if to rebuke him. Instead she hesitated and said quietly: ‘Can we?’ She turned back to Della. ‘Who else came here with Finguine? Was it Finguine who destroyed your possessions?’
‘No, a warrior. Finguine did rebuke him and say it was unnecessary. The warrior was the leader of the band who accompanied the Princeof the Uí Fidgente when he rode into Cashel. I recognised him when he rode with Donennach.’
It was Eadulf who exclaimed in disbelief: ‘Gionga? Do you mean Gionga, the captain of the bodyguard of Donennach?’
Della shrugged miserably. ‘The Uí Fidgente. I do not know his name. All I know is that when Donennach rode into Cashel, that man was in charge of the bodyguard of the Prince.’
Fidelma stood quietly, as if trying to recover her scattered thoughts. ‘I think we have a problem,’ she said quietly.
Brother Bardan was regarding them in bewilderment. ‘I do not understand.’
Fidelma did not respond but looked at Della and smiled tightly. ‘I must ask a further favour of you, Della. Eadulf and I must go now. I need you to look after Brother Bardan here until Eadulf or I come for him. This will be tomorrow evening.’
‘I can’t!’ protested Della. ‘You see what they have done …’
‘Lightning does not strike twice in the same place, Della. Now that they have Brother Mochta and the reliquary, no one will think of looking here for Brother Bardán.’
Brother Bardán’s face continued to be a mask of confusion. ‘I do not understand at all. Why should I hide now? Finguine is protecting Brother Mochta and has the Holy Relics safe.’
Fidelma did not answer him and continued to look at her friend. ‘Della, I need you to do this for me.’
The woman gazed into Fidelma’s eyes for a moment or two and then sighed. ‘Very well. But, like the Brother here, I wish I understood.’
‘Understand, both of you, that the well-being of this kingdom of Muman depends on doing exactly as I have told you.’
‘Very well.’
Fidelma opened the door and motioned Eadulf to follow her back into the darkness of the night. Della came to the door and forced a smile on her anxious features.
‘Solitude is the best society and a short abstinence from solitude urges the sweet return,’ she said.
Fidelma returned her smile. She felt sorrow for the woman whose life she knew had been filled with so much unhappiness. She reached out her hand and touched the other’s arm.
‘We are all of us condemned to solitude, Della,’ she said, ‘but some of our sheltering walls are merely our own skins and thus there is no door to exit from solitude into life. We are thus condemned to solitude for all our lives.’
They left the house of the reclusive former prostitute and walked back along the night-darkened alleys of the town.
‘How did Finguine know where you had hidden Brother Mochta and the reliquary?’ demanded Eadulf.
‘Remember you told me that you saw Nion in the tavern nearby? The fact that we had ridden out of the side street here was duly reported to Finguine. It would not take much investigation by Finguine to discover that I have one particular friend here and that is Della. He must have put two and two together. He must have realised that I had recovered the reliquary and Brother Mochta after he had failed to find them.’
‘Yes, but why take Gionga with him? Finguine claims that he hates the Uí Fidgente. I confess to being as confused as Brother Bardán.’
‘Remember that I told you of the game of tomus? Well, several more pieces have now come together. Yet I still need that single piece around which all will fit. Samradán will provide that piece. That’s where we will go now — to see that greedy merchant.’