Peter Tremayne - Dancing With Demons

‘Then this woman Mer must have a long memory for faces,’ muttered Eadulf.

‘Perhaps,’ Fidelma said, dismissing the subject. ‘But now we have other and more pressing matters to attend to.’ She turned to the abbot. ‘I have no wish to take up your time, Abbot Colmán. I am sure you have more important things to do in governing the royal household.’

The abbot took the hint and was almost eager to do so.

‘Indeed, I do have tasks that need to be attended to,’ he said. ‘Let us meet up at the etar-shod, the middle-meal of the day, and you can tell me if you have been able to gather any further information.’ Then he went off about his duties.

Eadulf cast a puzzled glance in Fidelma’s direction. ‘It seems to me that you almost wanted to be rid of him.’

‘Discerning as ever, Eadulf,’ she replied softly. ‘I do want to see Gormflaith on her own. And it is not wise to constantly have a witness to all one’s investigations.’

Fidelma and Eadulf, with Caol and Gormán following and still somewhat morose, continued their journey towards the guesthouse. A warrior emerged from a nearby building and Fidelma called his name.

‘Lugna! The very person!’

The young warrior halted nervously. ‘You want me, lady?’

‘Indeed, I do. I would like you to come with us, if you will.’ She nodded towards the Tech Cormaic . ‘There is something I am not sure about.’

The warrior fell in step with them. ‘I am only too happy to be of service. What can I help with?’ he ventured after some silence.

‘I think you are the only person who can help,’ Fidelma assured him as they halted outside the oak doors. The warrior on guard regarded them with unconcealed curiosity.

Fidelma turned to Caol and Gormán and motioned them to follow her while telling Lugna to stay with Eadulf before the main doors.

After halting at the corner of the building and apparently giving instructions to them, she returned, leaving Gormán in view while Caol disappeared to the back of the building. She smiled brightly at a puzzled Lugna.

‘It is just a little experiment,’ she assured him. ‘You see, I am puzzled by the noise you heard in the kitchen area and why it did not rouse the rest of the house.’

‘I have told you all I know,’ Lugna replied with suddenly set features.

‘Of course you have. But, alas, I have to envision it for myself. What we will do is make the noise so that I can be sure of the detail. That’s fair, isn’t it?’

Lugna shrugged but he seemed worried.

‘Eadulf, stand here and when I signal to you, wave to Gormán and then he will make a sign to Caol to go into the kitchen and make a noise. Then we can see exactly how much sound resonates through the house.’

She turned to the doors. ‘Come, Lugna. I believe that you and your comrade were standing in the hallway at your guard post when you heard the noise. Then you came out and went round the side of the house to investigate as the back door was locked — isn’t that right?’

Lugna was clearly unhappy. He seemed to be struggling with his conscience before finally mumbling, ‘It is not right, lady. Forgive me. I have not told the truth.’

‘I thought not,’ Fidelma said. ‘I think, Lugna, it is time you told us what really happened.’

‘We were standing outside the doors here. As I said, we had not gone into the hall.’

‘Go on.’

‘You see, lady, it was a cold night. As I told you, I had just returned with Cuan from checking the guards. We came back to the doors and we would have taken up our position in the hall but it was so cold … there was hot corma in the kitchen and we felt a drink would help keep out the chill air before we settled to our watch.’ His expression was guilt-ridden as he turned haunted eyes from one to another of them. ‘Nothing had ever happened before. Year after year, watch after watch, nothing had ever disturbed the peace of the royal enclosure. It was too well-guarded. How were we to know that … that … ’

Fidelma was in no mood to reassure this man who had tried to cover his own failure by lying.

‘So you deserted your post to obtain a drink,’ she said flatly. ‘As a result, the High King is dead. You realise there must be consequences? Irél, your commander, must be informed.’

The young man hung his head unhappily. ‘It has been hard to live with the knowledge, lady,’ he muttered. ‘I am glad that I have told you.’

‘But you have not told me all, Lugna.’

She turned and waved to Gormán to return and soon he and Caol had rejoined them.

‘So we can dispense with any noises in the kitchen. You and Cuan went there for a drink. What then?’

‘I swear, lady, that all else happened as I said. The kitchen area is overlooked from the apartment of the High King. You have seen that stairs lead from nearby the kitchen up to the back door from which the servants take his bathing water and empty the privy … but the door is always shut and bolted from inside at night. There is no entrance that way. Anyway, we were taking our drink when we heard a scream — exactly as I said. Cuan ran straight up the stairs to the back door. That was locked. I knew that the ground-floor door into the back of the house was also locked, so I raced around the side of the house and went up the stairs as I said. It was a few moments afterwards when Cuan joined me.’

‘Thank you, Lugna,’ Fidelma said. ‘Things begin to make more sense now. Tell me, you say that you have served in the Fianna for many years and you are a toisech cóicat , a commander of fifty warriors. Even accepting that the night was chill and the watch was boring, a warrior of your experience must have realised how serious it was to leave your post to take a drink?’

The young man was contrite. ‘Yes, I do realise it and have no excuses. I wish I hadn’t listened to-’ He hesitated. ‘I was the guard commander. Mine is the fault.’

Fidelma’s eyes narrowed slightly. ‘You wish you had not listened … to whom? I want the truth, Lugna.’ Then, when he did not reply: ‘Was it Cuan who suggested the drink?’

Lugna bit his lip and did not reply.

‘Were you persuaded by your comrade Cuan to leave your post and go for the drink? Was it Cuan who knew where this drink was to be found?’ Her voice was sharp.

Lugna bowed his head and nodded. ‘It was.’

‘Very well, Lugna.’ Fidelma exhaled softly. ‘You may return to your quarters — but do not speak of this to anyone, especially to Cuan. I am afraid this story must be told to Irél, the commander of the Fianna. Your only defence lies in the truth, and I want to be assured that you have told the truth.’

‘That I have, lady, by the Holy Family. I swear that is the truth.’

Fidelma waved her hand in dismissal. When he had gone, she turned to Eadulf with a grim look.

‘I begin to see that luck may not have played so great a part in this matter after all.’

Eadulf was in agreement. ‘It seems that Cuan deliberately enticed Lugna away from his post at that particular time. But what of Erc? Surely it was luck that he let the assassin in the main gate.’

‘He had been … ’She paused for the right word. ‘He had been prepared in such a way that he would not challenge Erc. The conspirators knew that Erc would be on duty that night, and because Dubh Duin had frequently been admitted into the royal enclosure after dark, they knew that he would not challenge him.’

‘Conspirators?’ echoed Eadulf.

‘I see conspiracy in this, not a single assassin. I keep thinking about the key. Who stole it and had a copy made for the assassin?’

‘Whatever the answer to that, we must find Cuan, as he is certainly an integral part of this plot.’