Peter Tremayne - Dancing With Demons

Fidelma shook her head sadly. ‘Then, lady, perhaps you had better let me start down the road to the truth. Let us begin by identifying this sowise Brehon who gave you what appears to be such bad advice and to whom you entrusted the divorce proceedings.’

Gormflaith hesitated a moment.

‘We must have that name, lady,’ Fidelma advised her sharply, ‘otherwise there is nothing said that does not refute our original thoughts of the motive for killing Sechnussach.’

Gormflaith bowed before the inevitable.

‘Very well, Fidelma of Cashel. If you need to know the name — it was the Chief Brehon, Barrán.’

Fidelma stared at her in surprise. ‘Well, that can be easily verified.’

‘I have no objection to you doing so,’ Gormflaith said confidently.

There was a silence and Fidelma said softly: ‘I am confused. In spite of the evidence, the eyewitnesses, the fact that Dubh Duin took his own life and, in his dying breath, gasped a word to Lugna, apparently accepting the blame, you still maintain that you believe he was not the person who killed your husband?’

‘I do.’ Gormflaith met her gaze evenly. ‘As I say, he had no reason to kill the King on my behalf. Once I was divorced then we would have married.’

‘Then perhaps there was another motive?’

‘Such as?’ snapped Gormflaith. ‘What other motive could there be?’

‘There are many reasons why one man kills another but of those, if what you say is true, we can only speculate until we know more about the character of Dubh Duin.’

The other woman glowered at her.

‘I am Gormflaith of the Clann Cholmáin and do not lie,’ she said quietly and firmly.

‘Even so, lady, with respect, I must confirm what you have said,’ Fidelma replied suavely. ‘And, as I say, so far we are lacking in any description of Dubh Duin’s character.’

Gormflaith sniffed. ‘Are you asking me for an opinion? If so, surely you will claim that I am biased in that regard since we were lovers?’

‘That may be so, lady, but any opinion is better than none. Is that not so?’

‘Then, leaving aside my personal emotions, I would say that Dubh Duin was a man of courage, not a coward who sneaks about in the night to murder people in their beds.’

‘We’ll accept that for the time being,’ Fidelma assured her. ‘Tell us more of his courage, his personality. How long had he been chieftain of the Cairpre Gabra — do you know?’

‘Four or five years. I only met him when he was attending the Great Assembly here in Tara.’

‘Have you met others of the Cinél Cairpre Gabra? Do you know how his people regarded him?’

‘I know he was modest,’ Gormflaith said. ‘When he came to the Great Assembly only one companion attended him.’

‘How would you assess him?’

‘He was of strong physique and an attractive man in appearance … ’

‘Let us speak of personality.’

‘I felt he possessed excellent judgement and he gave good counsel. He was very level-headed and congenial. He also had a good sense of humour. I suspect he was an idealist for he often spoke of how certain members of the New Faith were dragging the five kingdoms into new ways that rejected our culture and the values of our past. With the new fashion of committing all our histories and stories to the Latin form of writing, he would often deplore it when the scribes sought to change our history to blend it with the teachings of the New Faith. I’ve seen him argue that before the Assembly. He had a great deal of pride in his ancestry.’

‘I understand he was an Uí Néill,’ Fidelma said.

‘As was Sechnussach. But Dubh Duin traced his descent back from Niall’s son Cairpre while Sechnussach traced his back to Niall’s son Conall and the line of Sil nÁedo Sláine.’

‘Did Dubh Duin then resent Sechnussach being High King?’ asked Fidelma. ‘I mean, descending from that same family himself, did he think he should be High King?’

Gormflaith smiled sadly. ‘The last High King of Dubh Duin’s direct ancestry was some hundred years or so ago when Tuathal Máelgarb was chosen. I don’t believe Dubh Duin was interested in kingship. Anyway, Sechnussach’s brother had long been chosen as his tánaiste, his heir apparent.’

‘You say that Dubh Duin was always level-headed. Was he never angry? Did you never see him, with that pride you speak of, angered-even if he curbed it or exercised control?’

‘Never in my presence,’ Gormflaith assured her.

‘He was never impulsive?’

‘Impulsive? I suppose he was, but that was due to his romantic nature. During the time we were falling in love, he would make impulsive gestures, give me gifts that a more circumspect person would not have done … certainly not while my husband was close by.’

‘And you told no one of your affair except Muirgel?’

‘No one except Muirgel and Brehon Barrán,’ she confirmed.

‘So your husband knew nothing of Dubh Duin?’

‘Nothing. He knew nothing. Even when I went to him and demanded a divorce he agreed almost readily and did not even ask me why or, indeed,whether another had caught my attention. He was apparently content with whatever woman he was taking to his bed.’

Fidelma sighed deeply. ‘Very well, lady. I may wish to question you again. What is your plan, now that both your husband and your prospective husband are dead?’

‘Muirgel is of marrying age,’ the woman said. ‘I have a feeling that she is seeing someone with that prospect in mind, but she has not admitted it. So she will probably remain here in Tara. As for my other daughters, I shall take them back to my father’s fortress by Loch Ainninne. There was nothing at Tara for me even when Sechnussach was alive and now … now there is even less and nowhere to go except to my father’s house. That is my plan.’

Fidelma rose to go, then hesitated and asked: ‘One last thing. Do you know Cuan?’

Gormflaith frowned. ‘Cuan?’

‘A member of the Fianna. One of the guards at the royal residence.’

‘Apart from the commander of the Fianna, I am not in the habit of interesting myself in the names of the members of his companies,’ Gormflaith said, but not crossly. ‘Why do you ask?’

‘Did Dubh Duin ever mention the Ui Beccon to you?’

Gormflaith looked uncertain. ‘You ask the most odd questions, Fidelma of Cashel. The Uí Beccon? Why should he mention those people?’

‘You know of them?’

‘I know most of the clans of Midhe as you doubtless know the clans of Muman. They are a small clan and unremarkable.’

‘But you knew that they paid tribute to Dubh Duin’s own clan?’

‘I did not, but I suppose it is logical as they dwell in the same area of the kingdom. Why are you interested?’

‘No matter,’ Fidelma assured her. ‘It was just a thought.’

‘Well.’ Gormflaith rose and took her hand, speaking with a sudden earnestness. ‘I wish you luck in your enquiry, lady. I have not only to mourn Sechnussach for my daughters’ sakes but also to mourn Dubh Duin for my own sake. Whatever you can do in order to bring the truth to light as to who was responsible for their deaths and why, I will support it. Find out though the seas rise to engulf us, or the sky falls to crush us: only the truth is sacred.’

Fidelma met Eadulf in the royal enclosure.

‘You look pleased with yourself,’ she greeted him. ‘What have you been up to?’

Eadulf told her about his trip to the market and his meeting with the blacksmith.

‘So it was Cuan who had the key made,’ Fidelma said with satisfaction. ‘We must find him before he gets suspicious. What took you to this market?’