Dedication
For Karina, who wouldn’t let this book go
gently onto that good shelf.
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Acknowledgments
Pronunciation Guide
Author’s Note
Glossary
About the Author
Books by Jessica Leake
Back Ad
Copyright
About the Publisher
1
Kingdom of Mide, Ireland, AD 1035
I learned to hate the sea. Not because it was unbearably cold, and not because I loathed swimming in its salty depths. I hated it because, in spite of its raw beauty, it brought death to our doorstep.
Today, though, I was on the shore below my father’s castle because of my two little sisters. After being practically locked inside the keep for days, they’d begged me for the chance to breathe fresh air. I couldn’t blame my mother for hiding them away in the keep—the place where my family and our most trusted servants lived, as it was the most fortified structure within the castle walls. Indeed, she was so obsessed with their safety that she and my sisters attended Mass at a different time from everyone else. Though I couldn’t blame her for that—not after what had happened the last time we were all in church together.
But unlike our mother, I had trouble telling my sisters no. Nothing made them happier: the sounds of the sea crashing against the rock that made me clench my teeth, the salty breeze that tangled my hair, the gritty sand that swallowed my boots—they loved it all. With so much darkness plaguing our family, the girls needed these moments of happiness.
So when they’d awoken just after dawn, I hadn’t hesitated to follow them down to the stables to retrieve their fat ponies. I knew as well as they that early morning, when our mother was at Lauds, was also the only chance for a proper riding lesson. Our mother had ordered that my sisters’ ponies be kept on leads while they rode, but I was determined to make them independent riders: an essential skill to have should we ever have to flee the castle. And the best way to become more comfortable was to ride without saddles—something I would do only with the sand and water to cushion their falls, and with my mother not around to hassle us.
“Keep your heels down, Bran,” I reminded my younger sister as she trotted her pony toward me. Her blond braid bounced on her back in time to the pony’s hoofbeats, and her eyes narrowed in concentration. For a moment, she looked so much like her older sister Alana that my breath hitched in my throat. I pushed the memories away. Alana was never far from my thoughts, but thinking of her was like the dull throb of pain from a wound not yet healed.
“I thought I was,” Branna said, her tone a little impatient. I didn’t take offense—it was how my sister always sounded, at least since the moment she’d reached her thirteenth birthday. She was only four years younger than I was, though in some ways, it might as well have been ten.
But then, she hadn’t seen the things I had. Nor been the cause of them.
Branna decided to listen to me in spite of herself, and pushed her heels down, which straightened her spine and strengthened her balance.
“That’s much better,” I said, and she smiled. My attention shifted to my youngest sister, trailing not far behind Branna. “You’re doing well, Deirdre.” She glanced down at her pony’s mane—shy as always in the face of a compliment.
The breeze brought the noxious smell of salt and fish to my nose, distracting me from my sisters. Out of habit, I checked the horizon for any sign of square sails. My father and many of my clansmen had answered the call of the nearby monastery two days ago, after the barbaric Northmen were spotted off their coast, too close to the monastery under my father’s protection to ignore. As my father’s heir and the most skilled warrior left behind, I was in charge of protecting his kingdom in his absence. And that meant protecting my sisters as well. The worry weighed heavily on me as I scanned the horizon again. It had been seven years since the Northmen had landed on our shores, but there were frequent raids along the coast. The Northmen never stopped trying to invade the shores of our land.
Thankfully the only movement on the water today was the seagulls—crying stridently to one another and darting just below the water’s crest. In the distance, bells from our small church rang out, signaling the end of Lauds. Our mother would be among the faithful, and there were many prayers being offered today for the deliverance of both the monastery and our men who’d gone to defend it. Had I been welcome in the small chapel, I would have no doubt offended God by my fervent prayers that each and every Northman be shown no mercy and preferably be killed in as painful a way as possible. Devils.
“Do we have to return already?” Bran asked, her eyes on the looming castle. She knew as well as I that the end of Lauds meant the return of our mother.
I considered the weak morning sun. Our mother usually remained in the church for at least another half hour after Lauds to help Father Briain.
“We have a few more minutes. Deirdre, give a little tug on the reins—don’t let him get his head down,” I said as her pony’s nose kept inching closer to the sand. He was a placid beast, but he loved to roll, and I’d rather he didn’t do it with my sister on his back.
A flutter of feathers drew my attention to a rocky outcropping not far from where my sisters rode. I expected to see the white and gray of a gull, but a little jolt of surprise ran through me when I saw the fathomless black of a crow. I tried to relax my tense shoulders. It could be just a normal crow, after all—just an everyday crow out searching for food like any other bird. It could be, but the hair risen on the back of my neck told me it wasn’t.
It cocked its head at me once before letting loose a harsh caw-caw-caw. The sound sprang memories free in my mind: a murder of crows so large it was like a blot against the gray of the sky. My clansmen dying, and my own sister . . . no, I wouldn’t allow my mind to stray to such a place. Again, I looked toward the sea, but the line of water stretching toward the horizon was unbroken.
“Ciara!” Deirdre called, her tone sharp. I jerked my head up in time to see her pony sink to its front knees in preparation for a roll.
I rushed to her side and grabbed the pony’s reins. Ignoring me, the pony grunted as he continued to lower his considerable bulk to the sand. I held my hand out to Deirdre, an exasperated smile playing on my lips. “You’ll have to jump down. He won’t be dissuaded.”
She slid the short distance to the ground, and I pulled her out of the way. Free of his rider, the pony rolled nearly all the way onto his back, kicking his hooves into the air and snorting.
“Stubborn thing.” I shook my head. Beside me, Deirdre giggled.
“Oh no,” Branna groaned from somewhere nearby.
I turned to see our mother hurrying down the winding path to the shore, the velvet of her skirts swishing angrily in her wake
.
“Ciara!” Máthair called as soon as she was within hearing range, her voice as sharp as a blade. Her entire focus was on me.
Her sleeves trailed nearly to the sands of the beach as she stopped before me, her long blond hair in waves down her back. She reached out and pulled Deirdre to her. “Did you fall, child?” she asked, her hands cupping Deirdre’s cheeks.
“No, Máthair,” Deirdre said.
“Ciara was only giving us a riding lesson,” Branna said from the back of her pony.
“Come down from there, Branna,” our mother said, letting go of Deirdre. She gestured vehemently toward Bran as though she was astride a great menacing wolf rather than a docile pony.
Frustration evident in the set of her shoulders, Branna slid down.
Máthair’s attention shifted to me, her mouth tight. “How could you have endangered them like this, Ciara?” She swept her arm out to indicate the shore. “Here, of all places?”
Her words triggered a heavy guilt, but I forced my back to straighten. She wasn’t truly upset over the fact that my sisters were riding. Ever since Alana, she feared anything that could potentially endanger them—even if it was a necessary skill like riding. “I wanted them to learn to ride without having someone lead them. The soft sands of the beach are safer than the rocky meadow. They wouldn’t have been harmed if they fell.”
“But the Northmen have been spotted not far from here. Why did you not at least bring a guard?”
Because none would want to accompany me willingly. I met her narrowed gaze. “Because I can keep my sisters safe.”
The bluster seemed to leave her all at once, and she let out her breath. She couldn’t argue with the truth. “Ask for my permission next time,” she said. “Come, girls. We missed you at Lauds, but it’s not too late to go before the altar and pray for your father’s safe return.” With her arms around my sisters, she started back toward the keep, toward the chapel where my presence was so unwelcome that the faithful members of our clan believed I tainted its sacred ground. I schooled my features to hide the twinge of sadness I always felt at being so painfully excluded—it would only upset my sisters.
“I should help Ciara with the ponies,” Branna said, but I waved her off.
“I can get them,” I said, taking hold of the ponies’ reins.
As I followed behind, winding slowly upward on the rocky path that led to our father’s castle, a flickering shadow drew my gaze to the cloudless sky. The same crow circled high above, its inky feathers slicing through the weak morning sun.
It watched me with an interest no ordinary crow would have. And then I knew for sure.
They’re coming, a voice whispered in my mind, and a cold shiver snaked down my back. It wasn’t the first time I’d heard the crow’s voice, and I knew it warned of only one thing: death. There could be no doubt: the Northmen were coming to our shores.
Then the crow let out a caw-caw-caw so startling even my mother and sisters paused.
Branna’s eyes were on the crow. “What does it mean?” she asked, her voice hushed. She had learned long ago that no omen should be ignored.
I met Máthair’s worried glance—a shared fear we couldn’t voice. Northmen.
“We should get back to the castle.” I gave the ponies another gentle tug to keep pace with me.
As we entered the castle bailey, where the stables, the kitchens, and the armory were located, I scanned the wide expanse, wondering if anyone else had noticed anything amiss. The morning buzzed with activity; two men guiding pigs and sheep through the bailey bowed their heads briefly when they noticed me watching. Kitchen servants beat the dust and ash from two matching red-and-gold rugs, chatting, oblivious to the tension that thrummed through the air and made the hair on the back of my neck rise.
Then a sound came that made my heart pound: a horn’s bellow echoed across the crowded courtyard, grinding everything to a stop. The color in our mother’s face drained away, and she tightened her grip on my sisters.
A shout from one of my clansmen rang out. Everything that was frozen leaped into frantic motion. Children were herded alongside livestock as too few of the men hurried to gather weapons.
I took a steadying breath, forcing down the panic that threatened to engulf me. Memories overtook my mind—
The horn’s bellow calling our clansmen to war.
The clang of axes meeting swords.
The smell of coppery blood in the air.
The pale form of my sister broken and bleeding on the hard ground, her hair spread out behind her.
And me, powerless to help.
But I wasn’t powerless now. I’d spent years training and honing my skills through battle, ensuring I’d never be powerless again.
Máthair pulled my sisters toward the safety of the keep, practically dragging them in her wake. Before they could reach the steps, Branna freed herself from her grasp and ran to me.
“Branna!” our mother cried.
“Come with us,” Branna said, her eyes pleading with me.
“Go to Máthair. Stay hidden.” I pressed a hurried kiss to the top of her head.
She grabbed my arm before I could run for my own horse, her grip almost painful. “Please don’t go. The Northmen—”
“I must,” I said, my tone firm. “Now hurry.” I gave her a little push toward the keep, and hopefully, to safety.
Before I turned away, I met Máthair’s gaze. “God keep you safe,” she said, and fled into the castle.
2
As I ran to the stables—ponies in tow—my mind already shifted to the battle ahead. Without my father here, I would lead my clansmen, and I clenched my teeth at the thought of giving them orders. I might have been heir to the throne, but my strange abilities ensured that I didn’t have the trust of my clansmen. They would listen to me, but they wouldn’t like it.
Killing Northmen was far easier.
All around me, women and children ran to take cover. They relied on the steep, rocky cliff to protect them from the Northmen raiders. But I knew better. It hadn’t kept them out seven years ago.
More worrisome was the fact that the Northmen were here instead of at the monastery with its rich treasures. Had they defeated my father? Or had my father defended the monks only to have the raiders turn their eyes toward our home as vengeance?
The stables greeted me with a torrent of sounds: men shouted to one another, warhorses trumpeted, and swords clanged as they were pulled from the rack. My sisters’ ponies eagerly returned to their own stalls as soon as I pulled their bridles free. When the men caught sight of me, a whisper of unease ran through them.
I straightened my spine and pulled my own broadsword free before I turned to address the men in the now uncomfortable silence. “With the king and half our army gone, we are few in number, but we are the only thing standing between the Northmen and our families.” Most of them just stared at me, but a few nodded tersely. They couldn’t argue with the need to protect our own. We knew how much was at stake. “They will hope to ambush us, to catch us unawares, but we will meet them at the top of the cliff.” My grip tightened on my sword. “We will slaughter them one by one.”
The men shouted their approval, brandishing their own weapons high in the air as horses neighed and stamped their feet.
Fergus, one of the few clansmen who I considered a friend, grinned. His teeth looked whiter than usual against the dark blue paint slathered on his face. “We have nothing to fear, lads. Not with Princess Ciara leading us.”
He meant it ironically, of course—I was the one they feared. It was one of the reasons my father had banned me from the church—my people welcomed my power on the battlefield, but they believed it tainted any sacred space.
I smiled in return, but didn’t stop on my way to my horse’s stall. Riordan, a man whose arms and chest bulged with muscle, shied away from me like a horse from a snake. Demon, he had said about me once, and I could practically hear him thinking it now. I forced myself to stand unflinchingly
in the face of such rejection even as pain and loneliness clawed at me.
There was little I wouldn’t do, and little I wouldn’t endure, to keep my sisters safe.
I continued toward my horse and another of my clansmen caught my eye—Séamus. For one painful moment, I thought he might grin at me like he used to while we worked with the young warhorses together, the smile softening his sharp features. But instead he turned away, his face paling beneath his war paint. My mouth drew into a grim line, and pinpricks of shame sneaked across my skin. It had been two winters since he’d been forced to train with me, but it might as well have been yesterday.
I remembered how he looked standing before me: wary but strong.
Even he hadn’t been able to withstand my power.
My hand reached for the carved wooden horse hidden on its fraying piece of leather beneath my armor. It’s the only thing I know how to carve, he had said with a nervous smile, but I wanted to give you something to show you how much you mean to me. That was years ago, before he knew who I really was. I could still see him in the stable where we’d first met, surrounded by the soft sounds of horses.
He’d sworn he didn’t fear my abilities, but that was before he was subjected to them. My mind assaulted me with another memory: Séamus on his knees.
Stay away from me, he’d shouted, his hands curled protectively around his head.
I blinked rapidly and let the necklace fall back in place against my chest.
I didn’t want to speak to him, but I knew I must. With so many of the other clansmen gone, his skill with a sword and as a horseman would be more useful than ever. Squaring my shoulders, I walked over to where he was saddling his horse.
“Séamus,” I said, and his whole body tensed. “I will need your skills at the top of the cliff—you’ll be able to cut the Northmen down faster than anyone.”
“Yes, milady,” he said, keeping his eyes on his saddle—on anything but me.
A flash of pain cut through me at his formal address. There was a time when I was only Ciara, his friend, not “milady” . . . not the heir to the throne . . . or worse, someone to be feared. Just me.
Beyond a Darkened Shore Page 1