Pagan Siege (Tribes of Britain Book 5) by Sam Taw (10 best novels of all time TXT) 📕

The moon bathed him in a victorious glow, as though the god, Lugh had picked him out in a beam of his own. My chest swelled with pride when he lifted the Sword of Cernonnus and shouted at the warriors to lay down their spears.

“Take a good long look at your opponents, men. They are not enemies, nor foreigners. We are all brothers on the battlefield, are we not?”

Senara coughed loudly, making my nephew grin.

“Brothers… and sisters. The point is, we are one tribe, one family, and none deserved to die this night, or any night. Kenver forced you all to carry his grievances, made you hide like cowards in the tunnels. His fight is not ours. Let us begin again with one aim together. We’ll make the Dumnonii the most feared, most envied and most respected tribe in the whole land.” He waited while his Head Hunters and Sea Warriors roared and whooped their approval, but few of the miners joined in with their revelry. Tallack did not seem to notice. I suspect the relief of ending the siege in our favour was all that mattered.

It was only then that I grabbed a torch and went in search of my giant friend on the slopes above the dry riverbed. Kewri was close to tears when I found him sitting on a rock grunting in pain. A dead man lay at his feet, caked in silt and mud from the flood.

“That’s not Nectan is it?” I said, barely concealing the anxiety in my voice.

The giant shook his head. “Just a young fool who thought he could take me on and win.” He tipped backwards and winced. “He very nearly did.”

I wondered if he’d ripped out his stitches again, but chose not to ask. Instead, I said, “So, where’s Nectan? I’ve not seen him since the fighting began?”

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Enquiries amongst the men yielded no information regarding Nectan’s whereabouts. Tallack sent one of his men to retrieve my pony from the ridge top but he came back a short time later empty handed. When I mentioned my concerns about Nectan, Tallack dismissed them immediately. I’d caught him at the wrong time to get any sense from him. He was too giddy about his victory and the continued rule of our family over the tribe.

Between him and our warriors, the relief was profound. They joked and teased one another, cleaned off their weapons and instructed the miners to take care of those dead Alchemists lost in the skirmish. Our clans had suffered fewer fatalities and the siege was finally at an end. There was cause for celebration, but I could not forget the pyres of the last quarter moon.

At dawn, Ren rode from further up the valley to join Kewri and me, before we began the slow walk down the gorge to the beach. Some of Tallack’s reliable men stayed behind to make sure that the remaining miners didn’t try to take Kenver’s place and cause us more distress. It didn’t seem likely, given that we knew the location of their womenfolk and children and could threaten all kinds of unpleasantness to assure their cooperation.

Our men also needed to remove the makeshift dam of tree trunks and rocks from the river. The tunnels had to drain fully before mining could begin again. All in all, there was much to be done, not least the binding of our Chief to two new brides who awaited him on the fire ravaged moors to the east.

Ren gave me his horse to ride. He walked alongside with Tallack, Kewri and Massen. Their jovial mood grated on me, but I couldn’t quite figure out why. There was something not right about the way Nectan had vanished from the fight. He’d made a seriously advantageous deal with Tallack for leadership of the Alchemy Clan, and yet he’d disappeared before claiming his prize. Why would he have done that, unless he was sure that we would fail?

We stopped briefly to fill our water bladders and let the pony drink from the spring before rounding the headland onto the beach. The ocean was unusually calm and blue; there was not a cloud in the sky. Heat from the sand played tricks with my eyes, as though Tallack’s grand ship was shimmering out in the bay.

As my pony waded through the tidal river emptying into the sea, we spotted Nectan next to our burned-out fires further along the beach. He saw us approaching and started walking to meet us halfway. His grin seemed forced; his greeting too effusive. He stuck out his arm for Tallack to grasp. “I am so pleased to see you all. What an incredible victory… I knew you would prevail. I take it that Kenver is no more?” He acknowledged our nods and blew out his cheeks in relief. It made me wonder how soon into the battle he had fled.

I glanced beyond him to the horse near the cold embers. It was loaded with the bedding furs we’d rescued from the hut fires, and bags of our meagre food stores and belongings. He saw my curious look descend into seething anger.

“I’ve packed your horse for you, Fur Benyn. I…um… didn’t think you’d want to linger, especially if the plan didn’t tilt your way. I was just devising an escape route for you, in case… well, you know.”

Tallack failed to notice the squirming weasel clutching at lame excuses. “That was smart thinking, Nectan, and good of you to want to protect my aunt. As it happens, we’ll need to journey up to the northern mines. Kenver’s brother has taken control there too.”

Sometimes, I despair at how blind my nephew can be. I sincerely hoped it was just his youth that made him so trusting of people.

Nectan leaned his head to one side and frowned. “There’s no need. I can get a message to my boys at the mine. Clemo is as hated as Kenver was here. They can rally the men to overthrow him, with your