Garrick was stunned to be exiled and rapidly spoke in his own defense. “You heard Ula call Cadell a murderer and admit to poisoning him. No man loyal to Cadell would have allowed her to live.”
Egan’s expression remained implacable. “No, indeed. Ula invited her own death. But you shared her every confidence.” He hesitated and watched the fear mount in Garrick’s eyes. Without proof, he would not accuse the powerful Druid of complicity in his father’s murder, but Garrick was nonetheless tainted by Ula’s guilt and clearly he knew it.
“You brought Ula here to the fortress,” Egan stressed, “and you will accompany her body home and remain there. Is that understood?”
Garrick clamped his jaws tight, shook his head regretfully, and sheathed his knife. “As you command, my lord.”
Egan sent another assessing glance over the crowd and was swiftly satisfied all present were either too stunned or intimidated to torment him. He then rested a comforting hand on Kieran’s shoulder and lowered his voice. “Should you wish to travel with your mother’s body, I will bid you a safe journey and welcome you home upon your return.”
Kieran shook off Egan’s hand as he sprang to his feet. “Had you not stopped me, I would have killed her myself,” he snarled. “How could she have poisoned our father? He was worth ten of her.”
“Aye, that he was, but she cast him a murderer too.”
Kieran drew back his foot and slammed a rude kick into his mother’s ribs, but her limp body merely absorbed the blow. “I’ll never believe that vicious lie. Cadell may have slain many a warrior in battle, but he murdered no one, least of all the virtuous Adelaine. You’ll go alone, Garrick. I mean to travel, but not with the body of this traitorous bitch.”
“Remain with me today,” Egan urged. “You should stand at my side during the ceremony.”
Kieran offered a grudging nod, and Egan turned to Albyn. “Rather than delay Garrick’s departure. I want you to perform the coronation rites.”
“It will be my honor,” Albyn agreed.
“Do you even know what must be done?” Garrick snarled.
Albyn bowed slightly. “Aye, I do. You needn’t worry that I will shame the Druids in either word or deed.”
Garrick glared at the younger man. “You must leave now, or the sun will already be high in the sacred grove. When you return, I will be gone, and Ula’s name will be forgotten.”
“As it should be,” Egan interjected. He then gestured toward the crowd. “Come, men, let us be on our way.”
While his kin gradually began to move toward the stable or the gate, Egan paused to smooth Oriana’s curls and placed a gentle kiss on her brow. “Please do not fret. Spend the day creating a new banner for me, and we’ll fly it on the morrow. I want a hawk in flight. Can you do it?”
Oriana could scarcely believe she had escaped the horror of Ula’s fate, for from her first terrifying confrontation with Garrick, it had been her worst fear. She was badly shaken, but the prospect of fleeing to Egan’s chamber with a useful task to occupy her day held an irresistible appeal.
“Aye,” she responded confidently, although she had never been skilled with a needle. “I’ll make you a beauty.”
She returned Egan’s parting kiss, then sent a furtive glance toward Duncan O Floinn. He and his companions were already walking toward the stable where they had tethered their mounts.
“Duncan,” she called. “Please take the horse Egan won from you.”
Egan had already ridden through the gate, and for a long moment, Duncan pondered the wisdom of Oriana’s offer before finally accepting. “He’s a fine mount, and I’ve missed him. I thank you for your kindness, my lady.”
Rather than being kind, Oriana had simply sought to rid the fortress of any reminders of Duncan O Floinn, but she smiled as though she were sincerely touched by his praise and bid him a pleasant farewell. There was obviously an art to being queen, and she vowed right then to earn the respect of the Dál Cais through the generosity of her deeds.
Nearby, Neal and two fellow Druids were arguing as to how best to wrap and carry Ula’s body. Oriana avoided looking their way, but she doubted she would ever be able to cross the bailey without recalling how swiftly Ula had met her death.
As she joined the other women streaming through the wooden doors leading to the inner fortress, no one made way for her to pass ahead of them, which was most disrespectful. Clearly the day belonged to Egan rather than his queen.
Long before Egan and Albyn had reached the sacred grove, the Druid began to complain. “You’ve left Oriana all alone, and she must still be terrified.”
In Egan’s last glimpse of his bride, she had appeared remarkably serene, and his only emotion was immense pride. “Women are barred from the ceremony, and we must hold it without further delay. We might have disguised Oriana in a Druid’s cloak, but it is too late now to consider such a devious ploy.”
“She’d not don a Druid’s cloak for any purpose,” Albyn argued persuasively. “But still, we should not have left her alone. Has she even one friend among the women?”
From what little Oriana had revealed about her life, Egan doubted she had ever been close to anyone other than her mother. “No,” he admitted, “but she soon will, and without Ula’s virulent hatred to inspire mischief, none will dare harm her. Now promise me that you’ll rush through the ceremony so that I may return to my bride.”
“It is an ancient rite and impossible to hurry. Afterward, there will be a great feast to celebrate your coronation, and again no women will attend. I’m afraid you’ll not see your dear Oriana before dawn.”
Annoyed by Albyn’s undoubtedly astute prediction, Egan gazed off to the right, where Kieran rode alone in a dej