Valley of the Shadow

Rudgal pushed the bench against one of the drier walls of the cell before he left them again.

Fidelma sat down and brought Eadulf quickly up to date with her ordeal. Eadulf groaned in anguish when she had finished and spread his hands in a hopeless gesture.

‘With both Laisre and Murgal against you, I do not know what to do.’

‘You must find a way,’ Fidelma said firmly. ‘After all, that is a task of a dálaigh.’

‘But I am not a trained advocate of your law,’ protested Eadulf.

‘But I am. I will give you advice and you must find a way of demonstrating that I have told the truth. It is perplexing. Orla and her husband, Colla, are so persuasive in their argument. But, Eadulf, I swear that I saw her coming out of the stable. She and Colla must be lying. The fact that I identified her seems to have greatly troubled her brother, Laisre. I suppose that I can understand this as an affront to his family honour but I do believe that if the matter was down to a conflict of opinion between Artgal and myself, Laisre might have rejected Artgal’s word. The fact that I implicated his sister has caused him to take great anger at me.’

‘I do not understand why he should be so angry as to deny you a fair hearing.’

‘Ah, family honour is always a hard thing to understand. I cannot say that his behaviour is unfair. Nor Murgal’s actions, come to that. Both are behaving within the law.’

‘Well, I must get you out of this place. How should I go about it?’

‘I have to clear my name and find out who murdered Brother Solin. I cannot do that while I remain in this cell. Murgal says that I must remain here for nine days according to law until my trial.’

Eadulf ran a hand through his hair, frowning.

‘But if I remember rightly, in your courts, people of rank and who can pay a fee can be released after swearing an oath that they will reappear before the court when the trial is held.’

Fidelma smiled appreciatively at Eadulf’s knowledge.

‘You remember correctly. There is such a law. You must see if you are able to operate that law to secure my release. There is a library in this place. Murgal has control of it. Do you recall that I showed you the building where it is housed?’

Eadulf made an affirmative gesture.

‘Then you must look up the law on this matter. You must then apply to Murgal, for remember Murgal is the Brehon in this valley. Demand a hearing as to why I may not be released, under the law, to appear in nine days’ time. If I am at liberty, we have a chance to prove whose hand was on that knife which ended Brother Solin’s life.’

‘Would they have such a library of law books here?’ demanded Eadulf doubtfully. ‘Murgal is a pagan.’

Fidelma chuckled softly in spite of her condition.

‘Pagan or Christian, we are a literate people, Eadulf. The Druids kept books long before the coming of Patrick and the adoption of the Latin alphabet. Did we not worship Ogma, the god of learning and literacy after whom our first alphabet was named? And the law was the law eons before the new Faith came to these shores.’

Eadulf pursed his lips disapprovingly.

‘Are you suggesting that I ask Murgal if he has such law books?’

Fidelma took him seriously.

‘Pagan or Christian, advisor to Laisre or not, Murgal is a Brehon and sworn to uphold the law.’

Eadulf shook his head dubiously.

‘And even if he did, what book should I look for?’

‘Firstly, you must study the text called Cóic Conara Fugill — the five paths to judgment. Also, examine the Berrad Airechta. I believe you will find the necessary procedures relating to my condition in those works. Acquaint yourself on procedure and seize the path the law provides to secure my release.’

‘I must remind you, Fidelma, that I did not study law in this land,’ protested Eadulf. ‘I studied the Faith and the practice of medicine only.’

‘You have often told me that you were an hereditary magistrate in your own land, Eadulf. Now is the time to use your talent. You have seen my methods and seen me plead in the courts many times. Turn to “the five paths to judgment” and considerthe law of security called árach. I am placing my trust in you, Eadulf.’

Eadulf rose uncomfortably.

‘I will try not to destroy that faith.’

He reached out both hands and held her shoulders, extending his arms for a moment. Their eyes met and then, with a faint colour to his cheeks, Eadulf turned to the cell door. It opened almost at once as if Rudgal had been standing awaiting him. He stood aside as Eadulf brushed by.

A moment later Rudgal carried a wooden cot into the cell. Then he brought in blankets and a pitcher of water. The warrior-cum-wagon-maker looked anxious.

‘The Saxon brother looks preoccupied, Sister Fidelma,’ he muttered as he manipulated the cot into position. Before she could comment, he added: ‘This will make your sojourn more comfortable, I hope.’

‘As a favour to me, Rudgal, or as a favour to the Faith, I would like you to keep a watchful eye on Brother Eadulf. He may need help. Help him as you would help me.’

‘I shall, Sister Fidelma. Leave matters with me.’

With no further word, Fidelma sat herself down on the bench and began to compose herself for the dercad. She did not even notice Rudgal leave the cell or hear the clanging of the door.

It still lacked several hours until dawn and Eadulf realised that he would have to wait until then before approaching Murgal for permission to use his library. Murgal, in fact, would have only just retired after the excitement of the night. Eadulf realised that if he were to help Fidelma he needed to be fully alert. For two nights he had not slept well and so he decided to attempt to sleep for a further hour or two. In spite of his mental state, he had barely laid his head on the bed when he was dead to the world.

He awoke hearing sounds of activity in the main room of the guests’ hostel. For a moment Eadulf did not remember the activities of the night before. Then they came to him in a depressing flood. He rose and went down to the bath house.

Cruinn was there staring balefully at him. And the young monk, Brother Dianach, was sitting obviously distressed in a corner. As Eadulf came down the stairs the boy’s face creased in anger. It was clear that the death of Brother Solin and the arrest of Fidelma had been the talking point of the ráth that morning.

‘Why did she do it?’ Brother Dianach’s first words in fierce accusation struck Eadulf like a whip. The boy half rose to hisfeet as though to physically threaten Eadulf. ‘Did she hate him so much?’

Eadulf stood at the foot of the stair for a moment regarding Brother Dianach sadly.

‘Sister Fidelma did not kill Brother Solin,’ he replied calmly.

Cruinn muttered something beneath her breath in suppressed anger. The cheery, portly woman had vanished and in her place a fierce harridan had appeared.

Eadulf looked from one to the other of them and shrugged. He could see that neither of them was in any mood to hear Fidelma’s side of the story. He turned into the bath house. By the time that he had finished his toilet there was no sign of Cruinn or Brother Dianach. He made his way up the stairs to his room and dressed. Returning, he found that Cruinn had not left him anything with which to break his fast. It was obviously her protest. Eadulf sighed and went in search of what he could forage.

After a meagre meal of dried bread and some cold meat and mead he sallied forth on the first of his quests. At the building where Fidelma had indicated Murgal’s library to be housed, the first person he encountered was the attractive apothecary, Marga. After what Fidelma had told him about her outburst when she had discovered that he had studied herbal medicine, he expected her to brush by him but to his surprise she stopped in front of him.

‘I cannot express regret,’ she said without preamble. It was clear that she, too, had heard the news. ‘Either for the pig Solin or for your Christian friend. They deserve to be with each other in your Otherworld. I can understand any woman who encountered Solin wishing to end his life.’