Our Lady of Darkness

way.’

‘Have you been stewardess here long?’ asked Fidelma as the religieuse began to lead her through the gloomy vaulted corridors of the abbey.

‘I have been rechtaire here for ten years. I came to this abbey when I was a child, along with my brother.’

‘Ten years as rechtaire,’ Fidelma reflected. ‘That is a goodly time. Have you known Abbess Fainder long? I know she has but recently returned from Rome, but did you know her before she went there?’

‘When she came to the abbey three months ago,’ Sister Étromma said, ‘she was a stranger to most of us here. Noé was our abbot before her. We are a mixed house, you see. Like Kildare.’

Fidelma smiled a brief acknowledgement.

‘I know. Why did Abbot Noé decide to resign as abbot here?’

‘It was the King himself who required Noé to be his spiritual adviser, or so we were told. He still has chambers in the abbey but stays mainly in the King’s palace. The running of the abbey has passed to Fainder who was then appointed as our abbess.’

Did Fidelma detect a slight bitterness in her tone?

‘Why was Fainder appointed if she was not formerly of this community?’

Sister Étromma did not reply.

‘As rechtaire at the abbey for ten years it might be considered that you had a better claim to the office?’ Fidelma pressed.

‘She was a protégée of Abbot Noé in Rome.’

‘I did not know that Noé had ever been a religious in Rome.’

‘He only went there on a pilgrimage and did not remain for anylength of time. He met the abbess there, I believe, and brought her back to be his successor. It was when he returned that he announced his retirement from the abbey.’

‘That is unusual,’ remarked Fidelma. Then she realised another possibility. ‘Is Fainder related to Noé, perhaps?’

Nepotism was not unknown in the religious houses and often abbots and abbesses and even bishops took office following the same successional system as kings and their nobles. As well as being of blood descent they were elected by their derbhfine which usually comprised three generations of the family descending from a common great-grandfather. Often sons, grandsons, nephews and cousins, were appointed to be abbots in place of a previous abbot or abbess in much the same way as kings were appointed or other chiefly heads.

When Étromma did not respond, Fidelma posed another question.

‘Are you happy with the way the abbess runs this community? I mean, are you happy with Fainder’s commitment to govern by the Penitentials and the Roman form of administration? I am surprised that Abbot Noé blessed this new departure for I always thought that he was an adherent of the Rule of Colmcille.’

Sister Étromma halted a moment, causing Fidelma to halt also, and the stewardess looked round as if in search of eavesdroppers before replying.

‘Sister,’ she dropped her voice to a whisper, ‘it is wise not to mention such conflicts in this place. The differences between the Irish Church and that of Rome are not a subject for discussion here. Since Fainder has become our abbess she has grown powerful and rich. It does not do to voice criticism.’

‘Rich?’ queried Fidelma.

Sister Étromma shrugged. ‘The abbess does not dismiss material wealth, even though she expounds the austerity of the Penitentials to others. She seems to have acquired much wealth since her arrival. Perhaps one should look towards the rich and powerful who patronise her. But it is not for me to voice criticism.’

It was clear to Fidelma that the stewardess was resentful of the abbess.

However, Fidelma did not wish to pursue the matter of sister Étromma’s prejudices. She was more concerned about hearing how Eadulf was faring.

Sister Étromma moved quickly on along the corridor.

‘Do you know what happened concerning Brother Eadulf?’ Fidelma allowed a short silence before raising the subject.

‘He is to be executed tomorrow.’

‘I mean the facts leading to his trial.’

‘I know that when he first arrived here, he seemed pleasant enough and spoke our language well.’

‘So you met him when he arrive here?’

‘Am I not the rechtaire of the abbey? It is my duty to greet all travellers, especially those wishing for hospitality within our walls.’

‘So when did he arrived here?’

‘About three weeks ago. He came to the gate and asked for a night’s lodging. He said that he was planning to take a boat downriver to Loch Garman. He was going to look for a ship to take him back to the land of the Saxons. There are plenty of Saxon ships putting into Loch Garman these days.’

‘So what happened?’

‘There is little I know. He arrived late one afternoon, as I, say, and I gave him a bed in the guests’ hostel. He attended devotions and ate a meal. During that night I was awakened by the abbess. It seemed that the body of a young novitiate had been found on the quay outside the abbey. The girl had been discovered by a captain of the watch. There is frequent theft from the boats that tie up there. A lot of trade passes through the township. That’s why a permanent watch is employed on the quays.

‘It seems that the young girl had been assaulted and then strangled. An alarm was raised. I was asked by the abbess to lead the way to where the Saxon was sleeping.’

Fidelma frowned. ‘Why the Saxon? What made the abbess single him out?’

Sister Étromma was dispassionate. ‘Simple enough. He was identified.’

‘Identified? By whom and how?’ Fidelma tried not to show her dismay.

‘The captain of the watch had informed the abbess that the Saxon was responsible. I led the abbess, the captain of the watch and some others into the guests’ hostel. The Saxon was in bed, pretending to be asleep. When he was forced from the bed he was found with blood on him and a torn piece of the dead novitiate’s robe.’

Fidelma suppressed a groan. This was becoming worse than she had imagined.

‘That’s bad enough, but you have not told me how he was identified.I am puzzled to know how the captain of the watch was able to claim the Saxon was responsible when, as you tell me, he was not caught on the spot but was asleep in his bed in the guests’ hostel. What is the name of this captain, by the way? I shall want to see him.’

‘His name is Mel.’

Fidelma’s eyes widened at the information.

‘The same Mel who is commander of the guard at the palace of Fianamail? The brother of Lassar, the innkeeper at the Inn of the Yellow Mountain?’

Sister Étromma looked surprised. ‘You know of him then?’

‘I am staying at the Inn of the Yellow Mountain.’

‘His success in capturing the Saxon caused the King to appoint him one of his commanders. He used to be a captain of the watch on the quays.’

‘A good promotion then,’ Fidelma commented drily.

‘Fianamail can be generous to those who serve him well,’ agreed the stewardess. Did Fidelma detect a slight note of cynicism in her voice?

‘Let me ask the question again; what led the captain of the watch so unerringly to the bed of Brother Eadulf, who just happened to have the incriminating evidence still on him?’

Sister Étromma grimaced. ‘It was reported that a religieux had been seen running from the quay to the abbey just before the body was discovered.’

‘How many religieux does the abbey of Fearna hold? One hundred? Two hundred?’ Fidelma could not keep the note of scepticism from her voice.