Lord of the Isles (Coronet Books) Read Online Free PDF Page A

ungovernable enough as it was. Besides, it would all cause delay and he had more important matters to attend to. So, no decapitation. He would tell them so.
    Much blowing of his bull’s horn and eventually he succeeded in getting most of his roystering crew together, although some were already too drunk to pay heed. Somerled addressed them.
    “You have done well,” he said. “You have cleaned up this nest of adders. I thank you. Your reward you shall have, never fear. But the task is only half-done. One of the longships has escaped us, sailed. We know not where, as yet. But there are many more Norse raiding-bands around these coasts, some just across the Sound of Mull no doubt. We know that, at least. And nothing is more sure than that the escaped craft will make straight for one of these, probably the nearest, with the news. They will not know fully what has happened but they will know enough to bring down their friends upon us. You have it?”
    He paused, to let that sink in. There was an uneasy muttering.
    “So we are not finished yet, my friends! We may have to do some fighting! But you are fighting-men, are you not? And you have done no fighting yet. So now we need to know . . .”
    He was interrupted. Two reeling individuals came bawling hoarsely behind him, one carrying a severed head, by the hair, in one hand and a leathern wine-flagon in the other, his companion bearing two more heads. They were singing soulful songs of Ireland, not each the same song.
    “Quiet, you!” Somerled barked.
    They paid no heed, holding up their grisly trophies triumphantly. It was light enough now for all to see the sightless eyes and dripping, torn necks. Still more affecting for the others was to see that the two singers’ bare arms were almost entirely hidden beneath gold bracelets, the broad bangle-like ornaments which the Vikings wore as honourable marks of courage and endurance.
    “God in His Heaven!” Somerled swore. “Here are a pair requiring a lesson, indeed! And by the Powers they shall have it!” He strode over to the bibulous pair, snatched the dangling head from the one with the bottle and, swinging it in an arc, brought the gory thing smashing against the man’s brow, who went down as though pole-axed. Then he rounded on the other repeating the blow and adding a return swipe which toppled the fellow headlong. Kicking them where they lay, he tossed the grinning trophy on top of one and called for Saor MacNeil to come and strip the bracelets from the miscreants’ arms. All spoils were to be divided equally amongst the entire company, he had said. He repeated that loudly. The message was important. Keeping a hold over these Irish was difficult and called for constant exercise of judgement. They were not his own men, only loaned to him. A firm hand was necessary, essential—but they might well resent this treatment of their two drunken comrades by what they might name a foreigner. So the sharing of the loot amongst all was emphasised as counteraction.
    The growling sank away and Somerled went on. “We need to know where that longship would go. Whom it will warn first. It will be able to go but slowly, for it will have only a few men aboard, I think, only enough to man a few of the oars. We must be after it. But where? Do our fishermen know?”
    “No, lord,” one of them answered. “How should we know that?”
    “Did they never speak of other Norse bands, outposts, settlements? There must be many. This was a large encampment. It would have outposts, for sure, around these coasts. The chances are that this longship would head for the nearest of these.”
    No-one ventured a suggestion.
    “Unfortunately you have slain all the Norsemen here, or we might have won something out of a prisoner! But what of the women? Have any of them heard anything to aid us?”
    Silence, save for the groaning drunks.
    “Come, you—do not tell me that near a score of women have not heard something in their traffic with these