Tempted by the Runes

Book 0: Runes

by Christina Courtenay

Genres: Viking Romance; Time Travel Romance

Synopsis

This stunning and evocative new timeslip novel from the bestselling author of Echoes of the Runes is available to preorder now!

Brimming with romance, adventure and vivid historical detail, Christina Courtenay does for the Vikings what Diana Gabaldon's Outlander and Clanlans does for Scottish history.

Born centuries apart. Bound by a love that defied time.

Madison Berger is visiting Dublin with her family for a Viking re-enactment festival, when she chances upon a small knife embedded in the banks of the Liffey. Maddie recognises what the runes on the knife's handle signify: the chance to have her own adventures in the past.

Maddie only intends to travel back in time briefly, but a skirmish in 9th century Dublin results in her waking up on a ship bound for Iceland, with the man who saved her from attack.

Geir Eskilsson has left his family in Sweden to boldly carve out a life of his own. He is immediately drawn to Maddie, but when he learns of her connection to his sisters-in-law, he begins to believe that Fate has played a part in bringing them together. Amidst the perils that await on their journey to a new land, the truest battle will be to win Maddie's heart and convince her that the runes never lie...

Praise for Christina's pacy, evocative and romantic Echoes of the Runes and The Runes of Destiny, out now:

'Seals Christina Courtenay's crown as the Queen of Viking Romance' CATHERINE MILLER

'An absorbing story, fast-paced and vividly imagined, which really brought the Viking world to life' PAMELA HARTSHORNE

'A love story and an adventure, all rolled up inside a huge amount of intricately-detailed, well-researched history. Thoroughly enjoyable' KATHLEEN MCGURL

'Prepare to be swept along in this treasure of an adventure! With a smart, courageous heroine and hunky, honourable hero at the helm, what's not to like?' KATE RYDER

'Highly recommended for lovers of historical romance and timeslips, it's another absorbing read. 5 stars' GEORGIA HILL

'An amazing page-turner filled with superb historical detail, it had me gripped from the first page to the last - I absolutely loved it!' CLARE MARCHANT

'Every story Christina Courtenay spins is better than the last and every world she creates is more real. I loved The Runes of Destiny!' SUE MOORCROFT

'This book has brought the 9th century world alive to me and made me desperate to read more about it' GILL STEWART

(P) 2021 Headline Publishing Group Ltd

Release date: December 9, 2021

Publisher: Headline

Print pages: 368

Sample

Now she wanted to go home. Well, it was a bit late for that and Geir told her as much.

‘You didn’t appear to have a home last night,’ he added. ‘Or so you said.’

‘Of course I have a home! Are you a thrall merchant? Is that why you’ve taken me? To sell me in Ísland? You can’t! I won’t let you!’ Her eyes were wide with fright, as if he was some sort of troll.

‘What are you talking about? I haven’t “taken” you at all. I told you, I’m trying to care for you, not harm you. If you’d answered my questions yesterday, you wouldn’t be here now.’ It made him cross that she could have saved him a deal of bother. He’d had to spend silver on bribing several urchins to run around making enquiries, because he knew they always kept their eyes and ears open, but to no avail. No one had admitted to knowing a red-haired Valkyrie going by the name of Maddie.

‘But . . . no! I was just going for a short walk and then . . . then going back. Home. Oh, this is a disaster!’ She flung an arm across her eyes and he could see her chest rising and falling rapidly, as if she was severely agitated. It was a distracting sight, but he forced himself to concentrate on her words rather than her body.

‘You are not making sense, Maddie.’ He fixed her with a glare, even though she wasn’t looking at him. ‘For the last time, where is home?’

‘Svíaríki.’

‘Ah, now we’re getting somewhere. So you did arrive by ship. Which one? I thought I’d asked all of them, but there were upwards of two hundred or so . . .’ The urchins could have missed one, although he considered that unlikely.

‘Not a ship. I, er . . . arrived by magic. Trolldomr.’ Those last words were whispered, and he had to bend forward to catch them.

‘You what? Magic?’ He blinked as she removed her arm and stared up at him defiantly, her mouth set in an uncompromising line. Geir felt his eyebrows rise. ‘You’re a vōlva? Well, why didn’t you say so?’

‘Because I’m not. Not really. I just cast the runes, that’s all. Wait.’ She sighed and fumbled with one of the pouches at her belt, opening it and taking out the little knife he’d seen her pick up yesterday. ‘I came with this. And yes, I know you won’t believe me, but—’

He cut her off and snatched the knife out of her grasp. ‘Odin’s ravens! Don’t tell me . . . you have travelled through time?’

Maddie’s mouth fell open. ‘Yes! But how did you know? I didn’t say that.’

‘I’ve, um, heard about this before.’ He studied the handle and read the inscription. Með blōð skaltu ferðast. He’d been shown other items with the exact same inscription by his brothers, but neither Hrafn nor Rurik had ever explained how it worked. They’d said it was better not to know.

Before he could ask, though, Maddie put her hand on his arm and gave him a frustrated shake. ‘Are you serious? You’ve met a time traveller? I mean, you believe me?’

‘Yes, several.’ He opened and closed the knife, scrutinising the runes once more. ‘How does it work?’

She let go of him and frowned. ‘I’m not going to tell you that! You’d steal my knife and then I’d be stuck here. In fact, I need to be getting back right now. My family will be missing me. Give me that! Please? And turn this ship around straight away. You have to take me back to Dub . . . I mean Dyflin. Now!’

Fear still flickered in the depths of her eyes, as if she was only too aware that Geir held all the power in his hands. He wasn’t a mean person and would gladly have given the knife back, but he was also consumed with curiosity. Had been for ages. This was one chance he couldn’t possibly pass up, and there was another thought brewing in his mind as well, something that needed mulling over before he did anything hasty.

‘No, I’m sorry. We’ve travelled too far to turn back now. You’ll have to use this when we arrive, if you still want to return to your own time. I want you to show me how it works.’

‘Nuh-uh. No way!’ she said in some foreign language, then clarified. ‘I won’t.’

He closed his fingers around the knife. ‘We’ll see about that. In any case, you’re not going anywhere other than to Ísland with me.’

No! This can not be happening! Maddie stared at the man and tried not to groan out loud. She was only supposed to go for a quick walk in the ninth century, look around, then return to her own time straight away. Not become embroiled in a fight, get concussion and meet this . . . this stubborn bastard. Even if he hadn’t kidnapped her and had no intention of molesting her, she couldn’t stay with him.

There had to be some way of persuading him to give her the knife and turn back, but right now, her head hurt so much she couldn’t think straight. And glancing at him, he looked dead serious. There was something else in his expression too, though. Excitement? Curiosity? Maybe she could use that to her advantage. It was astonishing that he actually believed her. She’d been prepared for total disbelief and possibly outright scorn as well. How many people knew about this time-travelling business? More than she’d thought, it would appear.

‘Look, if I tell you how it works, will you take me back? I can even let you come to the future with me for a short while if you want.’ She tried to keep her tone even and reasonable. Was it possible to reason with a Viking? This particular one didn’t seem to be lacking in brains.

He smiled, his teeth gleaming white in the gloomy interior of the tent. ‘Good try, but no. You can show me when we arrive. I assume Ísland exists in your time?’

She nodded reluctantly. ‘Yes, but—’

‘Excellent. Now I have a ship to steer, so unless you wish to end up at the bottom of the sea, I’d suggest you stop arguing with me. Rest and recover. You’ll need your strength.’

‘Hey! Hey! You can’t just take that. It’s mine. Give me back my knife!’ She made to rise, but was overcome with a wave of nausea and realised she wasn’t in any state to fight him for it. Not yet, anyway. She sank back down, clutching her head.

‘Why should I? I’d be stupid to give up such a precious object. Now lie down. We can debate the issue later. There’s plenty of time before we reach our destination.’

Maddie opened her mouth to protest, but he was gone before she could utter another word. And really, she didn’t have the strength to argue right now. Nausea threatened and she desperately needed to close her eyes and keep her head still. She hadn’t known it was possible for it to hurt this much.

Maybe going to Iceland wasn’t so bad after all. He was right. She could return to her own time from there and find a way to contact her parents, then they’d come and fetch her or arrange for her to travel home. Yes, no need to panic just yet. Did she still have her mobile? She opened each of her leather pouches in turn to check, then remembered she’d had it in her hand before she’d been attacked. She must have dropped it by the river while fighting off those thugs. Perhaps it got trampled into the mud? Damn!

But someone would surely help her. Yes, things would work out fine if only she could sleep for a while . . .

Geir had successfully steered the ship halfway through the sea channel between the northernmost part of Írland and the islands off the west coast of Skotland, the Suðureyjar. They made landfall on a beach on one of them – uninhabited, as far as he could see – as that was safer than trying to navigate past the rest after dark. He was aiming to stay close to these islands as far north as he could, then strike out for the Færeyjar, or Sheep Islands. After that, he’d been told to head north-west across the open sea and then they would hopefully arrive on the southern coast of Ísland within a week.

It all depended on winds and currents, but he had made offerings to the gods and hoped for the best. Others had made the journey and lived to tell the tale – no reason why he shouldn’t.

‘Men, help me to secure the ship,’ he ordered. ‘And pull the rowing boat further up the beach as well.’ They were towing a smaller boat, as he’d been given to understand that wood was scarce in Ísland, and he’d thought they might have need of a less unwieldy vessel from time to time.

He wasn’t travelling alone. Manpower would be needed in order to establish a settlement, plus there was safety in numbers, so two men from home had come with him – Steinthor, a recently qualified blacksmith, who had wanted to establish himself somewhere new; and Ingimund, one of his older brother’s former tenants. The latter had been sharing a small farm with two siblings and it had become clear it wasn’t large enough to support them all. Geir had hired a few others to help him sail the ship to Dyflin, but once there, the hired men had decided to stay behind. They were more interested in going off to plunder than working hard to establish a farm. To replace them, he’d bought some thralls to take with him. Cormac and Niall were young Irishmen, captured as children and raised as thralls, and Geir had chosen them for their strength and capabilities. He’d been assured they were used to working hard and could turn their hands to most tasks.

Steinthor and Ingimund each had a wife and two children, and Geir’s little group was completed by two Irish thrall women and a ten-year-old boy.

Another large ship came to a halt next to his, its keel hissing into the sandy beach – other travellers also bound for Ísland, with whom he’d decided to journey in convoy. Their leader, Hjalti, was only intending to stay for a year, hunting for ivory and sealskins to sell on his return, but he’d brought a group of six men, as well as some Irish thrall women to see to their needs and help establish a temporary settlement. Geir had struck a deal with him that they would help each other if necessary, but otherwise they would create their own base and not encroach on the other’s territory. Hjalti seemed trustworthy, and they’d sworn an oath to this effect. Geir had also paid him to transport extra livestock for him, since the man had the space on the outward journey.

His own men helped him to secure the ship. It was a large vessel and they had to be careful not to get it stuck completely. To make sure the tides didn’t take it away, however, they tethered the mooring ropes to a nearby rocky outcrop. He wasn’t taking any chances. His entire life was on board this ship; everything he owned and all he needed to fulfil his dreams. It had to be safeguarded at all costs.

‘What are you going to do with the strange female?’ Steinthor asked.

‘I don’t know yet,’ Geir lied. He’d already made up his mind to try and persuade her to stay with them, at least for a while. She intrigued him. ‘I’ll go and see if she is awake shortly. Once the women have cooked us a meal, I’ll take some food to her. It’s best if she doesn’t move for now. The wisewoman was adamant on that score. We don’t want her to go weird in the head.’

‘True. I’ll go and help collect driftwood for fires.’

The women soon had food ready, and Geir took his own portion, plus a share for Maddie, and climbed on board. As he raised the tent flap, he saw her stirring with another groan. Having had concussion himself, he knew exactly how she was feeling, and it wasn’t pleasant.

‘Good evening. I have brought you some victuals.’ He placed the two bowls on the planks next to her and hunkered down. ‘There’s a bucket over there in the corner if you need to avail yourself of that first?’

A fiery blush spread over her cheeks, but she nodded. ‘Yes, please.’

‘Here, let me help you rise.’ He placed an arm around her shoulders and raised her into a sitting position. ‘Just sit like that for a moment while your head adjusts. Hurts like at least ten jötnar are trampling you, doesn’t it?’

She managed a small smile at his words. ‘Something like that, yes. I can manage now, thank you.’ The wary glance that accompanied her words showed that she didn’t trust him yet, but that was understandable. She would soon learn that he didn’t pose a threat.

‘I’ll wait outside. Call me when you’re ready to eat.’

Soon he was back inside the tent and propping her up against his travelling kist and a bundle of furs. She stroked a hand over the top one. ‘What is this? It’s so soft.’

‘Wolf. The darker one is bear. I killed him myself.’ He indicated three bear claws hanging round his neck on leather straps. His silversmith brother Rurik had created beautiful mounts for them, and he wore them with pride. Some people said that if you killed a bear, its strength would become yours. Geir hoped it was true. He’d need all the muscle power he could get in order to succeed in this venture.

‘Really? That must have been scary.’ She accepted the bowl he held out to her. ‘Thank you. I’m quite hungry now, and at least I don’t feel sick any more.’

‘Good. And no, not scary – exhilarating.’

They ate in silence. There was much he wanted to ask her, but she was in no fit state and it was better to save his questions for the morrow.

‘I don’t feel any movement. Have we arrived already?’

‘In Ísland?’ Geir started laughing. ‘No, we’ve only been sailing for one day. It will take at least another week, if not two. We have made landfall on a deserted island. It’s safer than trying to navigate in the dark, at least until we are past the Suðureyjar.’

‘Oh, I see.’

He took back her now empty bowl, pleased that she had eaten it all, and handed her a leather waterskin. ‘For when you’re thirsty,’ he said. ‘Now try to go back to sleep. It’s the best thing for healing.’

‘I know. Thank you again.’

He noticed she didn’t try to argue with him about the knife, and her gaze had lost some of the wariness he’d seen earlier. Excellent. He meant her no harm. In fact, he was beginning to think he would enjoy having her company indefinitely.

To her amazement, Maddie went straight back to sleep, awaking some time towards dawn. The light filtering in through the tent flaps was a pearly grey. Enough to make out shapes, but no details. She blinked, letting her eyes adjust, and then had to swallow a gasp. Her captor – she couldn’t call him anything else, as he was keeping her here against her will – was lying alongside her, breathing softly, his back turned towards her.

Good grief. She’d been sleeping next to a Viking.

She’d never slept next to any man before, because she hadn’t had a boyfriend.

It wasn’t for lack of trying. Just like all the other girls in her class at school, she’d gone to parties and hung around the available boys, but no one she liked the look of had been interested in her. Not permanently, anyway. She was too tall, too awkward, with pale skin and flaming hair. It didn’t matter how often her dad told her she was beautiful in a Pre-Raphaelite way – she didn’t believe him, because no one else thought so.

A couple of times she’d drunk too much and allowed some guy to make out with her – it seemed to be what her girlfriends did, as if it was some kind of sport and something to brag about afterwards. Most of them also went all the way, but Maddie hadn’t, because it felt so sordid and meaningless. She’d wanted her first time sleeping with someone to be special, or at the very least with a permanent boyfriend. But no such guy ever materialised, and although she didn’t want to be left out or thought of as uncool and childish, she stuck to her guns. Even when she heard whispers about her being a ‘frigid bitch’.

Bastards. At least, thanks to all her self-defence training, no one had dared say that to her face. She was very grateful to her foster brother, Ivar, for encouraging her to take up those classes. He was sixteen years older than her, but he had been bullied when he was at school and somehow he’d guessed that she was struggling.

‘Being able to kick ass will give you confidence,’ he’d told her, and he was right – the lessons had helped enormously, even though she’d never actually had to put her skills into practice until she met those four thugs in Dublin. No, Dyflin, in the ninth century! She was still having trouble getting her head round that.

She glanced at the Viking next to her and frowned. He hadn’t even told her his name, but he was lying there like a protective shield. Or was he guarding his possession? She shivered, still not completely sure about his intentions towards her.

The small movement must have woken him, because he turned in an instant, gazing at her with intensity. ‘Are you cold? Do you have a fever?’ He put out a hand to feel her forehead, and his touch made her shiver again, although in a nicer way.

She ducked away from his fingers. ‘No, I’m fine. Thank you. Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.’

‘It doesn’t matter. I am due to take my turn on guard duty anyway.’

‘Guard duty? Are you expecting to be attacked?’ This alarmed her more than the fact that she was lying so close to a very large man in the semi-darkness of his tent. She didn’t stop to analyse why.

‘You never know. It pays to be vigilant.’ He must have seen the fear in her eyes. ‘But do not worry, we’ll protect you.’

‘We?’ She hadn’t been outside the tent yet and had no idea who else was on board this ship.

‘There are five of us men, four women, a young boy and four children. Oh, and one more on the way, I believe. Also another shipload of men with whom we are travelling.’

Maddie wondered briefly if one of the women was his wife or mistress, but surely he wouldn’t be sleeping here with her if that was the case? Not that it mattered, but still . . .

He sat up and dry-washed his face as if trying to wake himself fully. She heard the slight rasping as his hands came into contact with his stubble, and the noise sent a strange tremor through her. His shoulder-length hair had fallen out of the ponytail he’d tied it in the day before, and she watched as he deftly scooped it up and refastened the leather cord around it. She wished he hadn’t – she’d liked it loose – then almost groaned out loud. What was she doing admiring the guy’s hair? She shouldn’t be noticing anything personal about him.

‘Obviously I’m taking turns with the other men,’ he commented, pulling her out of her thoughts.

That made her smile inwardly. How chauvinistic it sounded, but in this era it was probably obvious, although she’d heard that Viking women could be fierce too.

‘Try to sleep some more.’ He picked up a long-handled axe she hadn’t noticed lying next to him.

She recoiled slightly. Whoa! That looked lethal, the edge razor-sharp.

He carried on as if he hadn’t noticed her reaction to the weapon. ‘It really is the best thing for what ails you. Trust me, I know.’

‘You said that before. What happened to you?’ She wasn’t sure why she was keeping up this conversation, but for some reason she was curious about him and wanted to know more.

‘I was travelling and we were caught in an ambush. Our opponents didn’t fight fair, using their weapons the traditional way, and someone hit me over the head with his sword hilt. At least, I think that’s what happened. My memory is a little hazy.’ He smiled. ‘I must go. We will speak more later.’

She nodded, looking forward to it already. No, that was wrong. She should still be angry with him, and cautious, but for the life of her she couldn’t summon up the energy.

Just before ducking out of the flap, he turned back and asked, ‘Do you like dogs?’

‘Yes, very much. Why?’

‘Good, then I’ll send Blár in, if you don’t mind. He usually sleeps next to me and he’s been sulking because I wouldn’t let him in.’

‘Oh, right. Sure.’

A few seconds later, something large and furry hurtled in through the tent flap and a wet nose was shoved into her outstretched hand.

‘Hello there! Blár, was it? Yes, yes, I’m pleased to see you too, but maybe you could lie down now? Down! You’re a bit big, you know, and no, I don’t want to be licked, thank you!’

The dog was obviously well trained, and at her command, he sank down next to her immediately but shuffled close to her legs, his tail thumping on the planks. She couldn’t make out what type he was, but he seemed to be a very dark colour. ‘Is that how you got your name?’ she whispered, scratching him behind one ear. ‘Your fur is so black it looks blue? Well, let’s go to sleep now, shall we?’

And as she snuggled down once more, Blár seemed happy with that suggestion.



Geir sat on a large boulder and stared out to sea. The sun hadn’t risen yet, but it wouldn’t be long now. He loved this time of day, when all was quiet and still, and not even the birds were awake yet. The peace was soothing and filtered right through to his very core. And it was a beautiful place this, wild and craggy, but with lush green all around. He hoped his new home would be too.

He glanced towards the ship, where all was quiet. Maddie must have gone back to sleep with Blár to guard her, and no one else was awake either. He was a light sleeper and her early-morning shiver had woken him. It had given him a jolt when he contemplated that she might be feeling worse. What if that blow to her head had really damaged something inside? He sincerely hoped that wasn’t the case. She’d assured him she was fine; he had to take her word for it.

What was he to do with her? He knew what he wanted to do – make her stay. At least for a while.

The moment he’d realised that she was a time traveller, he had discerned the involvement of the gods or Norns in this. It simply couldn’t be coincidence – three brothers, three time-travelling women. There was a definite pattern here. Hrafn and Rurik had both fallen in love with theirs, although it had taken time. Geir could only assume he was meant to do the same with Maddie. Why else would she be here? What other reason could there be for her ending up with him, of all people?

No, it had to be fate, destiny, or whatever one wanted to call it. Something that was meant to be.

But what would she think about that? And were they really well matched? He had no idea.

He considered what he knew of her so far. She was very tall – not a problem when he was oversized himself – beautiful in an angular sort of way, with flaming curly hair that he longed to tangle his fingers in, and she knew how to fight. Her moves had been strange, yet effective, and he liked the fact that she didn’t consider herself helpless in any way. Rather the opposite – she’d been almost too sure of her abilities. Stubborn, too.

He smiled to himself. It would be a pleasure sparring with her, in every way.

Then he frowned as he recalled that there would be obstacles. The gods never did anything by halves, and even if they had intended Maddie for him, he was fairly certain she wasn’t just going to fall into his arms with gratitude. Skítr! She didn’t even want to be here; she wanted to go home. Nor was he prone to falling in love. In fact, he couldn’t recall ever mooning after any woman for longer than a week, hence why he wasn’t married yet. But perhaps he should leave all that to the goddess Freya; she was the expert on matters of the heart. He had to trust that if this was meant to be, it would happen somehow. Either way, Maddie had to stay at least a month or two in order for them to see if it was their destiny to be together.

‘But how to persuade her?’ he muttered.

He had two immediate choices: force her to remain as his captive until she too realised fate meant them to be a couple; or find a way to make her stay long enough for him to woo her and persuade her that he was the right man for her, if he felt that was the truth.

Even though he wasn’t convinced of this himself, he much preferred the second option, because he had a feeling she would take badly to being forced into anything. She definitely had a strong will. And he had already told her that she wasn’t his prisoner. Besides, he would much rather she was willing – he’d never forced any woman to accept his advances and he wasn’t about to start now. There was no joy in that.

It was time to come up with a plan, and as the sun finally made its appearance, he knew what he had to do.

Maddie was surprised to feel the ship moving when she woke for a second time, but bright sunlight shone through the tent fabric and she guessed it must be mid morning already. She couldn’t expect the crew to wait for her to rise before setting off each day. The dog had disappeared, presumably in search of breakfast, and her stomach rumbled at the thought. She supposed it was a good sign that she was feeling hungry.

‘Ah, you’re awake.’ Her night-time protector entered through the flap, handing her a bowl containing something that looked like porridge, minus any sugar or fruit, and a horn spoon to eat it with.

‘Thank you.’ She managed to sit up by herself and was glad to notice that she felt a lot better. The incessant pounding in her head had calmed to a dull ache, and there was no dizziness at all. Thank goodness for that.

She took a few mouthfuls of the porridge. It wasn’t particularly tasty, but she knew better than to complain. She’d had worse in some of the re-enactment camps she had stayed in, and she wasn’t a fussy eater.

She looked up as he sat down cross-legged next to her. He brought with him the tang of the sea and fresh air, and a scent that she already recognised as uniquely his – clean, male and with a hint of damp woollen garments. He’d left the tent flap partly open, and a ray of sunlight highlighted his long, messy dark blond hair with sun-bleached streaks running through it. His broad shoulders and big frame made the space seem suddenly cramped, but he wasn’t intentionally crowding her.

She felt the need to make conversation and said, ‘So we are sailing already?’

‘Yes, no point wasting any daylight.’ Grey-blue eyes framed with dark lashes searched hers. ‘Are you well?’

‘Better, thank you.’ She did her best not to notice the faint stirring inside her caused by him looking at her like that. It was concern for her welfare, nothing else. Touching her skull with a couple of fingers, she added, ‘Just hurting a little bit now. I should be able to help soon.’

‘Help?’ He tilted his head to one side, clearly puzzled.

‘Yes, you know, with rowing and such. I’m assuming everyone has to do something on board.’

She’d been to the Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde once and gone on a trip round the harbour on a replica longship. The captain had been adamant that no freeloaders were allowed – you couldn’t come along unless you were prepared to row. She’d thought the same principle would apply here.

His mouth curved into a smile and she caught a quick glint of amusement in his eyes. ‘I don’t think that will be necessary, but thank you for the offer. We are mostly using the sail.’

‘I see.’ Maddie was curious about the ship, but didn’t feel up to stepping outside the tent yet. ‘How long did you say it would take us to reach Ísland?’ She had quickly resigned herself to having to go there once she’d realised she could still return to her own time when they arrived. Which reminded her . . . ‘And are you going to give me back my knife soon? You know I can’t use it out here at sea.’

‘No, that would be unwise.’ He shook his head, looking grave now, but there was still a distinct twinkle in his gaze. ‘I’m afraid I can’t return it to you yet. You see, I’ve been thinking, and I have a proposition for you. How would you like to stay with us and help establish our settlem. . .