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The object of fear and hatred because of her colourless appearance and gift of prophesy, Brennwen has spent her short life trying to stay hidden from an ignorant and abusive world. But she can’t stay hidden from her prophetic dreams of unavoidable disaster that seem more curse than gift. Especially when one such dream concerns the soul of her child; a child she lost in the womb; a child who has reincarnated into a family of feared Romans. By leaving the safety she has found and joining forces with the enemy, can she change the destiny she has foreseen and save her son from his fate?
All Roman patricians aspire to power, glory and valour. Gaius believes he has fallen far short of those aspirations by becoming a military clerk and the diplomatic face of the Governor of Britannia. Since the death of his wife, he has buried himself in his work, resigned to being a failure in all areas of his life except as father to four year old Calidius.
When his son is kidnapped and becomes a helpless pawn in a devious plot to end the Roman occupation of Ancient Britannia, can Gaius put aside his prejudices and self-doubts for the sake of his child? Because to do so will mean following the uncanny dreams of a tiny Celtic seer, a woman who heats his blood as no other ever has, and journeying with her to the wilds of the North to take charge of a daring mission to reclaim his son and defeat the rebels. A mission more able men than he would have found almost impossible to carry out.
Sneak Peak at "White Raven's Lover"
‘I’m looking for a Roman patrician called
Annius,’ Leonis said to the clerk at the desk of the harbourmaster.
The man looked overworked and disinterested in their question until
Leonis reached into his pouch and dropped a couple of copper coins on
the desk in front of him.
‘Do you mean Gaius Annius Bibulus? He’s the
only one of his clan I know of in these parts,’ came the abrupt
reply as the coins were scooped up and quickly hidden away.
‘Where will I find him?’
‘The Governor’s offices in the Forum. You
won’t get in to see him. He’s a busy man…’
They didn’t stay long enough to hear the rest
of the clerk’s caveats. Leonis spun on his heel and sped off toward
the centre of town. Brennwen ran along beside him, watching as people
jumped out of their way with looks of stunned surprise. They were
probably quite a sight: A golden-haired warrior and a white
girl-child. But she had no time to feel self-conscious. Her son
needed her.
They reached the forum a few blocks away and
Leonis headed for the most impressive of the newly built stone
structures. While Brennwen gasped at his side, trying to get enough
air into her labouring lungs, Leonis was again making demands.
‘Annius Bibulus. I need to see him, now.’
The clerk at the front desk of the Governor’s
offices looked up in shock, dropping the scroll he had been holding.
‘I…I’m afraid the Governor’s advisor
is…’ the man stuttered out.
‘This is a matter of life or death. Get him
or tell me where I can find him.’
Speechless, the man pointed down the corridor
as two Praetorians, who had been stationed at the front entrance,
moved in to see what the disturbance was all about.
Before they got close enough, Leonis took off
down the hall in the direction the clerk had pointed. On shaky legs,
Brennwen followed. Glancing behind her, she saw the Praetorians were
closing in.
‘Stop!’ One guard demanded, drawing his
sword.
Leonis ignored the man. He opened the door at
the end of the corridor and closed it after Brennwen. Effortlessly,
he dragged a nearby desk in front of the door.
The clerk in this room jumped to his feet.
‘What are you doing? What do you want?’
‘Annius Bibulus. His son is in danger. We
must speak to him at once,’ Leonis yelled as he stabilized the
heavy piece of furniture in place. The guards started banging on the
barricaded door.
The inner office door opened and a young Roman
noble stormed in. He frowned as he looked first at her and then at
Leonis, who was now using his weight to keep the desk in place.
‘What is the meaning of this?’
‘Are you Annius Bibulus?’ Leonis demanded
in reply.
‘Yes. What do you want with me?’
‘Your son is in danger!’ Brennwen found her
voice as she crossed the room and grabbed the man’s surprisingly
strong arm. He wasn’t a tall man, not like Leonis. Nor was he a
warrior. Yet there was power in the man, a certain competent strength
that she found as reassuring as Leonis’ warrior ways. This man
wouldn’t let anything happen to his son. This man would save her
boy!
‘Cal is in danger? How? From whom?’
‘Where are the snakes?’ she asked him in
return.
‘The snakes?’ The nobleman frowned as if
her words were nonsense.
‘Yes. The snakes are trying to save him, but
they can’t,’ Brennwen sobbed.
Suddenly her legs gave way under her and the
Roman caught her to him, holding her against his sturdy chest. She
could feel his heart pounding as hard and fast as her own.
‘It was only a joke. I told him to watch out
for snakes on the way to Ceres Temple,’ the man said as he shook
his head in bewilderment. ‘Ceres is always depicted with snakes.’
‘Men have taken him. You have to stop them!
Please, you have to stop them.’
The Praetorians had broken down the door and
Leonis was backing away from them, lifting his hands in a gesture of
surrender.
The guards moved forward, swords drawn on
Leonis. Terrified, Brennwen buried her head against the chest of the
man who still held her up.
‘Stand down!’ Her son’s father ordered
with authority. Immediately, the Praetorians did as they were told.
The office was in chaos. There was splintered wood and scattered
scrolls everywhere. In the centre of the chaos, Brennwen clung to the
Roman, as if to an oak in a storm, and watched as Leonis also stood
down, waiting.
‘Send guards to Temple of Ceres, now!’ The
nobleman gave the order in a tone that brooked no argument.
Immediately, one of the guards ran out to do
the patrician’s bidding. This young man had so much gravity, so
much quiet control over everyone around him. And he was decisive,
asking no more questions, showing no sign of the confusion he must be
feeling. He just took action.
‘The Praetorians will find him. Keep him
safe.’
‘No, you must come. He needs you. He’s
calling for you!’
The last detail came from her dream last night.
She’d seen the child wresting with the man who held him, crying out
for Pater, blood all over him. Not his blood. She was sure it wasn’t
his blood. But the child was terrified and hysterical.
After only a moment’s hesitation, the
nobleman drew her toward the broken door with him. Leonis and the one
remaining Praetorian fell in behind them.
She couldn’t keep up the pace, so the
patrician half carried her along with him, her shoes sliding along
the marble floors of the office corridor. People were shouting
everywhere. Pandemonium was breaking out at every turn.
And yet, now she had found him, Brennwen was
oddly content. This man, this powerful Roman noble would know what to
do, would know how to save her son. She had no doubts.
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