Jaelle didn't see Breth anywhere amid all the fighting, but she did recognize three female woaded warriors from his clan. She had spent time training them in modern sword fighting techniques, and they had trekked together out to the cave.

They made her part of their defensive circle now in the sacred grove, all back-to-back. But oddly, the Gaels were just running by now. Running by in droves. For a bit, the women watched anxiously, prepared to battle any Gaels that turned on them. But when none did, they began a tense back-to-back conversation.

"Have you seen Breth?" she asked them as her eyes scanned the Gaels running by in their flowy dresses.

"Aye, he went down the hill toward the cart staging area."

"Is that far?"

"It's too far to go right now, Jaelle. Maybe later…"

Jaelle knew the woman was just being nice. It didn't appear there would be a later. The Gaels kept running by, probably to surround them, and even here in the forest where cover was adequate, there were too many Gaels for the Picts to last long. She wished she had Breth here to spend her final moments with, but his clanswomen would have to do.

"It is been my honor to fight by you."

"Jaelle, you honor us by being here. And we would stand with you as our new clan chieftain’s wife."

"Aye. You bring as much to the table as she does. More, even."

"I can't let this go untold. I wasn’t really sent by the Druids. I just found the helmet in my … unfaithful man’s left behind things."

"We knew that."

"You did?"

"Aye, we did."

"How?"

"We just… Come on, why would druids send a warrior back? They keep to themselves. If they were to send anyone back, it would be another druid."

"Rumor has it they do send other druids back, and it's never a good thing for the clan that gets a visit."

"Aye, 'tis often quite a bad thing indeed."

"Please tell. I can't die without hearing about this."

"It's just rumors and whispers, you know."

"I know, but those are often true, right?"

"Well, this is unseen in our lifetime, and if the Druids have seen it, they aren’t telling the rest of us. It's rumored the druids from the future send druids back for their own selfish reasons, not to help the rest of us."

"Oh, tell her the real stories. Don’t beat around the bush."

At this, they all laughed, because they had all just been beating at Gaels around bushes.

"These Druids when they come, they always come in white robes. They're looking for ordinary things that have special properties — such as your helmet."

"The druids welcome them as if they are traveling from another country, just passing through."

"They say you'll know the visitor druid is from the future by his or her complete inability to survive alone."

"Jaelle, you are not like that at all."

"Aye, you've taught us skills way beyond our imagining with the sword and the spear and the dagger."

"Aye, you are one of us."

Oddly, the barrage of Gaels had stopped.

All four women stood there looking at each other for a few moments, and then Jaelle turned to rush up the hill.

Ione stopped her with a hand on the wrist.

"You don't know what you may find over the top of that hill. The Gaels may have taken over down there."

Jaelle calmly waited for the woman to let go of her wrist.

"That may be, but if I don't find Breth, I don't really care."

Ione let go of Jaelle's wrist just as Jaelle caressed the bag with the helmet.

Doreen nodded toward the bag.

"Get it out then, and be ready to use it."

Jaelle did so, but just before she turned to run with the helmet in her hands, all three women hugged her.

Common sense took over when Jaelle neared the top and made her slow down and go down. As she crested the hill she was on her belly, peeking through the low-lying branches of the bushes and camouflaged, she knew, by her woad. It was a much more sensible way to see what was going on down there. Who knew, if their arrows were trained this way, she might die before she put on the helmet, which she now got out again.

She inched the last of the way up on her belly, anxious to see Breth still standing.

And she gasped.

Oh, Breth was fine. He was sitting on one of the carts with Morna. Had his arm around her amid all her gatherer lady friends toasting and making merry.

But that wasn't why Jaelle gasped.

Off to the side amid his own little gang of partiers stood John, special sword strapped to his back and laughing with a load of Picts she hadn't seen before, who were obviously his entourage.

What should I do?

It got even worse, because John's new woman came over and put her arm around him and he squeezed her lasciviously, right there in front of all the rest of the people, who cheered him on.

They started to chant the name he had taken for this time.

“Drest! Drest! Drest!"

Jaelle started lowering the helmet down onto her head.

But then she saw John hand something to two of his Picts, who turned right toward her — no, toward the way to the river.

She still wanted to leave, but dread loaded her stomach. She just knew something was terribly wrong.