Sacrifice by Philip Freeman

washing the dishes.
    â€œNo, thank you, Grandmother. I think three cups is enough for one night.”
    I had a sense of hazy unreality after the events of the day, as if I couldn’t wake up from a bad dream—and the wine wasn’t helping. I had seen the results of a brutal human sacrifice and been stripped of my life as a nun, all since sunrise. I had come to my grandmother’s house because I had nowhere else to go. It had been three years since I had lived in this place. I had gonefrom here to the monastery after the death of my son because I needed a new life and a new beginning. Kildare had become my home and my world, the nuns and brothers my closest friends. Now all that was gone.
    But my personal problems paled in comparison to the deaths of two innocent women and what the future held for us all.
    â€œGrandmother, we need to talk about what to do next.”
    I had told her about everything that had happened that morning, including a description of the symbols carved onto Saoirse’s body. As fellow druids, we could discuss all the details freely without betraying any secrets. If she had been shocked by the murder of Grainne, the sacrifice of Saoirse was even worse. We both knew what it meant and the chain of events that had now been set in motion.
    â€œYes, we don’t have much time. I’ve sent word to the leading druids throughout Ireland, including Cathbad. The death of Saoirse and the symbols on her body make it clear that Grainne’s death was not an isolated incident. The druid who carried out these killings intends to perform the full cycle of sacrifices.”
    â€œIs there any way to know the order he intends?” I asked.
    â€œYes, the sequence was always fixed, assuming that this renegade intends to follow tradition. He’s already violated it by using unwilling victims. There were six symbols on her body. He didn’t include the death of Grainne since that had been completed. He has already performed the second sacrifice with Saoirse, so that leaves five signs and five more sacrifices. The Triple Death was always the first, followed by the offering to the Morrigan. Tell me again exactly what you saw.”
    â€œSix symbols, Grandmother. The first, above her right breast, was the head of a crow.”
    â€œYes, the Morrigan. Saoirse was a sacrifice to the goddess of war. It looks like the murderer hopes to bring about armed conflict.”
    â€œThe second, over her left breast, was a spiral line circling inward on itself.”
    â€œLife. The symbol of the three mother goddesses. That will be the next sacrifice.”
    â€œThe third was a triangle with a circle in the center.”
    She shuddered when I said this.
    â€œBlood. The mark of Crom Crúach. We’ve got to stop this before that sacrifice happens.”
    â€œThe fourth was two diagonal lines coming together above a small circle.”
    â€œDarkness. The sign of Donn, the god of death. It always follows life.”
    â€œThe fifth symbol was a vertical line with a single horizontal bar across the top, like a Christian cross.”
    â€œLight. The emblem of rebirth, holy to the goddess Brigid.”
    â€œThe last and largest, in the center of her chest, was three lines crossing each other at the center.”
    â€œFire. The sacred sign of the great god Lug. It was always the final sacrifice.”
    â€œI told Sister Anna that more deaths were coming so that she could take precautions. I hope I didn’t reveal too much.”
    â€œNo, my child, it was the right thing to do. We can’t betray the secrets of the druids, but we have to protect the lives of our friends at Kildare.”
    â€œGrandmother, who would do such a thing?”
    â€œThat’s the question King Dúnlaing is going to ask me tomorrow. He sent a messenger just before you arrived, saying he wants to see me at his farm in the morning.”
    â€œI’ll come with you, if you’d