The Evening and the Morning

Edgar obsesses about Ragna’s disappearance. Aldred asks him about the new bridge, and Edgar says he needs skilled help to complete it. Aldred says Ethelred was unable to intercept Swein; the Vikings now sail to Exeter. Dreng mocks them and hints that the bridge could burn again.

Aldred visits Shiring and returns with Den and men-at-arms. They plant a stake by the alehouse. After Dreng is tied to the stake, Aldred tells the crowd that Dreng threatened to burn the bridge. Den orders the crowd to pour their water on Dreng, who will remain there until morning. Dreng tells Edgar he heard that Ragna is pregnant. If it is true, he could be the father.

In June, Edgar goes to Shiring for nails. On the road, he sees Wynstan pass with a group and a midwife. He follows them towards Dreng’s Ferry, but when he arrives, Aldred says they did not pass through. Edgar remembers the hunting lodge. He and Aldred leave together. They find the lodge, and Edgar sees Osbert.

A guard surprises them and asks who they are. Edgar announces himself to Cat, who comes out and confirms that Ragna is pregnant. They speak with Wynstan, who says Ragna is there by choice, citing a need for peace. He says that soon she will return to Shiring to see Ethelred. Edgar goes inside. Ragna is almost unrecognizable and retreats from him. She says the baby is Wigelm’s. She asks Edgar to leave when he says he loves her.

The next day, Ragna is allowed to return to the compound. She takes Gilda and another woman named Winthryth to work for her. Den assigns her two bodyguards. A week later, Aldred arrives with a copy of Wilf’s will. He advises her to ask the king not to make a decision about marrying Wigelm until the baby is born. She visits Edgar and invites him to dinner. He asks if she loves him, and she says yes.

King Ethelred holds court before Shiring Cathedral with Queen Emma. She tells Ragna she will help however she can. Ethelred says that Osbert cannot be ealdorman. Aldred accuses Wigelm and Wynstan of holding Ragna captive and stealing her land. Ragna confirms it; Ethelred will require an oath of no further imprisonment from Wigelm and Wynstan. He gives Ragna Outhen and its proceeds, along with her dowry. Ragna asks the king to withhold judgment on her situation until the baby’s birth, which she wishes to deliver on Leper Island. Ethelred agrees. Suddenly, Ragna feels the baby coming.

She names him Alain. She is uneasy when Gytha holds him, but more so when Wigelm enters. He says he loves her and wishes to marry her. When Ragna refuses, Gytha says “we tried” and they leave. The remark sounds like a threat to Ragna.

Wynstan and Gytha visit King Ethelred, who says he will not force Ragna to marry Wigelm. He orders them to find another solution. Wynstan comes to Ragna with a proposal; he says she can leave, but only if Alain stays behind. To stay with Alain, she must marry Wigelm. Queen Emma visits and already knows about the situation from Gytha. She apologizes and says she cannot help. Edgar walks in, and Ragna surprises them all by saying she will leave the baby. Wynstan is furious and worried; her other three children could be heirs. Gytha urges calm and says they cannot kill Ragna.

Edgar and Ragna sleep together but do not have sex. At the last moment, she says she cannot abandon Alain and stays to marry Wigelm in a huge ceremony. Later, Edgar and Aldred watch the Michaelmas fair. When Brindle dies, Edgar decides to leave for Cherbourg. He wants to work in Normandy, far from these memories. As he leaves on the raft, he passes the farm. His bridge stands and goes by the name of King’s Bridge.