CHAPTER 4
The White Mound and the Island of ThornsDuring the Festival of Lughnasa, Keron arrived with his daughter Rheinid. It was a year since Prince Bladud had spent those two nights in their rath on his way to consult the oracle.
Trinovantum was crowded with visitors. Those who could not find shelter for the night in the houses of friends and relatives were encamped in makeshift tents around the outskirts. Nearly every piece of land between the river Tain and the fortified hill where the great castle of Hudibras stood was occupied. The weather was at its hottest and the smell of so many families and animals gathered together was overpowering.
Bladud stood on the watchtower rising above the ramparts to witness the travellers winding towards the town. He enjoyed the excitement, the cha
