The Evening and the Morning

Edgar is angry that people are stealing from Ragna through tax evasion. He wonders how to prove that Gab, the quarrymaster, is cheating Ragna. Edgar later finds proof that Gab only records half of what he sells, so he only pays half of his taxes owed to Ragna.

People in Shiring are preparing for conflict. Wilf is going to press the Welsh as punishment for the autumn raids the year before. Edgar goes to the Abbey and sees Aldred. Aldred’s obvious affection makes him uneasy as they talk about Inge, Garulf, and Ragna. Edgar remembers that Wynstan used to visit Combe, and that one Christmas he gave a piglet to each household. They hear Hildred outside and accuse him of eavesdropping.

Edgar sees Ragna that evening. She seems colder and angrier than he has ever seen her. He tells her about Gab, and they talk about her situation with Inge. She says she still loves Wilf and kisses Edgar’s cheek.

Edgar and Aldred watch the army leave in the morning. Abbot Osmund summons Aldred. Hildred is there. Osmund warns him not to make an enemy of Wynstan. Aldred is insincere in his apology.

Wynstan forbids Ragna from visiting the Vale of Outhen, explaining that he will collect the rent. However, he agrees to let her visit on Lady Day, which is when she will confront Gab. When she prepares to leave, she sees that her horse, Astrid, is hurt. Wignoth, the groom, does not know what happened. Ragna believes that Wignoth hit Astrid with a nearby mallet, probably on Wynstan’s instructions. She tells Edgar her suspicions. Edgar thinks that Wynstan wants to collect rent—as opposed to sending Ragna—so he can take a share off the top.

She thinks the sheriff, Den, might help her. Edgar will ask Aldred as well. Den did not join the army, stating that he was needed to enforce the law at home. She tells him that Wynstan is robbing her. Soon, she rides towards Outhen on a new

horse, along with Den and 12 of his men. She thinks now that Wigelm protested at her wedding anticipating that they would deprive her of Outhen’s rents.

Ragna finds Wynstan with Draca—the village priest—and Dudda. Though shocked to see her, Wynstan welcomes her. She announces to the people that she is their lord. They kneel. She also tells her group to seize the carts of goods around Wynstan.

Under duress, Draca agrees that the rent is owed to her. She takes a parchment from Ithamar, which has a tally of each person’s dues. She begins collecting rent, treating each person kindly. Then she confronts Gab and says her builder is there to check his story. Edgar verifies that he bought ten stones, but Gab only recorded five. She decides to spare Gab but removes Dudda as headman, then gives the position to Seric. She also replaces Ithamar with Draca. Wynstan leaves, and Ragna continues her collections.

Aldred rides towards Combe with a letter from Osmund to Prior Ulfric. He brings a gift, the book Dialogues by Pope Gregory the Great. He is unofficially going to investigate Wynstan.

Aldred hates the corruption of Degbert. He finds Edgar at the alehouse with his brother’s baby, Wynswith, or Winnie. They talk in the new brewhouse. Aldred asks for help surveilling Degbert and Wynstan, and they decide to travel separately.

Edgar learns that Wynstan and Degbert are staying with Wigelm. Edgar watches the gate of the compound. Later, he watches Wynstan at an alehouse. He follows them to Mags’s house. Edgar leaves after being propositioned. Next, he follows them to a house on the beach owned by the trader, Cynred. An unfamiliar man approaches the house after they enter.

Edgar hears the sounds of dice. When they finish, Edgar follows Robert, the newcomer. He watches him board a Norman ship. When he talks with Aldred the next day, the monk is confused about why Wynstan would not mind losing so much money.

They go to the beach to speak with Robert. Aldred tells him he was cheated. They talk to a jeweler named Wyn. They ask him to weigh Robert’s English pennies. The weight proves that some of Wynstan’s coins are forgeries. Edgar and Aldred know that the villagers must be in on it to some degree, which is why Wynstan balked at attempts to make Degbert more righteous.

Edgar worries that Cuthbert is the forger. The next evening Aldred returns to Shiring Abbey. He talks to brother Godleof as he unpacks. He says there is a problem with Osmund. Osmund says he has appointed Hildred as acting abbot until he recovers.

Wilf is three months overdue. When he comes home, he tells Ragna that he met Wynstan while traveling and heard about Outhenham. She convinces him that Wynstan’s only choice is to stop stealing.

Wilf brought back 100 enslaved people. They are displayed the following day. Ragna sees Stiggy there. One of the enslaved people is Blod. She asks to buy her from Stiggy, but Wynstan says she must be returned to Dreng.

Back at Dreng’s Ferry, Edgar sees Blod being led by Stiggy. Dreng takes her inside, and Edgar hears her screaming in pain. He goes in to see Dreng kicking her. Edgar pulls him off, and Dreng punches him. Edgar knocks him down and begins strangling him. Before leaving, he says he will kill Dreng if he touches Blod again. He immediately tells his family what happened.

Meanwhile, Edgar’s family is going hungry. The crops are bad, and Dreng will no longer help them. During a storm that night, Edgar worries about the hay being ruined. When they go outside, the field is submerged. When they go back inside the house, Ma is gone. Edgar finds her body by the riverbank. He wonders if she killed herself so they could have more food to share. After burying her the next day, Edgar digs a ditch that will drain the water from the oats. Two weeks later, he releases the water into a pond that quickly fills with fish and eels, which gives him the idea to make basket traps; one of them fills overnight. Despite the success, Edgar is unhappy. He does not want to be a fisher or a farmer. He wants to use his gifts and pursue a greater destiny.