Daughters of Rebecca Read Online Free PDF

hurts,’ Llinos said honestly. ‘And in any case, it’s not past, is it? You write to her often enough and sometimes you make the trip to America to visit her.’ She bit her lip, forcing down her anger, but when she spoke again her voice trembled. ‘I hate to think of you lying in the arms of that woman, of fathering a child with her. How can you expect me to forget all that, Joe? You are asking the impossible.’
    He sighed heavily. ‘It was something I couldnot control,’ he said heavily. ‘I felt I was doing the right thing by my mother and by her people. My son will grow up as a leader in the Americas. He will restore stability to the Mandan peoples.’
    â€˜Your son is there, before your eyes,’ Llinos said flatly. ‘The other one is a by-blow, an illegitimate child with no name.’
    Joe was silent, retreating into himself as he did whenever anything displeased him. He did not seem to feel shame that he had betrayed his wife, that he had left her for an Indian squaw. Joe was a man who had different values from the other men, she knew. Eynon would never have acted in that way.
    But then, in thinking of her friend Eynon, she realized that Joe was not so different, after all. Eynon Morton-Edwards had tasted many women. He claimed he would have been faithful if he could have married Llinos but did she believe him? Could she believe any man capable of faithfulness? She sometimes doubted it.
    â€˜Don’t think about unpleasant things now, Llinos.’ His voice was forced. ‘The sun is shining, the sky is filled with light, and bitterness is always destructive to the one who feels it. Forgiveness heals.’
    â€˜That’s easy to say.’ Llinos looked down at her hands. ‘To ask someone to forgive such a betrayal is asking a great deal. Why shouldn’t I feel bitter sometimes? Isn’t it natural?’
    She waited for Joe to speak again but he was silent for a long time. That was his retreat, his silence. When she cornered him, when she forcedhim to confront her feelings, he went into his own little world.
    She looked at the figures of Shanni and Lloyd close together, talking animatedly, and felt a sliver of comfort. She was making a difference to the world if only in the rescue of Shanni from poverty and shame. The girl was becoming more confident, her eyes were not so haunted these days, and the company of another youngster of her own age was sure to do her good.
    â€˜Perhaps it would be wise to discourage Lloyd from seeing too much of Shanni,’ Joe said.
    â€˜Why?’ Llinos said. She grimaced: Joe had deftly diverted the course of the conversation. But she was surprised at his words. Joe had never been bigoted: a foreigner in Swansea, he had often been the subject of prejudice himself. ‘It’s not like you to be a snob, Joe.’
    â€˜I’m not a snob, Llinos, but the young are hot-headed, and I do feel there is something of the rebel about Shanni Price. She has need to right the wrongs of the poor. I’m sure she will make her mark on the world one day.’
    â€˜Oh, is that all? I thought you were saying she’s not good enough for your son.’
    â€˜He could do far worse.’ Joe took her hand and smiled. ‘I have heard that the local maids have a strange courting ritual, don’t they?’
    â€˜You mean bundling?’ Llinos asked. ‘Well, I don’t believe Shanni would be happy with that sort of behaviour. She’s a respectable girl. In any case, the practice of courting by sharing a bed at night is not widespread. It’s just that rich folk like to find a way to blame the poor for what they are.’Llinos’s voice was clipped. ‘Then we don’t have to feel guilty about our luxuries.’
    â€˜Oh, I see, you’re still a bit of a rebel yourself, aren’t you?’ Joe’s voice was teasing. ‘My Llinos, my firebird.’
    It was a long time since