Shadows and Shades (Adventures in the Liaden Universe®) Read Online Free PDF Page B

might be.
      bin'Flora traded in textile—bolt goods more usually than rugs—and the present master of the house, one Sisilli, and Luken had enjoyed a friendly rivalry for possibly more years than Pat Rin had been alive. Therefore, it was likely that the house in question was on—
      "Nasingtale Alley," Luken murmured. "Third house on the right, as you walk out from the High Port."
      Pat Rin sipped tea. "Rents on Nasingtale Alley are certainly above my touch," he said to Luken. "I am yet a student."
      "Yet an able student, for that," Luken said. "And the rent may not be... quite ruinous."
      "Ah." He considered the face across from him thoughtfully. " Shall I set up my own establishment, father?"
      Luken sighed. "It's a prying old man, to be sure," he said. "But I will tell you what is in my heart, boy-dear.
      "Firstly, and true enough, I worry about you, walking about the port with large amounts of coin on you." He raised a hand. "I know your reputation with the small arms, but it would be best not to employ them."
      "I agree," Pat Rin murmured, and Luken inclined his head.
      "Too, it makes sense to hold a base near your daily business, and this house bin'Flora offers is certainly that.
      "And lastly..." His voice faded and he glanced aside.
      Pat Rin felt his stomach clench.
      "You know your mother and I have no love lost between us," Luken said slowly, "despite that which the Code tells us is due to kin. And you know that, as a youngling, you were moved from your mother's care into mine, by the word of the Delm."
      The Delm. That would have been Daav yos'Phelium, his mother's brother, gone from the clan these years, on a mission of Balance. There had been no love lost between his mother and her brother, either, Pat Rin knew, though as a child he had adored his tall, easy uncle.
      "I confess that I was a bit puzzled when you went to live with your mother, after your schooling was done." He raised a hand. "I don't ask your reasons, boy-dear, though I know you had them. Nor will I speak ill of your mother to you. I will say that, drawing on my knowledge of you—and of her—perhaps you might consider if you would be more ...relaxed in your own small establishment."
      That he certainly would be, Pat Rin thought, for his mother was a high stickler and kept stringent Code. He supposed that was inevitable, given her reputation as Liad's foremost scholar of and expert on the Code. She also held rank among Solcintra's leading hosts, and it was for that reason that Pat Rin, returning home from university and fixed upon the trade that he would follow, had taken up residence with his parent, rather than moving back into his comfortable place with Luken.
      Kareen yos'Phelium could—and did, for who knew better what was due the heir of a woman of her impeccable lineage and melant'i?—launch him into society. Luken cared little for society, though his clientele came largely from the High Houses. And Pat Rin had needed the final polish and the ties to the High which only his mother could give him.
      He wondered, here and now, sitting in Luken's sunny alcove, if he would have chosen differently, had he known the cost beforehand. For life with his mother was not easy, or comfortable, though he was surrounded by every luxury. He was required to live to his mother's standard, and to study the Code until he was very nearly an expert himself. He studied other things, as well, so that he would have a store of graceful conversation available; he attended all the fashionable plays, patronized his mother's excellent tailor, wore gems of the first water, and was never seen at a stand.
      The one ...relaxation he allowed himself was target practice every other morning, on the lifetime membership to Tey Dor's Club which Uncle Daav had given to him.
      Of course, he