Son of the Shadows Read Online Free PDF Page B

years at home," I said, feeling suddenly cold. "I am in no hurry to leave Sevenwaters. Maybe—maybe I thought I might remain here, you know, tend to my ancient parents in their failing years. Perhaps not seek a husband at all. After all, both Niamh and Sean will make good matches, strong alliances. Need I be wed as well?"
    Father looked at me very directly. His eyes were a light, intense blue; he was working out just how much of what I said was serious and how much a joke.
    "You know I would gladly keep you here with us, sweetheart," he said slowly. "Saying farewell to you
    would not be easy for me. But there will be offers. I would not have you narrow your pathway because of us."
    I frowned. "Maybe we could leave it for a while. After all, Niamh will wed first. Surely there won't be any offers until after that." My mind drew up the image of my sister, glowing and golden in her blue gown by firelight, tossing her bright hair, surrounded by comely young men.
    "Niamh should wed first," I added firmly. It seemed to me that this was important, but I could not tell him why.
    There was a pause, as if he were waiting for me to make some connection I could not quite grasp.
    "Why do you say that? That there will be no offers for you until your sister weds?"
    This was becoming difficult, more difficult than it should have been, for my father and I were very close and always spoke directly and honestly to each other.
    "What man would offer for me when he could have Niamh?" I asked. There was no sense of envy in my question. It just seemed to me so obvious I found it hard to believe it had not occurred to him.
    My father raised his brows. "Perhaps, if Eamonn makes you an offer of marriage, you should ask him that question," he said quite gently. There was a hint of amusement in his tone.
    I was stunned. "Eamonn? Offer for me? I don't think so. Is he not intended for Niamh? You're wrong, I'm sure." But in the back of my mind, last night's episode played itself out again: the way he had spoken to me, the way we had danced together, and a little seed of doubt was sown. I shook my head, not wanting to believe it was possible. "It wouldn't be right, Father. Eamonn should wed Niamh. That's what everyone expects. And—and Niamh needs somebody like him.
    A man who will—who will take a firm hand but be fair as well. Niamh should be the one." Then I thought, with relief, of something else.
    "Besides," I added, "Eamonn would never ask a girl such a thing without seeking her father's permission first. He was to have spoken with me early this morning. It must have been about something else."
    "What if I told you," said Iubdan carefully, "that your young friend had planned a meeting with me as well this morning? He was prevented from keeping this appointment only by the sudden call home to defend his border."
    I was silent.
    "What sort of man would you choose for yourself, Liadan?" he asked me.
    "One who is trustworthy and true to himself," I answered straightaway. "One who speaks his mind without fear. One who can be a friend as well as a husband. I would be contented with that."
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    "You would wed an ugly, old man with not a scrap of silver to his name if he met your description?"
    asked my father, amused. "You are an unusual young woman, Daughter."
    "To be honest," I said wryly, "if he were also young, handsome, and wealthy, it would not go unappreciated. But such things are less important. If I was lucky enough—if I was fortunate enough to wed for love, as you did . . . but that is unlikely, I know." I thought of my brother and Aisling, dancing in a charmed circle all their own. It was too much to expect the same thing for myself.
    "It brings a contentment like no other," said Iubdan softly. "And with it a fear that strikes when you least expect it. When you love thus, you give hostages to fortune. It becomes harder with time to accept what fate brings. We have been lucky so far."
    I nodded. I knew what he was talking about. It was a