The Shadow Matrix Read Online Free PDF Page A

the Terranan, and other matters of
    curiosity. The boys had admired Valient, the sire of his present horse, and Dyan's
    spirited mare Roslinda, re-
    marked on the clothing they wore, and generally behaved like other youngsters he had
    known.
    It had been rather tedious, until the night of the séance. He could still remember the
    cold touch of whatever had spoken and shuddered. He was, in retrospect, very glad that
    the ghost of Derik—if it had been "he—had extracted his oath never to speak of the
    incident. Doing so would have cast serious doubts on his own sanity, he was sure.
    But when he made that promise, he had never expected to return to the Elhalyn lands,
    nor to see Priscilla and her children again. Certainly he had not anticipated becoming
    Regent for the Elhalyn Domain, with orders from Regis Hastur to find one among the
    three sons of Priscilla to reclaim the long vacant throne of the kings of Darkover.
    There had been several times since that tumultuous meeting in the Crystal Chamber
    when Mikhail had wished to refuse the Regency. That choice would have perhaps
    restored his relationship with his parents, as well as relieving him of an unwanted
    burden. But his sense of duty was too strong. He could not bring himself to speak the
    words. If only he had not been trained to rule!
    For that matter, if only his parents were not so stubborn and mistrustful of him, of Lew
    Alton, and Marguerida. There was no good thinking about it! He had been trained to be
    a dutiful heir to Regis Hastur, to rule, and then it had all been snatched away from him.
    All he could do was his best at the task ahead of him, even if it did feel as if he had
    been shuffled off. Any leronis could have tested the boys, and he knew it. But Regis
    had insisted that Mikhail do it, and would settle for no one else.
    The longer he thought about it, the more certain Mikhail was that he was missing
    critical pieces of information. He had not been shuffled off, no matter how he felt
    about it. He was part of the plan—an unwilling pawn in one of Regis' games. It was
    infuriating! He felt trapped, both by his loyalties and by his uncle's manipulations. He
    was not free to pursue his own ambitions, and he resented it more than he had realized
    until this moment.
    It was all very dispiriting. There was little comfort in the realization that no one, so far
    as Mikhail knew, was entirely happy with the things that Regis proposed. He felt a
    brief empathy for his young cousin, Dani Hastur, who should by
    now have been proclaimed heir. All he had managed to get out of anyone was a cryptic
    remark from Lady Linnea. "Regis is not certain of Dani yet." If Mikhail felt exiled and
    trapped at the same time, how must Danilo Hastur feel?
    Everything Regis had proposed, even the inclusion of the Aldarans in the Comyn
    Council, was very logical. But Darkovans, Mikhail knew, were not a very logical
    people. They were passionate, and when their emotions were in full cry, as it seemed
    his mother's were at present, they did not listen to anything but their hearts. And, he
    decided, Regis did not seem to grasp this.
    Mikhail wondered what secrets his uncle was keeping, thinking a little guiltily of his
    own. He had never spoken of the séance, and he had never revealed his two visits to
    the Aldaran family. These were small things, and Regis had told him once that half of
    statecraft was having information and knowing when to use it and when not to.
    Mikhail dismissed his conflicted thoughts with a shrug. All this speculation was giving
    him a headache. He knew that Regis had changed in some manner, and all he could do
    was live with it. He could not quite put a name to the difference, but now he thought
    about it, there was also something almost hasty in his actions, as if he had some secret
    timetable he must keep to.
    Enough! It was too beautiful a day for such thoughts. He could now see the looming
    bulk of Elhalyn Castle against the horizon, and was relieved that