Read Online Heir to Sevenwaters by Juliet Marillier - Free Book Online
Authors: Juliet Marillier
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corner with exuberant images of birds and butterflies, and I could not look at it without my spirits lifting. When she was young, Aunt Niamh must have been a happy person.
Now that our guests had departed, the hall was a place of family once more. Mother was sitting with Muirrin, the two of them busy catching up on their news. After letting Mother know the children were back and would be down soon, I went to join the men, who were deep in discussion before the hearth. Father was still in the black and silver he had worn for the ritual. He looked quite imposing; every bit a chieftain. With him were Conor, Johnny and Gareth, while others stood close by—my cousin’s men counted as family insiders while they were at Sevenwaters. I recognized lanky, fair-haired Mikka and a man called Sigurd, both of them from far northern lands. Johnny’s band included all sorts, as had indeed the more unusual company his father had led, the mercenary troop that had originally inspired the venture at Inis Eala.
Johnny and Gareth made room for me between them. “We were discussing the nonappearance of the northern chieftains for the hand-fasting, Clodagh,” Johnny said. “And what to do about Eoin of Lough Gall.”
So much for quiet reflection over a cup of mead. I knew Eoin was the most influential of the northern Uí Néill and the most likely to interpret Deirdre’s marriage to a southerner as an insult to his own faction. Father had long remained neutral in the Uí Néill disputes, a wise position since Sevenwaters was situated right in the middle of their territories.
“It’s unfortunate,” Father said, “that I was unable to send a personal emissary to break the news to Eoin. Ideally he’d have been told of the marriage well in advance, in private, with appropriate reassurances of amity between us and the northern Uí Néill. Eoin’s a touchy man at the best of times. He’ll be mightily displeased to find this news waiting for him on his return from his lengthy journey. And in his absence, it seems the usually more amenable Naithi and Colman have made a statement for him by staying away.”
“You sent word to Eoin’s wife, I take it?” Conor asked.
“A brief message, yes. It’s awkward; it would have been best to let Eoin know before any of the other northern chieftains, since he’s central to their alliance, but he’s been gone some months now on his trading venture, and things developed rather more rapidly than anyone expected. I sent the same message to all of them.”
“When is Eoin due back?” asked Gareth.
“Within a month or two, I’ve heard,” Father said.
Gareth and Johnny exchanged a glance. “We need a man up there,” Johnny said, “ready to get word to us as soon as Eoin’s boat makes landfall. The last time another chieftain slighted Eoin, he was on the doorstep soon after with several of his kinsmen and fifty men-at-arms, demanding an apology. Such a dispute can soon flare into war, and we all know the northern Uí Néill don’t go out of their way to avoid conflict. Whatever position Eoin takes on this, the others are sure to follow his lead.”
“You should be ready to call a council, Sean,” said Conor. “Sooner rather than later, I believe. Get all parties together, spell out your position, make it clear Sevenwaters wants only peace and cooperation with both branches of the Uí Néill. Ideally you’d put an invitation in Eoin’s hand as he steps ashore, so to speak. Johnny’s quite right; this could become serious.”
There was a silence, in which the issue of the impending birth of Mother’s baby loomed large.
“You’re both right, of course,” said Father. “In fact I already have an informant at Lough Gall, ready to send me immediate word of Eoin’s return. But I’m not prepared to hold a council until Midsummer at the earliest.” He did not need to elaborate. The wedding had been too much for Mother; a major council at Sevenwaters, with another influx of guests,
Now that our guests had departed, the hall was a place of family once more. Mother was sitting with Muirrin, the two of them busy catching up on their news. After letting Mother know the children were back and would be down soon, I went to join the men, who were deep in discussion before the hearth. Father was still in the black and silver he had worn for the ritual. He looked quite imposing; every bit a chieftain. With him were Conor, Johnny and Gareth, while others stood close by—my cousin’s men counted as family insiders while they were at Sevenwaters. I recognized lanky, fair-haired Mikka and a man called Sigurd, both of them from far northern lands. Johnny’s band included all sorts, as had indeed the more unusual company his father had led, the mercenary troop that had originally inspired the venture at Inis Eala.
Johnny and Gareth made room for me between them. “We were discussing the nonappearance of the northern chieftains for the hand-fasting, Clodagh,” Johnny said. “And what to do about Eoin of Lough Gall.”
So much for quiet reflection over a cup of mead. I knew Eoin was the most influential of the northern Uí Néill and the most likely to interpret Deirdre’s marriage to a southerner as an insult to his own faction. Father had long remained neutral in the Uí Néill disputes, a wise position since Sevenwaters was situated right in the middle of their territories.
“It’s unfortunate,” Father said, “that I was unable to send a personal emissary to break the news to Eoin. Ideally he’d have been told of the marriage well in advance, in private, with appropriate reassurances of amity between us and the northern Uí Néill. Eoin’s a touchy man at the best of times. He’ll be mightily displeased to find this news waiting for him on his return from his lengthy journey. And in his absence, it seems the usually more amenable Naithi and Colman have made a statement for him by staying away.”
“You sent word to Eoin’s wife, I take it?” Conor asked.
“A brief message, yes. It’s awkward; it would have been best to let Eoin know before any of the other northern chieftains, since he’s central to their alliance, but he’s been gone some months now on his trading venture, and things developed rather more rapidly than anyone expected. I sent the same message to all of them.”
“When is Eoin due back?” asked Gareth.
“Within a month or two, I’ve heard,” Father said.
Gareth and Johnny exchanged a glance. “We need a man up there,” Johnny said, “ready to get word to us as soon as Eoin’s boat makes landfall. The last time another chieftain slighted Eoin, he was on the doorstep soon after with several of his kinsmen and fifty men-at-arms, demanding an apology. Such a dispute can soon flare into war, and we all know the northern Uí Néill don’t go out of their way to avoid conflict. Whatever position Eoin takes on this, the others are sure to follow his lead.”
“You should be ready to call a council, Sean,” said Conor. “Sooner rather than later, I believe. Get all parties together, spell out your position, make it clear Sevenwaters wants only peace and cooperation with both branches of the Uí Néill. Ideally you’d put an invitation in Eoin’s hand as he steps ashore, so to speak. Johnny’s quite right; this could become serious.”
There was a silence, in which the issue of the impending birth of Mother’s baby loomed large.
“You’re both right, of course,” said Father. “In fact I already have an informant at Lough Gall, ready to send me immediate word of Eoin’s return. But I’m not prepared to hold a council until Midsummer at the earliest.” He did not need to elaborate. The wedding had been too much for Mother; a major council at Sevenwaters, with another influx of guests,
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