The season wore on, and Eamonn did not come back. The druids left us again, walking silent footed into the forest at dusk. Niamh became unusually quiet and took to sitting up on the roof slates, gazing out over the trees and humming softly to herself. Often, when I looked for her to help with a piece of sewing or an errand to the settlement, she was nowhere to be found. In the evenings she never wanted to talk anymore but lay on her bed smiling secretly, until her eyelids dropped over her beautiful eyes and she slept like a child. I slept less easily myself. We heard conflicting reports from the north. Eamonn was fighting on two fronts. He had advanced into his neighbor’s territory. He had retreated to his inner wall. The raiders were Norsemen, come back to harry a shore we had long thought safe. They had settlements far south, at the mouth of a great river, and they sought to expand their holding up along the coast and even into the heart of our own lands. They were not Norsemen at all but Britons. They were neither, but some more foreign breed; men who wore their identity on their skin in a secret, coded pattern. Men with faces like strange birds and great fierce cats and stag and boar; men who attacked in silence and killed without mercy. One had a face as black as the night sky. Not even men, perhaps, but Otherworld warriors. Their weapons were as odd as their appearance; cunning pipes through which a dart with poison tip might be launched into the air; tiny metal balls studded with spikes that traveled fast and bit hard, clever use of a length of fine cord, no sword or spear, no honest weapons.
We did not know which of these stories to believe, though Sean and Liam favored the theory about Norsemen as the most likely. After all, such invaders were best placed for a quick strike and retreat, for at sea they were as yet unmatched, employing both oar and sail to move faster than the wind over the water. Maybe their ornate helmets had given rise to the strange tales. And yet, said Liam, the Norsemen fought unsubtly, with broadsword, mace, and axe. Nor were they known for their prowess in wooded terrain, preferring to keep their hold on the coastal margins rather than venture inland. The theory did not fit quite as neatly as one might have wished.
Eventually around the time when day and night were of equal length and Father was busy with planting, Eamonn sent for help, and Liam despatched a force of thirty well-armed men off to the north. Sean would have liked to go and so, I think, would my uncle himself. But as it was, something stayed them both. There was Aisling, still dwelling in our house where she would be out of harm’s way, and anxious for her brother’s safety. That was enough to keep Sean at home for now. And Liam said it was too risky, with the threat not fully understood, for either of them to be in the front line along with both Eamonn and his grandfather. They would wait until they got a report from Eamonn himself or from Seamus. That would be fact and not fancy. Then would be time to decide whether to take further action.
I noticed, though, that they spoke long and seriously in the evenings and studied their maps. Iubdan, too. My father might have sworn not to take up arms, not if the enemy might be his own kind, but Liam was enough of a strategist to recognize and make use of the skill his sister’s husband had with charts and with the planning of offense and defense. I heard him remark that it was a pity Padriac had never come back the last time he’d sailed off in search of new lands and fresh adventures. Now there was a man who knew how to build a boat and handle it better than any Norseman. There was a man who could think up ten different solutions to any problem. But it was three years now since Liam had last laid eyes on his youngest brother. Nobody held out much hope of a safe return after so long. I remembered this uncle quite well. Who could forget him? He’d be home awhile, full of wonderful tales, and then off again on some new quest. He was tanned brown as a nut, with his hair plaited down his back; and he wore three rings in the one ear; and he had a strange, many-colored bird that sat on his shoulder and asked you politely if you wanted a roll in the hay, dear? I knew my mother no more believed him dead than she did Finbar. I wondered if she knew. I wondered if I would know if Sean went away to battle and perished on the point of some stranger’s sword. Would I feel it in my own heart, that moment when the blood slows in the veins and the breath stops and a film covers the eyes as they gaze sightless into the wide expanse of the sky?
It was never my intention to spy on Niamh. What my sister did with her spare time was her own affair. I was concerned, that was all. She was so unlike herself, the way she had retreated into silence and spent so much time alone. Even Aisling commented on it, kindly.
“Niamh seems very quiet,” she remarked one afternoon as the two of us went up to the fields behind the house to pick wild endive for brewing. In some households it was thought inappropriate for the lord’s daughters to touch such menial work, and it would be left to those who served the family. It had never been so at Sevenwaters, not in my memory at least. Here, everyone worked. True, Janis and her women handled the heavier tasks, hefting the huge, iron stew pot, cleaning floors, and killing chickens. But both Niamh and I had our daily routine, and our seasonal tasks, and knew how to perform them capably. In this we followed our parents’ example, for Sorcha would spend her whole day between stillroom and village, tending to the sick; and my father, who had once been lord of Harrowfield, was not reluctant to set his own hand to the plow if the occasion demanded it. Niamh and I would make good wives, well able to order the domestic side of our husbands’ households. After all, how can you be a good mistress if you have no understanding of the work your folk must undertake? Just how Niamh did manage to acquire her skills I am not sure, since she never stayed long at one task. But she was a clever girl, and if she forgot something it did not take her long to charm Janis or me or someone else into helping her.
However, she was not here for the endive. Aisling picked carefully, stopping now and then to push her unruly bright curls back into the binding they sought to escape. Now the days were warmer, she was getting a light dusting of freckles on her nose.
“Be sure you leave enough to make seed,” I cautioned.
“Yes, Mother,” chuckled Aisling, as she added a few more of the golden blooms to her willow basket. She was always willing to help with such tasks. Maybe she thought she was preparing herself to be the right sort of wife for Sean. I could have told her that side of it wouldn’t matter a bit, not to him. My brother’s mind was made up already.
“But seriously, Liadan, do you think Niamh is all right? I wondered if—well, I wondered if it was to do with Eamonn.”
“Eamonn?” I echoed, rather stupidly.
“Well,” said Aisling thoughtfully, “he has been away awhile now, and none of us knows what’s been happening. I’m not sure how things are between the two of them, but I did think she might be worried. I know I am.”
I gave her a reassuring hug. “I’m sure you need not be. If anyone knows how to look after himself, it’s Eamonn. Any day now we’ll see your brother riding up to the door as large as life, and no doubt victorious with it.” And I’ll bet a silver piece to an old bobbin, I said to myself, that whatever is bothering my sister, it’s not him. I doubt if she’s given him a moment’s thought since he went away. He’s probably been in my thoughts more than he has hers.
We finished our picking, and we brewed the spring wine with honey and jasmine to counter the bitterness of the endive, and we put it away to work in darkness; and still there was no sign of Niamh. Aisling and I went upstairs and washed our hands and faces, and combed and braided each other’s hair, and took off our coarse working aprons. It was nearly time for supper, and outside a cool dusk was brushing across the sky, turning it to violet and faded gray. Then at last I saw her from my narrow window, running across the field from the margin of the forest, with a quick look to the right and to the left to see whose curious eyes might be watching her. She disappeared from view. Not long after, there she was at the door, gasping for breath, skirts still held up in one hand, her cheeks flushed scarlet. I looked at her, and Aisling looked at her, and neither of us said a word.
“Good, I’m not late.” She wen
t straight across to the oaken chest, lifted the lid, and rummaged for a clean gown. Finding what she wanted, she proceeded to unfasten the one she wore and strip it off, followed by her shift, with never a by-your-leave. Aisling moved tactfully to gaze out the window; I brought my sister the bowl of water and a hairbrush as she wriggled into fresh smallclothes and dragged the gown over her head. She turned her back, and I began to fasten the many small hooks for her. She was still breathing hard, which made my task no easier.
“She’s decent again, Aisling,” I said wryly. “Perhaps you could take a hand with the hairbrush. It must be nearly supper time.” Aisling was clever with her fingers and had a better chance of doing something acceptable with my sister’s wildly disheveled locks in the little time we had left. She began to wield the brush with calm, even strokes.
“Where on earth have you been, Niamh?” she asked in amazement. “There’s straw in your hair, and leaves, and what are these little blue flowers?” She brushed away, her face as sweetly innocent as ever.
“We missed you this afternoon,” I said levelly, still working on the gown. “We made the spring wine without you.”
“Is there some criticism intended in that?” asked Niamh, twisting this way and that to settle her skirts and wincing as the brush hit a tangle.
“It was only a statement, not a question,” I said. “I doubt if your absence was noted by anyone but Aisling and me—this time. And we did fine without you, so you need not feel guilty on that score.”
She gave me a very straight look, but she wasn’t saying anything, not with Aisling there. Aisling saw only the good in people and had no concept of secrecy or subterfuge. She was as guileless as a sheep, though perhaps the comparison was a little unfair. Simple as she was, the girl was not stupid.
I felt that uneasiness again that night, as we sat at supper, the whole family together. Our meal was a plain one. In part because my mother never touched meat, we ate quite simply, relying mainly on the grain and vegetables of our home farms. Janis had a wide repertoire of tasty soups and good honest breads, and we did well enough. The men would partake of a roasted fowl or two, or a sheep would be slaughtered from time to time, for they worked hard, whether it be in the field of arms or the labor of farm and stable, and they were not always satisfied with a meal of turnips and beans and rye bread. That night, I was pleased to see that Mother was managing a little soup, a scrap or two of bannock. She had grown so thin, the north wind might snatch her away if it took a mind to; and it had never been easy to persuade her to eat. As I watched her, I felt Iubdan’s eyes on me, and I glanced at him and quickly away again, for I could not bear his expression. That look said, this is a long good-bye, yet not time enough. I have no aptitude for this. I cannot learn this. I would hold on, and hold on, until my hands clutch at emptiness.
Niamh sat neat as a cat, drinking her soup, eyes downcast. There was not a hair out of place. The telltale blush was gone, her skin smooth gold in the light of the oil lamps. Opposite her sat Sean, with Aisling beside him, and they whispered together, holding hands under the table. After supper there were no tales, not that night. Instead, the family retired under Liam’s directions to a small, quiet chamber where some privacy might be had, and left the men and women of the household to their songs and ale by the kitchen fires.
“You’ve had some news,” my father said, as soon as we had seated ourselves. I poured wine from the flask on the table, serving first my mother, then my uncle, my father, Sean, and lastly the other two girls.
“Thank you, Liadan.” Liam gave me an approving nod. “News indeed, which I have kept until now, since it should be Aisling who hears it first. Good news, child,” he added hastily, as Aisling started up in fright, no doubt fearing the worst. “Your brother is well and should be here to collect you before Beltaine. The threat is over for now.”
“What of the unknown enemy?” asked Sean eagerly. “What news of the battle?”
Liam frowned. “Very sketchy. There were some losses. The man who rode here with the message knew little, having got it from another. I know that Eamonn has secured his borders again, but exactly how, and against whom, still seems to be shrouded in mystery. It must wait for his return. I, too, am keen for further knowledge of this. It could influence our entire plan of action concerning the Britons. It would be folly to expect victory in a sea battle against Norsemen.”
“True,” said Sean. “I would not think of such a venture unless I had the skills of their own kind on my side. But the Norsemen have no interest in our Islands; if they needed the use of safe anchorage there, they’d have taken them from the Britons long ago. The Islands are too barren for crops, too remote for settlements, a territory long forsaken by all but the Old Ones. The Britons hold them only as a stepping stone to our own lands.”
“And, I think, as a goad to yourselves,” added Iubdan quietly. “I heard it said, once, that this was the way to provoke a response from a man of Erin. Start a fight by stealing what is closest to his heart: his horse maybe, or his woman. Start a war by taking away what is closest to his spirit: his heritage, his mysteries. Perhaps they have no more reason for it than that.”
“Certainly, their efforts to establish a land base on this coast have not been impressive,” said Liam. “Like ours, their skills are less apt for warfare by sea. And yet, they have held onto the Islands these three generations and more. Aided by an ally with a strong fleet, and the Norseman’s ability to use it, who knows what they might do.”
“That, surely, is an unlikely partnership.” Sean scratched his head thoughtfully. “The Britons of the western seaboard have no reason to trust the Norsemen. They have suffered losses more severe than our own through Viking raids. For scores of years they have witnessed the savagery of these invaders. It would indeed be an unholy alliance.”
“If our old foe Richard of Northwoods is the yardstick,” scowled Liam, “I would believe the Britons capable of anything.”
“We should wait,” put in my mother tactfully. “Eamonn will tell us more when he returns. I’m glad to see you smiling again, my dear,” she added, looking at Aisling.
“Your concern for your brother does you credit,” said Liam. “The boy’s a leader, there’s no doubting that. I trust his losses have not been too great. And now there is another piece of news. One that will interest you, Niamh.”
“Mm …? What?” She had been far away, deep in thought.
“A letter,” said my uncle gravely, “from a man I have never met, but of whom I have heard much. You will know of him, Iubdan. His name is Fionn of the clan Uí Néill, the branch that has established itself in the northwest. They are connected, quite closely, with the high king of Tara. But there is no love lost between the two branches of that family. Fionn is the elder son of the clan chieftain in Tirconnell, a man of great influence and considerable wealth.”
“I’ve heard talk of him, yes,” said Father. “He’s well regarded. It’s not altogether comfortable to be situated neatly, as we are, between the two seats of Uí Néill. Hungry for power, all of them.”
“That fact makes this all the more interesting,” my uncle said. “This Fionn and his father seek a closer alliance with Sevenwaters. He makes overtures, quite directly, to such an end.”
“Is this your roundabout method of telling us he wants to wed one of the daughters of this household?” My mother had a way of bringing her brother sharply to the point when he was being a little too formal. “Has he made an offer for one of our girls?”
“Indeed. The letter says he has heard there is a daughter of exceptional beauty and excellent skills in the household of Sevenwaters, that he seeks a wife, and that his father would view such an alliance as being to our mutual benefit. He makes a veiled reference to our feud with the Britons of Northwoods, pointing out the manpower at his own disposal, located conveniently close to us. He mentions also the strategic position of Sevenwaters in relation to his kinsfolk farther south, should he face a threat from that quarter. For a short lett
er, it contains a great deal.”
“What manner of man is this Fionn?” put in Aisling rather boldly. “Is he young or old? Ill-favored or well made?”
“He’d be of middle years,” said Liam. “thirty, perhaps. A warrior. I know nothing of his looks.”
“Thirty!” Aisling was clearly shocked at the thought one of us might wed so ancient a man.
Sean grinned. “A daughter of exceptional beauty,” he murmured. “That’d be Niamh.” He glanced at me, brows raised, and I made a face at him.
“It would be Niamh for whom the offer was intended,” agreed Liam, missing the point of our interchange entirely. “What do you say, Niece?”
“I …” Niamh appeared quite incapable of speech, which was a very unusual state of affairs. She was suddenly extremely pale. “I …” And yet, it can hardly have been such a shock. At seventeen, indeed, it was surprising that this was the first formal offer we had received for her.
“This is too much for a young girl to take in at once, Liam,” said my mother quickly. “Niamh needs time to consider it, and so do we. I might, perhaps, read this letter to her in private, if you have no objection.”
“None whatever,” said Liam.
“We’ll want to discuss it.” My father had been keeping quiet up to this point, but his tone said clearly that nobody else was going to make his decisions for him. “Does this Fionn intend to favor us with a visit in person, or must we assess his qualities solely from his penmanship?” It was at moments such as this that one remembered who my father was and had once been.
“He wishes to hear first if we will consider the matter. If the answer is favorable, he will travel here before midsummer to present himself and would hope to be wed without delay, if we are in agreement.”