Read Emer's Quest (Manannan Trilogy) for Free Online

adversity. He will survive until we can come and pick him up again. In any event, I have no choice. Kufri paid a long price for him that I cannot match. Pointless to go after him until I can afford to buy him back.”
    Dag nodded to the trader and rose to his feet. Emer began to follow him but the trader signalled to her to stay.
    “Tell me about your dreams. It ’s going dark and this is the time to listen to wondrous tales.”
    Emer felt dazed and upset , but the man’s voice sounded kind and she sank down onto the bench again. She also thought that, if she gave way to her grief now, she would never stop crying.
    “Little to tell,” she murmured. “ I had this terrible dream that has come true.”
    “ Only the one?” The man sounded faintly disappointed.
    “ Yes, but my mother had dreams like this as a young girl. She told me that her father used to put something on the fire and breathe in the smoke to see further into the future.”
    “What substance was that?”
    “My mother made me learn the type of rocks that must be ground and mixed together to produce it, but it is a family secret. She said I must tell no one else.”
    “If others put the powder into the flames, would they be able to have such dreams too?”
    “ Modir says not. My grandfather let a friend of his try once but the visions were so awful, she never did so again. My mother has not dreamed since I was born. She hoped the ability had died out, until I had my dream.”
    “I understand.” Atli looked at her thoughtfully. “If these substances were brought to you and you mixed them, do you think you would have such a dream again?”
    “ Perhaps. I’ve never tried to force a dream to come. The first one came without any warning at all and Modir had several like that. I wish I hadn’t inherited her ability. It’s a curse to know what is about to happen and not be able to prevent it!” Emer started to cry.
    “What have you done to her?” Finnr stood glaring down at the merchant, his hands clenched at his sides.
    “ Nothing. We were talking about her father and she is naturally upset. See if you can comfort her, I can’t.” Atli rose and walked away.
    Finnr sat down and as Emer grew calmer, he dragged the story out of her.
    “Nele told me part of this,” he said when she had finished. “He, too, was sold for a slave to this man Atli and would have been taken back to Skuy eventually. If Atli had not come from Ulv-oy to Colonsey , to bring trade goods to the headman Dubne, we would not have known about either Nele or Olaf. Dag used what little silver he brought with him to buy Nele back, that’s why he has none left to ransom Olaf. I will do everything in my power to make Dag go north to find him, as soon as we can.”
    Emer tried to be comforted, knowing that both her mother and Renny would add their voices to h is, once they knew what had happened. Yet, in the black corners of her mind, she realised that for Dag, Edan, Renny and Ragnar, the return of Nele was the most important outcome of this journey. Olaf was a grown man, not blood kin to them and without powerful friends of his own. Only Niamh and herself loved him and needed him to come home.
    It was not surprising that she took a long time to fall asleep ; her thoughts ran in wild confusion. Emer seemed only to have closed her eyes when she woke again, screaming and thrashing around, clutching her green stone so tightly, her knuckles turned white.
    Ete, the headman’s wife knel t beside her, looking terrified. Then Dag arrived, with Dubne. Emer glimpsed Atli peering over their shoulders.
    “Emer, why are you s houting?” Dag asked. “Who has harmed you?”
    Emer looked at him with startled eyes. “No one . I dreamt an awful dream.”
    “The girl’s had a nightmare, that’s all. Tell her to shut up, so we can all get back to sleep ,” someone grumbled
    “If it was me, I’d take a belt to her bum. ”
    “I ’ll stay with her,” Ete offered, “until she falls asleep