Finder's Shore by Anna Mackenzie Read Free Book Online Page B

on Dunnett fear change, but not nearly so much as they fear Colm.
    “One thing Dunnett does well is farm,” I say at last. “But they won’t welcome outsiders.”
    “You’re not an outsider.”
    “I —” My words trip on my tongue.
    “I’d be glad to go back.” Ronan says. I can’t think of an answer. Ronan has nothing to go back to. There’s no one left on Ister. 
     
    The lines on Dev’s forehead deepen as I put my proposal to Marta. “It’s not fair to ask Ness to go,” he says, as soon as I’ve finished. “The islanders turned on her. Her life would be at risk.”
    “Ness is no longer a child, Devdan,” Marta says. “It’s her decision to make.”
    “We can’t just sail into the harbour at Dunn and expect a fair hearing,” I tell them. “The islanders’ prejudices are too ingrained, their attitude towards strangers unyielding. We’ll need allies — and local knowledge.”
    “And the fact that your life is forfeit on Dunnett?” Dev says. “Your presence might antagonise the Council and jeopardise the mission.”
    Marta speaks up before I have a chance to reply. “This is precisely why we’re having this discussion. We need to formulate the best strategy. And perhaps it would be timely to remind ourselves that our responsibility lies in doing what is best for Vidya.”
    Dev takes a breath. “Ness, three years ago you convinced me that it would be destructive to talk to Dunnett’s Council. What do you imagine will have changed?”
    “That’s my point: we don’t know. Colm might have died or the Council elected a new leader.” Neither is very likely, but I choose not to say so. “The easiest way to find out is for me to go back.”
    Marta leans forward. Her age is showing in the thinning of her hair and the fine veins that weave a blue mesh beneath her skin. “You don’t think, Ness, that you simply want to go back for your own sake? To see your family, for example?” 
    “Of course I do, but that’s only a part of it. Talking to my brother and cousin is the quickest way to find out if there have been any changes since I left. If there have: who knows. It might be possible for Explorer to sail into the harbour without risk, but it would be safest to land first at Leewood and find out.”
    “Safest,” Dev mutters, scepticism brittle in his voice. “It was the farmers from around Leewood who tried to stone us, as I recall.”
    “The plan is not without risks,” Marta says. “But Devdan, what would you have us do?”
    He has no answer. I tamp down both excitement and dread, the better to focus on the questions that interest the governors. “Dunnett easily produces enough to feed itself, so generating a surplus shouldn’t prove difficult,” I tell them, surer now of my ground. I’ve spent the last two days thinking about little else.
    “Finding something to offer in return will be more of a challenge. We need to be careful initially that we don’t off end their beliefs, which means avoiding new technology and anything that on Dunnett would be considered teck.” A glance around the table confirms I have their attention.
    I take a breath before continuing. It’s not only the islander’s sensibilities that concern me. I want to be sure, as well, that my proposal doesn’t undermine Vidya’s farm communities — or the governors’ support for them. “The first thing we offer is farm equipment and supplies, including seed and tuber varieties that Truso thinks will do well on the island. Home Farm could shift some of its land into seed-stock production.” I have no intention of leaving Truso out of my calculations. Marta smiles thinly. “As well, we share our data on the fisheries and help them re-establish a fishing industry.”
    “I thought our interest was in agriculture,” one of the governors objects.
    “The islanders will be able to produce a surplus most easily if they’re not relying on the land alone to feed themselves. Developing a fishing industry will