Land of a Thousand Dreams by BJ Hoff Read Free Book Online Page A

raise a lasting army from Ireland’s starving, defeated people, O’Brien had nevertheless played the revolt to its weak, whimpering end. In a last pathetic skirmish in late July, O’Brien and a half-armed mob of disorganized peasants had attacked a body of panicked police who broke ranks, barricading themselves in a widow’s house on Boulah Common, near Ballingarry.
    After a scuffle in the garden, the entire clash had ended in the humiliation of O’Brien and his insurgent “army.” Within days the leader was arrested and jailed. The insurrection proved a total, debasing defeat, and the English newspapers had been having the time of it ever since, demeaning O’Brien as some sort of half-cracked clown and his “soldiers” as deranged peasants with pikes.
    Turning his attention back to Sister Louisa, Morgan could not resist defending his old friend. “Perhaps he was mistaken in listening to hisadvisors, but it is a cruel end to an otherwise splendid career devoted entirely to Ireland.”
    To his surprise, the sister quickly agreed. “O’Brien is a good and noble man, but a man misled by his own sincere convictions and impetuous advisors. Pray God his life will be spared.”
    Morgan silently amended his earlier assessment of Sister Louisa: she was not only a radical, rebellious nun, but a political nun as well. No man but a fool would knowingly employ such a powder keg.

    Later that morning, Sandemon was called to the library, where he found the young master behind his massive desk. With a number of lulls in the conversation, during which the Seanchai uttered a grim chuckle of something akin to admiration, he told Sandemon of the incredible interview with Sister Louisa.
    When he had finished, Sandemon shook his head with a sigh. “Too bad, I think. We could have used someone of her presence and credentials with the young scholars.”
    The Seanchai raised his great head and smiled. “That was my feeling. She will serve us well, I expect.”
    Sandemon stared at him. “You hired her, then, Seanchai? In spite of her—questionable beliefs and rebellious tendencies?”
    The smile widened as the young master leaned back in his wheelchair. “Certainly not,” he said matter-of-factly. “I hired her because of them.”

4
    Fergus
    Beast of the field, newly tamed, nobly named,
Freed from the wild by the love of a child.
    ANONYMOUS
    O n Saturday morning, two weeks after Sister Louisa’s arrival, Annie Delaney made her way to the stables of Nelson Hall carrying an apple in one hand and a lump of sugar in the other.
    Usually Annie looked forward to her daily visit with the Seanchai ’s great stallion, Pilgrim. After all, Pilgrim was her personal responsibility. Nobody except Annie or Sandemon was supposed to groom him or walk him without special permission.
    Taking care of the fine horse was one of the few duties—if not the only one—at which Annie had managed to prove herself adequate. At most other tasks, she came up alarmingly awkward and amazingly incompetent. But she and Pilgrim had hit it off right from the beginning, affording her a measure of respect on the part of the other groomsmen, who found the stallion cantankerous and even a bit frightening.
    Today, however, Annie’s delight in visiting Pilgrim was somewhat diminished by her concern over a pressing problem—what to do about that TROUBLESOME NUN the Seanchai had hired as a teacher for the Academy.
    After two weeks of Sister Louisa’s relentless discipline and endless rules, Annie was growing desperate to find some way— any way—to rid Nelson Hall of her unwelcome presence.
    At first she had thought the terrible O’Higgins twins might just do the trick. Surely Beastly and Barbaric, as she secretly called them, could make short work of a small, frail-looking holy woman. But to Annie’s dismay, Sister already had the twins behaving