Fatal Roots Page 10

  “None to speak of. We waited for the sun this morning to take a closer look at yer field, but we found no sign of the man.”

  “Can you come in and have some coffee?”

  “If it doesn’t take long. But we’re done searchin’ fer now.”

  “Then sit down,” Maura ordered him, “and I’ll boil some water.” She filled a kettle and set it on the stove, then took a chair across from Sean. At the sound of footsteps above his head, he said, “Mick?”

  “Yes, Mick. So, you haven’t found Darragh, you haven’t found a trail, you haven’t found the radar equipment, you haven’t had a ransom note. Is that right?”

  “As far as it goes. And Ciara hasn’t heard from him, and there’s no one reported injured at a hospital.”

  “What do you make of that?”

  Sean shook his head. “I’ve no idea. Nor does anyone at the department—I asked when I stopped by late in the day. And you’ve had no contact with him, have you?”

  “No, not here, and not at the pub, by the time we left last night. And Ciara and Ronan didn’t stop by either.” She stood up abruptly as the water boiled and poured it over coffee grounds. “This is ridiculous, Sean. An ordinary guy shows up with a couple of his friends in a small town in the country, then disappears. For no apparent reason. Why?”

  “That I can’t tell yeh, Maura.”

  “Is there anything you want me to do?”

  “Do yeh have any more fairy forts on yer land?”

  “Sean, I don’t even know where the other pieces of my land are, much less if they have ring forts on them. You thinking that maybe Darragh got bored and went looking for more, and something happened to him there?”

  “It’s only a guess. But yeh have no maps to show?”

  “Ciara has all of those—you can ask her. Or you can look up land records online, I’m told, or go to the library. I can’t help you there—I barely know how to turn a computer on, and I wouldn’t know what records to look at.”

  “Someone around here might know—I’ll look into it.” Sean looked up as Mick came down the stairs. “Mornin’, Mick.”

  “Sean. I’m thinkin’ yeh might spend some time talkin’ to my gran Bridget down the lane, or to Old Billy at Sullivan’s. They’re old enough to have long memories about the townlands.”

  “And why would I be needin’ that?” Sean asked. “The man’s been missing less than a day.”

  “Just a thought, Sean,” Mick replied. “There’s places up in the hills where people go to hide things, though mebbe not lost archaeologists.”

  Maura spoke up then. “Mick, can you pour the coffee? One other thing, Sean—the radar machine would have been meant to look under the ground. Was there any sign that anyone was poking around in the middle of my circle, or anywhere else? You know, holes in the dirt, or a dip that showed something had been buried there sometime?”

  “Yeh’re thinking of treasure hunters?” Sean smiled. “We were waitin’ for the mornin’ sun to look fer signs of diggin’—better angle to the light. But nobody’s mentioned seein’ anything like that.”

  “Tell me this, then,” Maura went on. “The older folk around here used to be scared of messing with the rings, right? So they wouldn’t have gone poking around looking for treasure or burying someone, would they?”

  “Not that I’ve heard,” Sean admitted. “Why?”

  “I’m just throwing ideas around. If there was a dip, if somebody was buried there, it would have to have been either a long time ago, or pretty recently—not this week, but in the past century, maybe. But if somebody wanted to dig now, they’d have to have a reason, like they know something. Or they’re looking for something they’ve heard of, which is why they might have a radar machine.”

  “An interestin’ idea,” Sean agreed, “but so far there’s no evidence. But it’s no problem to take another look at your field, and any others we come across.” Sean drained his coffee cup. “I’d best go to Skib and make my report, but I may be back. You’ll be at the pub?”

  “I will,” Maura said. “My mother’s supposed to be coming back to tell us about used stoves she has handy, and I’d hate to miss that.”

  “And her girl?” Sean said, smiling.

  “Susan? She may work for us a bit this summer, or she may get bored by the end of the week and find something else to do. I don’t know her well enough to say, so we’re taking this one day at a time.”

  “Best of luck to yeh, then. I’ll stop by later.”

  “Thanks for keeping us up-to-date, Sean. See you later.”

  Maura saw him out the door, then closed it behind her.

  “He knows about us?” Mick asked.

  “Of course—he’s a garda, and not stupid. Besides, I think he’s more interested in Rose right now. They make a nice couple.”

  “And she’s how much younger than Sean?”

  “Not too much. And I’m not going to meddle. I kind of like having a garda to talk with, since we seem to keep running into problems. You ready to head for Leap?”

  “It’s early yet, and I’m worried about some of the things you and Sean were talkin’ about. About the fairy ring, I mean.”

  “What? And why?”

  “It’s true they’ve been there fer a long time, and the people who live with ’em respect them and leave them alone—that’s an old custom. But what if someone—a group, a family, a single person—who didn’t come from around here decided that ring would be a good place to hide something? Sean may understand the idea of it, but how hard did he look inside the circle? Would there be something there?”

  “You’re asking me?” Maura asked, with a half smile. “But I guess, logically, if whatever it was was put in the ground a century ago, the dirt would long since have settled. I mean, the cemeteries around here are like that, unless someone was buried not long ago. But why are you asking? You think Ciara and her friends should dig holes in every circle they find, just in case there’s something there? Might give other people the wrong idea, and then what? Those things that have been there a thousand years will be a big mess.”

  “I get yer point, Maura. And we’ve plenty to keep us busy workin’ without running around digging holes. But I agree with Sean that we should look at that ring fort again.”

  “If we don’t have any answers by then, and the weather holds, we can do that,” Maura said. “Not that I think we’d find anything that Sean didn’t. But right now we need to get to the pub.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Maura was surprised and kind of pleased to find her mother and Susan at the pub when she arrived. Rose was busy entertaining them, since there were no more customers to be seen. Maybe come the weekend things would pick up?

  “Hey, Helen, Susan,” Maura greeted them. “You’re here early.”

  “We are,” Helen said. “But I don’t have any meetings or appointments for a couple of hours, and I promised Susan I’d bring her back today, so here we are. And I wanted to get some measurements for appliances for your kitchen.”

  “Rose said you mentioned that. But keep in mind that our kitchen is really small—can’t be anywhere near the size of the hotel kitchen. So I won’t get my hopes up, but I appreciate the thought. You two had breakfast?”

  “Of course. One of the perks of working at the hotel—there’s always plenty of food available,” Helen said. “Come on—show me what you’ve got to work with. Susan, you can hold the other end of the measuring tape.”

  Susan led the way, and Maura considered asking Rose to join them, until she realized that with four people in the small room, no one would be able to see anything, much less measure.

  “Rose, do you mind keeping an eye on things out here?” she said instead. “You can take a look at whatever Helen suggests later.”

  “That’s fine, Maura,” Rose said. “I spend enough time in there as it is these days. We can compare our ideas once everyone has seen the space.”

  “Thank you!” Maura followed Susan and Helen into the bac
k.

  When Maura entered the kitchen, Helen was standing in the middle of the not-large room, turning around and studying it. “You’re right—it’s small. How many covers are you thinking of for each meal?”

  “Covers?” Maura looked blankly at her.

  “Meals, per hour, or for the evening. What hours do you plan to serve? Will the menu change, depending on the time, or the day of the week—as in, more or longer meals on weekends? Or will it be a more or less fixed menu?”

  “You’ve lost me already. Maybe I should just let Rose listen to you—she’s doing most of the planning.”

  “No,” Helen said firmly. “This is your place, and you need to understand how it works. You don’t have to cook—Rose is doing a fine job of that, from what I’ve seen, and you have other help. But you need to know things like quantities and the cost of ingredients. Don’t worry—you don’t have to know all this today—but right now you do need to know how much space you have to work with, both for storage and for staff. You’ve got plenty of time.”

  “If you say so,” Maura muttered.

  Helen went back to studying the layout of the room. A few cabinets remained, although Maura couldn’t guess how old they were. Billy might know. The windows were set high in the outer wall, which made the space dark, but if they had been lower there would have been less room for a refrigerator or a stove and oven and ventilation, Maura had to admit. Which probably meant they’d need a brighter light fixture. “What do you think we’re going to need?”

  “I’d go with a six-burner stove, or maybe four burners with a central grill. A good-size combination refrigerator and freezer. A bigger sink, definitely. Were you thinking of a dishwasher?”

  “Human or mechanical?” Maura asked with a smile. “Actually, I haven’t thought much about it at all. When Gran and I lived in Boston, I think the kitchen was usually smaller than this, and the appliances didn’t work well most of the time. Plus, Gran wanted to have a table in the kitchen. You probably remember she kept bringing home some recent arrivals from Ireland, and she wanted to be able to talk to them while she cooked. I’m sorry—is that an unhappy memory?”

  “In a way. Not your fault, of course—you were only a baby. And I think your grandmother wanted something to keep her busy when she wasn’t working, so she didn’t have to dwell on the death of her son. Tom. Do you know, I seldom refer to him by name? Since I’ve been here, I’ve been wondering what his life—our life—would have been like if he hadn’t died so early. I had no plan, no idea what I wanted to do, and I had you to take care of. It was a difficult time for all of us, I think.”

  “So you walked away?” Susan spoke for the first time.

  Helen turned toward her. “Yes, love, I did. I wasn’t that much older than you are now, and younger than Maura. I’m not proud of it, but I didn’t know what to do. Do you remember me at all, Maura?”

  Maura shook her head slowly. “Not really. I think I remember a woman who hugged me, but I wouldn’t have known you in a crowd. Gran did her best to make up for it after you left. And she never said anything bad about you, to her credit.”

  “I’m glad to know that. We got along fairly well. We might have done better if we both hadn’t been so busy all the time. I have to say, I think she was a stronger woman than I was, and also a kinder one.”

  “Hey, you two,” Susan interrupted. “Can’t you wait on your old-time stories until after we measure this room? Having a table to sit at or work on in the room makes sense, even though it would be crowded. But if the cooking gets crazy, it’d be another work surface if you need it. How about storage for pots and pans and plates and glasses?”

  Maura resisted the temptation to throw up her hands. “I have no idea how many I’d need or how often we’d have to wash them. Helen, maybe you can help with that. Or talk to Rose—did she tell you she’s taking cooking classes in Skibbereen?”

  “Not only did she tell us, she told us we had to eat lunch there when we had time. Right in the center of town, isn’t it?”

  “It is, on a main intersection. And while you’re there, check out Fields, which is the big supermarket. I don’t know who supplies your hotel, but if you’re cooking at home or at a small place like this, they’ve got great food.”

  Helen smiled. “Susan, you’d better start making a list.”

  “Got it. Rose said she’d take me there to pick up supplies.”

  “The cakes and breads are terrific,” Maura said. “So, is there anything else I need to think about? And if you don’t have any leftover machines that don’t fit, I won’t mind. There’s an appliance place in Drinagh, not far from here, which has about everything we could need. Plus cow-milking equipment.”

  “I’m sure you need that,” Helen said wryly, and then she and Susan burst out laughing.

  It surprised Maura that they seemed to be happy to be with her, with each other, in Leap. She never would have expected it only a few months earlier, but it felt good. What would Gran have said if she could see this? West Cork had been her home, where she’d married, where her son had been born. And then her life had changed, and not for the better. Yet Maura had come full circle: here she was, where it had all begun.

  “Helen, I asked you before—how long do you think you’ll be around?”

  “What? Oh, in Ireland. It’s kind of open-ended, and it depends on what kind of progress I can make at the hotel. It’s still possible that it will be too difficult or too expensive to try, but it is a beautiful place, with a long history and a good reputation, so I’m not ready to give up on it. And maybe when I’ve done as much as I could, and this kid here needs to go back to school”—Helen smiled at Susan, who returned her smile—“we could take a week off and see a bit more of the country? The three of us?”

  “I’d like that,” Maura said, to her own surprise. She had no idea what state her business would be in by then, or how much time she could take off, but she’d rather say yes than no now.

  “Good,” Helen said. “Now, Susan, we need some measurements for appliances, and then I have to get back for another meeting. But you can stay here if you want. When you get back to the hotel, we can get an inventory of what’s lurking in the hotel basement, and I’ll bring you back in the morning to see what will fit. Okay?”

  “Deal,” Susan said cheerfully. “And Rose said she’d show me how to make a few dishes, which might help my cooking. And it would show us the best ways to arrange supplies and stuff. Thanks, Mom.”

  A few minutes later Maura watched them go. What had just happened? Was her brain turning to mush?

  “Yeh look happy, Maura,” Rose said from behind the bar. “Yeh think the kitchen will work out?”

  “I’d like to say yes, but you’re the one who will be using it. I give you permission to veto anything you think won’t work. When’s your next cooking class?”

  “In the mornin’, but it won’t be a long one. I think Susan’s getting the hang of things.”

  “Looks like she’s enjoying herself, which I didn’t expect. I thought she’d stay mad at her mother longer than this.”

  “Ah, Maura, surely yeh’ve noticed that Ireland has a way of making things better.”

  “Most of the time,” Maura told her. She decided not to add between bodies and crimes. They all should enjoy the moment.

  Late in the afternoon customers started drifting in—a mix of familiar local faces and a few clusters of tourists.

  Seamus and some of his buddies wandered in later in the afternoon. “Hey, Seamus,” Maura called out. “I haven’t seen much of you lately. You keeping busy?”

  “That I am. It’s the cows wantin’ my attention. But I’m parched, so some of us sneaked over here, but we can’t stay long.”

  “Pints all around?” Maura asked.

  “Please,” Seamus said.

  Maura started pulling a row of pints. “While I’ve got your attention, can I ask you a question?”

  “Yeh’re more than welcome to,” he said.

&nb
sp; “What can you tell me about fairy forts?”

  Seamus stared at her for a moment, then burst out laughing. “That’s the last thing I expected to hear from yeh. Why on earth are yeh askin’?”

  “Because I just found out there’s one on a piece of land that I didn’t know I had, and now I’m curious. Believe me, there aren’t any in Boston.”

  “There’s plenty around here, if yeh know where to look. Particularly along the coast. I’m sure yeh’ll be finding more near yer place.”

  “Some people have been telling me they’re bad luck. Is that true?”

  “Let’s say yeh don’t want to mess with ’em, even if yer tryin’ to graze yer cattle near ’em.”

  “Seamus, I don’t have any cattle, and I’m not planning on getting any. I’ve got another question for you: do you believe in fairies?”

  Seamus grinned. “Yeh mean the ones that live in the fairy forts? Nah, I’m just kidding. I’ve never met one, though I’ve talked to people who claim they have. But it’s safer to leave the forts alone, just in case.”

  “Okay. Are there good fairies, or are they all out to get you?”

  “Maura, whatever got yeh started on this?”

  “Finding out I have one, I guess, and the land that comes with it. What if I’d decided to plant in that field and dug the whole thing up?”

  “Yeh might’ve been found crushed under a tractor. Best leave them alone.”

  “Right.” Maura topped off the pints and slid a tray of glasses across the bar to Seamus. “So I’ll leave mine alone. You wouldn’t happen to have a few on your land, would you?”

  “And why’re yeh askin’ that?”

  “I’d just like to compare them. Unless you’re hiding a still or a drug lab inside one.”

  “Would I do that?” Seamus asked. He winked at her and carried the full tray to his buddies at a table.

  Mick appeared from the back room. “What was that about?”

  “I was just asking Seamus about fairy forts. I might as well know what I’m dealing with.”

  “I think the best plan is to leave them alone.”