‘And it can’t get at you either,’ Fintan says, and again Martina looks at him quizzically.
‘What do you mean?’
Fintan’s at something of a loss as to know how to reply.
Martina turns and looks away towards the soda-water mirror, with its images of bottles and flowers. She blinks and presses the tip of her index finger to her lower lashes, blinks again, and suddenly Fintan sees her beauty figured forth once more: not just her physical beauty, but the light of her soul. She pulls the tulip scarf from around her neck and it flows down onto her lap, gathers there to form a luminous silken puddle.
‘Do you want another drink?’ she asks, turning back to him. Fintan shakes his head. ‘Yes you do,’ she says with a ghost of a smile. ‘Don’t tell fibs.’ She gestures to the barman and points to her brother’s glass. They sit in silence until the whiskey has been served.
‘I hope you don’t regret coming up here,’ he says at last, and she looks surprised.
‘No, not in the least. It’s been a good day. Important. We’ll come back again.’
The barman crosses to the fire and adds coal to it from a brass scuttle, momentarily quenching the flames, but they flare up again as the fuel settles. He engages them briefly in conversation about the weather, and Fintan asks him about the pub.
‘You’re not from around these parts?’ the barman says, and Fintan and Martina smile at each other.
‘We are, I suppose, yes,’ Fintan replies, ‘in a manner of speaking.’ The barman lets it go at that.
When he has gone back behind the counter Martina says, ‘I must see Colette one of these days for lunch. Will you tell her that?’
‘She’ll be more than happy. She always likes spending time with you.’
‘She’s a wonderful person.’
‘She is. But so are you,’ Fintan says, and Martina laughs.
‘You’re drunk, mister.’
‘I may well be. But I’m happy. Very, very happy.’
Martina laughs again, pulls the coloured scarf from her lap and drapes it around her neck. ‘Time, please, gentlemen,’ she says. ‘Ding! Ding! Drink up, please! Come on, mister,’ as Fintan knocks back the last of his whiskey and stumbles to his feet. ‘Time, please! We’d best be getting you home.’
Acknowledgements
I wish to thank John McHugh and the committee of the Heinrich Böll Cottage, Achill Island. Thanks also to Derek Johns and Linda Shaughnessy at United Agents; to Stephen Page, Hannah Griffiths, Mary Morris and Rebecca Pearson at Faber and Faber; and to Paul Durcan, Mary and Angela Madden and to my husband Harry Clifton.
About The Author
Deirdre Madden is from Toomebridge, Co. Antrim. Her novels include The Birds of Innocent Wood, Nothing Is Black, One by One in the Darkness, which was shortlisted for the Orange Prize, and Authenticity. Her most recent novel, Molly Fox’s Birthday, was also shortlisted for the Orange Prize. She teaches at Trinity College, Dublin, and is a member of the Irish Arts Academy, Aosdána.
By The Same Author
HIDDEN SYMPTOMS
THE BIRDS OF THE INNOCENT WOOD
REMEMBERING LIGHT AND STONE
ONE BY ONE IN THE DARKNESS
AUTHENTICITY
MOLLY FOX’S BIRTHDAY
for children
SNAKES’ ELBOWS
THANKS FOR TELLING ME, EMILY
JASPER AND THE GREEN MARVEL
First published in 2013
by Faber and Faber Ltd
Bloomsbury House
74–77 Great Russell Street
London WC1B 3DA
This ebook edition first published in 2013
All rights reserved
© Deirdre Madden, 2013
Cover images © Marianne Ellis/Arcangel Images
The right of Deirdre Madden to be identified as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with Section 77 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly
ISBN 978–0–571–29088–8