The House by the Liffey (4 page)

On Saturday morning, just as the sun was rising, a car passed the entrance to Riverside. It was nondescript and its number plates were obscured by mud. A brick with something wrapped around it was hurled out, landing on the ground just in front of the firmly closed entrance gates. A member of Sean's alert night patrol team spotted it immediately. Using a large handkerchief from his pocket and careful his hands did not come into direct contact with it, Declan lifted it carefully and took it, at a run, down the drive to the house.

At Milo's insistence, Sean had gone to bed and managed to snatch some sleep. With Tommy staying in support, Milo had kept vigil by the phone and although he had dropped off from time to time, he hadn't had any real rest. Unshaven and with bloodshot eyes sunk into his head, he looked dreadful and felt even worse. The nightmare he had endured when he had been shot down during the war and for nine days trying to row home was nothing compared to this. He had insisted that Noola should take a sleeping pill, arguing that one of them must be fit to keep watch the next day. Now, at long last, there was some communication. He grabbed the brick from the runner while Tommy ran to waken Sean. With supreme self-control he resisted the temptation to tear off the handkerchief and paper attached to it, destroying possible evidence. Declan waited to report directly to Sean and give him every scrap of detail he could about the car.

Sean was on his feet instantly and ran into the library. Milo hastened to reassure him.

‘I didn't open it, Sean.'

‘Good man! We need to be able to extract every ounce of information from it.'

Sean put on rubber gloves. He slowly detached the paper from the brick and opened it up. The note was written on a piece of lined paper, such as could be taken from a school exercise book. It was typewritten and Sean noted that it was articulate and grammatically correct – something he tucked away as significant information.

Sean was almost afraid to read that last bit to Milo and Tommy but knew he couldn't avoid it and Milo's response was predictable and exactly as the kidnappers had planned. He was traumatized and exhausted. He actually broke down in tears and Sean became seriously worried about him. Tommy was devastated too and had blanched at the mention of Bob. He put an arm around Milo, unable to think of anything to say that might bring comfort. He thought maybe it was time to mention the offer of help from over the border. With Sean firmly on the case he hadn't said anything about it so far, but perhaps Sean would welcome help of that kind.

‘Lo, Sean, my CO made an offer I decided not to mention unless things became a bit desperate. You seemed to be totally in control of things, Sean, but now we're told they know you're here – I can't imagine how they know but maybe, careful as Maggie was on that first phone call, with the line tapped that's how they found out.'

Tommy went on to explain what had been suggested.

‘What do you think?'

Milo was ready to clutch at anything that might help but in spite of his acute distress he recognized the need to be very, very careful.

‘I'm willing to try anything that might help us to get Izzy back without her being hurt. What about you, Sean? I wouldn't want to cut across anything you had in mind – you've done a great job so far. If you think it would help I'll go along with it.'

‘Just let me think this through carefully. We mustn't let anxiety make us rush our fences.'

He paced backwards and forwards working through the pros and cons in his own mind. Milo and Tommy didn't attempt to influence him, but the possibility of a new and very efficient source of extra help had brought Milo a temporary easing of his distress. He spoke aside quietly to Tommy.

‘Your CO is a very decent sort, Tommy. That's an incredible offer.'

‘Yes. And Chuck was right in there with him.'

‘Good old Chuck!'

Sean eventually stopped his pacing.

‘I think we should take advantage of that offer. The lads you're talking about have all sorts of sophisticated tricks that we haven't got access to, you know the usual story, budgets, finance, all that rubbish! I can think of a way of involving them that should arouse no suspicions at all. To have them arrive here as would-be long lost cousins wouldn't work. Something like that's too obvious. The family and house staff would know very well and those fellows out there would see through it too. No! They can come into the city by train mingling with all the other passengers. I'll send someone in plain clothes, very casually dressed, to pick up “a couple of friends” at the station and then they can quietly become members of my force and join me here in that guise. Nobody except us, and my own men, will know they're not what they seem to be. Milo, I suggest you tell Noola only – oh, and Maggie, but strictly no one else.'

‘Okay. Thanks Sean. Sounds like a good scheme. I'll use your secure line to call my CO and set the ball rolling. This would be a good time to catch him and get things moving quickly before he goes off for the day.'

The call was made. The wheels were set in motion with impressive speed and the call came back to say two slightly scruffy-looking individuals would slip over the border near Sligo and arrive in Dublin by train that evening, with descriptions added to allow them to be easily recognized.

Milo took a cup of tea to Noola to wake her and put her in the picture and Tommy did likewise for Maggie. The rest of the family and staff were told only the other details given in the note and especially about carrying on as normal. Noola had a hard time not becoming hysterical when told the contents of the note. Mageen's reaction was similar and the twins, Bill and Harry, were at first appalled then became furiously angry; their way of dealing with their distress and feeling of complete impotence. Like their father and grandfather before them they were big, handsome men, with black curls and green eyes, and powerfully built, being exceptionally good at sports. Used to a very active existence they now felt like caged animals and responded accordingly.

‘If ever I get my hands on any of that lot I'll tear them apart – and enjoy it!'

‘I know what you mean, Bill. Dad, how about we make a call down the tapped line and say to someone like Uncle Paddy, who knows all about it, that I'd be willing to swap places with Izzy? Whoever we spoke to they'd hear!'

‘Good idea, Harry, but it wouldn't work. They deliberately took the most vulnerable person in the family to produce just these reactions in all of us.'

‘Well couldn't we do that, Uncle Sean, and say that we'll give them anything they want just to get Izzy back safely?'

‘Also a good idea, Mageen, but I think we must wait for them to come back to us now and not overplay our hand. I've asked for a couple of especially competent and experienced plain-clothes men, from a special force in another part of the country, to join me here this evening and we'll see what they think.'

They settled in for another long wait, which Sean told them would be part of the strategy of reducing them to the edge of nervous collapse. Fortunately, since it was Saturday, nobody had to go into the office and go through the agony again of pretending nothing was wrong. Then, right on schedule, the new men arrived on Saturday evening, driven quite openly by one of Sean's team. The boys on the gate, alerted to what was happening, gave them a very open and loud welcome, just as if they were old friends and colleagues coming to help with the guard duties. Much to the astonishment of everyone at Riverside they were indeed, in marked contrast to Sean's immaculate appearance, a really scruffy-looking pair.

‘Meet Jack and Bertie.'

‘How're yez all?' The Irish accent was there but not overdone.

Mageen and Sarah, used to male family members always looking reasonably smart, even in their casual clothes, couldn't believe their eyes. Mageen was the more shaken of the two.

‘Good heavens! Don't they look
awful
. They don't even look basically clean! In fact I'll bet they smell. I'm going to keep well away from
them
.'

The new arrivals looked at the two girls and Jack found it hard not to show open admiration of Mageen. With her wonderful, rich chestnut hair and huge dark brown eyes she was an exceptionally attractive young woman. What's more, judging by the absence of rings, she obviously wasn't even engaged, let alone married.

Down boy, he said to himself. Remember – you're not supposed to get entangled with any girl at the moment. Too risky all round
and
you're here incognito.

Sean shooed everyone out of the room except the two newcomers, Milo, Noola, Tommy and Maggie. Then he gave Jack and Bertie a very thorough briefing, including every scrap of detail Declan had been able to observe and remember about the car that had delivered the brick. This wasn't much but given the brief few moments he had to register anything he had done very well. The two men went through every tiny item with a fine-toothed comb, making detailed notes. Before they started to analyse it all Sean, realizing they must be tired and hungry, suggested that they take a break and have some dinner while he and Milo held the fort.

‘That'll give us all time to mull things over a bit and see what we can tease out of it all. If there's a call we can get you very quickly – the dining room's just across the hall.'

‘Why don't I show the two of you to your rooms now? Dinner will be at seven o'clock, but if you're ready do join us back here in the library for a drink first. I think we could all do with one.'

‘Thank you, Mrs Butler.'

Carrying their luggage grips they followed her up the elegant, sweeping stairway, their training making sure they registered every tiny detail that they saw: the understated quality and elegance of the furniture and furnishings so far visible to them and later repeated everywhere they went in the house; the antique books lining the library shelves; the original masterpieces on the walls, both oils and watercolours, some of them portraits of what were obviously past generations of Butlers. Bertie couldn't resist a comment:

‘What a very good-looking family, Mrs Butler. That lady there looks a little like Mageen.'

‘Yes. That's my husband's mother. Killed in a riding accident when he was only eight years old.'

‘Oh! How sad! She was really beautiful.'

They were given a room each, intercommunicating through a shared bathroom. They had baths; washed their unkempt, greasy-looking hair; shaved and changed and were ready before the dinner gong sounded. They went back to the library where the rest of the family had gathered, all anxiously waiting, with ill-concealed impatience, for more news. Their wash and tidy up and change of clothes had altered their appearance quite dramatically. As they entered the room again and the family turned to look at them there was a sudden complete silence.

‘Good heavens – what a difference! You look positively presentable.'

‘
Mageen
! That was really rude. Apologise!' Noola was embarrassed, especially knowing what the two young men were doing for them, but also because it was exactly the kind of response she would have made at Mageen's age.

‘Oh! Yes – well I didn't mean to be rude. It was more in the nature of a recognition of the change in your appearance. Sorry, gentlemen.'

The two men were highly entertained. Bertie had often had the same sort of response from his mother when he had returned home from a difficult assignment, looking as awful as he had when he arrived here.

‘It's all right, Mageen, we've full sympathy for your reaction. We get the same sort of comments at home.' Jack grinned at her. ‘Sean didn't want it to be too obvious that he was having extra muscle in his ops room. We were told to look like casual replacements for the team guarding Riverside so we turned ourselves out in a manner we thought appropriate. Maybe we overdid it a little bit. Just hope it worked!'

‘Well, it certainly convinced us. Good for you! What have you done with those revolting clothes? For goodness' sake send them down to be washed. You'll get them back pretty quickly. We've got an extremely competent staff here.'

Typical female, thought Jack. For heaven's sake! Thinking about
laundry
at a time like this. However, maybe for just a few seconds it took her mind off her worry and the girl did look pretty exhausted and seemed so tense. Well, who wouldn't in the circumstances?

After they had all eaten a quick meal, some of them unable to swallow much, Sean gathered everyone, including Kitty and Mickeen, into the library for a brainstorming session. He introduced Jack and Bertie to those who hadn't met them and then got down to business. At that moment the phone rang and everyone froze.

‘You take it, Milo, and we'll listen in, and absolute quiet from all of us!'

‘Milo Butler speaking.'

‘Oh, hello, Mr Butler, it's Freddie Armstrong here. May I speak to Mageen please?'

‘Good to hear from you, Freddie. Hold on and I'll see if I can find her – it may take a few minutes.'

Freddie had been Mageen's boyfriend since the previous Christmas. Like her he was reading for a degree in economics and maths at Trinity College. Mageen was seriously smitten and the rest of the family liked him but now was not the time they wanted him to arrive at the house.