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“I think it’s terrible,” Aideen said,
looking up into Mike’s eyes, “after everything you’ve done for
everyone, and all the sacrifices you’ve made that they should do
this.”

“Me, too, Da!” Taffy
chirped up. Sarah snapped her head around in stunned disbelief that
the little mite was already calling Mike ‘Da,’ but everyone else
seemed not to notice. In fact, the table laughed heartily at little
Taffy’s comment.

I suppose it’s not so
unthinkable. All the camp’s fatherless kids called him Da, and half
of the ones with fathers.

“I’ll admit to being
surprised,” Mike said. “I mean, I created this
community.”

Fiona handed a basket of
yeast rolls down the table. “Yes, dearest, you did, but now it’s
growing beyond the handful of starving families needing a place to
lay their heads for a night. We’re turning into a kind of village
and we need…representation.”

“Does that mean I can count on your vote,
sister dear?”

“Now, Mike, you know
you’re always my favorite candidate, after Dec, of course, but I
don’t think there’s a reason not to explore other leadership
styles. That’s not being disloyal.”

“The hell it isn’t.”

“I think what Fiona’s
saying,” Declan said, “is that it might be good to see if another
way might not work better for us. For example,” he said quickly,
“Brian doesn’t get quite as stitched up as you do over little
things,”

“It’s true you do have a famous temper,
brother dear.”

Sarah watched with
creeping outrage when Aideen put her hand on Mike’s arm—like he
belonged to her—and actually stroked him as if trying to soothe
him.

“
And Mr. Gilhooley has some
good ideas, Da,” Gavin said between mouthfuls. “If you’d give him a
chance, you’d see that.”

“Oh? And is killing a young lad in front of
the whole camp one of those good ideas?”

“Not. At. The. Table,” Fiona said.

A brief silence intervened and then Papin
stood up. “Auntie Fi, do you mind if I lie down for a tick? I don’t
feel so hot.”

“I noticed you were quiet, darling,” Fi
said, standing and putting her hand to Papin’s forehead. “You’re
not warm, but you don’t look well. Yes, go on and lie down on my
bed.”

Sarah watched her shuffle to the bedroom and
close the door. Her first thought was to wonder if there was a
window in the bedroom.

Gavin and John stood up
and asked to be excused. There was a new colt in the stable they
wanted to check out. When Taffy whined to accompany them, Aideen
was forced to go with them. “My, I guess it’ll just be the grown
ups left,” Aideen said, looking at Sarah but smiling
haughtily.

I wonder what she’d say if
I told her I rode her seatmate there last night like a
bronco-busting Amarillo cowgirl?

Sarah flushed with fury when Aideen leaned
over and kissed Mike on the cheek before taking her daughter’s hand
and sauntering out of the cabin. It was all Sarah could do not to
trip her on her way out.

***

“Sounds like it was a
rough day for you.” Sarah sat on Fiona’s porch step with Mike
sipping an after dinner cup of tea.

“You could say that,” he
said.

“Do you think we could
talk about what happened last night?”

“Are you still leaving?”

Sarah stopped and sucked in a quick breath.
“What?”

“Because unless it changed anything, I don’t
think there’s much point, do you?”

“Is that why you and Miss Big Boobs were all
over each other at dinner tonight?”

Mike gave her a surprised look. “You think
she has big boobs?”

“Fine. Play your games.
Whatever.” Sarah forced herself to take a breath. She knew he was
moody these days and she would just have to let some things go. “I
would like to ask you, though,” she said, “since we’ve never
discussed it, if you would drive us to Limerick in the carriage
after the festival.”

Mike frowned. “I might
have to ask Jimmy to do that.”

“Are you seriously not
going to take me to Limerick?” She swallowed hard and pinched her
lips together. Was he trying to hurt her? Was he really not going
to see her off?

“In case you weren’t
listening, Sarah, that tosser Gilhooley is attempting a hostile
takeover of the community. Or do you in fact think it’s all about
you?”

Sarah held onto her
temper. Was this really the same man who held her naked in his arms
just this morning, stroking her back and kissing her neck? “Right,”
she said, “well, then, if you’d arrange it with Jimmy, I’d be
grateful. Thank you.”

“No problem.”

“Is something bugging you,
Mike? I mean, something more than usual? Because I’m not really
used to all the monosyllabic responses from you lately and I hope
I’m not being all egocentric here to ask.” She silently cursed
herself for the sarcasm. She really was trying to be
understanding.

“What could possibly be
wrong, Sarah? I’m losing my leadership in the community
and
you all in
twenty-four hours. At this rate, I’m expecting to come down with
cancer any minute. No, Sarah, things are brilliant. Thanks for
asking.”

Sarah softened and reached for his arm. “I’m
sorry, Mike,” she said. “I just hate feeling so far away from you.
Especially after last night.”

He grunted.

“And along those lines,”
she said quietly, “how about if I knock on your door again tonight
after the children are in bed?”

She stiffened when she saw him look away
from her and pause.

“I’m not sure that would be such a great
idea,” he said.

“Really?” She forced her voice to sound
normal and calm. “Why not?”

He sighed. “It would upset
Aideen if she knew.”

“Aideen?”

“She says she’s the future and there’s truth
to that. I’d be hurting her needlessly and for what? Another memory
to put away in me memory book?”

Sarah couldn’t help the
feeling of jealousy, sharp as glass, which raked her skin. She
removed her hand from his arm as if it burned her. “I see. So you
two are still an item, I take it?”

“Are you asking me to hold off with her
until after you leave, Sarah? Because it’s not like you to be
indirect.”

“Oh, yes? How about
go to hell
. Is that
direct enough for you?”

***

“Well, you handled that well.” Fiona came
out of the shadows. “I would’ve told you I was here except the two
of you started going at it before I had the chance.”

“And we all know how embarrassing that would
have been for you.”

“Okay, brother dear, do catch me up on
what’s happening because I think I’ve missed some important
episodes.”

“Fi…” he said warningly.

“If I heard correctly, you and the Widow
Woodson finally did the deed? I only ask because I promised the
camp I’d run the flag up the pole once it happened and I’d hate
anyone not to make the money on their bets.”

“You’re pissing me off, Fiona.”

Fiona laughed. “I’m sorry, but you do see
the funny side of this, don’t you?”

“Really? Is there one?”

Fiona took one look at the stark misery on
her brother’s face and the laugh fell from her lips. “Oh, Mike,”
she said. “I’m so sorry. I know this sucks.”

“And then me own sister is voting for the
plonker. Feck, he’s probably English underneath it all.”

“Maybe you declined Sarah’s offer for a
midnight visit too hastily,” Fiona said, her eyebrows twitching
impishly. “Sounds like you could really use a little relaxation
technique or two.”

“You know, what I could use is not hearing
about sex from me own baby sister, if you don’t mind.”

“Suit yourself,” Fiona said, picking up an
empty fruit basket and heading back inside the cabin. “I do find it
works wonders for Declan, though, after a frustrating day of
dealing with camp yobbos and gobshites.” She grinned as he groaned
and turned back to his hut across the camp center.

***

The minute Mike pulled
open the door of his hut, he knew someone was inside. He braced
himself for an attack, although he knew it was just as likely to be
Aideen lying in wait.

Which it was.

She emerged from the
darkened recesses of the room where she’d been sitting in the only
chair in the hut and slipped into his arms. Although he didn’t hold
her, he didn’t push her away either.

“I thought something had changed,” she
whispered into his ear. “At dinner. You were different with
me.”

“Was I?” Mike was tired but he had to admit
the feel of Aideen in his arms, pressing against his hips, felt
good. “Where’s Taffy?”

“Still with the boys. So what made you
change your mind?”

“Who says I have?”

She put a hand to his face and peered into
his face in the half gloom. “Were you flirting with me at dinner to
take the piss out of Sarah? Was that it?”

He pulled away from her. “I don’t play
games.”

“Maybe not knowingly. But I picked up on the
difference and I could see that she did, too. Is it because you
finally realized that she’s really leaving?”

Should he tell her he slept
with Sarah last night? Wouldn’t it just hurt her and what did it
matter now? Was he trying to start with a clean slate with Aideen?
Did that mean he
wanted
to start something with her?

She turned and maneuvered
him easily into the armchair and slid onto his lap. She was light
but substantial in the places that counted and Mike could feel his
body reacting to her without his permission.

“She’s
going
, Mike. I am here. She is
yesterday and I am now.” She lifted his chin and kissed him. He
felt the heat shoot up his loins and his arms moved to capture her.
When the kiss was done and she pulled back to look at him with
obvious satisfaction, Mike felt a rush of guilt.

On some level, he’d been expecting to see
Sarah’s face. He patted Aideen on the back to signal she was to
rise and then he stood.

“I’m interested, Aideen,”
he said gruffly, not looking at her. “But not until Sarah’s
gone.”

He finally looked at her
to see the hurt in her eyes. But she nodded. “That’s fine,” she
said. “But I’m not talking about a one-night stand, mind. I need a
father for Taffy and a man to love and stand by me. I’m not playing
games either, Mike.”

He nodded. “Then we
understand each other,”

***

Declan eased himself
through the broken slats of the milking shed. He figured it was a
little after midnight although nowadays it was never easy to tell
for sure. One of the cows made a deep lowing noise but settled down
quickly when she acclimated to Declan’s presence. At first he
hadn’t felt good about this.
Shite
,
I
didn’t even tell Fi.
Now what does that
tell you?
But he had to come. Not just to
hear what the bugger had to say—he already knew Gilhooley’s spiel
front and back. No, he came because he was already on
board.

“That you, Cooper?”

Declan grimaced. “Aye,
it’s me.”

“Let’s move away from the
cow shite, eh?” Gilhooley slipped past Declan and led the way to a
windowless anteroom on the other side of the line of stalls.
Normally, Declan knew there was no need for this kind of secrecy.
Each candidate would be well within his rights to meet publicly
with his campaign advisor.

It just wasn’t so straightforward when the
campaign advisor was also the brother-in-law to the other
candidate.

Gilhooley settled himself
on the corner of the feed table and rubbed his hands together.
“What’s he thinking? All of this is bollocks to him, right? Am I
right?”

“I told you,” Declan said. “I won’t spy for
you. We’ll win this right and proper.”

“Of course, of course. I just wondered how
much of a fight he intended to give me.”

Declan shrugged. Mike
hadn’t made it much of a secret that he would do little to win the
election. He supposed he could reveal at least that
much.

“He won’t campaign.”

“Very good. We’re as good as in, Coop. You
know that, right?”

Declan hated when
Gilhooley called him by a shortened version of his last name.
Seemed a very American thing to do. He wasn’t sure why it hit him
wrong.

“Likely. Yes,” he
said.

“I need you to get your
boys started on the new clink.”

“Before the election?”

“That’s right. We’re wasting time as it
is.”

“But you’re not in yet.”

“I will be, you said so yourself. Get three
men started. They can work at night. Donovan never goes in that
direction after hours, does he?”

“Not if everything’s quiet around the
camp.”

“And you always make sure it is.”

“Well, he trusts
me.”

“As he should. Without you, he’d have to
patrol the damn perimeter himself, wouldn’t he?”

Declan had to admit he
sometimes wondered how Mike had handled things before Declan came
to the community. His job was to patrol the perimeter—or assign men
to do it—and secure the camp. It was an unpleasant and fairly
thankless job. And come to think of it, that was especially true
where Mike was concerned.

“Coop?”

Declan looked at Gilhooley.