Roses For Katie (30 page)

Mari was still there when they returned, but she was all ready to leave. ‘Your uncle’s had a reasonably good day, and he’s eaten well,’ she said, as she slipped on her outdoor jacket, and waved goodnight.

Pat went upstairs, and found him cheerful and sitting up in bed, watching television.

‘I’ll be getting up tomorrow or the next day. If I stay here any longer, I’ll get weak and useless. I need to get out and see what those lads are doing to my farm.’ He reached out his bony hand and beckoned Pat closer to him. ‘Come closer. I want to tell you something.’ Then he leaned back with his eyes shut for a minute as though he was thinking carefully about what to say. He opened them and patted the bed. ‘Sit you down here.’ He gripped Pat’s hand and smiled. ‘When I pass over, this farm will be yours. And now that you’ve found a pretty colleen, you’ll never be lonely like me.’

‘Begorrah, Uncle, now don’t you be talking like that. You’ll be all right for a long time yet, I’m thinking.’ Pat tried to sound encouraging, even though it was unlikely that the old man would ever recover. ‘Don’t overdo things. It’ll all keep until you’re really well again.’

‘I must say these things to you, my boy, just in case. My will is with Murray, the solicitor in town.’ He nodded in the direction of the chest of drawers. ‘There’s a copy of it in that top drawer. Find it, and take it with you, so there’ll be no uncertainty about your rights.’ He waited expectantly, but Pat did not move. ‘Go boy, do as I say. Go now.’

Pat crossed the room and fumbled through the papers in the drawer, and drew out an envelope with his name on it. ‘This it?’

‘To be sure and it is.’ His uncle leaned back against his pillows, breathing heavily. ‘Your grandfather, and his father before him, worked hard to build up this farm. Your father too, but it killed him young. Now ‘tis soon to be yours. If you look after it well, my boy, it will bring you a fortune in more ways than one.’

Pat clasped the frail hand. ‘I’m not looking for anything from you, Uncle. I’d sooner see you fit and well.’

‘Nonsense. Anyone can see my time is up, so now, the place is for you and your colleen. Enjoy it.’ He closed his eyes, settled into his bed more comfortably and appeared to be done with the conversation.

Pat tiptoed out of the room, and tucked the will into his suitcase in the bedroom. Back downstairs, he took Katie by the hand to give her a tour around the old farmhouse. The circular staircase rose from a corner of the square hall, spiralling up to three floors.

Katie laughed as she looked up. ‘Truly amazing; I can see right to the top.’

Pat opened up each downstairs door. ‘Big, sparse, solid country furniture pieces, these are. All old and worth a bit, but hardly valuable antiques like your stuff.’ He led her to the large, square kitchen. ‘See the old fashioned cooking range? That would surely be the despair of any cook.’

Katie ran her fingers along the long, scrubbed pine table that sat in the centre, with eight ancient, wooden kitchen chairs arranged around it. From there, she peeped into the rectangular dining room, which led off the kitchen.

‘Wait, take a look in here before you go on.’ Pat pointed to the door at the far end of the kitchen. ‘The dairy’s through there, where cheese and butter was made in the old days. Farther along is what was the butchery, and the huge hanging hooks are still fixed into the thick oak beams that support the ceiling. There’s a narrow room with a marble cooling-slab next door to that. This place has never been altered; this is just as it always was. I don’t know how they lived under such conditions for so long. Not comfortably I’m thinking.’ He shook his head. ‘It must have been a hard life, but they knew no other.’

Pat closed all the doors again and returned with Katie to the sitting room, which was smaller and the only one with chairs that were soft enough to relax in.

He disappeared, and returned a few minutes later with a hot chocolate drink. ‘Take this upstairs with you; it’ll relax you. Go now, and get a decent sleep.’

In a minute she was heading for bed with Thunder at her side. She felt so weary that she was certain that whatever noises Uncle Ruairi and the old house made, none of them would wake her tonight.

***

The next morning was overcast, with a definite chill in the air. Then it began to drizzle, gently to begin with, but becoming steadier, as though it was settling in for the day.

‘It won’t be much fun trudging everywhere in the rain. We could always drive around, of course… and you’d still see quite a lot, but, if you want to wait for a while, maybe it’ll clear,’ Pat said.

‘Suits me to go right now. We could wait all day and it might not stop. I don’t mind a bit of rain.’ She shivered at the thought of spending the whole morning inside the dreary farmhouse.

Once again, Mari Doherty served up a breakfast hefty enough to last them until evening. She had made quite a fuss of Thunder and he seemed to like her, so when she offered to look after him while they were out, they accepted.

‘Well be back in time for an early dinner,’ Pat told her, as he followed Katie out through the door.

‘I’ll have it ready for you,’ Mari said, as she stood at the door, giving them another of her beaming smiles.

They followed the west coastal road up towards the Shannon River, and sat in the car for a short while, watching several river swans floating downstream on the current.

‘Look at them, Katie… they don’t mind the rain. They all seem quite happy cruising together in the centre of the river,’ Pat said, as they drove on alongside the river bank. The river narrowed at Tarbert, and from that point the distance was short enough to see clearly to the other side, despite the rain. ‘We’ll cross from Tarbert on the ferry and take a quick look around Knock. You’ll find that a charming town on the other side, but it’s famous for the Knock Shrine,’ Pat explained. ‘You see, in 1879 an apparition of Mary, St Joseph, and John the Baptist, was seen by fifteen people, so Knock became an annual pilgrimage destination, especially for Roman Catholics. Even the Pope paid a visit there a hundred years later, in 1979.’

The rain eased off a bit, and Pat turned to her. ‘Well, I think the weather’s improving now, so we might as well make a brief visit to Ennis before we trace our way back to the farm through Limerick.’ He gave a deep sigh. ‘I apologize for the Irish weather, but you’ll have a lightning tour, with the promise to return to any place you might fancy to see it in more detail.’

‘I’m thoroughly enjoying it all,’ Katie said, ‘and whatever the weather tomorrow, maybe we could do the same sort of thing. At least, then I’ll be able to tell the girls I’ve seen everything.’

Pat took Katie to a different place every day, and as the week drew to a close, Katie thought they should spend a day at home with Uncle Ruairi, doing no more than taking a walk through the fields with Thunder. It’ll also give me a little rest, she thought, feeling quite exhausted as a result of the pace they were going at.

‘Now that your uncle’s up and about, maybe he feels well enough for a little company,’ she suggested. ‘Staying with him will give Mari a bit of time off, too, and she’s been so good, looking after us, and Thunder, that I think she deserves a rest.’

‘Tell me about yourself.’ Ruairi invited, looking at Katie when they sat with him on the evening before they were due to leave. ‘Where you were born, where you live now, what your late husband’s occupation was, how many children you have, and their ages?’ He managed an impish grin. ‘And lots more; tell me all,’ he said.

Katie couldn’t help but smother the smile that threatened. It was as though Ruairi were thoroughly vetting her on behalf of his nephew. He nodded and smiled from time to time, apparently in acceptance of Pat’s colleen. He was so pleasant that Katie sensed she must have passed the Ruairi test. He asked personal questions that Pat had never asked, so, by now, she knew that her answers must have filled Pat in on a lot he previously didn’t know about her.

More than once, when Katie looked into Ruairi’s face, she could see the strong resemblance between him and Pat; the same smile, the same twinkling eyes. The same kind ways and thoughtfulness as well. Katie liked the old man — she enjoyed his sense of humour and the occasional gleam that flashed in his eyes; the Irish mischief was still there.

‘I’m away to bed now. I’ve tired myself out, but I’ve enjoyed listening to you, Katie.’ Ruairi gave a feeble wave as he headed for his bedroom, with Pat close behind to help him on the staircase.

When he came back downstairs, Pat looked a bit glum.

‘My uncle is fading fast, I think,’ he said. ‘I know he has Mari to look after him, but he’s still on his own more than he should be, and it worries me. He’s lonely too; needs someone around to talk with, since he’s not out and about any more.’ He gave a sniff. ‘I put myself in his situation… with no one to care… not even a nephew to make an occasional visit,’ he said.

Katie sensed that Pat was having a conscience about his uncle being on his own, when he should really be living there with him right now. It bothered her that this visit could prompt Pat to make his move back to Ireland imminent. That was the last thing she wanted, but there was nothing she could do to stop it, and neither should she try. She shrugged, accepting that whatever happened would be the right thing for all concerned.

The next day, the time arrived for their departure, and although she had thoroughly enjoyed the break in Ireland, Katie was looking forward to going home. She had missed her family. The drive back to the ferry seemed shorter, and they only stopped long enough for Thunder to get out a couple of times. It was the same from the Welsh coast to home, and she breathed a sigh of relief as Pat pulled into the driveway of Priory Farm late in the day.

Katie made a quick pot of tea, and then she and Pat strolled around the garden stretching their legs after the long trip. Pat waved his arm at the overgrown yard.

‘Just look at how much that grass has grown in a week. That’s the first job with the mower… tomorrow.’

Katie had phoned the girls when she first walked in and within fifteen minutes, they were all there to welcome her. Sam brought a beef casserole she had made for their supper, and they were soon sitting down to a hot, tasty meal. Excited to have Katie home again, the girls plied them both with questions about Ireland until they finally left.

‘Time for me to go as well; ‘tis way past my bedtime, and there’s a lot to do tomorrow. Goodnight to you now, Katie.’ Then he leaned forward and touched her arm. ‘I’m so glad you came with me to Ireland; it made the visit so special.’ Pat stretched and gave a big yawn as he strolled towards the annex door.

Katie lost no time in climbing her own staircase and eased herself gratefully into her comfortable bed. She was asleep almost as soon as her head touched the pillow.

The next morning, straight after breakfast Sam called in. She wiggled next to her mother on the sofa.

‘Is the colonel settling into his new home, Mum? He’s very courteous, and smart looking. Margie told us about the horses he’s bought.’ There was a slight pause before she came out with the next statement. ‘Margie thinks the colonel wants you to settle down with him one of these days.’

Katie looked surprised. ‘That’s what she told you? You girls seem eager to get me married off for some reason. That’s not what I’m looking for. All I want is a pleasant, regular companion to go out with, when it suits me. Don’t push me. Don’t try to tell me what to do. If you persist, you’ll only drive me in the opposite direction.’

Sam went quiet and said no more for a few minutes. ‘Got some shopping to do now, Mum. Can I get you anything?’

‘No, I’m okay for most things, thanks,’ Katie said. ‘There’s loads of stuff in the pantry, but some milk would be useful.’ She gave Sam a hug and a kiss before seeing her to the door. When she returned to her settee, she reminisced about her delightful trip to Ireland; it had gone so smoothly and everything had been so pleasant. Another thing that pleased her was that she had explained to Tom how she felt, and now hoped that there could be an enjoyable friendship between them, without any harassment. Everything was working out so well.

To Katie’s surprise, Pat suddenly appeared at the door to the annex, looking quite upset.

‘I’ve just had a call,’ he began, and then choked up. ‘It’s Uncle Ruairi. He’s in hospital again and asking for me. I’ll have to go back, and quickly. I’ve no option.’

‘Of course you do. I understand, Pat. The poor man and poor you, having to make this trip again when you’ve only just returned.’

‘I’ll waste no time,’ he said. ‘I’m leaving straight away.’

Katie sighed, and watched him go with a heavy heart. Two days went by before she had a phone call from him.

‘They’ve told me it’s only a matter of time.’ There was a pause. ‘If he passes away while I’m here, I’ll have to stay on to see to things, the Wake and so on, y’know, the funeral. There’s no one else to do it.’

‘I’m really so sorry to hear this,’ Katie said, ‘but you have to do what’s necessary.’

‘I’ll let you know how things go,’ Pat promised. There was little more to say, and Katie had an awful feeling of foreboding as she set the phone back on the receiver.

It wasn’t at all unexpected when Pat phoned the next day to say his uncle had passed away during the night. ‘I don’t really know when I’ll be back now, Katie. I thought I should warn you that it could be a considerable time. I have a lot to sort out, as you can imagine.’

Katie decided to occupy herself in every way possible. It would be unwise, and pointless, to dwell on how much she would miss Pat. He was dealing with the loss of his uncle and all that had to be sorted out, just as she had done when her two aunts had passed away. Well aware of the emotional stress, and the hard work involved, she appreciated what lay ahead of him. But that didn’t stop her from feeling despondent over her own loss, just when she thought everything was working out fine.

Two days later, when Tom phoned for help with his house, she was only too glad to oblige, and have something else to think about. He had arranged to call for her within the hour, and she was all ready and waiting, and eager to leave all her concerns behind her at Priory Farm.