LITMIR.BIZ

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he had an errand out that evening, which shouldn’t take long, and she was not to leave the house for any reason in his absence. Celia had just nodded and so Dan barked out, ‘You hear what I said?’

      ‘Yes, Daddy.’

      ‘And I have your word on that?’

      This time there was slight hesitation and then Celia nodded again. ‘Yes, you have my word.’

      Dan knew Celia wouldn’t break her word. In that way she had always been trustworthy and so he nodded, satisfied, as Peggy asked, ‘What errand have you to make?’

      ‘Ask me no questions and I will tell you no lies,’ Dan replied and Celia knew exactly who he was going to see and she regretted giving her word to him for she knew he was going to see Andy McCadden and she had no way of warning him. Dermot knew where he was going as well, but he’d been charged with secrecy so when Celia asked in an urgent whisper, ‘Has Daddy gone to see Andy tonight? Is that his errand?’ he shrugged and said, ‘Don’t know.’

      Later Tom went upstairs to change for he had to see the McCluskys, and Sinead in particular, and explain things and Dan went to him in the bedroom. ‘Don’t discuss this with Sinead and her family.’

      ‘I wouldn’t do that,’ Tom promised, knowing how much his father hated family business being told outside of the family. ‘I’ll think up some excuse to satisfy her and her parents, but I must tell her something. We’ll more than likely go for a walk then, for the evening’s a fine one. I couldn’t trust myself at the dance tonight anyway for if I saw McCadden I’d want to push my fist down his throat.’

      ‘I know,’ Dan said. ‘But there’ll be no need for any of that if he takes the money as I’m sure he will.’

      After his father had left to waylay McCadden, Dermot sidled into the scullery where the girls were washing up. He knew it was his only chance to talk to them, with Tom and his father out of the way and his mother washing Sammy and Ellie in the big tin bath in the kitchen, where they were making a lot of noise about it. He said to Celia, ‘I know why Daddy was so mad at you making eyes at McCadden.’

      ‘I was not making eyes at McCadden,’ Celia protested.

      ‘Ssh,’ Norah cautioned as Dermot said airily, ‘Oh you know what I mean and it was because he had someone already lined up for you.’

      ‘What did I tell you?’ Norah said, but Celia ignored her and said to Dermot, ‘Do you know who it was?’

      ‘You bet I do,’ Dermot said. ‘It was Johnnie Cassidy, old Johnnie Cassidy, and I tried telling Daddy he was too old for you and got my head bitten off.’

      Celia seemed too shocked to speak. She seemed unaware that her mouth was open and her lips pulled back in distaste as Norah cried, ‘I’ll say he’s too old. It’s almost obscene.’

      ‘I heard Daddy say that he’s twenty-three years older than you, Celia,’ Dermot said. ‘And he’s after a young wife that will bear him plenty of strong sons that will help him on the farm as he gets older.’

      ‘Yes,’ Norah said in clipped tones. ‘You’d have the body pulled out of you with a baby born every year and when your child-bearing years were gone you’d have an old, maybe senile man to care for as well as a houseful of children to cook for and clean after and you would be expected to help on the farm as well. If you married him, your life would effectively be over and you would be an old woman before you had a chance to be a young one.’

      Celia gave a shiver at the thought, but answered firmly enough. ‘That isn’t going to happen because I am not marrying that man. I barely know him, for heaven’s sake, and I have no wish to know a man old enough to be my father. I told Daddy I will only marry for love and I stick by that.’

      ‘When you said that to me I said Daddy might make life difficult for you,’ Norah warned.

      Celia tossed her titian curls with defiance, though her heart trembled at the thought of unleashing her father’s anger if she continued to stand against him. She still maintained though, ‘He can’t force me to marry someone I don’t want to marry.’

      ‘No,’ Norah conceded. ‘But what are you going to do?’

      ‘Why have I got to do anything?’ Celia asked.

      ‘Well I suppose you want to marry someday?’

      ‘Probably.’

      ‘Well who will it be?’ Norah asked. ‘And don’t say Andy McCadden because I think we can take Daddy’s reaction to mean he will never agree to that. And don’t think after this you will be let go to the dances any more to choose someone more suitable. When I go to America it will be worse.’

      ‘When I’m twenty-one I can do as I please,’ Celia said. ‘You said that.’

      Norah nodded. ‘It’s three years away,’ she said. ‘But if you stick it out you can marry who you like – even your hireling boy, if that’s who you want – but Daddy might say that he doesn’t want to see you again, might disown you if you do. Would you be prepared for that?’

      Celia gasped for she had never imagined being banished from her home and yet she could see it happening if her father was angry enough. Once he had made a decision that was that and he usually couldn’t be shifted, though Peggy could sometimes coax him into a more reasonable response.

      Celia loved her father and though she knew he was quite strict, it was what she was used to. His attitude to discipline had never affected her because she had given him no reason to censure her, for she had always done as she was told and until now had never answered back either.

      Dermot could say nothing, but he wished he could tell Norah that soon McCadden would be out of their lives, for he had no doubt that the man would accept the money his father would offer him and be on his way. Celia would undoubtedly be upset at first, but she would get over it and, with McCadden out of the way, she would be able to socialise more and meet suitable men, that weren’t in their dotage. Then their father might be willing to accept one of them as a son-in-law and Johnnie Cassidy would have to look elsewhere for a wife.

      However, he wouldn’t dare say any of this. He had said enough in telling them the name of the man their father had marked down for Celia and that had only been because he wanted her prepared.

      Suddenly, Celia said, ‘Everyone goes on about respecting our parents. But I don’t think it is respecting us very much, mapping out the only future we’ll have to the extent of even telling us who to marry, and like you said before, Norah, it’s usually for their good, not ours. Dermot, what will Daddy get if I was to marry Johnnie Cassidy?’

      Dermot gave an ironic grin as he said, ‘Two fallow fields and two pregnant cows.’

      Celia covered her face with her hands for the proposal was preposterous enough to be funny. ‘So that’s my bridal price,’ she said. ‘Two fields and two cows. Huh, I’d say he was getting me cheap. If I married him at eighteen I could easily give him a dozen children before I was totally worn out and I’d say a fair few of them would be the boys he craves.’

      ‘And he’ll get a nurse to tend him in his old age too,’ Norah said. ‘He wins hands down, I’d say.’

      ‘Well Daddy can do what he likes, but I won’t agree to that,’ Celia said almost fiercely. ‘Just at the moment I am happy as I am and I have no desire to marry anyone.’

      ‘Don’t blame you,’ Norah said. ‘And all I can advise you to do is stick to your guns.’

       FIVE

      Dan was late coming home that night, so late that Peggy was the only one up, for he’d gone to the McCluskys’ house after his meeting with McCadden, knowing Tom would be there. He was welcomed warmly for the two families were friends and might soon be related for, though

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