agree, say aye !”
Stunned, Mike heard the entire assembly of
gypsies chorus their assentation.
“I’ll pass it around the
main camp, too,” Iain said to Mike, as if reassuring him. “You’ll
hear soon enough,” he said, “but I’m nominating Mr. Brian Gilhooley
as the candidate who’ll be running against you in the election to
be held…” He looked again at Gilhooley.
“The day after the Harvest
Festival,” Gilhooley said, his eyes watching Mike warily. “After
which time,” he said turning to address the Gypsies, “we will
celebrate the fact with the public hanging of one murdering
sod.”
The crowd cheered, their voices growing
louder and louder as Mike turned to locate his horse and make his
way back to camp.
Sarah looked around the
dinner table and felt the usual flush of fellowship and
contentedness she always felt when everyone she loved was gathered
around the dinner table, laughing and talking at once. That is
until, as her eye traveled around the table and came to Mike and
Aideen.
After their night of
lovemaking and an intimacy, which turned out to be every bit as
exquisite as she had imagined it would be, she wasn’t sure what to
expect from Mike in the bright of day. Would they pretend it hadn’t
happened? She assumed they would to everyone in camp, but with each
other? Wouldn’t they take advantage of the brief time they had left
and spend it as intimately as possible?
“Earth to Sarah, luv, pass the corn, if you
would,” Fiona said from across the table. Sarah looked up, jerked
out of her thoughts. Fiona pointed to the plate of corn at Sarah’s
elbow. She slid it across the table to her, and glanced again at
Mike at the end of the table. Aideen was practically sitting in his
lap.
And he was not acting like
he’d just held another woman in his arms a few hours
earlier.
Not at all.
A giggle rose up from
Aideen and Sarah caught Mike grinning.
Private jokes? After last night? Really?
“Mum, you okay?” Papin frowned at her. “You
look like you’ve just seen the Devil himself.”
“I’m fine,” Sarah said,
her voice abrupt. She saw Papin’s face react and instantly she was
sorry for her tone. She reached a hand out to soften her curtness
but Papin pulled away, refusing to be mollified.
“So, Da, we’ll be having a
little democracy at Donovan’s Lot after all, it seems?” Gavin
looked at his father from over a heaping plate of fried corn bread,
sliced tomatoes and at least four ears of corn slathered in fresh
butter.
“It’s for the best, Mike,” Fiona said.
“Surely you can see that.”
“Well, as it happens,”
Mike said, sourly, “I can’t. But as you’re so keen on being able to
vote on every little question of how to run the camp, then by all
means, have an election.”
“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
Stunned, Mike heard the entire assembly of
gypsies chorus their assentation.
“I’ll pass it around the
main camp, too,” Iain said to Mike, as if reassuring him. “You’ll
hear soon enough,” he said, “but I’m nominating Mr. Brian Gilhooley
as the candidate who’ll be running against you in the election to
be held…” He looked again at Gilhooley.
“The day after the Harvest
Festival,” Gilhooley said, his eyes watching Mike warily. “After
which time,” he said turning to address the Gypsies, “we will
celebrate the fact with the public hanging of one murdering
sod.”
The crowd cheered, their voices growing
louder and louder as Mike turned to locate his horse and make his
way back to camp.
Sarah looked around the
dinner table and felt the usual flush of fellowship and
contentedness she always felt when everyone she loved was gathered
around the dinner table, laughing and talking at once. That is
until, as her eye traveled around the table and came to Mike and
Aideen.
After their night of
lovemaking and an intimacy, which turned out to be every bit as
exquisite as she had imagined it would be, she wasn’t sure what to
expect from Mike in the bright of day. Would they pretend it hadn’t
happened? She assumed they would to everyone in camp, but with each
other? Wouldn’t they take advantage of the brief time they had left
and spend it as intimately as possible?
“Earth to Sarah, luv, pass the corn, if you
would,” Fiona said from across the table. Sarah looked up, jerked
out of her thoughts. Fiona pointed to the plate of corn at Sarah’s
elbow. She slid it across the table to her, and glanced again at
Mike at the end of the table. Aideen was practically sitting in his
lap.
And he was not acting like
he’d just held another woman in his arms a few hours
earlier.
Not at all.
A giggle rose up from
Aideen and Sarah caught Mike grinning.
Private jokes? After last night? Really?
“Mum, you okay?” Papin frowned at her. “You
look like you’ve just seen the Devil himself.”
“I’m fine,” Sarah said,
her voice abrupt. She saw Papin’s face react and instantly she was
sorry for her tone. She reached a hand out to soften her curtness
but Papin pulled away, refusing to be mollified.
“So, Da, we’ll be having a
little democracy at Donovan’s Lot after all, it seems?” Gavin
looked at his father from over a heaping plate of fried corn bread,
sliced tomatoes and at least four ears of corn slathered in fresh
butter.
“It’s for the best, Mike,” Fiona said.
“Surely you can see that.”
“Well, as it happens,”
Mike said, sourly, “I can’t. But as you’re so keen on being able to
vote on every little question of how to run the camp, then by all
means, have an election.”
“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
Similar Books
