but Grace barely noticed as she concentrated on keeping up with Barry.
A day had passed since she had been introduced to Mr Pawlek after Mass, and now they were following Barry’s plan of tailing the drill teacher after working hours, to see who he might meet or what he might do.
Although Mr Pawlek lived in a house on the far side of Manor Street from Kinsella’s cake shop, there was a rear entrance that backed onto Norseman Place, and Barry had said that Mr Pawlek regularly came out that gate in the evening on his bicycle.
Grace didn’t have a bicycle of her own like Barry, but she had borrowed Uncle Freddie’s bike, which he rarely used at night. She had been worried that Freddie might not lend it, but when she had asked him he had been engrossed in a newspaper report on the war – the Nazis had launched a huge invasion of the Soviet Union yesterday – and her distracted uncle had readily agreed. Ma had warned her sternly to be careful on Freddie’s bicycle, butGranddad had winked at her as she was leaving and had slipped her a penny.
She was looking forward to buying sweets with it for herself and Barry after their mission, but for now her mind was on keeping the right distance between them and Mr Pawlek. It was important not to get too near, in case he might spot them behind him, and they had been especially careful when waiting for Mr Pawlek to exit the rear gate of his garden. It was equally important, however, not to lose their quarry, and at times they had had to pedal hard to keep up with the very fit drill teacher.
They cycled across the main road of the Phoenix Park, past the big statue of Lord Gough on his horse. Despite the importance of the job in hand Grace still smiled to herself, as she often did when she saw the statue of Lord Gough. When she had been very small and her father was alive, her oldest brother, Sean, who now lived in Boston, had told her that the man riding the horse was their da. With the innocence of a toddler Grace had believed him, and for years the family had referred to it as Da’s statue. The thought brought a wry smile to her lips, but tonight for some reason Grace felt a little sad too. If only Da were still alive he would be able to help Ma find a new house for them to live in, and they wouldn’t be charity cases, dependent on the generosity of Granddad and Freddie. But nothing was going to bring Da back now, and with her two sisters married and her brothers living in Boston and Glasgow it was just herself and Ma, and they would have to fend for themselves.
‘Speed up, Grace, he’s pulling away!’ called Barry from over his shoulder.
‘OK!’ she answered, aware that she had let her mind drift. She closed the gap with Barry, then saw Mr Pawlek in the distance as he descended the incline past the Wellington monument towards the base of the hill at the Magazine Fort.
Grace felt a little tired, having done a full day in school followed by a couple of hours in the cake shop, but she was excited too to be following a man who might be a spy, and she cycled hard, determined to keep up with Barry.
They saw that Mr Pawlek was heading towards the Corkscrew Road that wound around the southern boundary of the park. Grace knew this area from picnics with Ma, and she realised that a problem was looming. Barry had said that they mustn’t wear anything eye-catching, and that by keeping well behind their prey they should remain unnoticed. The Corkscrew Road, however, twisted back around on itself, so that even if they kept their present distance behind Mr Pawlek, he would be cycling towards them on the opposite side of several narrow valleys.
‘Barry!’ she called. ‘If he stays on this road we’ll have to pull back.’
‘Why?’
‘It snakes back on itself and he’ll see us.’
‘If we pull back too far we’ll lose him.’
‘Then we’ll follow him another time. We can’t be spotted.’
Barry looked uncertain, then suddenly Mr Pawlek solved theproblem for them. In
A day had passed since she had been introduced to Mr Pawlek after Mass, and now they were following Barry’s plan of tailing the drill teacher after working hours, to see who he might meet or what he might do.
Although Mr Pawlek lived in a house on the far side of Manor Street from Kinsella’s cake shop, there was a rear entrance that backed onto Norseman Place, and Barry had said that Mr Pawlek regularly came out that gate in the evening on his bicycle.
Grace didn’t have a bicycle of her own like Barry, but she had borrowed Uncle Freddie’s bike, which he rarely used at night. She had been worried that Freddie might not lend it, but when she had asked him he had been engrossed in a newspaper report on the war – the Nazis had launched a huge invasion of the Soviet Union yesterday – and her distracted uncle had readily agreed. Ma had warned her sternly to be careful on Freddie’s bicycle, butGranddad had winked at her as she was leaving and had slipped her a penny.
She was looking forward to buying sweets with it for herself and Barry after their mission, but for now her mind was on keeping the right distance between them and Mr Pawlek. It was important not to get too near, in case he might spot them behind him, and they had been especially careful when waiting for Mr Pawlek to exit the rear gate of his garden. It was equally important, however, not to lose their quarry, and at times they had had to pedal hard to keep up with the very fit drill teacher.
They cycled across the main road of the Phoenix Park, past the big statue of Lord Gough on his horse. Despite the importance of the job in hand Grace still smiled to herself, as she often did when she saw the statue of Lord Gough. When she had been very small and her father was alive, her oldest brother, Sean, who now lived in Boston, had told her that the man riding the horse was their da. With the innocence of a toddler Grace had believed him, and for years the family had referred to it as Da’s statue. The thought brought a wry smile to her lips, but tonight for some reason Grace felt a little sad too. If only Da were still alive he would be able to help Ma find a new house for them to live in, and they wouldn’t be charity cases, dependent on the generosity of Granddad and Freddie. But nothing was going to bring Da back now, and with her two sisters married and her brothers living in Boston and Glasgow it was just herself and Ma, and they would have to fend for themselves.
‘Speed up, Grace, he’s pulling away!’ called Barry from over his shoulder.
‘OK!’ she answered, aware that she had let her mind drift. She closed the gap with Barry, then saw Mr Pawlek in the distance as he descended the incline past the Wellington monument towards the base of the hill at the Magazine Fort.
Grace felt a little tired, having done a full day in school followed by a couple of hours in the cake shop, but she was excited too to be following a man who might be a spy, and she cycled hard, determined to keep up with Barry.
They saw that Mr Pawlek was heading towards the Corkscrew Road that wound around the southern boundary of the park. Grace knew this area from picnics with Ma, and she realised that a problem was looming. Barry had said that they mustn’t wear anything eye-catching, and that by keeping well behind their prey they should remain unnoticed. The Corkscrew Road, however, twisted back around on itself, so that even if they kept their present distance behind Mr Pawlek, he would be cycling towards them on the opposite side of several narrow valleys.
‘Barry!’ she called. ‘If he stays on this road we’ll have to pull back.’
‘Why?’
‘It snakes back on itself and he’ll see us.’
‘If we pull back too far we’ll lose him.’
‘Then we’ll follow him another time. We can’t be spotted.’
Barry looked uncertain, then suddenly Mr Pawlek solved theproblem for them. In
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