The Insect Rosary by Sarah Armstrong Page B

couldn’t hide them. The warts that had everyone avoiding me at school and refusing to let me play football because they said if a wart was hit it might fly off and attach itself to them.’
    â€˜So what did she do?’
    â€˜Every first Sunday of the month, Da had a massive steak for his dinner. It was just always that way, I don’t know why. So Mammy heard from someone, it might have been Mary’s Ma, that steaks got rid of warts.’
    â€˜If you ate it?’
    â€˜Not if you ate it. That Sunday she was supposed to cook it, she woke me early and took me downstairs and rubbed it all over my legs. It was cold and slippery and made my legs pink. Then you had to bury it, so she did, really deep so the dogs couldn’t smell it. They could smell me though. Da never quite looked at her in the same way, but as if she was touched in the head.’
    â€˜So what happened to the warts?’
    â€˜The idea was that, as the steak rotted away, they would too.’
    â€˜And?’
    â€˜They did,’ said Donn. ‘My legs became smooth and my knees knobbly in the normal way and I was allowed to play football. But she told everyone about the steak, my mammy. She bragged about it in the village and the news went round the parents, and round the children. And I was terrible at football. I’d never practised. When I missed the goal by a good ten feet, despite standing only two feet away, Dougal flipped.
    â€˜â€œYou’re mammy is a witch. Tell her to glue those warts back on and fly you away on her broomstick.”
    â€˜That then went back round the children and up to the parents and no matter how much work Mammy did for the church after that it never got any better. I wished for my bobbly legs back that everyone laughed at because it was so much better than them laughing at me.’
    â€˜Did you have any friends?’
    Donn’s voice seemed to travel away from Nancy now, as if he’d sat down next to Hurley. ‘Just the one. Tommy. He’d talk to me as we walked home. You know when people are only friends with you because they want something from you? It was like that. Took me a while to realise, but.’
    Nancy got up to stop them talking but then sat down again. She didn’t want Hurley to know about Tommy, to even know the name. It was too late now. If she made a fuss the name would stick. It was Bernie’s fault, bringing up all the silence and locked doors.
    They were quiet for a bit and then Hurley spoke.
    â€˜I haven’t got any friends.’
    â€˜Some people don’t need them. Sometimes it’s better not to. I wouldn’t worry about it. All you need is a good dog.’
    There was a long silence. Nancy put her hands on the chair to push herself up quietly. It was time to call Hurley in. Then he spoke again.
    â€˜Do you miss your dog?’
    â€˜That one? He was good for the sheep but I always thought – well, you know, if I keeled over in the fields I thought no-one would ever find my body.’ Donn laughed.
    â€˜You thought he’d eat you?’ Hurley laughed too.
    â€˜I did, sometimes. There won’t be any more dogs, but. There won’t be any more farm.’
    The girls in the front room started screaming. The door opened and they were herded upstairs to get ready for bed. Nancy closed her eyes and thought, when I’ve finished my tea I’ll get Hurley up too. Then she heard the older girl complaining that Hurley wasn’t in bed and she was no way going before him, even if he was older. She was clever and better and, and, and, and Nancy decided that Hurley could stay up for as long as he liked.
    Hurley spoke quietly, so that Nancy nearly missed it. ‘I like it here.’
    â€˜It suits some,’ some Donn. ‘I think it suits you.’
    â€˜Is Tommy still your friend?’
    â€˜He’s around. I wouldn’t call him a friend. He’s just around.’

11
    Then
    Nancy made me get