A CRY FROM THE DEEP (36 page)

“What do you mean? Like from God?”

Doreen shrugged. “She had to light a candle and ask for the curse to be transferred to the egg. She was then to rub the egg all over her body and after that, put it back in the bowl. The fortune-teller also suggested she pick up a good luck charm.”

“There’s a lot involved.”

“Aye. There’s more. She had to ask that the good luck charm keep the curse away forever. Then thank whomever she believed in and put out the candle. And lastly, bury that egg in the ground. She was told, ‘When the egg rots, so will the curse.’” Doreen took her apron off. “You’ll find the walk up the hill a pleasant one.”

~~~

The grey sky and light rain did nothing to deter Catherine from setting out. She drove a few kilometers from town towards Kilcar, the same route she and Daniel had taken days before on their way to the folk museum. Still uneasy from the night before, she looked back from time to time, checking to see if she was being followed. There was no one in sight.

She found the hill easily. It was the same one she’d seen in her vision, the one where she’d stood dressed in a dark dress searching the seascape. She parked the car near the base and found the opening to the path, framed by clumps of heather on each side. From the moment she began her climb, she had the impression she was treading on familiar ground. As it was a moderate hill, it took about twenty minutes to reach the top with its magnificent view of the sea and harbor.

Her pulse quickened at the sight of a few large round stones lying on the ground. Were these the ones? There might’ve been more, but over time locals could’ve carried some off or thrown them away. She picked one up. It was grey, smooth and worn with the years.

She remembered in the book there’d been an altar of some sorts. She turned round and looked in every direction. The hill was overgrown with wild flowers and weeds. Anything like a boulder would’ve been well hidden by now. She walked carefully through the tall brush and was about to give up when she spotted what looked like a big rock. The long grasses had kept it out of sight. It had to be the one.

As she came up to the boulder, she couldn’t help but shiver, as if she’d been struck by a blast of frigid air. Pulling her jacket tighter, she recalled the story of the villagers trooping to the top of the hill with Barnaby. Maybe they’d agreed to the deed to escape his wrath or maybe their decision was a mercenary one. Who could blame them if they had families to feed? It was the time of another potato famine, on the heels of the one that had killed thousands and forced others to escape to America.

As Catherine stood there overlooking the ocean, she thought again of Margaret and how she’d met her fate with James in these waters. How short their married life had been. A matter of hours
.
Margaret’s candle had hardly been lit before it was snuffed out.

Catherine hadn’t been standing long before the wind started to blow. She thought she heard voices and glanced around, but there was no one there. She had the sense that the past was trying to break through to tell her something. She took one last look before heading down. It was time to find out what the spirit of the
Alice O’Meary
had in mind.

~~~

Catherine stopped by the
Golden Eye
to pick up her diving equipment. Daniel was already there, picking up his. He looked tired. Selfishly, she hoped his fatigue was from his conflicted feelings over Sean rather than from any prolonged lovemaking.

They were about to leave the boat, when Catherine spotted Raul coming up from the galley. As Raul stepped on to the deck, a sliver of white bandage was visible on his left ankle just above his shoe. He didn’t see her at first. He limped towards the wheelhouse, where Hennesey was bent over his instruments.

When Raul noticed Catherine, he stopped for a moment, nodded, and then walked deliberately, as if he had no problem at all. His jaw was set, but she saw him cringe when he stepped.

“Wait a second,” said Catherine to Daniel. “I have some unfinished business.”

Daniel looked perplexed but she didn’t hang around to explain. She followed Raul to the wheelhouse, with Daniel close behind.

She found Hennesey at the helm and Raul standing awkwardly nearby. Hennesey said, sarcastically, “Well, if it isn’t Miss Sunshine.”

She ignored him and said to Raul, “You look like you’ve had a nasty accident.”

Hennesey turned to Raul. “What the hell…?”

She said to Hennesey, “I just want you to know, if you intended to scare me, you failed. But thanks to you, I got some wonderful photographs and I’ve sent them all to Frank.” She threw her hands in the air. “What’s a photographer to do?”

“I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about.”

“Yes, you do.” She glared at him and was surprised she was no longer afraid.

He scowled. “You’ve got nothing on me.”

“Don’t be so sure.”

After a moment of staring one another down, he said, “You bitch!”

“Yep. Just one of many.” Pointing to Raul’s foot, she said to Hennesey, “You tell your diver he should get that checked. I hear rabies can lead to death if left untreated.”

Raul hid his face, wouldn’t look her in the eye. Hennesey stood there, his mouth agape.

She left with Daniel, grinning like a Cheshire cat. His reaction mystified her.

~~~

As they walked to the dive boat that Daniel had hired, Catherine filled him in on her fright the evening before. “I have no proof,” she said, “but I’m not going to let Hennesey bully me.”

“I’m glad you’re okay. I’m not sure Raul would’ve done anything, but then again, I don’t know.” He looked at her admiringly. “Crazy dog, huh?”

“My hero,” she said, smiling. She still wondered about Daniel, but if he was in cahoots with the captain he was hiding it very well. “So, you’re fine about me emailing the photos?”

“Absolutely. At first, I wasn’t sure. But given what’s happened, you made the right decision.”

She was surprised by his answer. Twice now, he’d reacted as if they were on the same page. It pleased her, but not enough to let her guard down.

They found the small dive boat at the end of the dock. She hefted her gear on board. “What do I owe you for the boat?”

Before Daniel had a chance to answer, Olaf came out of the pilothouse, bellowing in his Swedish accent, “Are you ready?”

Astonished, Catherine said, “I didn’t expect you here.”

Daniel said, “Hennesey insisted on getting us a boat and having Olaf drive it.” She must’ve looked confused as he added, “Since you found the barque on his time, he figured this was the only way.”

Olaf scratched his chest. “He wants to keep it in the family.”

A control freak right to the end
. She hoped this was all there was to Hennesey’s arrangement. An uneasiness settled in her gut as she climbed on board.

Olaf said, “Hennesey’s already applied for a license to salvage the
Alice O’Meary.
He’s expecting approval any day now.”

Another surprise. It bothered her that the British barque was going to be open for salvage. Since she’d become intimate with the history of its demise, she thought anyone tramping upon its remains —other than herself—would be trespassing. It was an irrational thought. The only excuse she had was her relationship with the spirits. And yes, that was mad, too.

Daniel and Catherine stood on the starboard side while Olaf steered the boat out of the bay. The inlet was hopping with every type of fishing boat on the market. Much as she was anxious to go home, she was going to miss this maritime circus.

As for Daniel, it was hard to believe how much had changed. Ever since their brief interlude on the cliffs had been spoiled, their relationship had gone into reverse and stalled. Sean’s pregnancy announcement hung like a clothesline with the day’s wash between them. He talked, she listened. He told her he might return the following summer to continue working on the Spanish wreck, that is, if he and Hennesey were still talking to one another. She wanted to say—who was he kidding?
She’d seen them in a cozy twosome, talking like long lost buddies. Instead, she said nothing. She stared at the ripples in the sea and thought again about how much had changed between them.

~~~

It was still early in the afternoon when they got to the dive site. As both had had a hearty Irish breakfast, they decided to dive first and eat the lunch Daniel had picked up at a local market later.

Before putting on her gloves, Catherine looked at her Claddagh ring. She’d decided to wear it, as it had once been on the
Alice O’Meary
. Up to now, she’d been diving without gloves. It was easier to take photos that way, but now with the ring on, she didn’t want to attract any fish that thought her gold ring was their next meal.

Already suited up, Daniel came over and fixed the position of her regulator. “Just want you to know you’ve been a great buddy.”

Squinting in the bright daylight, she said, “You’re spooking me. We’re going down and coming up together, right?”

He smiled. “You can count on it.”

Catherine’s stomach was jittery. A dark thought crossed her mind. There were no other divers with them. It was just her and Daniel. No one else to witness anything. And he was the one who’d suggested they should dive that day. He was the one who’d arranged the boat, a boat indirectly controlled by Hennesey. She searched Daniel’s eyes for some sign of deceit, but found nothing but warmth, the kind that had seduced her on the cliffs. She cautioned herself not to be fooled again. She then reminded herself, she’d already sent the photos. There was no longer any reason for Hennesey or his cohorts to threaten or harm her. Or was there?

She tried to put her fears aside as she flipped backwards into the water. Once under, she relaxed. Water was the balm she needed. On her way down, she took some photos of orange sea urchins, and a neon pink starfish clinging to a ledge. She even smiled at a pollack staring at her, as if she was some strange species.

The
Alice O’Meary
was there, as before, scattered across the sand and seaweed covered rocks. A school of mackerel swam in and around a rusted-out container of tea from India. Daniel pointed out a few iron drift pins sticking out of the sand bottom and pieces of hull lying on what looked like a length of mast.

He said, “This is an early example of an iron or steel hull. Either way, these are hard to conserve.”

He wasn’t telling her anything she didn’t know. After they’d found the capstan, she’d read about the construction of the
Alice O’Meary
on the web. She also knew that iron and steel disintegrated quickly when any ship’s parts were brought up to the surface.

Further on, wooden timbers lay about, badly broken and damaged by Teredo worms. As she snapped photos of the beams, she recalled her dream of the young woman running on deck, her boots slipping on the wet surface.

She looked over at Daniel, his bubbles obscuring his face. He dove deeper towards what looked like the stern of the barque. He hadn’t been there long when the young woman in the white dress came into view, floating above him. For a moment, Catherine was too startled to speak. She cleared her throat and said, “Daniel, can you see her?”

Daniel turned to her. “Who?”

“She’s behind you now.”

Daniel turned around. “No, I can’t. What’s she doing?”

“She wants me to follow her.”

“Then do it. I’ll stay right behind you.”

Catherine swam over to where the phantom was directing her. She wished the visibility was clearer as she couldn’t make out the spirit’s face. The hair, however, was very much like hers—long, wavy and auburn. The spirit pointed to a spot between some worm-eaten boards. “She wants me to look over here.”

She turned to see Daniel’s reaction, but he wasn’t there. She called his name, still nothing. She swam back to where she’d seen him last, but he wasn’t there. She started to panic, and her breathing quickened. So, this is how it was going to happen. He was abandoning her. It was part of his and Hennesey’s plan. Seduce her into believing and then, wham, some accident. So, Frank had the photos. Without her input, Hennesey could come up with some believable story. Especially if Daniel corroborated it. And just as she was thinking she should go up, he appeared.

“Sorry,” he said, “I went to check. I was sure there was a cannon peeking out from the other side of the hull.”

“Didn’t you hear me? God, Daniel…” Her heart was beating as fast as a hummingbird’s wings.

“Are you okay?”

“NO!” She steadied herself, as she slowed her breathing down to normal.

“I had the volume turned down. I was getting some static, and it was irritating.” He made a production of turning up the sound. “I…, I didn’t think I was gone that long.”

He looked genuinely apologetic. Maybe he was telling the truth. She couldn’t tell but she wasn’t going to waste any more time wondering. That could come later. Now, with him by her side, she swam back to where the spirit had motioned her to go. There, near the boards of the hull, she knelt down on what little sand there was. She peered around but couldn’t see anything other than some shells and stones. There was a piece of crockery, but nothing significant.