‘It could be a coincidence, the name,’ Tom said hurriedly. ‘If it had said Fr O’Hara I would have picked it up straightaway. Plus there are no initials, so it may not even be a Michael.’
‘So what do we do?’ Liam asked.
‘Well, I’m going to get on to my contact in the donor agency to try and get some more information on this O’Hara guy. See if it’s the same guy or not. If it is, we need to talk.’
‘How soon can you do that?’ Liam asked.
‘Tomorrow morning. I’ll give you a call as soon as I know,’ Tom replied.
‘Not a word to Grace though Tom until we know what we’re dealing with,’ Liam stated.
‘Agreed.’
Chapter Twenty Eight
Tom and Gerry were sitting drinking coffee, waiting for Liam to arrive. Tom had started researching blood donors called ‘O’Hara’ in Ireland as soon as he got up that morning. The bell rang signalling Liam’s arrival.
‘Well, what did you find out?’ Liam looked anxious.
‘Come in and sit down. Coffee’s ready,’ Tom said, leading the way to their kitchen. ‘Right, I checked the registrar this morning and I’m pretty much 99% certain that Fr Michael O’Hara has blood type O positive,’ Tom told Liam.
‘Which means?’ Liam asked.
‘It’s possible that he’s Grace’s father,’ Tom replied softly.
‘Shit, shit, shit,’ Liam couldn’t find any other words to say.
‘I know,’ Gerry said. ‘Tom and I are a bit shocked too.’
‘You guys have met this priest. What’s your gut?’ Liam asked them.
‘He’s her father,’ Gerry said bluntly. ‘Something about him has bugged me ever since we met him but I couldn’t figure out what it was. It came to me late last night. His eyes. He has Grace’s eyes – they’re bright green. The exact same as Grace’s.’
‘He woke me up to tell me. I can’t believe we didn’t notice it when we met him. All I can think is that I never for a moment supposed that Grace’s father would be a priest. I wasn’t looking at him as a possible suspect,’ Tom admitted.
‘Who the fuck would?’ Liam said. ‘Jesus guys, this is going to knock the stuffing out of Grace. What should we do?’
‘It’s just like The Thorn Birds,’ Gerry said, and then shut up quickly, realising this wasn’t the time for his movie speak. ‘Sorry, force of habit.’
‘The way I see it, we’ve a couple of options,’ Tom said. ‘We can go to Catherine and confront her with our suspicions first of all. Give her a chance to put her side of the story in first. Or we can go straight to Wexford and confront Fr O’Hara.’
Liam walked around the kitchen distractedly. He needed to think about this for a moment.
‘He might just deny it,’ Gerry said. ‘We don’t have any actual proof. Just circumstantial evidence.’
‘That’s true,’ Tom agreed.
Liam looked up at the two of them. ‘The way I see it, we owe it to Catherine to talk to her first. After all, it’s her life we’re messing in. What do you think?’
‘Makes sense to me,’ Tom concurred. ‘Are you going to tell Grace?’
‘I don’t know, mate. I promised Grace that I’d never keep a secret from her again when we got back together. But I’m not sure she’s strong enough to deal with this,’ Liam said, concern written all over his face.
Tom’s heart went out to Liam. ‘You’re not keeping something from her if you just delay telling her the information. As Gerry said, we don’t have any actual proof yet. I don’t think Grace would have a problem if you kept quiet for a few more days.’
‘What do you think, Gerry?’ Liam asked.
Gerry was chuffed that Liam asked his opinion. He knew that Liam valued Tom’s opinion over anyone else’s and it meant a lot to him that he wanted to hear what he had to say too. ‘I think you’ll only upset Grace by telling her this right now. She’s got enough on her mind with the wedding. Let’s keep this between ourselves until you speak to Catherine.’
‘That means we don’t tell Abby, Sean or Tara either though,’ Liam said firmly. ‘I don’t want Grace to think we all had a little secret going on behind her back.’
‘When are you going to contact Catherine?’ Tom asked Liam. ‘Don’t envy you, mate.’
‘No time like the present. I’ll give her a call now. If she’s available I’m going to drive to Meath and talk to her immediately. I can’t leave this one hanging,’ Liam replied.
‘Understood. What will you say to her?’ Tom asked.
‘Just that I’m in the area, thought I’d drop in for a coffee,’ Liam replied.
‘Do you want company?’ Tom asked.
‘Would love it to be honest,’ Liam said, relief flooding his face.
‘You go, Tom,’ Gerry told his partner before he asked him what he thought. ‘You go for the drive with Liam. In fact you should drive. That way, Liam, you can concentrate on what to say to Catherine when you see her.’
Liam picked up his mobile and hit Catherine’s number. She answered quickly and said she’d love to see him if he was in the area. She’d be in the teashop all day. Telling her they’d be there in a couple of hours, the guys jumped into Tom’s car and headed off.
The closer to Meath they got the more nervous Liam felt. He wasn’t quite sure how to ask Catherine about Fr O’Hara. Catherine was such a lady and it seemed rude to ask her about anything to do with sex. It would be like questioning his Ma about her sex life!
‘We’re almost here, mate,’ Tom said. ‘Shall I wait in the car?’
‘I don’t know, Tom. Maybe. She might feel threatened if both of us are there.’
‘Righto. I’ll stay here so. Come get me if you need some support,’ Tom said, giving Liam a good-natured thump on his arm.
Liam jumped out of the car in front of Catherine’s teashop. It was a lovely cottage, whitewashed with a bright red door and window frames. The aroma of freshly baked bread and scones that met you as you walked to the door was powerful and despite his nerves Liam felt his stomach groan in response. Before he had a chance to enter the shop, Catherine was running towards him, a big smile across her pretty face.
‘Oh Liam, what a lovely surprise. What brings you to this area?’ Catherine greeted him with arms outstretched.
Giving Catherine a warm hug, Liam was slightly surprised that he had grown to care for this woman and really didn’t want to hurt her. ‘Hi Catherine. Just a story I’m working on, that’s all.’
‘Come on in. I want you to meet everyone. Girls, this is Liam, my Grace’s fiancé,’ Catherine said with pride.
There were two women working in the shop with Catherine and Liam was quickly introduced. It was obvious that Catherine spoke about Grace and her family a lot, because the women seemed to know everything about their lives. He was touched.
‘Now take a seat Liam. Let’s have some tea,’ Catherine said as she fussed over him. With that one of the women had brought over a tray of scones, clotted cream and strawberry jam and a large earthenware teapot.
‘This looks lovely, Catherine,’ Liam said truthfully. She beamed at the compliment. Liam thought about Tom in the car and it made him smile. He would have been in heaven right now!
‘Scones are made fresh this morning. Now eat, we can catch up afterwards.’
Liam didn’t know how Catherine kept her trim figure, because if he could bake like her he figured he’d be the size of an elephant. Despite his nerves he easily managed to scoff two scones, washed down with the strong sweet tea. When Catherine was satisfied that Liam was completely stuffed she led the way to the back of the shop to her private quarters. Her house was beautiful. The loving care that had been invested into it was obvious. If Liam’s eyes didn’t mistake him there were several antique pieces in the living room and fresh flowers – white, of course – were in a vase on the sideboard.
‘You know it’s amazing how alike you and Grace are,’ Liam told Catherine. ‘I suppose that proves the point that genes are mo
re important than environment!’
‘Oh I don’t know, Liam. I think they both play an equal part. It tickles me that Grace resembles me so much and I can see so much of myself in her, when I was her age. But there’s no denying the influence of Mick and Annie’s upbringing.’
‘That’s true,’ Liam nodded in agreement.
‘So tell me all the news. How are Grace and Jack?’ she asked.
‘They’re both fine, Catherine. Grace’s up to her eyes preparing for the wedding. Gerry has her killed choosing colours and flowers and seating arrangements!’
‘Have you chosen a wedding venue yet?’ Catherine asked.
Liam realised that this would be a good chance to turn the subject in the direction of Grace’s father. ‘Well we’ve narrowed it down to a couple of places. We both want somewhere small and intimate as we’re only having about fifty guests. We also want somewhere with its own chapel in the grounds,’ Liam said.
‘Oh, that sounds beautiful.’ Catherine thought this idea was lovely.
‘Well, one of the places we’re thinking of is in Wexford. Rose Tree Manor,’ Liam said.
He watched Catherine’s reaction closely. The friendly open smile on her face froze and she looked more guarded all of a sudden. Liam felt lousy. She had no idea what was coming her way.
‘Rose Tree Manor. That’s a beautiful hotel. I used to work there you know,’ Catherine said quietly.
Liam didn’t know whether to let on that he knew she’d worked there, so decided to be non-committal for a while. ‘Yes, it is beautiful. The chapel in the grounds is amazing too. Tom went to a wedding there years ago and said it was one of the most spectacular events he’d ever been to.’
‘I can imagine,’ Catherine said flatly.
‘Look Catherine, Grace and I know that Rose Tree Manor is close by to Ballymichael. Would it bother you to be so close to home?’ Liam asked.
‘Ballymichael hasn’t been my home for many years now, Liam,’ Catherine said sadly. ‘But if you and Grace want to get married in Rose Tree Manor, I would never try and stop you. Besides, I still have some friends in the area that I haven’t seen in quite some time. I could use the wedding as an opportunity to catch up with them.’ Catherine felt a little shaken at this reminder to her past. Ballymichael had so many sad memories for her. She knew that she should let them go, it had been over thirty years, but when she thought about Ballymichael it made her feel like a young woman in her twenties again – frightened and scared.
‘I wonder if the Murtaghs are still there,’ Catherine wondered out loud.
‘Yes they are,’ Liam responded. Then seeing Catherine’s puzzled look, he explained, ‘Tom and Gerry spent a weekend in Rose Tree Manor a couple of months ago. They met the Murtaghs. They mentioned that they knew you.’
‘Oh I see,’ Catherine started to frown. ‘Why haven’t you mentioned this to me before?’
Liam didn’t have an answer to that. He reckoned the time had come to put all his cards on the table.
Chapter Twenty Nine
‘Catherine, I haven’t been totally honest with you. I’m not working in the area today; I came specifically to talk to you,’ Liam said softly. Seeing the look of hurt cross Catherine’s face made him feel like shit. But he was here now and needed to continue. ‘Grace was terribly upset when you wouldn’t tell her about her father,’ Liam paused to let it sink in for a moment or two.
‘Why must you keep bringing this up?’ Catherine said agitatedly. She had begun to twist the ring on her finger.
‘I’m sorry Catherine. We’re not trying to hurt you, but please see it from Grace’s point of view. She needed to find out more about where she came from. So Tom said that he would help by doing an investigation.’
A look of horror passed over Catherine’s face. ‘An investigation into my life, my background, I take it,’ she said coldly.
Liam simply nodded, feeling lousier by the minute.
‘And just what did Tom find out?’ Catherine almost spat out.
‘Catherine please try to understand why we did this. Grace felt that you were lying to her when you said you didn’t know who her father was. It was an intuitive feeling, but she felt then, and still does today, that you were hiding something. And more importantly Catherine, we need to find Grace’s father. If he has had any other children there is a strong possibility that they could be a donor match for Grace. If the cancer comes back…’ Liam couldn’t finish the sentence.
Catherine walked over to Liam and shook him by the shoulders, ‘You stupid man. What do you take me for? I’ve lain awake at night thinking about Grace’s cancer and the possibility that it will come back. I’ve thought about all kinds of ways to find a suitable match. I know that the best chance is with a sibling. For God’s sake, if I thought for one moment that her father had any more children I would have told you a long time ago.’
Liam absorbed this information. His eyes never left Catherine’s face and he could see fear then resignation wash over her.
‘So what do you think you know? What has Tom found out?’ Catherine said weakly.
‘Grace and I never believed that you were the type of woman to get drunk and have a one-night stand with somebody you didn’t know. It just didn’t fit,’ Liam said, feeling really bad.
‘I could have changed. You have no idea what I was like back then,’ Catherine challenged.
‘We know. That’s why Tom went to Rose Tree Manor to try to fill in some blanks. For what it’s worth I’m really sorry we did it behind your back. But you wouldn’t talk about Grace’s father; our backs were against a wall.’
Catherine acknowledged this with a nod of her head.
‘Tom spoke with Mr and Mrs Murtagh. He also spoke to Ann Dalton, Mrs Doyle, Garda Hegarty and Fr O’Hara.’
Catherine paled. ‘Ann never told me,’ she whispered.
‘I’m sorry, but Tom did his investigation under subterfuge. He didn’t divulge that he knew you and just made general enquiries about No. 3, your house, to get some information.’
‘I see. And what did he find out in his “enquiries”?’ Catherine asked, sarcasm dripping with every word.
‘That you were pretty much the model citizen. Worked hard, didn’t drink, and didn’t sleep around. Had only one real boyfriend, Robert Hegarty.’
‘He’s not Grace’s father, if that’s what your investigation has turned up. We never even slept together,’ Catherine said bluntly.
Liam knew that even without the results he had of the blood tests, Catherine was speaking the truth. ‘We know. We did think that maybe he was the father at first because he was the only name that kept coming up with yours romantically. But he has the wrong blood type.’
‘Tom is very thorough,’ Catherine said.
‘Yes he is. Catherine we believe that Fr O’Hara is Grace’s father,’ Liam said as gently as he could.
Catherine sank into her armchair, putting her face in her hands. ‘Does Grace know?’ Catherine asked with horror.
Liam noted she hadn’t denied it. ‘No. Just Tom, Gerry and me. I thought it was only fair to come to you before we confronted Fr O’Hara.’
Catherine started to cry. Quietly, with her head in her hands. Liam did not know what to do.
‘Are you okay?’ he finally asked.
She looked up with a tear-stained face; she appeared to have aged ten years in the last few moments. ‘No I am far from okay, Liam. You have no idea what you’ve discovered. Yes, Fr O’Hara is Grace’s biological father. There, I’ve confirmed your suspicions. But he won’t help Grace. He’s an evil man, Liam. He may wear priest’s clothing, but he’s not a good man,’ Catherine said, clearly agitated.
‘Does he know that he’s Grace’s dad?’ Liam asked quietly.
‘Oh yes, but he won’t admit it. Not in a million years. He’s too much to lose.’
‘Would he agree to a donor test?’ Liam asked hopefully. ‘Surely for his own daughter?’
‘You’re not getting it, Liam. He
wanted me to have an abortion for God’s sake. This from a man of God! He persuaded my father that I was evil and needed to be punished for my sins. My father kicked me out of my home and never spoke to me ever again. He died without talking to me in over twenty years. And Fr O’Hara was partly to blame for his stubbornness. This is the kind of man we’re talking about!’ Catherine ended on a sob.
‘I’m so sorry, Catherine,’ Liam said humbly.
Catherine got up and walked over to her drinks cabinet. She poured herself a brandy and sat back down.
‘Are you going to tell Grace?’ Catherine asked.
‘I have to, Catherine. She has a right to know,’ Liam replied gently.
‘Why, what good will it do her? She’s accepted that she’ll probably never find out who her father is. Why can’t you leave it?’ Catherine begged.
‘Because that’s not my decision to make, Catherine. I think you should tell her. She’ll understand. You were young; you fell in love with the wrong guy. It won’t be the first time that’s happened. She’ll understand, I promise you,’ Liam said. He stopped abruptly when he heard Catherine laugh. It was a cold mirthless laugh and he felt the hairs on the back of his neck go up.
‘You think I had a relationship with that man? You actually believe I was in love with him? Liam, I was helping out at the church because I was thinking about becoming a nun. It was something I’d thought about for a couple of years, ever since I finished with Robert Hegarty. I asked Fr O’Hara for his advice,’ Catherine replied coldly.
Liam nodded encouragingly at Catherine. Finally they were getting somewhere. She was opening up. But nothing prepared him for what she said next.
Tears were pouring down her face again as Catherine said, ‘He raped me.’
At first Liam thought he’d misheard, she’d spoken so quietly. But she repeated the words again, stronger this time.
‘The bastard raped me.’
With that the house of cards came tumbling down. Liam felt like somebody had punched him in the stomach. He couldn’t bear to see Catherine in so much pain but didn’t know what to do. He felt totally at a loss. He wanted to get in Tom’s car and drive to Wexford straightaway and beat the shit out of this so-called priest. He wanted to kill him, God forgive him. Walking over to Catherine, he pulled her into his arms, saying over and over again, ‘I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.’
Beyond Grace's Rainbow: HarperImpulse Contemporary Romance Page 19
