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The long talk with Rory still running like a movie in my head, I had trouble going to sleep. The revelation that Johnny’s son had been bullied by some gang of thugs was disturbing enough, but so was the way Rory had looked at me just before I left. It confused me more than I was prepared to admit.
I couldn’t decide how I felt about him. Attracted, yes, but at the same time afraid to get involved. We’d only met a few times and had mostly argued during those brief meetings. But during those arguments, there was a buzz between us I couldn’t deny. Don’t go there, Finola, I told myself. I’d been hurt so many times, and I didn’t want to go through all that again. In any case, if he was looking for a relationship, I wasn’t what he needed. And his mother and the farm and...too much baggage. I pushed those thoughts away, picked up a thriller I wanted to read and went to bed.
At one in the morning, deep into the thriller, I jumped when my phone rang. Who could be calling at this hour?
I groped for the phone and mumbled a sleepy ‘hello’ without checking the caller ID.
“Finola?”
“Um, yeah?”
“It’s Colin. Colin Foley.”
I closed my eyes for a moment. Colin Foley calling me in the middle of the night? This had to be some kind of dream. But that famous deep voice in my ear had to be real.
“Hi, Colin. What’s up?”
“I know it’s late. But I was hoping you’d be awake. I can’t sleep, and I have nobody to talk to.”
“Nobody? Gee, I’d have thought you could call just about any woman on this planet and she’d jump at the chance.”
“Would you?”
“Jump? No. I’m not your run-of-the-mill teenage fan.” I yawned. “Sorry. I’ve had a long day that included my first-ever ride on a horse and ended in a whiskey-drinking contest with a local farmer.”
Colin’s laugh was possibly even sexier than his voice. “Who won?”
“He did. I had to drive home, so I left him with the rest of the bottle. In any case, I’m trying to cut down on the booze.”
“Why?”
“Just to prove to myself I’m not an alcoholic. And I’m not,” I hastened to add. “It was just that whenever I found myself in difficult circumstances recently, I developed some bad habits.”
“Been there.” Colin sounded suddenly serious. “Easy to open a bottle when you’re all alone and feeling low. A glass or five of Merlot can feel like your only friend sometimes.”
“Hell, yes. But then that friend ends up kicking you in the butt when the buzz wears off.” I moved my legs and moaned.
“You okay?” Colin asked, a hint of laughter in his voice. “Is the whiskey kicking in?”
“No, it’s the riding. I never knew I had all these muscles in my legs. But enough about me. You want to talk? So talk. What’s bothering you?”
Colin let out a long sigh. “Nothing and everything. I’m a little nervous about this movie. Hollywood’s take on the nineteen sixteen rising. I don’t want to compromise my country and play a role that would ring false or make some romantic shite out of it.”
“I know where you’re coming from,” I said. “I’ve seen some cringe-making pieces on the subject that made me want to scream.”
“Tell me about it,” Colin grunted.
“You’ll just have to make the best of it. Who’s playing the female lead?”
“Caroline O’Hara. She’s an Abbey actress. This is her first film role.”
“But she’s wonderful.” I plumped up my pillow. “Not one of those wannabe film stars.”
Colin sighed. “I know. But she’s a serious actress. She’s had roles in all those well-known plays at the Abbey Theatre. Becket, O’Casey, Synge. You know. The Playboy of the Western world. Juno and the Paycock. All the old Irish classics.”
I let out a snort. “Oh, yawn. Who really enjoys that heavy stuff?”
“Not me. But it makes her look good. I haven’t that kind of experience. After modelling, I had some small parts in soaps and then those action movies. I haven’t been in anything worth talking about. Never had an acting class in my life. I just...” he laughed, “use my assets.”
“And what’s wrong with that?” I asked. “You have a great screen presence. You could sell ice cream to polar bears.”
“You saw that commercial, huh?”
“What?”
“I’m kidding. But you never know.”
“True.” I yawned. “Sorry, I think I’ll have to hang up. My eyes are closing.”
“I’m boring you.”
“God, no. But I’m tired and so, I suspect, are you. Try to get some sleep. We can talk later.”
“Okay. You’re right. I need to rest. We have a big meeting with the crew tomorrow and then the casting of the extras later in the week. I believe you’re running a piece about it?”
“Yes. There’ll be a big headline on the front page.” I hesitated for a moment. “Um, Colin?”
“Yeah?”
“I hate to ask this but...I’d love to do an interview with you.”
“Sure, why not?”
“Could it be an exclusive? I mean like it couldn’t be printed anywhere else. It would be terrific for the newspaper.”
“I’ll have to check with my agent.”
“Of course. Let me know when you’ve spoken to him.”
“Her. Godzilla. Scary woman. Night, Finola. Talk soon.”
I hung up, put out the light and fell asleep with a silly grin on my face.
***
The news hit the headlines in all the national newspapers and other media the next day. Miramax was to make a blockbuster movie in County Tipperary starring Colin Foley and Caroline O’Hara. The title of the movie was Rebel in Love, and would be set just before the Easter rising in nineteen sixteen. The cast and crew were already on location and extras from the local community would be hired in the following few days. Details would follow in the local press.
We followed up with an announcement the following day and then the cat was out of the bag. The town was buzzing with excitement, and our teaser with a promise of an exclusive ‘soon’ resulted in a spike in circulation. Thanks to Hollywood, we were on our way.
The day the casting crew ran auditions in the community hall, there was a queue around the block, and they were still looking at applicants late into the night. Over a hundred people were hired as extras and many more signed on to be in the crowd scenes. Teenage girls camped on the doorstep of the Bianconi Inn and had to be removed forcibly, and a security company was hired to stop intruders and guard the entrance to Jules’s farm. Cloughmichael was becoming the hotspot of Tipperary, maybe even the whole of Ireland.
I didn’t have much time to think about anything else, but the Johnny Keegan case was still at the back of my mind. Bullying of that magnitude was a serious issue. I was sure that it was still going on and that any victims were afraid to speak up. How to find them was the problem. I mentioned it to Jerry one afternoon in early June.
He stuck his head into my office while I was writing my notes for the interview with Colin. “Hi, Finola. Am I disturbing you?”
I looked up from my laptop. “Hi, Jerry. Come in. I could do with a break.”
He walked in and sat down. “Nice chair.”
“Better than the rickety antiques you had. I found that one in Mulcahy’s in Cashel. It was on sale so didn’t do too much damage to the finances. Hope you don’t mind.”
“Not at all. We need to update the office. Things seem to be improving lately. Nice work, Finola.”
I waved my hand at him. “Not my doing. All thanks to Hollywood. Long may they stay.”
He nodded. “Oh yes. But you’ve done some great things too. Like that fun piece about the tidy towns. And the piece about the auditions was a hoot.”
“I’m glad you liked it. Dan’s a great asset and Audrey, the new trainee.”
“Is that the leggy blonde in the short skirt running down the steps just a minute ago?”
“Yes. We all hate her. Legs to her armpits and a figure to die for. And I thought Barbie had gone out of fashion.”
Jerry laughed. “I don’t think that will ever happen.”
“Neither do I.” I picked up my phone. “How about a cup of tea? I’ll give Sinead a shout.”
“I’d love a cup.”
When Sinead had delivered two mugs of tea and a packet of digestives, I got down to business. “Jerry, could you be completely honest with me?”
Jerry put his mug on the desk. “I’ll do my best. What’s this about? The accounts? I haven’t fiddled them, if that’s what you’re going to talk about. We really did as badly as they say. But now that things have picked up, I’ve talked to the bank and it—”
“Shut up for a moment and listen,” I interrupted. “It’s not about the bloody accounts. I know they’re all above board. It’s about Johnny Keegan’s son.”
Jerry blanched. “Drago? What about him?”
“Drago? Is that his name?”
“Yes.”
“Okay.” I finished my tea. “I know that he was being bullied and that it was so serious, Johnny and his family left in a hurry. I also know the bullies in question have some kind of power around here so that nobody dares speak up. I couldn’t quite get my head around that such things can be going on in this little town, but I think it’s going on everywhere.”
“I suppose.” Jerry pretended to look out the window, but his hand shook as he picked up his mug.
“You know something about this?”
Jerry looked back at me. “I could say no, but you wouldn’t buy that, would you?”
“You bet I wouldn’t.”
He nodded. “I knew it.”
“Tell me what else you know.” I leaned back in my chair and put my hands behind my head. “I want you to tell me all you know. I’m all ears.”
Jerry looked at the door, then back at me. “It’s complicated. And it also involves Aidan, my eldest.”
“He’s been bullied, too?”
“No, but I think he knows who these bullies are. They haven’t picked on him—yet. He and Drago were friends, you see. Drago told Aidan this was going on—about the attacks and threats, both physical and mental. He never mentioned any names, but I think Aidan put two and two together and figured it out.”
“But he hasn’t said anything?”
“No. Things have been quiet for a while. I think the members of this gang are keeping their heads down. The last attack on Drago was pretty vicious. They broke his arm and messed up his face. That’s when Johnny and Madlena decided to leave and go and live somewhere else.”
“Where’s she from?”
“Croatia. I have a feeling these attacks were of a racist nature.”
“Bloody hell.” I leaned forward and bored my eyes into his. “Jerry, this has to stop. We have to nail the bastards.”
He nodded, looking miserable. “I know. But how?”
“I want to talk to Aidan.”
“Okay. I’m not sure he’ll tell you anything, but you have my permission to speak to him.”
“Good. Could you fill Miranda in on this? And then if I could come to your house and talk to Aidan whenever it suits, that would be a great help.”
Jerry got up. “I’ll call you.”
After Jerry had left, I stared blankly at the computer screen. Aidan obviously knew something, and I was going to do my best to find out what it was. But the person I most wanted to talk to was Drago, who had disappeared so mysteriously. I needed to find him. Someone had to know where they’d gone. I wracked my brain for a while, and then I had an idea. I picked up the phone and punched in a number.
“Hi. Finola here. Tell me, does Johnny Keegan have any family in this area?”