Everybody on board the Pirate Queen had left England with smiles on their faces. More than anybody though, Gráinne couldn't quite believe they were returning safely. It hadn't been an easy journey, but she'd known from the moment they'd left Clare Island that it would not be straightforward. Now, she couldn't help but wonder if she would have committed herself to the Queen's agreement had she been able to consider it in advance.
Of course it was silly to doubt her decision; she'd always said she would do anything for her son, and she meant it. Even if it meant that somebody else decided where she was allowed to sail. And apparently it was now the case that she most certainly was not allowed to sail south of Ireland.
The water lapped gently against the sides of the ship as they approached Clare Island. The mid-afternoon sun had tinted the water with a warm glow, the turquoise surface pulling the Pirate Queen forward, guiding it to its destination.
"Home sweet home!" Donal shouted to his sister from the deck. She glanced at him and smiled, acknowledging his cry of delight.
Cathleen clutched Donal's arm as they returned to the dock. She'd done well on her first voyage, as Donal kept reminding her, and she knew she deserved to be proud of herself. When she had time to recollect everything then maybe the reality would hit her—whether or not she'd choose to sail with Gráinne again was a decision she still had to make. That is, if Gráinne would welcome her back on board. She desperately hoped that she hadn't let her down. She'd definitely had fun though, especially listening to Michael's stories of his pirate adventures that he entertained the crew with on the way home. Yes, it had been quite a journey.
Tibbott had managed to keep his spirits up as best as he could. He didn't say much though, and even now, as he stood next to Gráinne, he remained, for the most part, silent. Gráinne had her suspicions that there was something he wasn't telling her, but she decided it was too soon to force him to speak about it. What had he experienced, or what had he seen, that he was keeping quiet about? Maybe she was just being paranoid, but she couldn't quite shake the feeling that nothing was as plain-sailing as it appeared to be.
Once the ship had docked, Gráinne addressed her crew.
"Thank you all for your hard work and dedication during our journey. It has not been easy, and it certainly hasn't been safe, but we all made it home. Better still, we made it back with Tibbott, just as we promised we would." There was a cheer from the crew as they applauded the young man, who was now starting to blush. "You may now return to your families and let them know that you are safe and well."
Everybody piled out of the ship. Gráinne walked with her arm linked around her son's; they were the last to leave the ship.
"It's good to be back on Irish soil," she remarked, taking in her surroundings as her crew dispersed. It felt like a lifetime since they'd first set sail. It always did. She turned to see Cathleen's father hugging his daughter. "Hello, Mr O'Flynn," she greeted.
"Gráinne, how glad I am to see everybody return," he said, supporting himself on Donal's shoulder. It was clear that his health was declining. "How did it go?"
"Fairly well," she replied with a smile. "We got what we went for, and that's the main thing."
"Tibbott. I'm thrilled to see you've come home safely." He shook the young man's hand.
"And it definitely is our soil now, isn't it?" Cathleen bounced on the end of Donal's arm as she responded to Gráinne's earlier comment.
"Yes, Cathleen," he replied. "Yes, it is."
The five of them started up the hill as they set off for their own homes. It was their land again, wasn't it? Gráinne had trusted the Queen with their agreement. There had been no questioning it. Maybe she shouldn't have let her guard down. Was she foolish for thinking that Bingham would actually return the land he'd stolen? She couldn't let her mind think about it too much. Right now, she had to focus on spending time with her son. Tibbott was her main priority now. Her family had to come first.
Not that she was giving up quite yet. Battles still had to be won, and her union with the sea was as alive as ever. She knew her relationship with England was not over yet, but there would be time to deal with that later.
The tension surrounding the agreement she had made with Queen Elizabeth would no doubt cause opinions to divide across the island, but one thing was for certain: as Gráinne O'Malley stood at the peak of the tallest hill on Clare Island that evening, her attention fixed upon the land that surrounded her, and the sky above her illuminated by moonlight, the decision was made that her story would not go unremembered. Little did she know that, four hundred years later, she would be brought forward in time to guide another woman along her own personal journey. What had so recently become the past for Gráinne would ultimately become important in shaping the future for Grace Byrne.