Page 6 of Harbor Lights
She still had a way to go back across the beach, up the steps to the cliff path and home. Typically, she’d come out with no flashlight and the light on her ancient cellphone was barely fit for the purpose, so she was racing the last of the light to the top of the steps when her phone buzzed. She reached into the pocket of her long coat to retrieve it and smiled.
“Joey, how are you?” She was relieved she hadn’t scared her friend off with her miserable mood earlier.
“Hey, Doc, sorry to bother you. Are you at home?” The wind and engine noise in the background betrayed Joey’s location.
She pulled off her glasses with her spare hand and wiped at the sweat misting them up. “I will be shortly, why? Fancy a cup of tea?”
“No, it’s a medical thing. I’ve got someone with me…” There was a muffled exchange she couldn’t make out. “Siobhán Walsh. She’s staying on Inishderry to?—”
“I know why she’s there, Joey. What’s the problem?”
There was more muttering.
“She hurt her arm and thinks it might need stitches. Can you take a look? No bother if not, I can run her to the hospital in the city.”
“Of course. I’ll be home before you get up the hill. See you soon.”
She hurried on, wondering about the mysterious Walsh family member no one had known existed. The first thing she’d heard had been in the Emerald Bar one evening before she left for Cambridge.
She’d been sitting chatting with Joey and Tierney when Tierney’s cousin Christy had come in, ordered a pint and sat down with them.
“Guess what, cuz, the black sheep of the Walsh clan is coming to Inishderry.” He’d grinned with the anticipation of sharing his news.
“I thought I was the black sheep. Who are you talking about?” Tierney had leaned in. Autumn was drawing into winter and there wasn’t much exciting happening on the island apart from the chance for some gossip.
Christy had retrieved his pint and sat down. “Uncle Des’s oldest grandchild. The one in America. Siobhán.”
“I had other family in the US, and no one ever told me? What the hell?”
“It was a family secret.” Christy leaned in conspiratorially. “No one ever talked about her, or her mom, Marian.”
“Uncle Des has a daughter called Marian?”
Joey had stood. “This is family talk. Maybe we should leave you to discuss it alone.”
Con had pulled them back down by their sleeve. “If she’s coming to the island, it’s hardly a family secret anymore, is it?”
Christy had shared some very sketchy details about how Marian had run away to the US as a teenager and had a daughter. Desmond had disowned them and forbidden the rest of the family to speak of them. That was all the detail he had, apart from an extra juicy snippet that Siobhán may have recently got out of jail. Joey had lost patience at that point. “Maybe we should let her arrive and tell us her own story. If she wants to. Come on, Doc, I’m taking you home.”
Con had reluctantly followed and listened to Joey’s diatribe about island gossip all the way home. She agreed gossip was unethical, but she also liked to have a handle on this community and their issues.
When she reached her door, she could see the lights of what she assumed was Joey’s van approaching up the hill. She put her shoulder to the door and forced it wide. She opened the door to her surgery and switched on the lights to give the impression of a professional GP set up.
She was just hanging up her coat when Joey entered and stepped aside, revealing a diminutive figure in a worn coat. So, this was the mysterious Siobhán. Her head was dipped, and Con couldn’t see beyond the battered trucker cap.
“Come on in and let me take a look.”
The woman shuffled past and leaned on the edge of the bed. Con turned to Joey. “I’ll call for a water taxi when she’s done. Get home to your kid.” She gave them a hug, which they returned in true Joey fashion.
“Bye, Shiv. Call me if you need anything.” They waved and the woman in the surgery raised her head.
“Thank you. For your help.” Her head lowered again.
Joey turned at the door, frowning, and leaned in close. “Will you be okay? She seems a little hostile.”
“She wouldn’t be the first angry patient I’ve had in here. Leave her with me.” Con pushed them through the door and dragged it closed after them.
Siobhán had shrugged off her coat to expose a blood-soaked towel covering her arm. She pulled off her hat, revealing a pale face with sharp features and a not overly friendly expression. She was older than Con had expected, perhaps close to Joey’s age.
