“My God, look what you’ve done.” “So what’s the’difference?” KeOgh said. “You couldn’t look worse than you do.” “Fuck you.” Tully opened a cupboard one-handed, took out a bottle of Scotch, and pulled the cork with his teeth. He took -]ong swallow. “Now what?” “Now nothing,” Keogh told him. I’ll see you at Marsh End on Friday.” Tully looked astonished. “You ‘mean it’s still’on?” “Too late to get anyine else now,” Keogh told him. “This is what I call an I-knowthatyouknowthatI-know situation, so behave yourself and you’ll get this envelope back plus the other fifty thousand pounds when we reach Kilalla.” “Sod you!” Tully said.
“Yes, I know that,” Keogh told him. “But you will be at Marsh End on Friday.”
“Yes, damn you, I will.” “Good man yourself. Now you can escort me to the gangway and we’ll say goodnight.” The engines rumbled into life at that moment.
Tully led the way out, negotiating the ladder with difficulty, blood streaming from his ear. Only Dolan and the German, Muller, were working on deck. Muller was casting off and Dolan was about to haul in the gangway. He looked up in astonishment.
“Here, what’s going on?” “What’s going on is that you leave the gangway alone until I’ve gone down it,” Keogh said.
Dolan tried to rush him and Keogh wiped him across the face With the ‘Walther. Dolan staggered back with a cry of pain and Keogh went down the gangway. He turned at the bottom and smiled up at Tully.
“To our next merry meeting at Marsh End.” “Bastard!” Tully called.
Keogh laughed and walked away through the
JACK BARRY WAS SITTING AT THE DESK OF HIS study when the portable phone rang.
Keogh said, “It’s me.”
Barry said, “Where are you?” “Wapping High Street in old London Town.” “So what’s happening?” “You were right about the gold.” “Is that a fact? Tell me.” “It’s complicated, but here goes,” and Keogh went through the whole business step-by-step. WHEN HE WAS FINISHED, BARRY SAID, “CHRIST, but it’s the ruthless bastard you are. Will Tully play?”
“He will. A hundred-thousand-pound payday. He isn’t going to turn that down.”
“Right. Let’s say everything works. What happens on board the Irish Rose once you put to sea? They’ll try to take you.”
“Of course, but we’ll be. prepared.”
“You, Ryan, and his niece? God save us all.”
“Oh, He will, He will. What about the Kilalla end?”
“Oh, I think I can promise you an interesting reception.
A consitlerable contribution to IRA funds. It could win us the war.”
“Just think of that,” Keogh told him. “And it’s only taken seven hundred years.”
Barry laughed. “Go on,-ark hero, get on with it and keep in touch,” and he switched off his phone. IN THE PARLOUR AT THE WILLIAM & MARY,
Ryan and Kathleen sat at the table and listened to
what Keogh had to say.
Keogh helped himself to a
Bushmills on the side.
Bell said, “You shot him?”
“Only a little.” Keogh sipped his Bushmills. “The lobe of his right ear.”
Kathleen’s face was infused with excitement.
“That taught the bastard a lesson.”
Ryan said, “You think he’ll still come?”
“Of course he will. He wants his hundred thousand pounds.”
“But-he’ll try for more on the run to Ulster?”
“Yes, well, we know that, so we’ll just have to be prepared.”
“I suppose so.” Ryan took a deep breath. “We’ll catch the Glasgow Express’ in the morning. We’ll · leave at Carnforth and take the local train to Barrow.”
‘:Then what?”
“We’ll be met,” Ryan told him. “Something else I didn’t tell you. I have a.cousin who runs a sheep farm in the Lake District not far from Ravenglass.
But enough of that now. I’m for bed. We’ll need an early start.” As THE IRISH ROSE MOVED DOWN THE THAMES, Tully stood at the wheel, his head disembodied in the light of the binnacle. His fight ear was covered by a taped bandage. The door of the wheelhouse ophed and Dolan entered with a mug in one hand. put it down by the wheel.
“Tea,” he said. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Tully told him.
“So what about that little bastard?”
“Oh, when the right time comes I’m going to cut his balls off.” Tully reached for the mug and drank some tea. “There’s an old Sinn Fein saying, ‘Our day will come.’ Well, mine certainly will where Keogh’s concerned.”