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‘I’m not hungry. And to be quite honest, I’m sick of stew.’ Aileen picked up her mother’s art deco vase from the centre of the table and placed it back on the mantle where it had been before. Then she turned towards her aunt. ‘What do you think you’re doing, touching my mother’s things?’

  Her aunt grimaced. ‘Petulant young hussy! Jonny, are you going to let her speak to me like that?’

  Her father shifted in his chair. ‘She’s upset, Lizzy. Give it time.’

  ‘Did you agree to this, Da?’ Aileen pointed towards the sofa.

  ‘Of course he did. You don’t think I would have done it otherwise.’

  ‘It’s just a change, Aileen. Lizzy thinks it helps to move things around a bit.’

  ‘Oh, she does, does she?’ Aileen cried. ‘I don’t want Ma’s things moved. She has no right to touch them.’ Turning, she left the room.

  It wasn’t yet six o’clock when Aileen arrived outside Brogans butcher’s shop. Dermot had just finished serving a customer, so it was easy for her to catch his eye.

  Dermot’s father shook his head. ‘Go on,’ he said. ‘Clean yourself up first, that young woman won’t wait around forever.’

  ‘Gizza minute!’ Dermot winked, whipped off his apron, and went through to the house.

  ‘How are yea coping, love?’ Mr Brogan asked.

  She shrugged. ‘It’ll take time.’ She heard a tap running out the back. ‘I’m sorry to call him away so early.’

  ‘Ah, sure, we’re just about shutting up now, love, and it’ll get him out from under me feet.’ He chuckled. Dermot’s father was a cheery soul, not unlike his son—a good sort—and although she had only been seeing Dermot a few weeks, she liked his family.

  ‘Right, I’m all yours.’ Dermot was back, running a comb through his black hair, and looking smart in a grey jacket.

  He placed his arm around her shoulder as they walked down the street. Most of the shops were closing and putting up shutters, but the street was cluttered with buses, lorries, trucks and bicycles, all making their way towards O’Connell Street.

  ‘I know it’s early, Dermot, but I had to get out. Aunt Lizzy is driving me crazy. I don’t know how much longer I can put up with her.’

  ‘Ah, sure don’t let her get to you, Aileen. You’ll get wrinkles and spoil your lovely face.’

  Her mother had once told her she had a face like a china doll. Aileen didn’t think that. Lately, she couldn’t get any colour into her cheeks.

  ‘What’s your da doing about your aunt?’

  She shook her head. ‘He doesn’t appear to care. Most of the time he’s in a world of his own.’

  ‘Look, I haven’t eaten, and I’m not dressed to take you anywhere posh.’ He smiled.

  ‘Will the café across in O’Connell Street be okay? They’ll do us egg and chips.’ They paused for traffic and then hurried across the busy street.

  ‘Anywhere is preferable to being at home right now. I don’t know what I’ll do if she doesn’t go home soon, I…’ She felt bad to put all this on Dermot, but she had no-one else to talk to.

  ‘Here we are.’ He held open the door. ‘You’ll feel better once you’ve had something to eat.’ Dermot had a way of making her feel like she wasn’t alone, and she was grateful for his company.

  ‘Here, sit down.’ He pulled out a wooden chair with a red plastic seat. ‘Egg and chips twice,’ he said, removing his jacket. ‘Is that Okay for you, Aileen?’

  She nodded. ‘I couldn’t stomach stew three days in a row.’

  ‘I could always tell her we’ve run out of stewing beef next time she comes in.’ He walked towards the jukebox in the corner and slotted in the coins. A burst of the Everly Brothers’ Wake Up Little Susie brought a smile to Aileen’s face.

  The girl brought their food, along with a plate of bread and butter and a pot of tea. Aileen poured, then milked and sugared the drinks while Dermot tucked in. He stirred his tea and leant back in his chair.

  ‘I’m sorry about your Aunt Lizzy, Aileen. You know, we couldn’t manage without the three of us. Ma never comes into the shop; she hates the sight of blood. She sticks to the house cooking and cleaning. We employ a boy to help with deliveries on Saturdays.’

  He put down his knife and fork and looked up at her. ‘I’m sure Mr Maguire will get back into things soon. Your mother’s death hit him hard.’

  ‘I know.’ She glanced down at her plate. ‘But he knows the shop is our bread and butter.’

  ‘Perhaps that’s why he wants your aunt to stay on, you know, to help. You can’t do everything, Aileen.’

  She prodded a chunky chip with her fork and dipped it into the centre of the egg. The bright yellow yolk ran out over the chip, and she popped it into her mouth. ‘I’d work my fingers to the bone if it meant getting rid of her.’

  ‘That bad, eh?’ He fondled his ear. ‘What's happening with your secretarial course? You were quite keen a few weeks back.’ He began eating again, mopping his plate with bread.

  ‘Well, that was before, you know, Ma’s heart started playing her up.’ She placed her knife and fork together on her plate and bit her lip.

  Dermot rummaged in his pockets and paid the bill. ‘Come on, let’s take a walk.’

  They ambled happily arm-in-arm. City lights were coming on, but the town was quiet for a Tuesday. ‘O’Connell Street’s not the same without Nelson’s Pillar. I still can’t believe it’s gone.’

  ‘It was criminal. Now the dust has settled, I wonder what they will replace it with? Whatever it is, it won’t be the same,’ Aileen concluded.

  Dermot took her hand. ‘Look, Aileen, if you’re doing nothing Friday night, we could go to a late night showing at the Adelphia, if you want?’

  ‘Yes, I’d like that.’ Anything to keep her out of the house and away from her aunt was agreeable.

  That night, outside in the shop doorway, Dermot kissed her for the first time. It was so unexpected it caught her breath. He drew her close and looked into her eyes then gently pressed his lips to hers. Surprised at how it made her feel, she relaxed against him. He kissed her again, more passionately. She drew back, her face flushed.

  ‘I’ve wanted to do that for a long time,’ Dermot said.

  Aileen smiled. It felt good to have someone care about her. Her life had become lonely since her ma’s death.

  When Aileen went inside, the place was in darkness, so she switched on the kitchen light. Her father had gone to his bed. Her aunt was asleep in the armchair, her hand around the neck of a beer bottle. The fire was out.

  The room had been rearranged back to how it was before. Aileen switched off the light and went to her room.

  She lay awake for some time, going over things in her head—her ma’s last wish, and the lovely warm feeling she had experienced when Dermot kissed her.

  Chapter Four

  The following morning, her father was in the bathroom shaving with the door open when Aileen walked through to the kitchen. ‘You’re up early, Da. Are you going somewhere?’

  He moved the razor away from his face and glanced round. ‘I’m going to the wholesaler’s, love.’

  Aileen smiled. ‘Oh, great, Da, but I’ve got a few bits to add.’

  In the kitchen, Lizzy was stirring a pan of thick porridge. Her father never ate porridge; well, not in the middle of summer. He usually settled for a boiled egg with toast, or cereal. But since her aunt arrived, she had cooked his breakfast, so Aileen said nothing.

  She could feel Lizzy’s eyes boring into the back of her head as she made herself some toast and a mug of coffee. Her father came in, sat dow, and began to drink his tea, which was already poured for him.

  ‘Are you sure you’ll be all right, Da? I’ll come with you.’

  ‘No, I’ll be grand.’

  Aileen, who had always gone with him whenever she could, felt the blow of his refusal like a stab of pain. Unaware she was still in her dressing gown, she went downstairs to the shop and found the part-time woman searching through the needle
drawer. ‘We’re completely out of size nine and ten knitting pins,’ she sighed.

  Aileen jotted it down, adding nylon stockings and knitting wool. ‘Anything else?’

  The woman closed the drawer. ‘You’ve seen my list. I guess it’s almost everything in the shop. When are you going?’

  ‘This morning.’

  ‘Well, you had better get dressed then.’

  The day was going from bad to worse. When she handed her da the list, he raised his eyebrows. ‘What’s wrong, Da?’

  He shook his head. ‘Nothing.’

  ‘I’ll get dressed. I’m coming with you.’

  ‘Haven’t I told you? I’ll be fine.’

  Aileen swallowed her annoyance. She longed to be alone with him to chat, but it was plain he didn’t want her with him. She made herself a fresh coffee and took it to her room and got dressed. A mumbling of voices rose from the kitchen, and shortly afterwards she heard the shop door slam.

  She held back the net curtain just in time to see her aunt get into the passenger side of her father’s red van. Was he taking her to the wholesaler with him? Aileen’s heart raced.

  She hurried down to the kitchen. Her aunt’s enormous brown case, which had dominated the corner of the kitchen for weeks, was no longer there. ‘Thank God,’ Aileen murmured, sinking into her da’s armchair. The woman had begun to dominate their lives.

  Washing up, she threw away the remains of her aunt’s thick porridge then she made herself a fresh cup of coffee and enjoyed a bowl of cornflakes. She looked around at her mother’s knick-knacks, familiar to her all her life; the home which her mother had made comfortable for the three of them. Without her, everything had changed. But she was grateful that her father had, at last, seen sense and asked her aunt to leave. It would make all that had happened bearable.

  The heat of the sun had gone, and she was glad of the cooler weather. The shop was quiet most of the morning, and at one point the part-time woman turned to Aileen, a worried expression on her face.

  ‘Sure, we’re losing customers every day. At this rate, Mr Maguire won’t be able to afford to keep me on.’

  ‘Don’t be silly. Things will pick up once we get stocked up again.’

  The woman shrugged then tried to look busy moving stock around. If she was honest, working in the drapery shop wasn’t what Aileen had envisaged for herself as a career. Yet, if it meant choosing between her career and her da, she knew where her loyalties lay.

  Her father usually had his lunch out when he went to the wholesalers and returned just after one o’clock. Aileen had the door propped ope, waiting to help him carry in the boxes. Tentatively, she glanced into the passenger seat. There was no Aunt Lizzy, and she couldn’t help smiling.

  ‘Have you taken Aunt Lizzy to the bus, Da?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘I can’t say I’m sorry she’s gone. We’ll be all right, so we will.’

  He passed her a small box of buttons and picked up the other one himself.

  ‘Is that it?’ She glanced back into the van. ‘Where’s the rest of the stuff, Da?’

  ‘There’s enough here to be going on with.’

  ‘You’ve got to be codding me, Da?’ She gave a little chuckle. ‘These will be gone in a few days. What about the corsets, measuring tapes, wool, and nylon stockings? All the other stuff on the list, didn’t you take it with you?’

  ‘I didn’t need to, Aileen.’

  ‘But, why?’

  ‘For the love o’ God! Will you leave me be?’ He turned to the woman who was polishing the counter. ‘I’m sorry, but I have to let you go. Take what you’re owed.’

  Aileen glared after him as he marched upstairs. ‘Da!’

  She turned to face the woman. ‘Look, Eunice. He’s not himself.’

  ‘Ah, don’t worry about it. I was half expecting it. It’s not the same here without Mrs Maguire. She’d never treat an employee like that.’ The woman opened the till and took out some money and showed it to Aileen. ‘You might want to make a note.’ Then she grabbed her coat and left.

  Bewildered, Aileen sat down. Were things that bad? Her stomach tight from worry, she began to put the cards of buttons into the empty boxes on the shelf. She opened the other one with zips, fasteners, and safety pins, and put them away. She stayed in the shop for an hour, and not one person stepped through the door. Furious, she walked across, pulled down the shutter and locked the door.

  Upstairs, her father glanced at his watch.

  ‘What’s the point, Da? All our customers have gone elsewhere. And can you blame them? What’s going on? I thought you were getting back into things.’

  ‘Yes, well, I’m doing my best.’ He cleared his throat. ‘Sit down, Aileen. I want to talk to you.’

  She perched on a kitchen chair, trying to hide her frustration. He wanted to talk. He took off his tie and loosened his collar then removed his jacket and hung it over a chair.

  ‘Is there something you want to tell me, Da?’ Aileen had an uneasy feeling in her stomach as she leant her elbows on the kitchen table.

  ‘It’s about your Aunt Lizzy.’

  ‘What about her? She’s gone now.’

  ‘Well, that’s not quite true, because I’ve asked her to come and live here.’

  ‘You’ve done what?’ Aileen was on her feet. ‘You can’t be serious, Da!’

  ‘Will yea sit down and listen!’

  She sat down and placed her head in her hands.

  Her father leaned forward in his chair. ‘We had a long talk last night while you were out. We want you to go back to your secretarial course. It’s what your mother wanted. Lizzy can help me in the shop.’

  Aileen looked up. ‘What shop? We haven’t got one anymore. And what do you mean, we talked it over? She knows nothing about me, or what I want.’ Furious with her da for letting the woman manipulate him again, she said, ‘She’ll take you for every penny, Da.’ She shook her head. ‘And me ma only weeks gone.’

  Jonny Maguire stood up. ‘It’s not like that. I loved your mother.’

  Distraught, Aileen linked and unlinked her fingers. ‘How could you, Da?’

  ‘You wouldn’t understand.’ He ran his hands over his face. ‘How long will it be before you and that butcher lad, Dermot, go off? You won’t think about me then.’ He pushed up his shirtsleeves, revealing bony elbows.

  Aileen sighed. ‘Dermot and I are just friends. I’m not thinking of getting married for a long time yet.’ She pushed the chair in under the table and folded her arms. ‘I would have looked after you.’

  ‘Aye! That’s as might be, but I’m still a young man.’

  ‘But Ma’s sister, Da. It’s not right.’

  ‘What are you talking about? We’re not doing anything wrong. Lizzy is family! And I’ll thank you to show her some courtesy. While you’re under my roof, I make the rules. She’s coming back on Monday.’

  ‘On Monday!’ Aileen gasped. ‘Why are you doing this, Da? Why?’

  He sighed. ‘She’s lonely, and so am I. She’ll take the spare room for now.’ He placed his hand on Aileen’s shoulder. ‘Give her a chance, eh?’

  Speechless, Aileen shrugged him off. Her father was never one to make big decisions on his own. He had always consulted her mother about everything. It was as if her aunt had completely turned his head.

  ‘Well, if she’s coming back, Da, I can’t stay.’

  ‘Aileen!’ He reached out to her, but she turned her back and walked away.

  He had always been a doting father. Now he appeared distant, uncaring of her feelings. And to betray her beloved mother so soon after her death was unforgivable. The admiration Aileen had always felt towards him dwindled.

  Chapter Five

  It was Friday afternoon, and Aileen had no idea if her father expected her to open the shop again today, but she didn’t care. She had the whole weekend before her aunt returned, and she wasn’t going to waste her time in a shop with no stock. She had her own plans and, for better or worse, she was de
termined to carry them out.

  The church bells tolled three o’clock when she heard her father go out. In the kitchen, she found a note saying he had gone to the barber’s, and he wouldn’t want any tea. Having his hair cut made no difference to Aileen now; she knew who he wanted to impress. He had left her money for groceries, something he had always done when her mother was alive, so she headed out to the shops for the essentials they needed.

  Later, she put the shopping away and went for a bath then got ready to meet Dermot. She was glad she had agreed to go with him to a late night film.

  When he picked her up, she thought he looked good in a grey suit, white shirt, and one of those skinny ties that were all the rage. She had washed and curled her long, blonde hair, and wore a blue summer dress and white, sling-back, high heels. She carried a white cardigan across her arm.

  ‘You look lovely,’ he said. ‘How was your day?’

  ‘Not good, Dermot, but I don’t want to spoil our evening talking about Lizzy.’ Smiling up at him, she took his arm as they walked away from the shop.

  When they arrived in the city, a queue had already formed outside the box office, the crowd kept back by a crimson rope slung between two brass poles. A group of four lads who stood in front of Aileen and Dermot were increasingly impatient, and starting to annoy a number of people by pushing each other and swearing.

  The attendant walked down the line. ‘Hey, you lot. Curb your behaviour or leave the queue.’

  Howling with laughter, one of them stuck a finger up at the attendant and they swaggered off. Excitement fluttered along the line, and everyone moved along four places. When the barrier came down, and they finally got through, Dermot purchased two tickets from a woman with red-painted fingernails, and they stepped inside.

  Aileen felt her heels sink into the rich patterned carpet on the way to the sweet counter. After selecting bonbons and liquorice allsorts—her favourites—from the tall sweet jars, they went inside. The programme had just started with the Pathé News, and the usherette showing them to their seats shone her torch on two plush velvet seats in the middle of a row. Aileen felt disappointed they had missed out on the back row, where she was hoping Dermot might put his arm around her. She felt in need of a hug tonight.