Total pages in book: 134
Estimated words: 126485 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 632(@200wpm)___ 506(@250wpm)___ 422(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 126485 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 632(@200wpm)___ 506(@250wpm)___ 422(@300wpm)
“They’re alive?”
Mum closed her eyes briefly. “I don’t know. I ceased all contact with them and Gulliver over a decade ago.”
I was stunned. I couldn’t believe Mum had lied about something that concerned me. She’d kept my grandparents from me!
“Your uncle has always had connections with the mob. When he moved to the States, he immediately started working with the Irish mob there, becoming their confessor.”
Mum paused, looking increasingly uncomfortable. “You and your sister were born while I still lived in the States. I only moved back to Ireland when you were ten months old.”
I blinked. “Please don’t tell me my father was part of the Irish mob.”
Mum chuckled. “He was just an everyday thug who wished he were part of the Irish mafia.” Mum paused, and I could tell she was keeping things from me again. “But due to your uncle’s connection, I came into contact with the Devaney clan on occasion, and trust me, you don’t want to get involved with them. Don’t ask them for money or help. No matter what your uncle says, stay away from them. They might seem like the quickest or easiest solution to finding your sister, but trust me, the longer way is the only valid option.”
I nodded, not so much because I intended to give Mum the promise she wanted, more to indicate I was listening. I had no intention of asking any shady figures for help, but if the Devaneys were the only way to Imogen …
The name Devaney was infamous in Dublin. Now Mum’s insistence about never getting close to any of Devaney’s men made even more sense. I wasn’t really surprised that the name carried power in New York as well.
“Did you and Uncle Gulliver fight because he was working with the mob?”
Mum huffed. “Working with those monsters, your uncle forgives the unforgivable on a daily basis, but he couldn’t forgive me for getting pregnant out of wedlock.”
I’d heard the story before. Mum’s resentment of Gulliver had only grown as we struggled to keep our heads afloat in Dublin. He wasn’t rich but had far more money than us, and most priests, which could now be explained from his association with the Devaneys.
These new discoveries did nothing to decrease my worries. If someone promised Imogen a quick way to fame, even if it was a Devaney, she’d take it.
The River Liffey rushed beneath my feet as I stood on the Ha’penny Bridge. The Liffey was a constant in my life, something that never changed. Whenever I came here, it’s rippling soothed whatever worries plagued me.
I loved my hometown, everything from its cobblestone streets to the sound of Irish folk music carrying from the pubs out onto the streets. I would miss it, even the loud tourists and the stench of puke and spilled beer in every nook and cranny in the Temple Bar neighborhood.
Closing my eyes, I took another deep breath. Unlike Imogen, I never wanted to leave our hometown behind, at least not for more than a short vacation, but she wanted to see the world, always on the lookout for something bigger and better. Now, I was following her to the big city that held nothing I wanted, to save her, possibly from a fate she didn’t even want saving from.
I’d gathered most of the spare money I’d earned in the last two years waiting tables at Merchant’s Arch for a one-way ticket to the States. Whatever remained would have to buy me a return ticket. If I didn’t find a job quickly, I didn’t have a single penny for a hotel or hostel.
If Uncle Gulliver didn’t take me in, I’d be stranded on the street. Mum might not like it, but he was my best option, mob confessor or not.
I finally packed my suitcase the evening before I was set to leave for the States. I’d pushed it off until then because I foolishly hoped that Imogen would call or even appear on our doorstep but of course she didn’t.
My flight was leaving in the morning so I needed to get everything done. The door creaked. I turned to find Finn poking his blond head in. He looked at the suitcase with trepidation. “Hey, what’s up? Do you want me to put on another episode of Pepper Pig for you?”
Mum had left for work two hours ago and I had no other option than to sit Finn in front of the TV so I could get some work done. He gave a tiny shake of his head and kept staring down at my suitcase, which was piled messily with clothes. I still intended to fold them and sort them into categories, but would probably just end up throwing the suitcase shut to be done with it.
“W-w-w-w—w-w-will you co-co-come b-b-b-b-back to us?” Finn whispered. That he stuttered in my presence showed how much this topic bothered him.