CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“Below the west stair, through the priest hole, wait for the second bell, bring the key with the hollow stem,” read Julia. She turned to stare at Rose and frowned. “Just what is a priest hole?”
Rose laughed at the young woman and rubbed her back as they sat on the west stairs.
“Ireland was almost entirely Catholic other than the north. England and Wales hunted them during a time when practicing the Catholic faith or harboring a priest was a crime punishable by torture and execution.
“These spaces were built into thick walls, underneath floorboards, behind oak wall paneling, in attics, or inside chimney flues and staircases.
Many of the most ingenious hides were constructed by a devout lay brother who was martyred for protecting priests.
He was so skilled that some of these spaces remain undiscovered even today.
Like this one. I believe we will be the first ones to see it.
“The hiding spots are often tiny, cramped, and lack proper ventilation. In some cases, priests were forced to stay in them for days during intense searches, occasionally dying of starvation or suffocation.”
Her delicate hands moved over the stone wall, feeling, pressing, feeling, pressing.
“In fact,” she smiled pressing hard on the wall, “sometimes they were made to look like one thing, for instance stone, and in fact they were something else. Like wood.”
The wooden portion of the wall, plastered and painted to look like the massive blocks of stone in the rest of the stairway, gave way and opened easily for the two women.
“Wait,” said Julia holding her arm. “Let me text the guys so they know where we are if this shuts on us.”
“Verra smart,” she said with a laugh. Julia texted the entire group and they all sent back a thumbs up. Conor was shocked.
“A fecking priest hole? I never would have known!”
“Well, at least you’ve found something that Conor knew nothing about,” smirked Rose.
“He’s a wonderful man,” smiled Julia. “Very handsome for his age, don’t you think?”
“Lass, if you’re trying to convince me of the good qualities of Conor Laughlin, you’re a wee late. I’ve been single my entire life because the only man I ever loved married another woman. A good woman, by the way. She was taken too soon from him. Nevertheless, I sat on the sidelines.
“His sweet son, Sean, he would come and see me often, talk to me, read with me. He always made sure I was nearby. I appreciated that more than he’ll ever know.”
“He gave you a rousing vote of approval to his father,” laughed Julia. Rose laughed with her, nodding.
“Well, I believe all things happen in their time. I know the Laughlin’s have sometimes been seen as fierce, bullies, maybe even Irish mafia. I’ve never seen that side of them. They’ve helped more neighbors than I can count and they’ve always been there for me and my family.”
“Same,” nodded Julia. “They were great friends to one of my dearest friends, Katarina English. She’s an attorney on our team back home.”
“Look,” whispered Rose as she pushed the door completely open, shining the flashlight into the room. She stepped inside, feeling along the wall, hoping for a light switch but there was none. Instead they lit the two candles, dusty but still viable, that were on the shelf.
Along one wall was a narrow wooden bed with a dusty mattress and cover. It looked as though the mice had enjoyed some time here at one point. There was a shelf with a number of books and a nightstand that had a pitcher and cup waiting for its owner.
“This is incredible,” whispered Julia. “I’ve never seen anything like this. It looks like it could have been a child’s playroom at some point or maybe a maid’s room.”
“Are you feelin’ any ghosties?” asked Rose.
“None other than those that should be here,” she smiled. Julia ran her fingers along the bindings of the old leather books.
The first was a bible. She opened it, fanning the pages to be certain she didn’t miss anything. The next four were books about wildlife, plants, and trees. She fanned those as well, finding nothing except pressed flowers between the pages.
“I’m not finding anything,” said Rose lifting the mattress one more time just to be sure her eyesight hadn’t fooled her.
“Wait,” said Julia looking at the bed as she lifted the mattress. “What’s that?”
“What’s what?” asked Rose. Julia pointed just below the bed seeing another book. “It looks like a bible. Not unusual considering the room we’re in.”
“But there’s already a bible on the shelf. Why have two? Who would have two? Those books were expensive. No priest could afford two of such fine quality.” Julia knelt beside the bed, pulling the leather-bound bible from its hiding place. Standing, she thumbed through the pages and stopped.
Pulling out a folded piece of paper, she opened it and stared at the drawing.
“Julia?” whispered Rose. “Julia, what have you found?”
“I think we need to speak with the men.”