Chapter 60
60
Joey and I returned to the car and, without consultation, drove back to town. The faint question that had been tap-tap-tapping in my head was finally audible: how had Joey got out to see Colm yesterday? Without a car? Without Rachel and Luke driving him?
Because he hadn’t been with Colm. That was how.
He had never actually said he was; I’d just assumed it because who else would he have been with?
Rose. It had been Rose. In the last week, something had sparked between them. Meanwhile I’d tried to hustle him into bed on Saturday night.
Had he rejected me because he had something going on with her? It had never occurred to me that she might be his type. But I was the one who wasn’t his type. The humiliation was scalding. Even more painful was the sense of loss.
But Joey owed me nothing. He could do whatever he liked with whoever he wanted. With or without Rose, he still didn’t want me.
And excruciating though this was, I couldn’t think about it now; more important things needed my attention.
I tried to focus. It seemed that whatever was going on with Burke and Kilcroney, the original idea had been Kilcroney’s. Between Rose’s account of events and Helen having traced that IP address, there was probably enough evidence to arrest him. Maybe even convict him?
But arresting him would implicate Hal Mahon. Plus, Kilcroney was the biggest employer in town. Everyone might not like the man but without him jobs would be lost. Even if he wasn’t convicted, the whole ugly mess would damage tourism and the festivals. Then the place really would turn against Brigit and Colm.
Each new realization felt like a slap in the face. I wasn’t built for this. Out of nowhere, beauty PR seemed heart-stoppingly appealing. The worst that could happen in that world was a bad reaction where a customer’s face started peeling off or perhaps stockholders might lose some money. But this sad, grubby business had life-changing, reputation-destroying, liberty-curtailing consequences.
Give me sparkles, all things pink and fluffy and a page of bullshit about ceramides. Please .
Back at the Broderick, Joey parked the car. “We go in and see Kilcroney?”
“Wait. I need to ask you something.”
“It was just a friendship. Well, the beginnings of one, so I thou—”
“Stop. Stay focused: what long-term outcome do you want here? Considering Brigit and Colm are depending on the goodwill of the town for their retreat to be a success? That’s what I wanted to ask.”
“Oh, I thought—”
I outlined my concerns about Kilcroney. “If he goes on trial, I’m guessing that Brigit and Colm will be blamed. Your consortium will get the very result I was hired to prevent.”
“By then the consortium won’t even exist. As soon as they discover the details of the fire, they’re gone. Not pouring anymore money into a problematic venture.”
“So Colm and Brigit are already done for?”
He paused. “There’s another option. But if I cut a deal with Kilcroney, am I ‘perverting the course of justice’?”
I did a quick google. “?‘Fabricating or destroying evidence, intimidating a juror or witness, intimidating a judge.’ That’s how you pervert the course of justice in Ireland. You’re in the clear.”
Joey’s eyes flickered as he thought this through. “How do we know that Kilcroney won’t do it again?”
“His remorse earlier looked genuine.”
After more silent contemplation, Joey said, “We’ll go in, have a chat, see what he offers. But we agree to nothing. Insist on a day or so to think about it. How does that sound?”
—
Courtney looked up from the reception desk, very alert. “He’s in the back office.” She beckoned us behind the counter.
“Courts.” I stopped and held her shoulders, then indicated to Joey that he should wait. “Are you okay? Did—”
“—he find out? Yep. Told me to get out. So myself and Teagan are staying with Grinner for a few days. The two little fuckers stayed with Burke.”
“And Ben?”
“Is ‘giving me space.’?”
This wasn’t ideal. But maybe the sleepover with Ben had been the necessary catalyst to eject Courtney from her marriage?
“At the moment, though, there’s more important stuff going on.” Courtney nodded at Kilcroney’s door.
In his office, Kilcroney was alone, at a desk, looking broken. “Rose called me,” he blurted. “Lookit, here’s the whole story.” Tripping over his words, he said, “When the building began below at Kearney’s, I saw an opportunity with Rose’s place. If it looked like there was local opposition to Kearney’s, the money men would pull out, so my project wouldn’t have competition.” Then he stopped. After several breaths, he said, his voice low, “I didn’t know the Kearneys would be financially ruined. I’m deeply ashamed and that’s the God’s honest.”
“But you don’t have enough money to do the job,” Joey said.
“I was hoping maybe the investors might switch to me and Rose when Kearney’s Farm went wallop.”
“ Jesus Christ. ” Joey’s scorn could have burnt holes in metal.
“I’ve digital evidence to link you to the fire,” I said to Kilcroney. “A private detective has found that the email threatening to burn the farm was sent from your home.”
“S-sorry.” He looked green.
My phone started ringing. Speak of the devil—it was Helen.
“I’ve more news,” she said.
“I’m putting you on speaker.”
“?‘Local Hero’? The IP address is registered to the home of Mary and Thornton Heffer, Shore Road, Maumtully.”
The crime-writing couple. Mary’s discomfort around me at Ben’s dinner party suddenly made sense.
“Thanks, Helen. I know them.”
After she’d hung up, I asked Kilcroney, “Do I need to talk to Mary and Thornton?”
Miserably he shook his head. “I paid them to post those things. I take full responsibility for every part of this.”
“ Every part of it?” Joey asked. “So you actually set the cottages on fire? And wrecked Mammy Walsh’s car?”
“I did.” Steadily he met Joey’s gaze.
No one had seen this coming.
“…Many locals think it was another individual,” Joey said.
“It was me. Only me. Nobody else.”
“Arson is a serious crime,” Joey pressed. “Carries a lengthy prison sentence.”
“I know. I’m guilty.”
Well, that had thrown me. “What’s the story with you and Nicolas Burke?” I asked.
“Twenty years ago I gave him a loan to buy his house.”
“Which he repaid?”
Kilcroney shook his head.
“Okay, so a charge of bribery is added to the list.” Although I wasn’t sure if it counted as bribery if the money had been given so long ago. “Handy to have a local guard in your pocket, to do your dirty work and look the other way when you break the law. Who else knew what you were up to?”
“They’re in no way to blame but I got Tipper, Declan Erskine and Vazey to steal the stuff, move their machinery and start work on Rose’s place last Monday. They only did it because I promised them the contract. The responsibility is mine and mine alone.”
Joey took a breath. “We’re not committing to anything. But what’s your offer?”
Kilcroney’s eyes sparked with desperate hope. “Immediately making good all the damage out at Kearney’s.” He stumbled over his words. “Paying compensation to them. Bringing in extra men to make up for the time lost. Replacing Mrs Walsh’s car.”
“How would you get funds?”
“That second mortgage I took out on this place? I don’t need the money now my mad skite with Rose isn’t happening. Or I could sell the Big Blue—people are always wanting to buy it.”
“Obviously we can go straight to the law with our evidence,” Joey said. “And that’s game over for you. If —and it’s an if—we decided to give you a chance, what’s the guarantee you won’t do it again?”
“I’ve nothing like enough money to do it properly,” he stammered. “I was in way over my head. It’s all over, the whole project, such as it was. I swear to you. You can trust me.”
“I don’t trust anyone,” Joey said.
I flinched.
“Tell me about Rose. Whose idea was it?”
“Was what?”
“Her giving me her sad story—how hard she worked, what a struggle it all was.”
“…We knew you had connections,” Kilcroney blustered. “With investors and that. But there was no plan to…I don’t know what you’re getting at. It’s true what Rose said: it is a struggle for her. She was just being friendly, is my guess.”
Joey stood up. “We’ll be in touch tomorrow.”
Back in the lobby, he said to me, “We need to talk to Colm.”
“And we should check out of here. I’ll be down with my stuff in ten minutes.”