“Oi, fish boy!”
Calum turned and grinned. “Finn,” he greeted, smirking as his one time nemesis came up to him, the pretty ginger-haired Jenny on his arm.
Finn Flanigan, once Calum’s arch-rival and now his best friend, gave the other boy a friendly punch on the arm. “How goes the fishing?” he teased.
“It goes well enough,” Calum said, his grin getting perhaps just a bit cheeky. And for good reason. His uncle Fergus ran a highly successful squid-fishing business in Galway Bay, and every afternoon he was able, Calum would go and join him. For the squid became calamari, and since Calum Murray’s name had more than a passing resemblance to squid dishes, he’d figured it was a good time as any to start capitalising on his mother’s quirky naming convention.
Now nineteen, Calum still remained snub-nosed and short, but his skin was tanned, and his red hair had gained a golden tint from all the hours he spent in the sun. Though he’d never win any medals for brawn, his was a wiry strength, and he was well able to account for himself whenever his father started beating on his mother - something which was happening less and less now that Calum was stepping in. Barry Murray now spent more time at the pub than ever, and his drunken battering rages were growing less frequent now that he was sleeping with the owner’s daughter. Calum knew his mother was secretly relieved, so he kept his mouth shut and devoted himself to his squidding.
Now he was co-captain of his uncle’s vessel, and Fergus had started talking about turning the squidding over to his nephew full time. His son Jesse had expressed an interest in flowers rather than fishing, much to his father's mingled chagrin and amusement - Calum, therefore, was a gift from God.
But one thing stood in Fergus’s way - Barry. The two brothers had never gotten along after Fergus had married the girl Barry had wanted. It had should have been a relatively small quarrel, but Barry had taken this supposed slight to heart. His wild temper had blazed out for the first time that day, and it had taken all the grown Murray men to subdue him. Fergus had not spoken to his brother since, and the small disagreement had turned into a full-blown family feud. And from that day on, none of Barry’s family ever spoke to a member of Fergus’s family, on pain of death from the "slighted" younger brother.
So it was a bitter blow to Barry’s touchy pride when Fergus had gotten in touch with Calum against his father’s wishes. Had Fergus not grown so serious about making Calum the senior partner in his business, Barry would have dismissed the matter. But when Calum had made the mistake of mentioning his potential career change to his mother, all hell had broken loose. Now Barry was on a determined and ruthless mission to get Calum sent away by all means necessary. Never mind that Calum was nineteen and a man in his own right - he was still a boy in his father’s eyes.
“Oi, earth to Calum!”
Calum snapped himself out of his reverie and gave Finn what he hoped was a reassuring smile. “I’m grand,” he promised. He took a deep breath. “Harvesting’s coming on quick, isn’t it?”
“Aye,” Finn said, smiling cheekily at his lover. “I’ve been after doing a bit of harvesting meself, if you catch my drift.” Jenny blushed redder than her hair. Her skin was now free of the freckles that had plagued her in childhood, and she had a pertness that was very attractive. Finn and Calum had both noticed it at the same time, but Calum had outgrown his childish infatuation, allowing Finn to court Jenny, who had reciprocated his efforts wholeheartedly. Now they were officially “walking out”, to the delight of Finn’s father and the horror of Jenny’s mother. For Jenny was a Byrne, and the Byrnes were only second in prestige to the Murrays. The courtship therefore had been met with immense resistance from Roisin Byrne, but Jenny had put her foot down, and the romance was grudgingly permitted - for now, so said the Lady Roisin.
“Oh ho!” Calum hooted. “How does the Lady Roisin fare?”
“Not well,” Jenny admitted, and Calum’s face darkened when he saw the faint trace of a bruise on her fair skin. Finn looked ready to do murder, and Calum decided it was time to take matters into his own hands, not just for Finn and Jenny, but for himself.
“Me Aunty Grainne’s got a lovely old house in Carrickfergus,” he said. “She’s got the place all done up nice, but no one to live there. If you and Jenny are willing, I can talk to me aunty and get us all set up there. Uncle Fergus is ready to be turning the business over to me any day now, and it's only 11 miles or so from Belfast. I can squid just as easily from there as from here, and Uncle Fergus won't mind. If you're willing, I can set you two up, and you can be lord and lady of the manor while I bring in the income to keep us all going. ”
Finn’s eyes widened. “We accept, and gladly,” he said, near to tears at this generous offer. “It’s glad we are you’ve a level head on your shoulders. Roisin’s mad enough to eat stones, and if she finds out Jenny’s pregnant, God knows what she’ll do.”
“She’ll probably send me away,” Jenny added, tears of sorrow in her eyes, for she loved her mother dearly, despite Roisin’s controlling nature. “She hates Finn, and she almost killed me when she found out we were sleeping together.”
“Then quick it is we must get this house,” Calum decided. “I’ll speak to Aunty Grainne tonight and get it all squared away.”
His father was going to be furious, he reflected. But he no longer gave a shite. His life was his, not his father’s. And he was going to make something of himself. No matter the cost, he would rise above the old, outdated feud Barry Murray continued to nurse in his old age.
And all he had to do was take charge of his future.
But then, he’d been doing that ever since his fateful first day in school nine years ago.
ns 15.158.61.5da2
