Page 34 of The Widow’s Irish Secret (Magnolia Manor #4)

‘Well,’ Barbara Delaney continued, ‘it’s an interesting find and a very beautiful painting. But we’d have to see it in real life, of course, and do some tests before we can say who painted it and when.’

‘I understand,’ Tricia said. ‘But maybe you could tell me if you think it could be a work by Kieran O’Grady. I mean, if you think it’s in the same style.’

‘I can’t tell you much before I’ve seen it,’ Barbara said. ‘But…’

‘But?’ Tricia urged.

‘Well, just between you and me, it looks very similar to some of his portraits. That was my take on it anyway. But then it could be a copy or someone trying to paint like him. We have to take a little sample of the paint and the canvas to establish when it was done. So, maybe I could come down to see it?’

‘Of course you can,’ Tricia almost shouted. ‘That would be absolutely fine. And you can stay with me if you need to spend the night.’

‘That’s very generous, but I’ll be fine in a nearby B&B or a small hotel somewhere in the area,’ Barbara said.

‘That’s fine. Could you tell me,’ Tricia continued, ‘if you know anything about Kieran O’Grady? I mean, anything that’s not on the very limited biographies online.’

‘I will look up what we have here in the gallery,’ Barbara promised. ‘All I know so far is that he was from Tralee. Isn’t that right?’

‘Yes, but we think he might have been born here near Dingle, in the cottage where I live and then he might have moved when he…’ Tricia stopped. ‘Oh, it’s a bit complicated. I can explain better when we meet.’

‘Yes,’ Barbara agreed. ‘That seems like a good plan.’

‘When can you come?’ Tricia asked.

‘Hold on. I’ll check my diary,’ Barbara said. ‘How about… the end of next week? I’ll bring my assistant who is also an expert of the Impressionists.’

‘Brilliant,’ Tricia said. ‘Give me a call when you arrive and I’ll tell you how to get here. We’re only a few minutes’ drive from Dingle town.’

‘I know where you are,’ Barbara said. ‘It’s easy to find on Google Maps. You’re in a cottage in the grounds of Magnolia Manor, as far as I could gather.’

‘Exactly.’ Tricia thought for a moment. ‘Actually, my daughter Rose will be in Dublin from tomorrow. She’ll be doing some research into Kieran O’Grady and his life to find out more about him. Maybe you could tell me where she should look?’

‘I’ll have a look myself here at the gallery,’ Barbara promised.

‘But she might have better luck at Dublin Castle and maybe Trinity. They could possibly help her. And you could take a look at parish records in Tralee or even in Dingle town. That’s all I can think of at the moment.

But we’ll know more when we’ve studied that painting, of course. ’

‘Thank you for the tips,’ Tricia said. ‘I didn’t think of looking at this end.’

‘We’ll see what we come up with,’ Barbara replied. ‘I’m looking forward to meeting you next week. Hopefully we’ll know a bit more then.’

‘I’ll do my best,’ Tricia said. ‘Thanks for calling. See you next week. Bye, Barbara.’

Barbara said goodbye and hung up while Tricia looked around for the kitten.

She found him on the floor cleaning his face.

She smiled and scooped him up and then walked into the kitchen to feed him and make some supper for herself.

The conversation with Barbara had been interesting.

Next week might prove to be very exciting.

But first, she had her new kitten and her little granddaughters to see to.

The next few days would be eventful to say the least.

‘Harry,’ Naomi said. ‘Like Harry Potter.’

‘I don’t like it,’ Sophie argued, scowling at her cousin. ‘I want to call him Wolfgang. That’s my daddy’s middle name.’

‘No,’ Naomi said. ‘That doesn’t suit a cat. We have to call him something better than a dad’s name. Something like…’ She paused, looking thoughtful. Then she shook her head and looked at Tricia. ‘What do you think, Granny?’

‘I think you should be the ones to choose.’ Tricia topped up Naomi’s glass.

They were sitting at the kitchen table having milk and cookies while the kitten played with a felt mouse Tricia had bought for him.

It was mid-morning and Lily and Rose had just dropped the girls off for their few days with their grandmother.

The cousins had run around the house inspecting everything and Naomi declared that the house was ‘delightful’.

The sound of their feet on the floorboards, their happy voices and laughter made Tricia feel that the cottage was being inaugurated in the way she had hoped.

And now, here in the cosy little kitchen, as they sat around the table together, it was like a dream come true.

She had a fleeting image of Fred smiling at them and knew he would have been so happy to share this with her.

‘I know Sophie hasn’t read Harry Potter yet,’ Tricia said. ‘So maybe you could pick something from a story you both know. Or a TV programme or a cartoon. Or even someone you like a lot.’

‘Paddington!’ Sophie shouted. ‘I love him.’

‘Me too,’ Naomi said. ‘He’s a teddy bear but I like the name. Would that be okay?’ she asked, looking hopefully at Tricia.

Tricia nodded. ‘Yes, but maybe we could shorten it to Paddy? What do you think, girls?’

‘We’ll ask him,’ Naomi said and slid off her chair. She caught the kitten and held him in her arms. ‘Dear little kitten, would you like to be called Paddy?’

The kitten let out a short ‘miaow’ and then wriggled out of Naomi’s grip and resumed playing with the toy mouse on the floor.

‘He said yes,’ Naomi remarked and returned to her chair. ‘So I officially name him Paddy,’ she said solemnly and waved an imaginary wand over the cat.

‘Paddy it is,’ Tricia said. ‘It suits him. Well done, girls.’

‘Can I have another cookie?’ Sophie asked.

‘ May I,’ Naomi corrected. ‘My mummy says it’s may I, not can I.’

‘Yeah, but I’m only four, so I can say what I want.

’ Sophie looked at Tricia. ‘Please?’ she added, batting her very long black eyelashes.

With her blonde curls and bright blue eyes, she was the image of her mother.

She looked like butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth but Tricia knew she had a will of iron even at that tender age.

‘How can I resist?’ Tricia laughed and took another cookie out of the packet. ‘I hope it won’t ruin your appetite for lunch.’

‘Lunch is a loooong way away,’ Naomi said as she slurped her milk. ‘What are we going to do today?’

‘We could go to the beach,’ Tricia suggested. ‘Or to Oceanworld in Dingle if you like.’

‘Beach!’ Sophie shouted.

‘And then Oceanworld tomorrow,’ Naomi said. ‘’Cause today is a sunny day and it might rain tomorrow. My mummy packed my swimming togs and armbands.’

‘My mam did, too,’ Sophie chimed in. ‘Do you have any buckets and spades, Granny?’

‘Yes, I do,’ Tricia replied. ‘I found the old ones your mothers used when they were small. They were in the shed behind Great-gran Sylvia’s apartment. So we’re all set.’

‘Will Paddy the cat come with us?’ Sophie wanted to know.

‘No, we’ll leave him at home.’ Tricia smiled at Sophie. ‘I don’t think cats like the beach.’

‘They don’t,’ Naomi said. ‘They get sand in between their claws and they don’t like getting wet.’

‘But he’ll be lonely.’ Sophie stuffed the rest of her cookie in her mouth and looked at the kitten with sad eyes.

‘He won’t.’ Tricia picked Paddy up from the floor. ‘He’ll sleep in his bed and then he’ll forget we’re gone. I’ll leave his toys and some food and water and then he’ll be fine. We’ll just let him have a run in the garden for a bit before we go. We’ll keep an eye on him so he won’t get lost.’

‘And he can do his business in the grass and not in the house,’ Naomi agreed.

‘What business?’ Sophie asked, looking intrigued.

‘You know,’ Naomi started but stopped when a car horn tooted outside. ‘Oh, there’s someone here. Who is it?’

Sophie jumped down from her chair. ‘I want to see who it is,’ she said and ran to the front door. She pulled it open and peered out. ‘It’s a circus van,’ she exclaimed.

Tricia went to the front door and looked out. ‘Oh,’ she said as she caught sight of the vehicle. ‘What’s he doing back?’