Reluctantly, both Kellan and Riley cut their fingers, then let the blood drip onto their palms. Then the three brothers grasped hands, mingling their blood. Riley grinned at Kellan. “He’s a brave little bugger, isn’t he?”
“Let’s see it,” Kellan said, drawing his hand away.
“It’s a cave,” Danny said. “In the cliff. It’s deep and I didn’t go all the way in because the tide comes up into the opening. But I think that smugglers might have used it.” He pulled a tiny flashlight out of his jacket pocket and turned it on. “We’ve only got an hour before the tide starts coming in. We’ll have to hurry.”
“Are you sure we should do this?” Riley said. “What if it’s dangerous?”
Danny gave him a look. “If you’re afraid, you can stay on the beach.”
As he walked across the sand to the rocky outcropping, Danny smiled to himself. Though he was only eight, he felt like a full-grown man. Maybe now, he’d have enough courage to talk to Evelyn Maltby.
1
“SO THIS IS BALLYKIRK,” Jordan Kennally murmured to herself, peering through the windshield of her car at the picturesque village below.
She’d been in Ireland for nearly sixteen months now, working as the project manager on the Castle Cnoc renovation. And though she’d seen a lot of the countryside, she was still amazed at how every sight managed to look exactly like some picture-postcard. Ireland was nothing if not quaint.
She glanced at the clock on the dash, then calculated the time it would take her to find Danny Quinn, discuss their business and get back to the castle. She wasn’t used to chasing around the countryside looking for workers, but she’d been told that Danny Quinn was the best. And Jordan needed the best.
She steered her car down the winding road that led into Ballykirk, following the carefully drawn map that Kellan Quinn had provided. The town was like so many others along the coast of County Cork-a pretty collection of colorful buildings set against a stunning landscape, this time the blue waters of Bantry Bay.