Page 67 of Highballs & Hexes

“Aye, better to be safe, then. Scurry along, now.”

With deep affection, he watched Aeden duck into the back of the pub, cake in hand and a wide grin on his face. From the moment he’d met his grandson, Patrick felt abiding love for him, and it seemed Aeden experienced the same. Their bond had been swift and strong, and despite the fact Patrick tended to lose his patience with people, the child would never be one of them. Indeed, the boy had a calming influence on everyone around him.

He remembered when Carrick was the age of his son and how inquisitive he was, always asking, “Why, Da?”

Rose would become annoyed and seek to shoo him away, but Patrick had taken the time to sit him down and explain the answer in great detail, filling Carrick’s curious mind to brimming and providing him with more things to consider. The pride he felt for his children was limitless. They’d all turned out to be a thousand times better than Rose and him combined.

“He idolizes you,” Eoin said, stepping from the nearby shadows.

With a deep sigh of regret for all the years and opportunities missed, Patrick faced his youngest son. “He’s a child and doesn’t know any better.”

“Aye.” The hostility in Eoin’s eyes was like the crossbow bolt to the chest all over again. “You shouldn’t allow him to get attached. You’ll be leaving again, I imagine.”

“Aye. The Goddess has plans for me.”

A cynical smile curled Eoin’s lips, and his expression was dismissive as he pivoted to walk away.

“Eoin.”

Shoulders stiff, his son stopped but didn’t turn.

“I’d have been there for ya if I could’ve. I didn’t leave of my own free will.”

“Sure, and I know that,” he said with a scornful glance over his shoulder. “I’m not a feckin’ eejit, Da.”

“Why do you hate me?”

With a hefty sigh, Eoin laced his hands behind his head. “I don’t. Not really.”

Patrick waited, hoping for clarification.

“I don’t know ya, do I?” Eoin posed it more as a statement of fact than a question. “You breeze in and back out, causing the others nonstop worry. That’s to say nothing of the people you abducted and kept against their will. But we’re supposed to be okay with all of it while you collect more enemies?” Dropping his arms, he shook his head. “I’ve a wife, Da. I’ve no desire to see her hurt because some gobshite takes it into their head to get even with the O’Malleys. Moira’s and Loman’s evilness was enough to last a lifetime.”

“And you prefer me to go, never to return?” Patrick wasn’t certain how he’d managed to ask, considering the idea of it was torturous.

“No, Da. I expect you to be a better man and get your shite together so the innocents like Aeden and Brenna don’t have to look over their shoulders all their lives.”

“I’m after doing that today, son.”

“See that ya do.” Eoin didn’t storm away as expected. Instead, he strode to Patrick and hugged him fiercely. “I don’t hate ya, Da. And like I said, I don’t know ya. But I want to.”

Tears blurred Patrick’s vision, but he’d already committed his son’s handsome visage to memory. One day, he intended to be a father his sons could be proud of. Until then, he had business for the Goddess to perform.

“Your Brenna is a lucky woman,” he said gruffly.

“Nah. I’m the lucky one.” Eoin grinned. “She’s shy most days, but when riled, she’s fierce and the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

“Happy looks good on you, boyo.”

“It feels pretty feckin’ grand, too.”

After they parted, Patrick cast one last regretful glance toward the pub. He’d have liked to say goodbye to Fi, but he could feel the urgency building. Anu was getting impatient and tugging his cord.

He jogged upstairs and gathered his belongings, teleporting them to his flat in Galway. Once the task was completed, he stripped the bed and inspected the room for anything he might have left behind. Satisfied, he closed his eyes and visualized the place where he’d stopped with Fionola. His cells warmed to burning, and when he could take no more, he felt the cool, damp breeze from the countryside drift across his feverish skin. The view was technically as beautiful today as it was the first time he’d seen it, and yet not. Without Fi beside him, that charming sight was wasted on him.

Voices down the lane caught his attention.

Clara and Tadhg were positioned on either side of Jimmy, escorting him home.

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