It seemed to be a painting of a woman and a dog, but it was hard to tell. I nodded politely. “Interesting,” I said.
Up a flight of stairs and I was shown into a bedroom dominated by a huge canopied bed piled high with an assortment of pillows. The walls were draped with purple velvet and flying cupids. It was the most oudandish room I had ever seen and I only just stopped myself from blurting out, “Holy Mother of God!”
In contrast the other rooms on that floor were a study lined with books, another, more conventional, bedroom and a bathroom with the biggest tub I had ever seen.
“I do a lot of my best writing in the bath,” Sid said, as if this were a normal thing to do.
Then I was led up another flight of stairs. Up here there were just two rooms. The room at the front of the house was an artist's studio, bare-floored, with easel and a half-finished painting. The room behind, with a view out over the gardens, was full of old furniture and boxes.
“What a pity you're not using this room,” I said. “It has the best view.”
“We always intended to do something with it but we've been too lazy,” Gus said. “And as you can see, we've dumped our unwanted clutter in here.”
“What we needed was an impetus to make us clear it out,” Sid said, looking at me. “If you'd like to help us, Molly dear…”
“I'd be happy to,” I said.
She held up her hand. “You didn't let me finish the sentence. What I was going to say was, if you'd like to help us clear it out, you'd be welcome to use it.”
“To use it?”
Gus laughed at my surprised face. “Come and live with us.”
“Oh, but I couldn't think of imposing…”
“Who said anything about imposing?” Sid said. “We talked it over last night. We like you. You need a place to live. We have a spare room that needs cleaning. What better use for it?”
“But—but I'm afraid I don't have a regular source of income at the moment. It might be hard for me to pay the kind of rent you could expect for this lovely room.”
“Who said anything about rent?” Gus demanded. “Bring us a bottle of Chianti from time to time and we shall ask for nothing more.”
“Oh, but I couldn't possibly,” I said but I was weakening.
“Look at it this way,” Gus said. “We need the impetus to clean out our room, and what better impetus than to help a fellow free spirit get her start in the Village?”
“Why don't you give it a try?” Sid added. “If things don't work out, then you can always look for another place.”
“You are too kind,” I said, blushing furiously, “and I would love to live in such a delightful place. I can't tell you what a relief it will be to have a room of my own, with no interference.”
Sid and Gus were giving their benevolent parent smiles again.
“Good, then it's all settled. We'll start cleaning today and you can move your chattels in as soon as it's done.”
Thus, by the end of the week, I had bid farewell to Seamus, Nuala and the O'Hallarans and moved into my own little patch of heaven. Nuala hadn't been able to conceal her delight at seeing me go. “Off to live with your fancy man, I've no doubt,” she exclaimed.
“On the contrary, I'm moving in with two highly respectable women friends who would never dream of entering a room without knocking and where my possessions will be safe from pilfering,” I replied, staring her straight in the eye.
My only concern was leaving Bridie and Shameyboy in the hands of those terrible relatives. I promised to bring them to see my new place as soon as I was settled in and told Seamus he could always send Shameyboy or one of his cousins to fetch me if he needed me. Having thus appeased my conscience and discharged my obligations, I set off into the unknown. And, after all, I reminded myself again, I wasn't family.
I set myself up comfortably in the top-floor room, augmenting my meager possessions with some of Sid and Gus's cast-offs—a fringed lamp with the base in the shape of a nude woman, some luxurious-looking velvet draperies, and a curled-wood hat stand. Gus insisted that I help myself to the despised clothes that hung in the wardrobe in the back bedroom. I didn't like to express too much joy when Gus and Sid so obviously hated them, but there were some lovely garments there. If ever I met Miss Arabella Norton again, we could be on equal terms!
I was sitting in the back garden resting after carrying the final load of my belongings up the stairs, when I was reminded with a jolt that I had done no work on Paddy's case for several days now. It was true that I was waiting for a chance to be introduced to Ryan O'Hare, but surely there were other things I should have been doing. Falling into paradise like this had dulled my senses. Living here was like being on a sweet and powerful drug. One had no wish to venture past the front door into the real world outside.