Murphy's Law (Molly Murphy Mysteries, #1)

After they had gone, little paper boxes of cake, like you get for weddings, were passed around among us. They had "Souvenir of the official dedication of Ellis Island, February 27, 1901" printed on them and a picture of the mayor. Most of us were hungry enough to eat the cake without noticing the picture. We'd just finished when Mr. McSweeney, the administrator, addressed us through the megaphone again.

"I'm sorry but the mayor's visit has made it too late to be able to process everyone tonight. Those of you in the back rows of the room, you'll be served supper and then you'll spend the night in the new dormitories, here on the island. But don't worry, we'll try and get you through as quickly as possible in the morning." This message was repeated in other languages. I saw people on other benches turning to mutter to each other, but they didn't make a fuss about the news, like the Irish and English people around me were doing. I suppose in their countries they were used to things going wrong and not being able to do a thing about it.

"Right, come on. Get a move on. Off to chow," the guard barked as soon as the dignitaries had disappeared. I gathered up the children, staggering after the official in a daze. I had managed so well this far but asking me to wait and worry another whole night was just too much. I felt as if I might cry at any moment. I pressed my lips tightly together and shuffled behind the other immigrants as we were led into a dining room full of long tables. Stewed meat and potatoes were served, along with white bread and milk. Some of the foreigners fell upon the white bread as if they'd never tasted such a delicacy before.

After we had eaten, the women were told to follow one guard while the men followed another. We were led through to another building and then upstairs to a dormitory full of iron beds.

"If there's not enough beds, you'll have to make do with the floor," the guard said, looking unconcerned. "There's extra blankets you can sleep on."

Luckily we got a bed. Bridie had held up so well until now, but the sight of this large room, full of strange women, was too much for her. She burst out crying. "I want to go home. I don't like it here." I pressed her to me before she wailed out, "I want my mammy" for the whole world to hear. I rocked her, I held her, I sang to her until at last she fell into an exhausted sleep. Seamus curled up and went to sleep, too. I lay beside them, staring at the ceiling, willing sleep to come. The place was full of strange and uncomfortable noises--the hiss and knocking of the pipes in the central heating system kept jarring me awake. I'd never been in a place with heating before and found it uncomfortably hot. Then there was the sigh of the wind, the mournful bleating of foghorns and the slap of waves, mingled with the snores and coughs of a hundred other women.

One more day and I'd be free. If I could just keep going one more day ... if O'Malley didn't betray me ... if the children didn't give me away ... if the English police hadn't put out a bulletin on me. I very seldom prayed but I prayed now. Holy Mother, let it soon be over. Get me out of here safely and I'll say Hail Marys every day for the rest of my life.

I drifted into uneasy sleep, then woke with a start in the middle of the night. One dim light

cast long shadows across the sleeping room. Sounds of sleep whispered around me. I reached out my arm and touched the coolness of the sheet. Bridie was not in the bed beside me. I leaped up and looked around. Seamus still lay curled up like a small animal, sound asleep. Nothing moved on the neighboring cots. There was no sign of Bridie.

I felt my heart hammering in panic as I moved between the rows of beds, whispering her name, bending to search under each bed, carefully stepping over each sleeping body, until I had covered the entire dormitory. She wasn't there. I ran out into hallway. One dim light glowed at the far end. Where could she have gone? What would have made a child like her, frightened of her own shadow, go off into the terrifying unknown shadows of a strange building?

There were a couple of lavatories just down the hall from the dormitory. I tried them both but she wasn't there, either. I must wake someone, I decided. I must get help. I started to run, blindly, my footsteps echoing back from newly painted walls and stone floors. Someone must be awake in the eerie silence of this sleeping building. I came around a corner and there she was, heading for an open doorway.

"Bridie," I called. She didn't respond. I ran up to her and went to grab her before she entered the room. "Bridie, what on earth were you thinking to ..." Then I saw that her eyes were wide open and staring, like a person possessed. It took me a moment to realize that she was sleepwalking. Poor little mite, after all the shocks of that day, no wonder her sleep was unsettled. I remembered that it can be harmful to wake sleepwalkers too abruptly. I moved ahead of her and was about to kneel to wake her as gently as possible when a figure loomed out of the dark room ahead of us.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" a big voice bellowed.

I swept up the terrified child and looked up to see a big man in the peaked cap and braided uniform of a guard.