"Well, it's your b.l.o.o.d.y wine," Kate said, laying the blame where she thought it belonged.

"You're not even a FitzGerald," Maggie accused.

"One Kennedy outranks three FitzGeralds any day of the week!" Kate declared, the light of battle in her eyes.

Suddenly, they all dissolved into laughter and trooped upstairs enma.s.se. The young nursemaids, Ellen and Jane, despaired of ever actually getting to hold the babies.

"I'm going to tuck you into your bed," Sean said, scooping Emerald into his arms. "You're still no bigger than a farthing."

"But I make up for it with cheek," she said, pulling his hair.

Sean knew she'd enjoyed herself today, but he also knew she was tired and needed her rest if she was going to keep up with the others. After he had tucked her in, he went downstairs, where he knew Amber would seek him out, once the household had retired.

Sean poured them both a small snifter of French brandy.

"Not another toast?" Amber asked lightly.

"In a way. I salute you, Amber; you sold the business."

She did not ask how he knew. Sean O'Toole had an uncanny knack for knowing most things. "I could hardly be a respectable grandmother if I still owned a brothel, so I did the honorable thing."

"If that's a barb, I'm the first to admit I deserve it."

"I don't know what you mean," Amber said truthfully.

"Didn't Emerald tell you of the dishonorable thing I did?" he asked in disbelief. "I think that's what I love about her the most . . . her generosity." He walked to the fire, warming the brandy in his hands, then slowly told Amber the whole story from beginning to end. "After all that, she was generous enough to call the twins Joseph and Kathleen."

"But she hasn't forgiven you, has she?"

He shook his head. "No. I don't expect to be forgiven. What I did was unforgivable."

"It wasn't totally unexpected, though. I warned her against you. I told her you would use her for revenge."

"What did she say?"

"She said she understood your need for revenge. She said that you had taught her to live for today and that if it ended tomorrow, she wouldn't regret one fleeting moment of your time together."

"She said those words because she trusted me. I betrayed that trust." He could not hide the pain in his dark eyes. "I suspect Emerald is going to leave me."

"And what will you do?"

"Bring her back, of course. I'll never let her go!"

As if spurred on by a devil that rode him relentlessly, the following day Sean gifted Emerald with her own ship.

"Come and see, I've had the crew of the Sulphur painting for days."

The entire household made its way to the jetty to see that the Swallow had been fitted out with new sails and renamed Emerald Isle. As if throwing down a challenge, Sean told Emerald, "I'm giving you your own crew so you can be the captain of your fate."

"Is this for pleasure sailing, or to start my own merchant business?"

"Emerald, it is for anything you want. It's merely my way of showing you that whatever is mine is yours."

She wondered if he was ready to share his inner self with her. Sean had always kept a part of himself completely private. Now she found herself doing the same.

Once she had given him everythinga"her heart, her love, her trust. Now, she kept her inner self from him. It was as if, deep inside, the core of her heart had frozen and refused to melt.

Emerald smiled brightly. "Tomorrow we shall have a sailing party. Who will come?"

"Not I"a"Johnny laugheda""from now on I intend to keep both feet planted on terra firma."

"Then it shall be ladies only," she declared. "We needn't go far. Why don't we sail to Dublin Bay and back?"

Amber, Nan, Tara, Maggie, and Kate agreed immediately. "Now that's settled, what shall we do today?" Amber questioned.

"Johnny and I would like to have the baby baptized while you're here," Nan said shyly. "We've decided to call him Edward, after my grandfather."

"What a lovely idea," Amber declared. "I don't believe being a grandmother precludes being a G.o.dmother, do you?"

When the party started its climb back up to the house, Emerald lingered, gazing out across Greysfoncs's bay, where half a dozen ships rode at anchor. Sean closed the gap between them.

"I'm sorry we haven't taken the twins to be baptized. Does it upset you?"

"A little," she admitted. Neither of them wanted the children christened Montague, but since it was impossible to baptize them O'Toole, they did nothing.

"I have an idea. Let's get them baptized FitzGerald, since it's a family name for both of us. You know what Shamus says: Always do what's expedient and ye'll never go far wrong."

"Father Fitz would refuse." Her face flushed, recalling the things he'd said to her.

Sean's face hardened. "Fitz will do my bidding, Emerald, never doubt it."

Later in the day as the household gathered in the chapel for the ceremony, Emerald realized that Sean must have had a private word with Father Fitz to lay down the law. His law. Not by look or word did the priest hesitate to administer the sacrament of baptism for all three babies.

As Johnny and Sean stood proudly holding their sons, Emerald's heart was heavy over the thing she planned to do. It was wrong to deprive a father of his son.

She looked down at the tiny girl in her own arms and knew she could never bear to part with her. Shamus's words about expediency went through her head and she realized that was exactly what she had done. She had let Sean O'Toole rescue them and care for them until they were strong. Now she was going to leave him.

Emerald knew she would be eternally grateful to him for what he had done.

She also knew she would love him forever. But he had put vengeance before her and his own flesh and blood, and would do so again anytime the opportunity presented itself. As she handed her child to Father Fitz and heard him intone, "I name this child Kathleen FitzGerald," she knew she was doing the right thing.

The following day Emerald and Amber stood at the prow of her ship. Both were so alike, believing this the most exhilarating place to be when sailing. The other ladies preferred a more sheltered spot where the wind could not dishevel their coiffures, but these two loved the feel of the wind whipping their hair about their faces.

As the small ship swept around Dublin Bay, Emerald and Amber found the courage to broach what was foremost in their minds. "Sean told me what he did to you."

Emerald was surprised, then angered. How dare he tell Amber his side first?

"d.a.m.n him to h.e.l.lfire!"

"Darling, he offered no defense."

"That's because it's against his nature to be on the defensive. He always takes the offense! Well, he has offended me and I am leaving him."

"When you were in mortal danger, you sent for him and he came."

"No, I did not! I sent Johnny to you. I had no intention of ever returning to Castle Lies after Sean abandoned me in England. We agreed that if Sean ever hurt me, I would come to you. When you leave, I'm coming with you."

"It is an exercise in futility, Emerald. He will come after you."

"Mother, the Earl of Kildare may be all powerful, but whether I stay or leave is my choice, my free choice, not his. It can be no other way."

Across the bay, while the two women were deeply engrossed in their discussion, stood a shadowy figure, transfixed by the sight of them together. William Montague could hardly believe his eyes, as he stood rooted to the deck of the Seagull. There, in the middle of Dublin Bay, was his beautiful wife aboard his own favorite ship, the Swallow. He licked lips gone suddenly dry. Soon, he vowed, he would reclaim both, even if he had to destroy Castle Lies and everyone in it.

36.

Whenever one of the Murphy brothers made home port at Grey-stones, it was believed the other brother would show up within a day. The FitzGeralds joked that the Murphy brothers had magnets up their a.r.s.es. And so, when Pat Murphy, who now captained the Brimstone, arrived, Sean O'Toole expected that Tim Murphy wouldn't be far behind.

Sure enough, the following day the Heron, which had been renamed the Dolphin, sailed into home port. Sean and Paddy spent most of the day with the Murphy brothers, inspecting their cargoes, going over the ships' manifests and bills of lading that accompanied the goods they were importing from Spain and Morocco.

When the work was completed, Tim Murphy took Sean aside for a private word. "Bowers sez he spotted a Montague vessel just as we were leavin' Dublin this mornin'. I didn't see it meself, but Bowers swears to it."

A frown settled between Sean's black eyebrows the minute he heard the disturbing news. "Come up to the kitchen, Tim. We'll have a word with Shamus."

Since she was planning to depart the following day, Amber had packed her trunks and Johnny was carrying them downstairs. A grim-faced Scan swept into the house and called Johnny away from his task. When Mr. Burke carried Shamus to the kitchen, at a signal from Sean, Emerald was alerted that something was in the wind.

"G.o.d, I hate it when they do this," Emerald bristled.

Amber tried to soothe her ruffled feathers. "They're just talking business. Sean doesn't mean to be secretive."

"You don't know him very well. Whenever there is trouble, they close ranks to keep the females in ignorance."

"Emerald, you're jumping to conclusions."

"Am I? One look at Sean's face told me all I need to know. Calling in Johnny just confirms it. He's back to seeking vengeance! It's like a craving in his blood; he's addicted to it! He lives for it! Within the hour he'll set sail for G.o.d knows where and fob me off with a lie."

"I think you have an overactive imagination."

Minutes later Sean O'Toole strolled into the front parlor and said casually, "Emerald, I'm taking the Sulphur on a run. Don't wait up for me, love, my business may take a while."

Emerald looked him straight in the eye. "Where are you going?"

"To the customs in Dublin. There's some sort of paperwork I have to fill out for the imports."

"That shouldn't take long," she said stubbornly.

"Well, I have other business," he said vaguely.

"Can't it wait? This is Mother's last day and Johnny and Nan are leaving for Maynooth tomorrow. I would like us to spend the day together."

"Tim Murphy wants me to look at a ship. Johnny's coming too; they won't be leaving for a couple of days." His face had the closed look upon it Emerald had seen so many times before. If you go out that door, I won't be here when you return.

She made one last appeal. She closed the distance between them and lifted her face in supplication. "Sean, please don't go?"

He slipped his arms about her and dipped his head so that he could look into her eyes. "Sweetheart, you're being fanciful. I'll try to be back in time for dinner tonight, if it will stop you from worrying." He kissed her swiftly and departed without a backward glance.

Johnny came in from the kitchen. "Where's Nan?"

"She's upstairs with the baby. What lie will you use to fob her off?" she demanded.

"Emerald, stay out of men's affairs," Johnny warned.

Emerald's shoulders slumped as her anger left her and was replaced by an infinite sadness. Finally, she looked at her mother. "I'll go and pack; we're leaving today."

Emerald spoke with Ellen and Jane. "I am taking the twins to Wicklow to stay with my mother for a while. I would like to take both of you with me. Will you come?"

When both young nursemaids nodded eagerly, Emerald felt a little guilty that she was deceiving them, but promised herself she would let the girls return if they became unhappy. "Thank you both. I couldn't make this trip without you. Go and pack your things, we are leaving today."

As the pile of luggage by the front entrance started to grow, Kate approached Emerald. "It looks like you are planning to leave."

"Yes, I'm leaving with Mother."

"Yer never taking the babies?" Kate asked, scandalized.

"Ellen and Jane are coming along; we'll manage just fine, Kate. I want to thank you for all you have done. I shall miss you terribly."

Kate sniffed back tears. "How long will you be gone?"

Emerald did not want to hurt her. "I have no firm plans," she said softly.

"Mmph, they look firm enough to me," Kate said, stalking from the room.

"I've upset her," Emerald murmured.

"Darling, Kate isn't the one you have to worry about."

"I've left him a note," Emerald said low.

"Ah, well, that should certainly appease him," Amber said with mock relief.

It took a considerable amount of time to pack everything, and this time Emerald did not hesitate to take her jewels or the lease on the London town house.

When Amber's carriage pulled out of Greystones, the luggage was piled so high, it looked in danger of toppling off. Inside the coach Ellen and Jane each held a drowsing infant. Emerald had left their feeding until the very last moment, hoping they would sleep for most of the journey to Wicklow.