"So, he went straight into the school, then?"

"I think not. They called here looking for him." Rosemary finished her coffee.

"So where is he?" Bobby was alarmed.

"Being deeply silly," Rosemary said and left the house.

He heard her car starting up and leaving. The car sounded as angry as she had looked.

Bobby Walsh suddenly felt very lonely in the big house by the sea.

Clara looked up when Hilary brought in the mug of coffee. "Where's Ania?"

"n.o.body knows," Hilary said. "She left an odd message."

They puzzled over it. Anyone in the clinic could have called in sick. But not Ania. She would have crawled in if she had breath in her body.

"Is it love, do you think?" Clara asked.

"Well, yesterday she was all sunshine. She was going to a ruby wedding at Bobby Walsh's. She's very fond of Bobby's son, Carl."

"I wonder how she dealt with that Rosemary."

"I know Ania had bought a lovely little red gla.s.s dish for her."

"Maybe the Walshes know where she is."

"I don't fancy making the call, Clara."

"All right, cowardy-custard. I'll do it."

"h.e.l.lo, Bobby. Clara Casey from the heart clinic here. No, no, nothing to do with your tests, you're doing fine. No, oddly it was something else entirely. I was wondering if you had seen our Ania? You see, she was going to your house last night to an anniversary party. No? Oh, I think she was there. No, of course, with so many people. I wonder, would Mrs. Walsh recall? Oh, she's gone out? Right...Sorry for bothering you, Bobby. See you next week, as usual. Yes, right, of course we'll let you know."

Hilary looked at her questioningly "That man Bobby Walsh should be canonized in his own lifetime. He says he's very sorry, he didn't see Ania last night. He'd love to have talked to her. No one told him she was there. We're to let him know when she surfaces."

"If she surfaces," Hilary said. surfaces," Hilary said.

Fiona was pa.s.sing the desk when the phone rang. She picked it up absently, her mind still on buying an opal ring and what on earth could have come over Ania. It was Rosemary Walsh.

"Is that Clara?"

"No, Mrs. Walsh, it's Fiona."

"It was actually Ania, the Polish girl, I was looking for." She gave a tinkling laugh to underline the unexpected nature of her call.

"We are all looking for her, Mrs. Walsh."

"What do you mean?" Mrs. Walsh sounded alarmed.

"She hasn't been seen since she was sent into your kitchen last night."

"Er ...yes. She's a most helpful girl-she offered to help with the washing-up."

"No. I think you asked asked her to do the washing-up. She thought she was a guest." her to do the washing-up. She thought she was a guest."

"Oh, that's all been cleared up by now."

"No, it hasn't. She hasn't turned up for work. She's left her flat. Father Flynn has been looking for her. Carl has been on the phone every few minutes. I don't think it's been cleared up at all!"

"Kindly don't take that tone with me, Fiona."

"I'm not taking any tone, Mrs. Walsh, I'm just telling you that the Guards are being called and they will be here shortly." Fiona had the great pleasure of hearing Rosemary Walsh gasp. It wasn't true about the Guards. But, oh, it was worth it just to hear that intake of breath.

When Ania's bus pulled into her village she got out and went into Mrs. Zak's shop.

"This is a surprise, Ania. Does your mother know?"

"No, Mrs. Zak-may I make one quick call to Ireland, please?"

"I was sure you would have a mobile phone like all these young girls are getting."

"They are too expensive, Mrs. Zak. I will pay you for the telephone call."

Mrs. Zak watched astounded as Ania seemed to speak in perfect English into the telephone. She couldn't understand what the girl was saying, but it sounded very fluent. Little Ania, who had been afraid to lift her eyes to anyone until she met that troublesome boy Marek. Now Now look at her! She was speaking a foreign language as if she were a professor. look at her! She was speaking a foreign language as if she were a professor.

Ania spoke to Clara. "I am so sorry to do something so unexpected as to run away. You see I made a big mistake. Perhaps Fiona told you?"

"She did, Ania, and you're not the only one who makes mistakes with Rosemary Walsh. Her life is one long history of mistakes."

"But I embarra.s.sed everyone. Carl must think I am a fool."

"He is so worried about you, Ania. Every few minutes he rings to ask have we any news. Perhaps you could telephone him. He'll be so relieved to know you are all right."

"No, I can't do that. Please, Clara, perhaps you could ask Fiona to do it?"

"And when will I say that you're coming back?"

"I have only just got here, Clara. I haven't been to see my mamu-sia yet. I do not know."

"All right, Ania. Don't sound so worried. Everyone will be so happy that you are safe. You have many friends here, all very concerned about you."

"Thank you, Clara. I am sorry I was such a poor choice of a worker."

"You're the best worker we have here. You've been here for months. You'll always have a place here when you need it."

Two big tears came down Ania's face. Mrs. Zak looked at her over her gla.s.ses. The girl was probably pregnant. Why had she come back to upset her mother with further bad news?

The word spread quickly that Ania was back in Poland having a rest. Clara phoned Carl first and then Frank Ennis in hospital administration. They would need a temporary replacement.

"Did she give you adequate notice of her trip to Poland?"

"It was an emergency." Clara was crisp.

"Well, I'm not expected to find temps in trees," he said.

"Right. Will we appoint our own, then?"

"No." Frank wanted nothing more to escape his grasp.

"Good. We'll see a temporary replacement for Ania tomorrow."

"For how long?" Frank asked.

"You will be informed," Clara said.

"We don't really really need a replacement for Ania. We'll all pitch in," Hilary said. need a replacement for Ania. We'll all pitch in," Hilary said.

"Where is your solidarity and sense of self-worth?" Clara was shocked. "If Frank thinks we can manage without Ania then we'll be managing without her forever. This is just to save her job."

"Bobby?"

"Are you home, Rosemary?"

"Yes, of course I am. Is everything all right?"

"I've had nothing but phone calls all day, Rosemary. That little Ania from the clinic has disappeared. The last anyone saw of her was here, apparently."

"I'm sure that's not right."

"Why didn't you tell me she was here, Rosemary? I'm very fond of her."

"You're not the only one," his wife said.

"What do you mean?"

"Your son has been sniffing after her too."

"I'm not sniffing after her, Rosemary."

"No, no, of course you're not. Sorry ... I would have paid her, Bobby"

"Sorry? Paid her for what?"

"For working in the kitchen."

"I thought she was a guest. That's what Clara said. What Carl said. What Fiona said."

"When did all these people say these things?" Rosemary looked drawn and frightened.

"On the phone. Today"

"She wouldn't have done anything silly, Bobby? Anything really silly? Would she?" Rosemary looked very worried.

"Why would she have done anything silly?"

Rosemary breathed more easily. He hadn't been told the whole story.

"Europeans," she said. "Very unstable."

Declan went to a library and looked up opals. There was some bad luck attached to them, but then there was bad luck attached to all stones. He found a story about the Spanish king Alfonzo, who gave someone an opal and she died, and everyone who got that opal died. Declan, who was practical, thought they would have died anyway. People had such a short life expectancy in those days. He wasn't going to attract Fiona's attention to it.

He went to the jeweler's and told him the upper limits of his spending power. The jeweler said he would make up a tray and see him on Sat.u.r.day.

The temp they sent was Amy Barry, daughter of Peter, the pharmacist. Clara looked at her with interest. Amy looked up from under her dark fringe.

"Oh, it's you," she said to Clara, without much enthusiasm.

"Very nice to see you again," Clara said.

"Don't suppose I'll get the job now. I mean, knowing I worked in a bondage shop. Not much chance for me here."

"Why not?" Clara seemed to think working in a fetish shop was fine preparation for a clerical job in a heart clinic.

"Why didn't you marry my dad?" Amy asked with interest. "He was mad about you."

"We were too old and set in our ways. It would have been too much adjustment."

"You know I always liked you," Amy said.

"And I liked you too." Clara smiled easily.

"But not enough to give me a job?" Amy's fists were ready for the fight.

"Of course you can have the job. Just tell me why you left the corsets and bondage, and that you do know that when Ania comes back we have to let you go."

"The corsets and bondage are bankrupt, and I do understand about this being just a temp job." Amy grinned.

"Right. You can start straightaway."

"That's great. Have you any hints for me?"

"Yes-we are united in our hatred of Frank Ennis," Clara said. "You should regard him as the natural enemy of this clinic and you won't go far wrong."

Carl Walsh was staying with Aidan and Nora Dunne. They were very easy company and asked him no interrogating questions. If they wondered why a man whose parents owned a seaside mansion wanted to stay on the sofa of a poky little flat like theirs, they never made any reference to it. There was such affection in these small rooms compared to the icy-cold life his mother ran in her mansion. Carl could hardly believe it was all in the same city.

Aidan and Nora were planning a Sunday lunch party for Aidan's birthday. Again, Carl was stunned to see how little money they had and how things had to be considered carefully before they were bought. A revulsion for the showy anniversary party came over him. His mother hadn't one ounce of decency in her. He realized that now. Up to this, he had blinded himself to her ways, thinking that his father just needed an easy life. But now Carl realized that he must have been in denial. Someone should have stood up to Rosemary Walsh a long time ago.

"Will you join us for the lunch, Carl?" Nora was ever welcoming. Carl and Aidan had developed a friendship teaching at the same school.