Page 122 of Night of Shadows
Cormac is on the floor of the living room with Nora and Brontos.
Cormac has the bandage on his forearm. The bandage is a small flesh-colored Band-Aid now, two weeks past the original three stitches, and he’s showing the bandage to Nora with the barely-contained theatricality of a man who has been waitingtwo weeks to show the scratch to an audience that will appreciate it.
"It is healing," Cormac says.
"Brontos says it was scary," Nora says.
"It was scary, ‘Naoradze.’ It was the bravest day of my year."
"Daddy was brave too."
"Daddy is brave every day. I am brave only when I am cut."
"Brontos is brave in his trunk."
"Brontos is the bravest of all of us."
Stavros, from the stove, says, "Cormac. The scratch story is at six retellings now, by my count. Your audience is depleted."
"My audience is three years old. My audience renews."
"Your audience is going to write a book about you and call you ‘Theíos Scratch.’"
"‘Theíos Scratch’ is the best nickname I have been given in fifteen years."
Nora pronounces, satisfied: "‘Theíos Scratch.’"
Cormac falls back on the rug as if he’s been shot. Nora laughs. Brontos accepts the new nickname into the official record.
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Ronan is on the small balcony off the kitchen, smoking.
My mother doesn’t allow smoking inside the apartment. Ronan flew back from Galway three days ago specifically for this dinner because Cormac told him about grand jury and Ronan, who doesn’t come to American problems, decided that he would come to this one. Ronan has not been back to Boston since themorning after Andreev. He’s here for two reasons: grand jury, and to bring something.
I step out onto the balcony.
Ronan offers me a cigarette. I shake my head. Ronan nods.
He says, "My mother sent a letter."
"For Maeve."
"For Maeve. For Cathleen. For Eleni. For all three matriarchs in the building tonight."
He pulls a thick envelope from the inside pocket of his coat. Cream paper. Brigid's neat handwriting on the outside, in pen, addressed simply: ‘To the women I have not yet met.’
Ronan hands it to me.
"She told me to give it to you. She said you would know when to give it to them."
I look at the envelope.
"Now," I say.
"Now," Ronan says.
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