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Back A Man of Honor
Chapters (71)
  1. Copyright Notice
  2. Dedication
  3. Part One
  4. One
  5. Two
  6. Three
  7. Four
  8. Five
  9. Six
  10. Seven
  11. Eight
  12. Nine
  13. Ten
  14. Eleven
  15. Part Two
  16. Twelve
  17. Thirteen
  18. Fourteen
  19. Fifteen
  20. Sixteen
  21. Seventeen
  22. Eighteen
  23. Nineteen
  24. Twenty
  25. Twenty-One
  26. Twenty-Two
  27. Twenty-Three
  28. Twenty-Four
  29. Twenty-Five
  30. Twenty-Six
  31. Twenty-Seven
  32. Twenty-Eight
  33. Twenty-Nine
  34. Thirty
  35. Thirty-One
  36. Thirty-Two
  37. Part Three
  38. Thirty-Three
  39. Thirty-Four
  40. Thirty-Five
  41. Thirty-Six
  42. Thirty-Seven
  43. Thirty-Eight
  44. Thirty-Nine
  45. Forty
  46. Forty-One
  47. Forty-Two
  48. Forty-Three
  49. Forty-Four
  50. Part Four
  51. Forty-Five
  52. Forty-Six
  53. Forty-Seven
  54. Forty-Eight
  55. Forty-Nine
  56. Fifty
  57. Fifty-One
  58. Fifty-Two
  59. Fifty-Three
  60. Part Five
  61. Fifty-Four
  62. Fifty-Five
  63. Fifty-Six
  64. Fifty-Seven
  65. Fifty-Eight
  66. Fifty-Nine
  67. Sixty
  68. Sixty-One
  69. Books by Barbara Taylor Bradford
  70. About the Author
  71. Newsletter Sign-up

Michael was a gardener and Siobhan a housemaid. They were not paid very much; he knew that only too well, sure enough he did. Yet they managed better than their neighbors. He mentally hugged them to himself, because they were so caring of him in his time of dire need. His heart ached for his sister—his whole family. They were all dead now. Killed by this fearful land they lived in.

How he longed to leave this place.… If only he were a bird he could take flight … soar up and away … be free of pain and sorrow.

Blackie’s thoughts shifted to the opportunity he had, and Mrs. O’Malley. She was very kind to him. She mothered him and had taught him to read, far better than he had. She was the housekeeper for the local priest, Father O’Donovan. Both kept an eye on him and were now helping to plan his trip … a different future for him, if his uncle Pat could arrange everything. I know he’ll pull it off, Blackie decided. As usual, Blackie was full of optimism, a useful trait, he often thought. Keep smiling was his motto.

He had been inspired by Father O’Donovan’s confidence and filled with excitement about going to England, as thousands had before him. There was no work here, no opportunity for him to earn a few pennies. Even the grown men had no jobs.

The idea of adventure and opportunity overseas was fed by his proximity to the mouth of the river Shannon and the wild Atlantic Ocean beyond.

The wind had finally died down, gone out to sea. Blackie pushed himself to his feet. Stretching, and then pulling his coat around him, he headed for the edge of the cliffs.

He stood gazing out at the rolling waves tipped with white foam, felt as if the sea were calling him across the waters. In his imagination, he envisioned freedom from hardship, poverty and loneliness. He was impatient to be gone, could hardly wait for the day he would leave Ireland from the port of Queenstown. It was usually tough, even harsh, to cross this dangerous sea. Some did not survive the journey, so he had heard, and he believed it to be the truth.

Blackie knew he would. He would will himself to survive, in order to meet his uncle Pat in Liverpool, from whence they would travel on the train to Leeds. He had never been on a train before in his life; the idea of this intrigued him. His uncle had a good business in Leeds, repair work and building for the millowners and even some householders nowadays. He would teach Blackie everything he knew and make him a partner. One day.