‘“Good morning,” he says to me, “if you can spare a drop of whiskey, I’ll fix this shoe for you.”

‘“There’s nothing wrong with that shoe,” says I, for ’twas my good pair of work boots he had in his hand, you know the ones.

‘“Oh,” says he, grabbing the heel of the boot and ripping it loose with those long fingers of his. “Well, there is now.”

‘Truth be told, I felt sorry for the cratur. He looked a bit down on his luck so I told him to come on in and I’d see what I could do. He’s been coming and going ever since. I’ll admit it’s nice to have a bit of help around the house, now that your Granddad is gone …’

Cat was right – the fairy man had been watching over Granny and if he was bound to Granny’s family that meant he would have to help her too. For the first time all morning Cat could have laughed out loud.

All I have to do is figure out how to find the Clurichaun and he can tell me how to save Mikey.

She settled back into her chair and sipped the last dregs of her hot chocolate. It had gone completely cold and the bitter taste in her mouth made her wince, but Cat didn’t care. She had the beginnings of a plan: now she just needed to figure out the finer details before it was too late.

Chapter Eight

How to Catch a Clurichaun

Cat passed the long, dull hours waiting for news about Granny idly flicking through the outdated celebrity magazines that littered the waiting room and thinking through her rescue plan. She knew what she needed to do, she just needed to wait for the right opportunity. By the time her auntie Eileen arrived in a flurry of hugs and tears she was both bored and oddly restless. She knew that with each passing second her chances of saving Mikey were slipping away.

Just when it seemed the wait would never end, a doctor in scrubs and a clean white jacket stuck her head into the room and told them Granny was stable, but wouldn’t be waking up any time soon so they should all go home for a while and get some rest.

‘You head away, Laura. Bring Caitriona home. I’ll stay here in case anything changes,’ said Eileen.

Cat’s mam frowned. ‘I don’t know … I’d like to be here when Mam wakes up.’

‘I know, but you heard the doctor. Besides, are you going to make the poor child sit here all evening?’

‘I can’t very well leave her home alone now, can I?’

Cat perked up, seizing her chance. ‘You won’t be leaving me alone,’ she said. ‘I was going to stay at Jess and Sarah’s tonight anyway, remember? I’m sure their mam wouldn’t mind if I came over a little earlier.’

After a bit of back-and-forth between the grown-ups it was finally decided – Cat’s mam would drive her home, pick up a few bits from Granny’s house to make her more comfortable, and come straight back in.