He ran a chubby finger, with a gold signet ring tightly sandwiched around the flesh, down the page, contorting his mouth as he went. ‘Ah, here it is. All good. I remember last time he claimed shared ownership, he soon backed off when your mother asked him for a contribution to repairs. Your dear mother doesn’t need to worry.’ His smile towards Conor was a touch conspiratorial, as if Adrienne had been making a fuss about nothing and the men knew better than to get excited about such things. Hannah eyed Patrick with irritation. Same old, same old. That attitude of ‘women tend to be emotional about these things but it’s the men who understand the business issues’ was clearly at work here.

‘The road is private and owned by Killorgally to the point of the farm, after which the road is then owned by Murphy. He has right of access along the road but the road belongs to the farm and as such Killorgally is responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of the road. So your mother can rest easy, bless her soul.’

Conor gave a brief nod but Hannah was pleased to see that he didn’t collude with Patrick’s patronising dismissal of his mother’s fears.

‘Good. That probably puts paid to Murphy’s plans then. Although I’m sure he knows full well who owns the road.’

‘Of course he does but he likes to try it on, especially as both families have been living there for the last hundred years. Often longevity provides presumption. It’s as well to check these things but people rarely do.’ As he spoke he steepled his fingers, nodding gravely while his eyes slid to the TV again.

‘Is that everything?’ he asked.

‘Yes, thanks.’

‘Do you fancy a glass of whiskey and we can watch the rest of the racing. I’ve a good tip for the next race.’ Patrick was already reaching towards a decanter filled with amber liquid.

‘Sorry, I’m showing Hannah some of the sights but perhaps another time.’ Conor rose and held out a hand and they left without being offered the promised coffee that had sat on the side for the whole of the meeting.

As they came down the steps outside, Conor said. ‘I know. Don’t say a word. We need to get a new lawyer.’

‘I can’t believe that the deeds documents weren’t all together. Have you considered Aidan Fitzpatrick in Tralee? I know I’m biased because I know him, but I’ve worked with him. I know he’s thorough and his attention to detail is second to none. If it were me, I’d have checked the boundaries too.’

‘That’s down to Mam but I’ll certainly mention it. And I’m not too worried about the boundaries. That road’s the only access to Murphy’s land.’