‘When you stood there, watching him, did you know for certain it was him? That’s he’d been the one passing on information?’

‘If that’s what Hugh was told, we had to go with that.’

Karen nodded. ‘Funny how we can rationalise things,’ she said. ‘I turned my back on my whole life and started over. You’re pretending that Hugh’s decision was binding for us all.’

‘I don’t pretend anything,’ Tony said. ‘I know what we did; what I did.’ He felt a sudden anger towards her, spurred perhaps by her admission that she’d forgotten him when he had not, could not forget her. ‘My brother and wife and son all died. And when my son died, I thought of Martin. I thought it was the universe or God or something balancing the books. I took someone’s son, so they took mine. And when Ann died, I tried to work out why and do you know what? It was because of Martin as well. It’s like Death follows me because of what we did, punishing me for it.’

‘That’s not true,’ Karen said. ‘My family, I’ve lost no one. You can’t blame what’s happened now on what happened then.’

‘It’s cause and effect,’ Tony said.

Karen shook her head. ‘I don’t think the universe missed Martin Kelly that much,’ she said. ‘You know what he was like.’

‘It’s the breach in nature,’ Tony said. ‘That’s what Shakespeare said.’

‘You and your books! Is that why you became a sacristan?’ Karen asked. ‘For penance?’

Tony considered the question. ‘I suppose so.’

‘And has it worked?’

He laughed without humour, raised a shoulder. ‘I don’t know. But when I die and make that last crossing, I know I’ll see Danny, and my parents and my wife and son standing at the far shore waiting for me. But I worry every day that Martin Kelly will be standing there, too.’

‘And do you think helping find him will stop that from happening?’

Tony nodded. ‘I suppose so. Maybe I’m looking to be forgiven or something.’

‘Fair enough,’ Karen said.

‘Why did you agree to it?’ Tony asked, scuffing at the deck with the toe of his shoe.

‘I’ve kids now; I can only imagine how horrendous it would be to lose one of them and never know what happened to them. I’d never stop looking for them. His family are going through that and we have the power to spare them that pain.’

‘Is that the only reason?’

‘The only one,’ Karen nodded. ‘I never wanted to go back here again.’

Tony considered the response, and how she had moved on seemingly so easily. ‘Then we all have our reasons.’

‘I know yours and mine,’ Karen said. ‘And that young lad’s being used by his uncle for politics, so I know his reasoning. Why’s Hugh Duggan agreed to this if he doesn’t actually agree with it?’

‘I think he’s looking for answers,’ Tony said. ‘I think he’s not well.’

‘He looks awful,’ Karen said.