Inside, the house was dark and dreary and smelled strongly of boiled cabbage. I knocked on his door and waited. He was taking his time opening it, I thought, but there again, he didn’t know it was me. I was about to knock again when the door opened a slit and Dom peered out.

“Nora!” he cried. “What in God’s name are ye doing here?”

“I wanted to surprise you,” I said. “I’m just after arriving yesterday.”

He stared at me, his eyes wide.

I’d expected he’d throw his arms around me the minute he saw me. But there again, maybe he was just in shock. I laughed. “Are you going to let me in, or am I to stand here all day?”

He bowed his head and opened the door wide. I stepped in and looked around. There was only a bed, a dresser and a couple of chairs. A faded curtain was drawn across an alcove. Probably a wardrobe, I thought. It was hardly posh, but enough for a lad on his own. He had photos of his ma and da, and another of his sister, Maeve, on the dresser, and on a small table by the bed was one of myself that I’d given him before he left Donegal. I smiled when I saw it.

A sudden rustle behind me made me swing around. A buxom, dark-haired girl wearing a bright-red, satin petticoat and matching lipstick stepped out from the alcove, a defiant look on her face. I turned to Dom in confusion.

“Em, Nora, this is a friend of mine, Kathleen. Kathleen, this is Nora.”

He stood, his eyes lowered and his face flushed with color. He looked like a schoolboy who’d been caught doing mischief. The girl, Kathleen, showed no such shame. She glared at me, bold as brass, and stuck out her hand.

“Nice to meet you,” she said in a thick, Irish brogue.

I ignored her hand and turned back to Dom. “Who is this?” I said.

“A friend,” Dom said again.

Kathleen moved closer to Dom and put her hand on his arm. “Och, we’re much more than that, aren’t we love?” she said. “Tell her, Dom.”

He pulled his arm away from her grasp. “This is my friend, Nora Sweeney. I know her from home.”

Kathleen glanced at the dresser. “She’s the one in the photograph?”

Dom nodded. “Nora and her sister, Delia, and me, we all went to school together. I expect she’s come to New York to find her sister, Delia. Isn’t that right, Nora?”

I didn’t answer. I was so confused I didn’t know what to think or say. I suddenly felt faint. The small, stuffy room began to close in on me. I slumped down on a nearby chair. Dom poured me a glass of water. He was about to speak when Kathleen broke in.