Peggy gave Teresa her full attention. ‘No, what?’ she asked, amused at the strength in the old woman’s voice.

‘I thought to meself, what a lot of fun I had missed, only ever drinking the tea and giving out to everyone.’ She dropped her voice. ‘Especially Nola.’

Peggy stared after Nola. ‘Aye, she loves a drop and she’s spent most of her life laughing. There’s something in that, I’ll be bound. Don’t have any regrets, Teresa.’ She reached out and squeezed the old woman’s hand. ‘Take your hat off, go on.’

Teresa’s hand flew to her hat. ‘Take my hat off?’ she repeated. ‘I can’t do that.’

Peggy grinned. ‘Yes, you can. Let your hair down.’

A smile crept across Teresa’s face as she pulled out her hatpin and removed her hat.

‘There you go,’ said Peggy. ‘That wasn’t too difficult, was it?’

While Nola dispensed the amber medicine, Bridget pulled Bee to one side. With glasses in hand, the two of them sat together on the settle by the fire. The others, meanwhile, were extracting every last drop of information from Keeva. Nola, who had as good as poured her drink down her neck, held her glass out to Peggy for another.

Bee grinned. ‘She loves a good excuse for a tipple, does Nola.’

‘Aye, and she’s doing well on it.’ Bridget was now well into her seventies herself and she smiled as she watched Nola being eased down into the chair by Rosie. ‘I remember the day Nola married,’ she said. ‘Her mother and Seamus’s mother, Annie, began toasting the happy couple before we’d even reached the church. That was quite a wedding, Seamus and Nola – went on for days, it did. That was also the day I found out for sure I had the sight.’

‘How was that?’ asked Bee, curious and fearful at the same time. Everyone knew it was Bridget’s powers that had kept the village safe from Shona, but they also knew that there’d been times when Shona’s powers had been stronger, like the night she’d cursed Sarah as she stood there with Mary Kate in her arms.

‘It was Annie who told me. She said, “I will leave before my time and I have to pass my powers on and I’ve chosen you, Bridget.” But, really, I already knew. I’d been given signs from the other side. I knew.’

Both women stared into the fire and sipped on their drinks.

‘Did you see that coming?’ asked Bee as she inclined her head towards the large kitchen table where the other women were sitting.

Bridget didn’t hesitate in her response. ‘No, I did not, but I did see Mary Kate, and the two things are connected, I can see that. I just can’t see how. I’m struggling now. My powers are weak and the sight, it’s failing me.’

Bee had only known Annie when she was a child, and as far as she was concerned Bridget had been the village seer for all of her life. To learn that Bridget could no longer tell fortunes, commune with the spirits, heal the sick or cast spells should have caused alarm, but Bee knew already what Bridget was about to say.