Read Online The Angels of Lovely Lane by Nadine Dorries - Free Book Online
Authors: Nadine Dorries
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Patrick. It was the Irish way. Fists and boots first, words later. She rearranged her clothes, desperately wanting to be out of the gloom of the turf shed and into the now fading light outdoors. As she stood in the doorway, clinging to the frame to hold herself upright, she saw Patrick scuffling across the cinder path and scrambling away, dragging his dislocated foot behind him. His nose and mouth were pouring blood and he was crying like a babby.
Dana’s father retrieved his cap from the ground and busied himself with knocking the cinder dust away with the back of his hand to give her privacy while she straightened the rest of her clothes and wiped her eyes with the handkerchief that had somehow remained inside her skirt pocket. ‘Is this your fault?’ he asked her at last.
‘Oh, God, oh God,’ she cried. ‘Did ye not see what he nearly did to me, Daddy?’
Noel ignored the question. His voice was as cold as steel when he spoke. Dana did not have the pull or the ways of her mammy when it came to her father.
‘Did you ask him to come in here with you?’
Noel was unlike Patrick’s father. He was not a violent man when it came to women, but he could give any man a good kicking if needed. But, he had to know it was for good reason. Men in their village talked with their fists and ended up in the gaol, but not Noel. It was yet another hold his wife had over him. ‘Use your fists and I will leave you.’ He was afraid she would, because he knew she had somewhere to go and someone who was waiting. Someone who had never stopped waiting.
‘No, Daddy, I did not. Do you think I’m mad? Do you think I would want to do anything with that disgusting creature?’ She was screaming now and pointing at the hobbling, retreating Patrick as she spoke. ‘He dragged me in. He said he was going to show me what I would be missing while I was in Liverpool. Daddy, he was going to...’
Dana could not speak out loud the words to describe what Patrick had been going to do. Sex was not spoken about at home. Dana saw the temper flare up in her father; she watched as the redness rose from his neck and spread across his face. He was angrier than she had ever seen him before. He looked as though he were about to explode, and when he spoke it was in a voice shot through with steel.
‘Why in God’s name was I not given sons?’
The tone, and the coldness of his words, frightened Dana. She had never seen him like this before. He wiped his mouth and placed his cap back on his head. ‘I will deal with Patrick, but if I find you are lying to me, if you encouraged him or egged him on, there will be trouble. ’Tis here you will be staying tomorrow, not Liverpool.’
For the first few seconds after he had spoken, Dana was filled with disbelief. She felt the anger surge through her at the deep, hurtful injustice of her father’s comment and she could barely hold back the torrent of words that rose in her like stale vomit. She wanted to scream and rage at him, but she knew that with her father this got you nowhere. With the strongest will she could summon to keep the telltale anger from her voice, she said, ‘Do you know what I have just been through, Da? This is my night, my party and your best friend’s son has just tried to rape me. The boy you wanted me to marry has just pushed me in here and tried to... to...’
Her words tailed off and her bottom lip trembled as her voice deserted her. She was choked by the tears that threatened to claim her. But she stared at her father defiantly.
‘Yes, well, I will be asking Patrick questions too. But as I say, if I find out ye are lying to me...’
‘How do you intend to work that one out, Daddy? Will you take his word over mine? Here, look at this!’ She pulled up her skirt to reveal the indentations of Patrick’s dirty fingernails and the blood trickling down her thighs. ‘Do ye think I asked for this?’ Now she was crying hard.
Her father had moved away, disturbed, having intended
Dana’s father retrieved his cap from the ground and busied himself with knocking the cinder dust away with the back of his hand to give her privacy while she straightened the rest of her clothes and wiped her eyes with the handkerchief that had somehow remained inside her skirt pocket. ‘Is this your fault?’ he asked her at last.
‘Oh, God, oh God,’ she cried. ‘Did ye not see what he nearly did to me, Daddy?’
Noel ignored the question. His voice was as cold as steel when he spoke. Dana did not have the pull or the ways of her mammy when it came to her father.
‘Did you ask him to come in here with you?’
Noel was unlike Patrick’s father. He was not a violent man when it came to women, but he could give any man a good kicking if needed. But, he had to know it was for good reason. Men in their village talked with their fists and ended up in the gaol, but not Noel. It was yet another hold his wife had over him. ‘Use your fists and I will leave you.’ He was afraid she would, because he knew she had somewhere to go and someone who was waiting. Someone who had never stopped waiting.
‘No, Daddy, I did not. Do you think I’m mad? Do you think I would want to do anything with that disgusting creature?’ She was screaming now and pointing at the hobbling, retreating Patrick as she spoke. ‘He dragged me in. He said he was going to show me what I would be missing while I was in Liverpool. Daddy, he was going to...’
Dana could not speak out loud the words to describe what Patrick had been going to do. Sex was not spoken about at home. Dana saw the temper flare up in her father; she watched as the redness rose from his neck and spread across his face. He was angrier than she had ever seen him before. He looked as though he were about to explode, and when he spoke it was in a voice shot through with steel.
‘Why in God’s name was I not given sons?’
The tone, and the coldness of his words, frightened Dana. She had never seen him like this before. He wiped his mouth and placed his cap back on his head. ‘I will deal with Patrick, but if I find you are lying to me, if you encouraged him or egged him on, there will be trouble. ’Tis here you will be staying tomorrow, not Liverpool.’
For the first few seconds after he had spoken, Dana was filled with disbelief. She felt the anger surge through her at the deep, hurtful injustice of her father’s comment and she could barely hold back the torrent of words that rose in her like stale vomit. She wanted to scream and rage at him, but she knew that with her father this got you nowhere. With the strongest will she could summon to keep the telltale anger from her voice, she said, ‘Do you know what I have just been through, Da? This is my night, my party and your best friend’s son has just tried to rape me. The boy you wanted me to marry has just pushed me in here and tried to... to...’
Her words tailed off and her bottom lip trembled as her voice deserted her. She was choked by the tears that threatened to claim her. But she stared at her father defiantly.
‘Yes, well, I will be asking Patrick questions too. But as I say, if I find out ye are lying to me...’
‘How do you intend to work that one out, Daddy? Will you take his word over mine? Here, look at this!’ She pulled up her skirt to reveal the indentations of Patrick’s dirty fingernails and the blood trickling down her thighs. ‘Do ye think I asked for this?’ Now she was crying hard.
Her father had moved away, disturbed, having intended
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