Read Online The Legend of the Corrib King by Tom McCaughren - Free Book Online

head. ‘Too many tourists go there. It must mean something else.’
    The white butterfly landed on a tall plant growing on the edge of the clearing and began to explore one of its purple, bell-shaped flowers. Prince was dancing around with his head in the air looking for it, and Rachel rushed over and shooed it away before he could find it. When she returned she sat down and burst some of the bells against the palm of her hand.
    â€˜You want to be careful,’ Róisín told her. ‘They’re poisonous.’
    â€˜What are they?’ asked Cowlick.
    â€˜Foxgloves,’ said Róisín.
    â€˜That’s right,’ said Jamesie. ‘The bad fairies are supposed to have given them to the foxes to put on their paws so they wouldn’t be heard creeping up on things. Look, you can put them on your fingers.’ He reached for some and slipped them over his fingernails. ‘That’s why we call them pooka fingers. Pakie says it means fairy fingers or witches’ fingers.’
    â€˜ Fairies and witches ,’ exclaimed Rachel suddenly.
    â€˜ Foxes in ditches ,’ added Róisín.
    â€˜That’s it!’ said Tapser, getting to his feet and going over to examine the plant.
    The others joined him.
    â€˜And you say it’s poisonous, Róisín?’ he asked.
    Róisín nodded. ‘And maybe that’s something to do with the next line, Deadly the fingers …’
    They studied the plant and wondered what Pakie meant by what he had said.
    â€˜Read it again for us, Jamesie,’ said Cowlick.
    Jamesie took out his piece of paper and read it aloud for the umpteenth time:
    â€˜Fairies and witches, foxes in ditches,
Deadly the fingers that point to life’s riches.
Beneath tall spires of gold the Story is told,
Nymphs dance in the moonlight and secrets unfold …’
    Tapser sat down again and leaned his chin on his hand. ‘What is Pakie trying to tell us?’
    â€˜And what’s a nymph anyhow?’ asked Cowlick.
    â€˜We sometimes fish with artificial flies which are called nymphs,’ said Jamesie. ‘So unless he’s talking about flies dancing on the water.’
    â€˜Or he could mean the poachers’ children dancing in the moonlight, couldn’t he?’ said Rachel.
    â€˜Double meaning again,’ remarked Tapser.
    â€˜Let’s take it bit by bit,’ suggested Róisín. ‘The first lines don’t seem to be about fish, but about plants. Poisonous plants that point to something. I think we need to find out more about that.’
    â€˜Good idea,’ agreed Tapser. ‘But who would tell us? Jamesie, what do you think? Do you know anybody who could tell us about foxgloves and things?’
    â€˜There is one man who could tell us. But I don’t know if he’s at home. He’s probably out fishing.’
    â€˜Anyone else?’ asked Róisín.
    â€˜There’s a woman who lives along the lake a bit. She knows all about herbs. She could tell us.’
    â€˜What’s her name?’ asked Rachel.
    â€˜Biddy,’ Jamesie replied. ‘Biddy of the Lake.’

6. BENEATH TALL SPIRES OF GOLD

    As Nuadha picked her way through the byroads of the Corrib countryside, Prince trotted along beside her. The two seemed to have become great friends.
    After a while they came to a laneway lined with creamy meadowsweet and purple stalks of wild angelica. At the end of the lane was a clump of trees, and from there they could see a small farm stretching down to the lake. Not far from the water’s edge was a thatched cottage. There was a stack of turf at one end of the cottage, a small shed and hen-run at the other. Several geese were sifting through the mud in a nearby field, while down by the lake two rather shaggy-looking horses and three donkeys gazed idly at the water.
    â€˜What’s Biddy like?’ asked Tapser.
    â€˜Pretty scary,’ admitted Jamesie. ‘She