The Brothers' Lot - Kevin Holohan [92]
Galvin felt his cot rattle and gaped in horror as his tiny floor-level dormer window buckled at the sides, shattered, and popped out into the yard far below. His bath chair rolled across the room and crashed into the door.
It happened so quickly that there was no time for any last-minute thoughts of dying. The ancient relics were drooling and mulling over what was left of their past lives and suddenly there was noise, darkness, and then silence: terrible, irreversible silence. Simultaneously the two end walls of the attic folded inward and the roof collapsed and buried the ancient Brothers under an avalanche of masonry, wood, and slates.
Brother Loughlin took the stairs two at a time. Dermot McDermott tried to keep his eyes anywhere but on the heaving bulk of Loughlin’s arse that preceded him up the stairs.
At the top they found a frantic confusion of Brothers.
“The roof fell in! I tried to warn them! It told me it was coming!” shouted Brother Boland. He was covered in dust and stood shivering with shock.
Loughlin elbowed Boland out of the way and ran straight into the pile of rubble that blocked the final flight of stairs to the attic. “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!”
“Is it another miracle?” asked Brother Tobin excitedly.
“What are we to do?” asked Brother Boland fearfully. Loughlin ran his intelligence twice round the narrow limits of his mind and snapped his fingers decisively. “Mr. McDermott, you will stay here and make sure no one touches anything. The rest of you, back downstairs. It could be dangerous here.”
“Aren’t we going to rescue the elder Brothers?” asked Brother Tobin nervously.
“Is it those little bastards again?” called Brother Moody as he ran up the stairs to join them.
“I’ll take care of it! Brother Moody, please take Brother Boland back to his cell and make sure he stays there,” snapped Loughlin, and clumped back down the stairs with all haste.
Moody took Boland roughly by the arm and led him down.
“I think you should all go back downstairs now,” said McDermott.
The Brothers reluctantly headed down, a multilimbed knot of fear.
“Yes, Brother Loughlin here. I need to speak to Father Mulvey immediately … No, madam, I will not phone back later. Tell him this is an emergency.”
Brought Loughlin waited.
“Father Mulvey … Yes, I know, but I think you should get over here as soon as you can. We have a spot of bother … I’d rather not say. I think you should come over right away. You might want to bring that Father Sheehan with you … Yes, I am serious … Yes, I do … Right then.”
Loughlin hung up the phone and sat back in his chair. He picked up the brass figure of Venerable Saorseach O’Rahilly that presided over his desk. He weighed it in his hand and smiled with satisfaction at the little catch he had heard in Father Mulvey’s voice. Not quite fear but something other than total composure, and it had pleased him to no end. Briefly it clouded the fact that he had not the slightest idea what to do about this new development. Before he could fully relish this sweet moment to its fullness, his door burst open and McRae stumbled in.
“Brother, Brother, ye have to come! Mr. McDermott sent me! Quick! Fire!”
“Mother of God! Where?”
“In the attic rubble somewhere.”
“Fierce the way these old buildings go all of a sudden. A cousin of mine moved into a lovely little corporation house up above in Phibsboro near where the railway is. Painted her up like new. Repointed the brick himself, he did. Very handy, so he is. Grand little house. Little yard out the back for the greyhound and all. First thing you know, day after the Annunciation, one of the window sashes goes and nearly takes one of his little boys’ head off and him out the window watching the Sodality parade. Next thing you know the cousin discovers dry rot on the stairs. Before you can say who stole me hat, he finds a crack in the