The Secret Scripture Page #2

When I met

Michael McNulty...

I knew I would

wait for him forever.

I never would have met

my fighter pilot

if it wasn't

for the terrible man

with the mustache.

When the war

came to Belfast,

I lost my job.

I evacuated

to the Republic,

which was not at war.

I went to work

for my mother's sister

Aunt Eleanor

in her temperance hotel.

Going back

to my childhood home

of Ballytivnan

was like stepping into

a fairytale,

a peaceful world cut off

from all of reality.

May I take your cases?

Thank you.

- Hello, Roseanne.

- Hello.

- How was your trip?

- Just fine.

Come on, you two hussies.

Sister.

Let's go.

All were welcome

in my aunt's cafe,

Catholic

and Protestant alike,

depending

on their appearance.

My aunt had a strict

seating policy.

Those who

were allowed inside,

and those

who were kept outside.

- No.

- And those who

weren't allowed at all.

- There you see...

- Hi, Joe.

...poor Joe Brady,

who will die

in the mental asylum

at the top of the town.

Can I have a...

- ring, sugar...

- A donut?

Yes.

Happy as I was,

the fighter planes

beyond Ben Bulben

were always a reminder

that the war

was never far away.

- Hello.

- Hello.

Rose of Prunty's

Temperance Hotel?

- I am.

- I'm Michael McNulty.

Of McNulty Tobacco

and Spirit Merchants.

That's the one, yeah.

We're opposites, so...

Don't they say

opposites attract?

Oh, do they, now?

I'm going away

for awhile, Rose.

I hope you're here

when I get back.

Well, it was nice

to meet you, Michael.

Nice to meet you,

too, Rose.

Rose? Rose Clear?

- I am.

- Haven't seen you

since you were a girl.

At your mother's funeral.

Maybe you've forgotten

what Ballytivnan is like.

You need to be careful

who you fraternize with.

- What do you mean?

- Are you sympathetic?

Where do

your sympathies lie?

With us or with the Brits?

The McNultys are a family

of shopkeepers,

no trade.

Bread buttered

on both sides, understand?

No.

Careful whose side

you take.

I'll be keeping

an eye out for you.

Conas at tu?

Go maith, Toms.

Go maith.

Stop that, Michael McNulty.

Oh, no. Stop it!

Watch out for me,

will you?

You swam

all the way across?

You have to be

careful out there

when the tide is turning.

It looks calm on the top,

but underneath it's churning

like buttermilk.

I'm a good swimmer.

You know, this is not

a spot for ladies.

Well, I didn't see a sign.

Doesn't need a sign.

It's been that way forever.

Everyone knows that.

- I didn't.

- Hmm.

You're not from

around here are you?

You swim over there

on the other side

of the causeway.

All right.

I'll forgive you today.

Are you a policeman?

I'm not.

A lifeguard?

I am a lifeguard

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