"Have you heard of the famous pirate queen, Grace O'Malley?"
"Of course; she is legendary throughout Ireland. She was notorious for her fierceness in battle. I know she married twice and had several children. She was famous for being ruthless, yet at the same time is credited with preserving much of Gaelic history."
"Absolutely, and she was a woman that knew her own mind. Did you know that Grainne is the Celtic name for Grace?" Margaret asked. Both Keelin and Margaret's middle name was Grainne.
"I did not," Keelin said.
"Almost all of the women of a particular bloodline in Grace's Cove carry that name. It isn't because of the town name. It is because our bloodline is that of Grace O'Malley."
"Shut up." Keelin was thrilled. She was related to a famous pirate queen? How cool was that?
"Keelin, do not say, ‘Shut up.’"
"Sorry, Mom."
"Yes, you are a descendant of Grace O'Malley, forwhom Grace's Cove is named. Your grandmother has a direct connection and experiences the effects of it."
"Of what? I don't understand. Is ol' Grandma a pirate or something?" Keelin asked.
Margaret smiled. "No, not quite. Grace was rumored to have powers other than her formidable ones as a pirate queen. Some say magick. Others say a healer. Others point to almost a psychic ability to predict potential threats. It isn't really known what all surrounded Grace, yet almost all will agree she had a level of power."
Keelin began to nervously pick at her nails. She pulled at a loose hangnail and winced as blood came to the surface. Without thinking she covered it with her hand and the wound slowly faded.
"The cove itself is rumored to be enchanted. Almost no one will go there. Well, aside from your grandmother. And a few others. I've gone there. I never will again."
"Wait. What. You're kidding me, right?" Keelin said. She pictured the stunning images of the cove that she had seen on Google. It was impossible to think that people wouldn't spend time there.
"The Irish are a very superstitious people, Keelin. Nobody will go there. People who do are often swept out to sea or injured on the rocks. They say that the moon won't reflect off the water there – yet at times the sea glows from within."
"Okay, Mom, stop. There are perfectly plausible explanations for these things. Oftentimes coves have whirlpools or riptides that will pull people out to sea. As for glowing from within, there are certain types of phosphorous plankton that can create a glowing illusion onthe water. I'm sure it is all just a superstition," Keelin said.
Margaret smiled and shook her head. "You're so smart. And, typically, I would agree with you, had I not seen the power for myself. I won't go back there. My mother went into the cove regularly and never had a problem but she had her own way of doing so."
"Mom, why is it named Grace's Cove? What is the connection?"
"Well, it is rumored that Grace O'Malley hid the Chalice of Ardagh there and that the one in the national museum is a companion piece to the real chalice."
"What! Mother. No. That is insane. The Chalice of Ardagh is part of Irish national pride. If that were true there would have been expeditions. Divers would have found it. The cove is not that big."
"Oh, there have been expeditions. Many. They've all failed. The government got sick of spending money on it and now dismisses it as a silly superstition and warns people against going to the dangerous waters of the cove. The official statement is that there is a powerful current that will sweep you out to sea. The unofficial statement is that it is cursed."
Keelin stared at the pond. The ducks swam lazily, picking at the offerings of bread. The science side of her mind concurred with the official reason for the cove's problems. The "other" side of her that stayed awake at night with visions, hummed. Her mom's words were like a balm of truth to her soul. Conflicted, Keelin rubbed her hands together, not seeing that her nail wound had completely healed.
"How come Grandma could go there? How does the book play into all this? Is this why you left?" Keelin had so many questions.
"Your grandmother and I had a difficult relationship. It was one of the reasons that I left with you. Her plans for you didn't coincide with my plans. I needed to give you a chance at a normal life," Margaret said again, nervously twisting a gold band around her right hand.
"Um, what? How am I supposed to respond to that? Can you just say it straight?" Keelin liked to work with facts.
Margaret sighed. Her twisting movements became faster. Keelin reached out and put her hand on her mother's.
"Mom, just say it."
"That book is your grandmother's. She was constantly devoted to it. She carried it everywhere and was always writing carefully in it. Your grandmother is famous throughout Ireland as a wise woman – a healer. There are those that claim she is a witch. I don't believe that. Yet, I've seen her cure people where modern medicine was unable to. She never let me see the book. She told me it was for my daughter and that I had other gifts. I never planned to get pregnant, so I didn't think about leaving Grace's Cove until I was surprised with you. I couldn't let you grow up with such nonsense. What kind of life would that be for you? People only come to healers if they need their services and healers are often shunned in other places. Healers are the focus of constant whispered gossip. With Fiona as my mother, no matter if we went into a pub or a store – someone always talked. The more religiousmembers of the town would switch directions and cross themselves when we walked by. I just wanted a normal upbringing for you, not like the one that I had. I just wanted the best for you. You have to understand. I gave up my everything. My love, my family, my life so that you could be a normal child. And I still fear that I was never able to give you what you needed. She may have been right."
"Mom. I had a great childhood. It's fine," Keelin said quickly. Too quickly.
"Keelin. No, you didn't." Margaret sighed deeply and clutched Keelin's hand. "You had constant visions, daydreams, and night terrors. You would scare the crap out of our friends when you told them they were sick or what would happen with a family member. And that time that you healed our cat that was hit by a car? You were five. Five! You are not normal and there is nothing that I can do to change that. You are touched with something special. Maybe it is time that I embrace this and do what I can to help you. You'll never find happiness if you don't address this."
