‘No… I won’t. Because I’ll need something back for the taxman. I need a thank you. My name in the paper saying I gave x amount of yo-yos. Catch my drift?’
‘Not really.’
‘Say you’re a school,’ he was now speaking with exaggerated slowness.
‘We are.’
‘Great! Perfect. Well, I’m a developer and I want to giveyou money because I’m a good person. Do I just give you the money?’
‘Yes?’
‘No! I give you the money, but you give me something in exchange.’
‘Like a plot of land?’
‘Like a worthless, rocky, brambly plot of land.’
‘Brian, if he was to build on it, would we have a say how the land was to be used? A community centre, I was thinking… or perhaps an elderly person’s drop-in place…’
‘Well, I amsure our GS, as I like to think of him, would be open to suggestions like that.’
Was this all BS rather than GS, I wondered. But land did get sold. In fact, years ago, some of the school was sold to developers and a housing estate, where many of our pupils lived, was built. There was precedence.
‘Tabitha, I think we should call another meeting of the board of governors and we can then take avote. I have a feeling that it might make sense tothem,’ he said, implying it was my lack or intelligence that was leading to my slightly muted reaction.
‘Who is this man?’
‘Our Good Samaritan? Freddie Boyle is his name. I’ve been looking into his background and asking a few of my contacts, and he’s entirely kosher. Made a mint and now wants to give back. Make sure St Paul waves him throughwhen it comes to his turn. Or maybe he’s just got a heart of gold. He’s going to give us 20,000 notes, no questions asked. The land is worth half, if that.’
‘I think I might just get some advice… Ask an estate agent to come round.’
Brian looked hurt, crestfallen even. ‘An estate agent… but…’ His bottom lip stuck out. ‘I thought I was looking after this for the school… I wanted to do this forthe Star of the Sea, for Dalkey. I really believe with this project that we are giving back, you know? I’m all about the giving back. Anyway, it’s not about selling the land for the highest price, we probably could get a better price. Some fool estate agent would convince you that it was worth ten times the price, but they’d be wrong. There’s so much granite in there and it’s such an awkward site.So that’s why this Freddie is such a good fit for us…’
‘Maybe…’ I tried to think clearly. ‘Would there be a contract that we could sign, stating all this.’
‘Think, Tabitha,’ he commanded. ‘Think of the smiling faces of the little children glowing in the collective light of 100 iPads. Think of all that learning that is contained in a tiny computer. Like a million books all folded up and squashedinside, all ready for the pupils of Star of the Sea to read. Rest your mind on that image, Tabitha. And we’ll see what Sister… Sister Thingy and the other ones have to say.’
‘Sister Kennedy,’ I reminded him. ‘And Noleen Norris and Brendan Doherty,’
‘Indeed.’ The crocodile smile again. ‘But personally, I think it is the best action for the school going forward and I am delighted, in my humbleway, to be part of it.’ He stood up and saluted me, his little child’s hand flicked his forehead. ‘Roger and out.’
‘Roger,’ I found myself repeating. But just then, there was a noise from outside, a chanting from somewhere.
‘Oi, teacher, leave those trees alone!’
From my window I could see a small group of people were holding placards: Save Our Trees, Squatters Rights For Squirrels and DevelopersDeliver Doom. A scraggly, ragtag band of people, they were. I peered closer. Ah! There was Nellie Noonan, Nora’s friend from swimming; there was a youngish man with dreadlocks and an old fleece; an older, bearded chap, with tiny glasses, wizened in stature and dressed professorially in a shabby brown suit; and a young woman dressed in a flowery dress, an old man’s cardigan and a shaved head.And finally, there was an older woman with long hair and a scraggly Barbour. My mother.
‘Oi teacher, leave those trees alone… Oi teacher, leave those trees alone.’
What fresh hell was this?
*
My mother. My mother!
I marched out, furious. They all turned to watch me storming over and their chanting petered out and then Nora began again and they picked up their shout.
‘Oi, teacher…’
