The Parting Glass

The Parting Glass
Emilie Richards

USA TODAY bestselling author Emilie Richards continues the journey begun in her beloved novel Whiskey Island with this unforgettable tale of star-crossed lovers, murder and three sisters who discover a hidden legacy that will lead them home at last to Ireland.Megan, who is feeling hopelessly unprepared in her new marriage, has no idea how to fix the problems already facing her relationship. Casey, who is happily married to her high school sweetheart, is facing a new challenge: motherhood. And Peggy, who always dreamed of becoming a doctor, has put medical school on hold with the discovery that her young son is autistic.Each facing her own difficulties, the Donaghue sisters are brought to the remote Irish village of Shanmullin by Irene Tierney, a distant relative who hopes that they will be able to help her learn the truth about her father’s death in Cleveland more than seventy-five years ago.As a stunning tale of secrets and self-sacrifice, greed and hidden passions unfolds, the life of each sister will be changed forever.

Praise for the novels of

EMILIE RICHARDS

“(A) heartfelt paean to love and loyalty.”

—Publishers Weekly on The Parting Glass

“Well-written, intricately plotted novel….”

—Library Journal on Whiskey Island

“A flat-out page turner…reminiscent of the early Sidney Sheldon.”

—Cleveland Plain Dealer on Whiskey Island

“[Emilie Richards] adds to the territory staked out by such authors as Barbara Delinsky and Kristin Hannah with her hardcover debut, an engrossing novel…. Richards’s writing is unpretentious and effective.”

—Publishers Weekly on Prospect Street

“Richards pieces together each woman’s story as artfully as a quilter creates a quilt, with equally satisfying results, and her characterizations are transcendent, endowed with warmth and compassion.”

—Booklist on Wedding Ring

“(A) heartwarming, richly layered story.”

—Library Journal on Endless Chain

“Richards stitches together the mystery of a family’s past with the difficulties and moral dilemmas of the present for a story as intriguing as the quilt itself.”

—Publishers Weekly on Lover’s Knot

Emilie Richards

the Parting Glass

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My thanks to fellow writers Karen Young, Diane Chamberlain and Patricia McLinn for their affectionate support and feedback during the creation of The Parting Glass, and to Damaris Rowland for her insights and suggestions. I’m grateful, too, for Madelyn Campbell’s considerable medical expertise and her willingness to share it.

A very special thank-you to all the readers who asked me to continue the Donaghue story, and particularly those at Cleveland’s Irish Cultural Festival who related their personal stories of Whiskey Island and prodded me to look into Cleveland’s bootlegging past and mysterious tunnels.

Special thanks to Michael McGee, who accompanied me on two research trips to County Mayo during particularly rainy weather and almost never complained. And as always, thanks to my talented editor, Leslie Wainger, who never fails to inspire and encourage.

THE PARTING GLASS

Of all the money ere I had,

I spent it in good company,

And all the harm I’ve ever done,

Alas was done to none but me

And all I’ve done for want of wit,

To memory now I can’t recall

So fill to me the parting glass,

Good night and joy be with you all.

Of all the comrades ere I had,

They’re sorry for my going away,

And all the sweethearts ere I had,

They wish me one more day to stay,

But since it falls unto my lot

That I should go and you should not,

I’ll gently rise and softly call,

Good night and joy be with you all.

(This is a traditional Irish ballad for singing at the end of an evening, a gathering or an event. One of Ireland’s most popular, it is documented as far back as the 1770s.)

Contents

prologue

chapter 1

chapter 2

chapter 3

chapter 4

chapter 5

chapter 6