Concerning the lives of a former headmaster and a former teacher at the prestigious St Anthony's School Through their separate voices, we learn of the misfortunes which befell each at an early age and how each struggled to find happiness, only to see it devastatingly removed from them with disastrous effects Raphael ran his own school impeccably for 40 years and Malachy's years at teacher training college were rewarding, however the icy hand of fate deals a cruel and untimely blow to their lives