Seamus Byrnes

**Seamus Byrnes** is a posthumous character mentioned in The Smoke Room. He was Murdoch's younger brother and the second son of the Byrnes family, before his death at a young age.

Seamus' death affected his siblings and parents greatly, and his legacy informs many their actions during the story.

## Appearance

Seamus was a young red fox who presumably had the orange and white fur shared by the rest of his family. He had tousled hair with small spikes in it. In photos, he wears a white collared shirt and a pair of overalls fastened with metal buckles.

The Byrnes family keeps a photo of Seamus in their entry hall as a tribute, and when Sam sees it he notes Seamus' strong resemblance to his brother.

## Personality

Little is known about Seamus' personality due to his death prior to the events of the story. From what can be gathered, he greatly admired his older brother and Ralph and spent much of his time doing activities with them. He enjoyed fishing, swimming, and playing games outdoors. He also seems to have had somewhat of a mischievous streak, likely due to his age.

### Before The Smoke Room

Seamus was the youngest child of Gretchen and Alfred Byrnes, and the younger brother of Holly, Murdoch, and Dahlia. Seamus presumably shared in many of the experiences Murdoch recounts from his own childhood, including Alfred building with them, Gretchen reading stories, and the children taking trips to visit their grandmother. Murdoch was often charged with keeping an eye on Seamus while their parents were not around, and the brothers spent much of their summers fishing with Ralph.

When he was eight, ten years before the events of The Smoke Room, Seamus spent the Fourth of July with Murdoch and some friends while his parents were out of town and his sisters were elsewhere. After playing capture the flag throughout the day, Seamus and his friends stowed away on a steamboat traveling on Lake Emma in order to launch fireworks that Ralph had concocted for them. According to his friends, Seamus lost his balance as the boat rocked and fell overboard, then got his arm caught in the ship's paddlewheel. He is presumed to have drowned, although all that was ever found of him was his dismembered paw.

Seamus' death devastated the rest of his family, especially Murdoch and his parents. According to Murdoch, his passing was the catalyst for his family "changing."

### Legacy and Murdoch's Route

After Seamus' death, his parents became much harder on the rest of his siblings. Gretchen began devoting herself to various causes and placing exactingly high standards on her children, whereas Red became angrier and more volatile, and took out much of his frustration by criticizing Murdoch's work at the general store. Murdoch feels extreme guilt for his indirect role in Seamus' death and struggles with living up to the legacy of his brother's potential. Losing Seamus seems to have also intensified Murdoch's interest in the supernatural, and he expresses a desperate suspicion that malevolent forces in Echo may have somehow conspired to create the right coincidences that led to his brother's death.

While visiting the cave near Lake Emma where they try to understand Echo's strange effects on the psyche, Ralph and Murdoch cite Seamus' drowning as the worst moment of Murdoch's life. Later on, Sam finds a photo of Seamus fishing with Ralph and Murdoch in the dark room of the Byrnes family's store. This prompts Murdoch to tell Sam about the day Seamus died, during which Seamus' expression can be seen subtly shifting within the photo.

While searching for silverware in the basement of the Byrnes house with Red, Sam comes across a case full of clothes that seemingly belonged to Seamus. Red asks Sam if he has ever lost a child and states that losing his son has helped make him into a "better man" as it taught him to let go. Sam also witnesses Red go beneath a sheet and seemingly have a "conversation" with Seamus about fishing while he touches his son's fishing pole, only coming back to reality when Sam removes the sheet.

## Relationships

### Murdoch

Murdoch was Seamus' older brother, and the two got along extremely well in spite of their eight-year age difference. Seamus seemed to look up to Murdoch and enjoyed playing with him, in particular learning to fish from him.

### Ralph

Ralph was a long-standing friend of the Byrnes, and Seamus often accompanied him and Murdoch on their fishing trips or was babysat by the pair.

### Byrnes Family

As the youngest Byrnes sibling, Seamus was typically under the charge of one of his siblings or his parents. While little is known of his relationship with Holly or Dahlia, Alfred and Gretchen are said to have loved him dearly. Gretchen and Alfred became much harder on their remaining children after his death, especially Murdoch. According to Murdoch, his parents posthumously ascribed much of their expectations onto Seamus, feeling that he would be a more respectable son than Murdoch and do a better job of running the family store. Red states that losing his son taught him to "let go" and that doing so made him into a better man, though at one point he seemingly has a "conversation" with Seamus in which he gives him fishing advice.

## Trivia

* Seamus' death has slight parallels to that of Sydney Bronson from Echo. Both drowned in Lake Emma at a young age, which led their loved ones to cope in ways that caused the deterioration of their relationships. There are additional circumstantial similarities to Lupita from Arches, who drowned young and whose death drove Devon to desperately seek out evidence of the paranormal, much like Murdoch does.

## Gallery

Artwork of Seamus with Murdoch and Ralph posted alongside Build 20 of The Smoke Room.An alternate version of the photo of Seamus from Murdoch's route, showing him with an unnaturally wide grin.