The Soldier's Daughter (17 page)

‘Really?’ Briony’s eyes stretched wide, ‘So what happened?’

‘Huh! I reckon the missus must have paid her off, ’cos next thing you know she’s disappeared and she hasn’t been heard of since. Fair broke her mum and dad’s heart, it did. She never even told them where she was going.’

‘Poor girl,’ Briony muttered with feeling. She couldn’t begin to imagine how awful it must have been for her to be cast aside and left to bear the burden of shame on her own. Mrs Dower bustled away then to fetch the meat she had cooked for the pie, and when she came back, Briony said, ‘Grandmother has told me that once Sarah and Alfie are at school I’m to help you about the house and garden. You will tell me what you want me to do, won’t you, Mrs Dower?’

Mrs Dower frowned. ‘Doesn’t seem right that you should have to work,’ she said. ‘You’re family!’

‘Oh, I don’t mind,’ Briony said truthfully. ‘I’m used to working. I worked in the offices at Woolworths back at home as well as helping my mum about the house. And I’d get bored if I had nothing to do, so I’m quite happy with the arrangement.’

‘Well, an extra pair of hands
would
come in very nicely,’ Mrs Dower admitted, but she still didn’t think it was right.

‘I could start now, if you like?’ Briony offered, but Mrs Dower shook her head.

‘No, there’ll be no need for that. You have a few days to settle in and get to know your way about first. The children should start at school next week and that’ll be plenty soon enough to pitch in and help. In the meantime I’ll have a word with the mistress about her giving you a small wage each week. ’Tis only fair. She’d have to pay if she could get someone in from the village, so leave it with me.’

Briony chewed on her lip but didn’t say anything. Her grandmother clearly had no time for her as it was, and she just hoped that Mrs Dower asking her for wages wouldn’t make things worse. Not that the money wouldn’t come in handy. There were bound to be things that the children would need and her small amount of savings wouldn’t last for long.

They enjoyed a delicious meal and when it was done Briony insisted on helping with the washing-up again. She had spoken to Talwyn by then and realised what Mrs Dower had said about her was right. The girl was very quiet and there was a vacant expression in her eyes. She also had a terrible stutter which made it very hard to understand her even when she did speak.

‘Can we go down to the beach now?’ the children asked when the pots were dried and put away.

‘I think that’s an excellent idea,’ Mrs Dower beamed at them, ‘In fact, I’ll pack you up a crowst so as you don’t have to rush back. Best make the most of the weather now, ’cos when it turns, it can get really bad here.’

‘Er, what’s a crowst?’ Briony asked, looking confused.

Mrs Dower chuckled. ‘Sorry, my lovely. I forgot you’re not from these parts. I think you call a crowst a picnic in your neck of the woods.’

‘Cor, that’d be lovely,’ Alfie said. He had wonderful memories of times when he had gone on a picnic with his family back at home. Sometimes his mum would pack a basket and they would go to Hartshill Hayes or tramp across the fields through Galley Common and on to Ansley. They had used to pick wild flowers on the way back for his mum to put in jam jars on the windowsill, and when he got tired his dad would carry him on his shoulders. He was saddened to think that this would never happen again now. His dad was in heaven, and it was only just beginning to sink in that he was never coming back.

‘Right we are then. I’ve got a nice bit of ham in the pantry,’ Mrs Dower said good-naturedly. ‘And there’s some saffron cake I can pack you up as well, and a bottle of lemonade with a marble stopper. That should keep you all going till suppertime.’

Briony noticed that Talwyn was listening. She asked, ‘Would it be all right if Talwyn came with us, Mrs Dower?’

The woman looked doubtful. ‘Well, I’m not sure that would be a good idea, my little maid. She tends to wander off, you see. You need eyes in the back of your head with her.’

‘Oh, I promise I’d take very good care of her,’ Briony said hastily and after a moment the woman nodded.

‘Very well then. But don’t say that I didn’t warn you.’

They set off for the steps leading down to the beach half an hour later armed with a heavy basket full of goodies that Mrs Dower had packed for them. Briony eyed the steps warily. They were very steep, cut into the face of the cliff, and it looked a long way down.

‘You all follow me,’ she ordered and they began the slow descent. Briony was actually quite afraid of heights and her heart was in her mouth, but eventually they reached the bottom safely, and, suddenly the effort was all worthwhile. The sand underfoot was silver-white, and she saw that they were in a little cove. Azure-blue waves were lapping onto the beach, and before she could stop them, Sarah and Alfie had stripped off their socks and shoes and were splashing in the sea. Talwyn held back, sticking close to Briony, who held her hand and led her to a sunny spot where she put down the basket and settled to watch the children. She had the impression that Talwyn didn’t get to visit the beach very often but then she doubted that the Dowers had much free time for pleasure. They always seemed to be working, which Briony thought was a shame, living in such a beautiful place.

‘Would you like to take your shoes off and go and paddle with the children?’ Briony asked kindly, but Talwyn shook her head. She seemed quite content for now to sit with her. Sarah and Alfie ran back and forth, gleefully showing them the shells and pretty pebbles they had found. Soon they began to search the rock pools and Alfie squealed with delight when he saw his first crab.

I shall have to buy them a bucket and spade each, the next time we go into Penzance, Briony thought, and she was so pleased to see the children enjoying themselves that gradually the hurt feelings about the harsh way she had been treated by her grandmother faded away. After all, it was a lot to have three children suddenly descend on you, so she ought to make allowances.

As the sun moved round in the sky, Briony took Talwyn’s hand and went for a gentle stroll around the cove, keeping a close eye on the children. The girl went without protest but remained very quiet and merely nodded as Briony handed things of interest to her. From the way she touched them and studied them curiously, Briony wondered if she couldn’t have perhaps done more than she was allowed to, had someone had more time to spend with her. But then poor Mrs Dower barely had enough hours in a day as it was, and she had no doubt she was doing her very best for the girl. Talwyn clearly wasn’t used to strangers; Briony doubted she would ever see anyone but her family, which was a shame. The girl was breathtakingly pretty. Her long slim legs and her arms were tanned and her hair shone like copper. She was very simply dressed in a flowered cotton dress that looked to be homemade, and her feet were encased in sandals.

Occasionally when Briony showed her something of interest, her face would break into a smile showing off her dimples, and Briony would see a flash of the young woman she might have been, had she not been damaged at birth. There was a light spattering of freckles across her nose and she had the longest, darkest eyelashes that Briony had ever seen – making her feel quite envious. Briony continued to encourage her to touch and feel things – seaweed that had been washed up on the beach, the smoothness of a shell . . . and eventually she led her back to the basket and they all gathered to eat their picnic. On more than one occasion Alfie dropped his sandwich, but he merely shook the sand off it and ate it anyway, assuring his big sister that it was delicious. He had always liked his food, but she had never known him to have such an enormous appetite; the fresh air must be doing him good. Home and the air raids seemed a million miles away, and could her mother and father have been there with them, Briony felt it would have been just perfect. But the sad fact was, that was never going to happen now.

By the time they climbed the steep steps back up the cliff, the sun was sinking into the sea and the children were tired and yawning. There was a nip in the air now too, despite the mild climate of this part of Cornwall, that reminded them all they were now into mid-September. Briony promised herself that she would bring them to the beach as often as she could while she still had the chance. It might be too cold to venture down there soon.

They made their way around the side of the house and entered by the back door – but not before Briony had noticed a young man digging in the kitchen garden. He looked up as they approached and Talwyn instantly ran to him and wrapped her arms about his waist. He responded by dropping a kiss on the top of her head, then turning his attention back to the others, he said, ‘Hello. You must be Briony.’ He was remarkably like Talwyn to look at, and Briony guessed that this must be her brother, Howel.

Her hunch was proved to be correct when he held his hand out, but then noticing how dirty it was he instantly withdrew it and smiled apologetically. ‘I was just digging a few potatoes for my mother before packing up,’ he explained. ‘I’m Howel, by the way. It’s very nice to meet you.’

‘It’s very nice to meet you too.’ Briony smiled back, thinking what a handsome chap he was. He was at least six foot tall and had the same dark eyes and coppery coloured hair as Talwyn. His shirtsleeves were rolled up and his arms were muscled and deeply tanned, as was his face. Suddenly realising that she was staring she blushed.

‘This is Sarah and Alfie,’ she introduced the younger two and he winked at them.

‘You all right, my lovers? Mum said you’d gone down to the beach. Enjoy it, did you?’

‘Not ’alf!’ Alfie said, trying to wink back. He and Sarah took to Howel instantly. He was so friendly that it would have been hard not to.

‘Well, I’d better get these inside and cleaned up,’ Briony said eventually, and gently putting Talwyn away from him, howel ruffled his sister’s hair affectionately before returning to his task.

Once back in the kitchen they found Mrs Dower stirring a large pan of thick chicken soup and the smell of that and freshly baked bread hung on the air, making Alfie feel hungry all over again. The woman smiled a welcome before asking, ‘Did you meet my grandson on the way in?’

‘Yes, we just spoke to him,’ Briony responded as she sank into the nearest chair. ‘He seems very nice.’

‘Oh, he is,’ Mrs Dower agreed proudly. ‘Lovely lad, Howel is, none better. He’s got a heart as big as Land’s End. Though I dare say I shouldn’t refer to him as a lad any more. He’ll be twenty-three next birthday and I keep nagging him, telling him he should be thinking of settling down by now.’

‘Has he got a girlfriend?’ Briony asked, and then instantly wished she hadn’t. It was no business of hers really but she was curious.

Mrs Dower paused as if she were thinking about the question before answering. ‘Well, he’s been walking out with a maid from the village, on and off for the last couple of years. I reckon she’d marry him tomorrow if he asked her. As I keep telling him – he could do far worse, but he doesn’t seem that interested.’ She sighed before confiding, ‘Between you and me, he wanted to join up, and he would have done but he was needed to help me and Caden to run the farm. But I know it bothers him. He feels that he isn’t doing his bit towards the war, unlike all the other men of his age.’

Briony suddenly thought of Ernie and wondered where he was and what he was doing now. But then she shepherded the children towards the sink and made them wash their hands before tea, asking herself why she felt so guilty.

That night, Briony lay tossing and turning. The children had dropped straight off, worn out after their day in the fresh air and all the unaccustomed exercise, and she wondered if they might actually last the night in their own rooms. They had certainly seemed a lot happier when she tucked them in and had spoken of nothing else but the time they had spent on the beach. Briony was tired too, but for some reason didn’t seem able to sleep. After making sure that the lights were off she had opened the window and now the curtains fluttered in the chill night breeze as she stared up at the starlit sky. Strangely enough, there seemed to be far more stars in the sky here than there had been back at home, and she wondered if she was imagining it. Eventually she rolled to the edge of the bed and after putting her dressing gown on she rummaged in the drawer for the notebook and pen she had brought with her and headed for the door. The house was in silence so she decided she would go down to the kitchen and write a letter to her mother and Mrs Brindley. They would no doubt be worrying about whether the three of them had arrived safely, and she wanted to put their minds at ease as soon as she could.

After creeping down the stairs she found the kitchen was in darkness and the curtains tightly drawn. She clicked the light on and settled herself down at the table. Tapping her chin with the end of her pen, she wondered what to write and then began:

Dear Mum
,

I just wanted to let you and Mrs Brindley know that we have arrived safely. Thankfully there were no diversions on the way and we arrived in Penzance last night as planned. Mr Dower met us at the station and he and Mrs Dower asked me to send you their love
.

She tapped her chin thoughtfully again then, debating whether to tell her mother about the meeting with her grandparents. She had no wish to worry her, so eventually she went on:

We met our grandparents this morning. They are hoping to get Sarah and Alfie into school here very soon
.

She omitted to mention their harsh reception – after all, she wasn’t really telling any lies, the way she saw it. She was merely dusting over the truth.

The children love it here, they are eating like little horses and we spent the afternoon on the beach with Talwyn, the Dowers’ granddaughter. I’m going to write to Ruth too when I have finished this letter and then I shall walk down and post them in the village tomorrow. Has Mrs Brindley heard anything from Ernie yet? We are really missing you and hoping that you are taking good care of yourself. I hope there haven’t been any more air raids? And are you eating properly? Please give Mrs Brindley and Ruth our love when you see them and I will write again very soon
.