Mum’s worried gaze shifted from Laura to Mrs. Graham. “Even if Laura is willing to go, how can we afford the train ticket?”
“I have some money.” Laura reached in her pocket and pulled out a five-pound note. This was the last of the money Andrew Frasier had given her. “Do you think that will be enough?”
Mr. Graham rubbed his chin. “It might buy you a one-way ticket, but if they let you take the children, you’ll have to buy four return tickets for the journey back.”
Laura’s hopes deflated. Five pounds definitely wouldn’t be enough for them all to take the train back to London.
Jacob reached in his pocket. “Here’s two pounds.” He laid the notes on the table.
“No, Jacob.” Laura shook her head. “I can’t take your money.”
He pushed it to the center of the table. “I want you to take it and bring your brother and sisters home.”
Laura gave a reluctant nod. “All right. Thank you.”
“You’ll need more than that.” Ruby rose from her chair and took a metal tin off the shelf above the sink. She popped off the lid and poured several coins on the table. “I’ve been setting this aside for a rainy day, and this looks like a storm for sure.”
Before Laura could thank her, Mr. Graham took three notes from his shirt pocket and added them to the pile. “You might as well take these too, in case you need them.”
Mum looked up with a teary-eyed smile. “Thank you all so much. I’ll repay you as soon as I’m able to go back to work.”
“Please don’t worry about that.” Mrs. Graham laid her hand over Mum’s. “The most important thing is keeping your family together.”
Mum pushed the money across the table toward Laura. “You take this and put it in a safe place. I’ll write a letter and explain the circumstances. Surely they can’t send my children to Canada without my permission. We can give them Reverend Bush’s name and address as a reference. Then they’ll have to release the children into your care.”
Laura nodded, but doubts tugged at her heart. No one from Grangeford had contacted her mum about assigning the children to an emigration party. They had refused Laura’s request to visit her siblings and acted as though they were well within their rights to do so. It seemed they wanted to sever all ties between the children and their family.
Would the staff in Liverpool be more sympathetic? Laura hoped so, for Mum’s sake. If Laura failed to bring them back, it would be a terrible blow, and her mum might never fully recover. Somehow Laura had to convince the staff at Hughes a mistake had been made and they needed to release the children and allow her to bring them back to London.
She met Mum’s gaze. “I’ll go tomorrow and do everything I can to bring them home.”
Once again, tears glistened in Mum’s eyes, and she pulled Laura in for a tight hug. “Thank you, Laura. I’ll keep you in prayer and ask God to guide you each step of the way. He loves you all even more than I do. He’ll take care of you.”
Laura’s throat felt so tight she couldn’t speak. So she kissed Mum’s cheek, holding back her own tears. Was that true? Did God really love them? If so, then why was He putting them through these painful trials? It didn’t make sense, and she wasn’t sure it ever would.
* * *
Katie stood on tiptoe and leaned to the left, trying to see around the girls in line ahead of her. Three women and more than fifty girls waited with their group to board the huge steamship tied up at the dock beside them. They had been paired up with partners, and she held tight to Grace’s hand. It wasn’t noon yet, but it seemed like they’d been standing on this pier for hours.
Finally, the first girl passed the inspector and walked up the gangplank with one of the escorts. Katie sighed, shuffled forward a few steps, then stopped again. To her right, workmen loaded huge stacks of trunks and boxes onto wooden pallets. They attached ropes, then raised the heavy pallets to the deck of the ship. The workmen’s shouts mixed with the cries of gulls circling overhead.
Water splashed against the black hull of the ship, sending up a fine spray. She studied the ship’s name, the Corinthian, painted in large black letters on a wide white strip near the top railing.
Her throat felt dry and scratchy, and her stomach contracted and growled. She’d been too nervous to eat more than a few bites of toast at breakfast, and she regretted it now. Who knew when they would have their next meal or what kind of food they would be served on the ship?
Pressing down her anxious thoughts, she adjusted the shoulder strap of her travel bag and glanced down at Grace. Her sister looked up, her blue eyes wide and her forehead creased above her pale eyebrows. “How much longer till we get on the boat?”
Katie looked toward the head of the line where two men questioned each girl and checked her boarding card before they let her pass. “It will be a little while.”
Grace gazed toward the ship. “It sure is big.”
“Yes, it is.” Katie placed her hand on Grace’s shoulder and forced a smile while she tried to think of something reassuring to say. “There should be plenty of room for everyone.”
Grace looked up at her again. “I wish Laura was going with us.”
Pain pierced Katie’s heart, and her smile faltered. If only that were true. Would they ever see their sister again? If Laura wrote to her now, what would happen to her letter? How would she know where to send it when they didn’t know who would take them in? She swallowed hard and closed her eyes.
She had so many questions and no answers.
When they were settled with a family in Canada, she would write to Laura again and ask her to come and join them. Maybe her sister could find work nearby so they could at least see each other. But would she give up her position and travel across the ocean without knowing where she would work or live?
“Look, here come the boys!” A tall, redheaded girl pointed behind them.
Katie turned to follow her gaze. A large group of boys strode down the pier toward the ship, marching four abreast. They were all dressed alike in brown coats, black pants, and red caps. Each one carried a travel bag over his shoulder that looked exactly like the ones Katie and Grace carried. Two men in black suits and bowler hats marched in front of the group, leading the way. Two more men marched at the back with the tallest boys.
Grace pulled on Katie’s sleeve. “Do you see Garth?”
Katie searched the lines, her heart pounding. It looked as though the younger boys marched in front and the older boys came behind. Garth would fall somewhere in the middle, but the boys weren’t close enough yet to see their faces clearly.
Grace tugged on Katie again. “Is he there? Can you see him?”
“Wait, Grace.” Katie scanned the boys’ faces as the group came closer. But those in front blocked her view of the boys behind, and there were at least one hundred of them.
“Turn around, girls.” One of the escorts, a plump blond woman in a brown traveling suit and small brown hat, walked toward Katie and Grace. “Keep your eyes ahead, and don’t hold up the line.”
Katie and Grace stepped forward, filling in the gap. But as soon as the escort moved away, Katie looked over her shoulder and watched the parade of boys move into place behind her group.
She held her breath and searched through the crowd, checking each face. Two boys shifted apart, and her heart leaped. Garth stood behind them in the fourth row, his gaze fixed on the ship.
She gripped Grace’s shoulder. “There he is! There’s Garth!”
“Where?” Grace spun around, hopping from one foot to the other, trying to catch a glimpse of their brother.
Katie rose up on her toes and lifted her hand. “Garth, Garth!”
Oh please, Father, let him hear me!
But the voices of the children around them and the noise of the workmen loading the ship drowned out her call. She waved her arms back and forth and ye
lled his name again.
Garth jerked his head to the right, his gaze intense as he scanned the group of girls.
“Garth! We’re over here!” Katie jumped up and down, ignoring the startled glances of the girls around them.
He spotted them, and a smile burst across his face.
Then, just as quickly, some boys stepped in front of him, blocking her view. “Garth!” she yelled again.
“Stop that shouting at once!” The plump escort strode toward Katie, grabbed her arm, and jerked her around. “Lower your voice! This is not a cricket match!”
“But that’s my brother!” Katie pointed toward the boys.
The woman slapped her hand down. “I told you to keep your eyes forward! Now behave yourself and act like a proper young lady.”
“But I haven’t seen him for so long. I didn’t know he was going to be on our ship. I prayed he would be, but I didn’t believe it would really happen.”
“That’s enough! Settle down and be quiet. You are making a spectacle of yourself!”
Katie clamped her jaw and glared at the woman. She had every right to call out to her brother. How else could she get his attention in a crowd like this? If that woman thought she could keep her from talking to Garth, then she was mistaken.
One of the other escorts approached. “Miss Hotchkiss, we need your assistance at the head of the line.”
Miss Hotchkiss leaned toward Katie and squeezed her arm. “Do as I say, or you will be punished after we board the ship.” She dropped her hold and strode up the line.
Katie waited a few seconds, then took her sister’s hand. “Come on, Grace.”
“Where are we going?”
“To see Garth.”
Grace’s eyes widened, and she shot an anxious glance over her shoulder.
“I’m not missing a chance to talk to him.”
Grace nodded, and they stepped out of line and let the other girls pass until they were at the very end of the girls’ group. Katie tried to be calm and not draw attention as she glanced back at the boys. Where was Garth? Why couldn’t she see him now?
An official-looking man in a navy blue uniform approached the two men leading the boys’ group. The three of them stepped aside to look at the official’s clipboard. He pointed to the stack of trunks waiting to be loaded onto the ship and then at his clipboard again. There seemed to be a problem about the number of trunks.
The younger boys in the front of their group filled in the space left by their two leaders, bringing them right up behind Katie and Grace. They jostled each other, and their eager chatter rose around them.
The line inched forward. Katie glanced toward the ship. Only about a dozen girls waited in line in front of them now.
Please, Father, help me find Garth! I just want to speak to him.
“Hey, you can’t push ahead of us!” a young boy shouted behind Katie.
She turned to look as Garth elbowed his way through the crowd toward the front. “Katie!”
Her heart soared. “Garth!”
He rushed forward and grabbed her, and she flung her arms around his neck. Grace ran to them and joined in the hug.
Katie closed her eyes, soaking in the comfort of her brother’s arms, joy pulsing through her. “Oh, Garth. I’ve missed you so much!” Behind her several girls giggled and pointed their way. Katie didn’t care. Let them laugh and make fun of her. She’d found her brother.
Hoots and whistles rose from the boys, but Garth ignored them. “I’m so glad we’re going on the same ship.”
She smiled, blinking her damp eyes. “Yes, God answered our prayers.”
Garth grinned. “That He did.” He stepped back a little but kept his arm around her shoulder.
“Let go of that girl!” One of the men with a bowler hat rushed toward them and jerked Garth away from Katie. “We’ll have none of that!”
“We didn’t do anything wrong. That’s my sister!”
The man scoffed and jabbed his finger toward Katie. “Get back with your group!”
She clenched her hands tightly and stood her ground.
He huffed. “We try to teach you street Arabs to be civilized, but you’re born into sin and prone to continue in it.”
Heat filled her face. They were not street Arabs!
Garth stepped forward. “Don’t talk to my sister like that!”
The man shoved Garth’s shoulder. “Get back in line, young man, before I box your ears! And stay away from the girls!”
Garth looked at Katie, and she read his thoughts. They had no choice right now, but that man did not have the final word. Once they boarded the ship, they would find each other, and nothing would ever separate them again.
8
Laura rose before dawn, gathered a few items of clothing in case she needed to stay overnight in Liverpool, and kissed her mother goodbye. Jacob insisted on going with her to Victoria Station, and though she’d been reluctant to agree, in the end she was glad he’d come along. She caught the first train to Liverpool and spent most of the three-hour trip rehearsing what she would say when she arrived at the Hughes Home. She tried to stay calm and remain hopeful, but she couldn’t seem to stop fearful thoughts from rushing through her mind.
What if she was too late and the children had already been sent to Canada? What would she do then? She reached in her coat pocket and ran her fingers across her mother’s letter. So much depended on what happened today. She wasn’t sure if God was listening, but she decided to offer a prayer.
Please, Lord, Mum has suffered so much, and her health is fragile. For her sake help me find the children and bring them home.
She waited, hoping the prayer would calm her and give her some reassurance, but uneasy feelings kept her unsettled for the rest of the trip.
Just after ten o’clock she stepped through the front door of the Hughes Children’s Home and started down the long, empty hallway. The building looked at least twice the size of Grangeford, and though it was newer, the stale smell and dim lighting made it feel just as oppressive.
She spotted the sign for the matron’s office over an open doorway and looked in. A young woman about Laura’s age sat behind a small wooden desk, sorting through a stack of papers. Her red hair was caught up in a neat style, and she had an abundance of freckles sprinkled across her nose and round cheeks. She looked too young to be the matron, and Laura assumed she was an assistant or receptionist.
Across the room a middle-aged woman sat in a straight-backed chair against the wall. She wore a gray dress and a modest hat of the same color. Was she a mother waiting to visit her children staying at Hughes? Laura searched the woman’s face, but she didn’t seem anxious. In fact, she appeared calm and perhaps even a little bored.
The young redhead looked up and noticed Laura in the doorway. “May I help you?”
Laura stepped into the room, but before she could speak, the door to the inner office opened and a tall, thin woman in a black dress strode out.
“Miss Langdon, why did you admit that woman?” Her voice rang with authority as she glared at the redhead.
The young woman’s eyes widened. “I’m sorry, Miss Williams. She…she had such a compelling story I didn’t feel right turning her away. I thought it would be best to let you decide.”
Miss Williams’s dark eyes snapped. “I thought I made it clear we only allow family visitation on the last Saturday of each month.”
“Yes ma’am, you did, but I—”
Miss Williams raised her hand to stop her. “If you want to continue in this position, you need to obey my instructions.”
“Yes ma’am.” Miss Langdon bobbed her chin twice.
“The only people I want to see today are those applying for the open positions. Is that clear?” Miss Williams shot a glance at Laura, then at the woman waiting in the chair.
Laura’s stomach dropped. What was she going to do now?
Miss Williams turned and strode back into her office, leaving the door open but disappearing from view. “Mrs. Hudson, as I’ve already said, this is not visitation day. I am sorry, but you’ll have to leave.”
“Please, I just want to see my children.” The other woman’s voice was soft and pleading.
Laura couldn’t see Mrs. Hudson, but she knew exactly how the poor woman felt.
“The children have a set schedule, and they cannot be disturbed. The next visitation day is May twenty-ninth.”
“But that’s almost a month away! I can’t wait that long.”
“You signed the papers and agreed to the terms when the children were admitted.”
“Yes, but I didn’t know I wouldn’t be allowed to see them!”
The matron appeared in her office doorway, her mouth set in a firm line.
Mrs. Hudson stepped into sight. She wore a bedraggled green dress with a stained and torn hem and clutched a black shawl around her shoulders. Her mousy gray hair hung in neglected strands, and her face was pale and thin. She reached for Miss Williams’s arm. “Please, promise me you won’t send my children to Canada. I can take care of them now. I’m living with my sister, and I—”
Miss Williams brushed the woman’s arm away. “It’s time for you to leave.”
Mrs. Hudson’s chin trembled. She lifted her hand, covered her mouth, and bolted past Laura. Her sobs rose in the air as she hurried out the door and down the hall.
Miss Williams turned toward her assistant. “Who’s next?”
Miss Langdon nodded to the middle-aged woman seated in the chair. “Miss Cunningham.”
Miss Williams arched her eyebrows. “Are you here to apply for a position?”
“Yes ma’am. I am.”
“You may come in.”
Miss Cunningham rose from her chair and followed the matron into her office.
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