by Anna Jacobs
That’d show his uncle he wasn’t worthless, wouldn’t it?
But would his uncle care? Would anyone care?
The month after Bram’s tea-party fiasco, Livia debated whether she should go up to Perth on her regular outing to the bookshop. She knew the reason for her hesitation, but why should she let the possibility of meeting Mr Tilsley stop her from enjoying one of her main pleasures in life?
The owner of the bookshop greeted her with his usual smile. ‘A cup of tea, Mrs Southerham?’
‘That would be lovely, Mr Deeping.’
She was sorry to see that he was moving very stiffly and looking quite pale. ‘Are you all right? You look rather tired today.’
He sighed as he lit the burner on his little spirit stove and put the shining copper kettle on top. ‘I’m getting older, Mrs Southerham, that’s all. No one can prevent age from taking away one’s energy.’
‘Oh. I’m sorry.’
‘I’ll tell you now, before you hear it from someone else. If I can find someone to buy the bookshop and stock, I’m going to retire and live out my days quietly in the company of my favourite books. I’ve put the word out that I wish to sell the bookshop, because as you know, the building belongs to me, and one gentleman has expressed an interest. But he hasn’t gone as far as making me an offer yet.’
‘I’d buy it myself if I had the money, but I’m afraid I haven’t. I do hope someone as nice as you takes over the bookshop, someone who really cares about books and customers.’ She gasped as a terrible thought struck her. ‘You won’t let them close the bookshop down, will you?’
‘I’ll try not to sell it to someone who doesn’t want to use it for a bookshop, not least because I shall still be interested in buying the occasional book myself. But I can’t wait for ever, my dear lady. I get tired more easily these days. I’m … weary.’
She had a sudden idea, but hesitated, wondering if he might take offence. ‘I could come up to Perth and run the shop for you one day a week. That would allow you to rest a little more, perhaps.’
He paused, teapot in hand, to look across the shop at her.
He didn’t speak for so long, she said quickly, ‘I won’t be at all offended if you turn my offer down.’
‘I’m touched by it, to tell you the truth. It’s very generous of you. I was calculating how much I could afford to pay you. The shop doesn’t bring in a great deal of money, though there’s more than enough for someone like me to live on. Hmm.’
He stood there, head on one side, a thin, bald stick of a man, quite short, the same height as she was. Sometimes, he reminded her of the cormorants she saw fishing in the harbour.
‘You don’t need to pay me at all, Mr Deeping.’
‘I couldn’t allow you to do it for nothing, my dear Mrs Southerham, and you’ll have the expense of the fare from Fremantle every week, don’t forget.’
Pleasure ran through her at the thought that he might accept her impulsive offer, because the more she thought about it, the more she liked the idea. ‘Just give me an occasional book. That will be more than enough.’
He shook his head firmly. ‘No, my dear. When running a business, one has to do things properly. Look, I could pay your fare each week and give you five per cent of the money brought in by the books sold that day. We usually manage to sell a few each day, you know, so you wouldn’t go away empty-handed.’ He sighed. ‘I wish it could be more. If you feel my offer is insulting, I will understand.’
‘Nonsense!’ She beamed at him. ‘That’s an excellent offer and I thank you for it. I need something to do with my time, though I admit the extra money will be useful too. Don’t forget, you’ll be saving me the paddle steamer fare from Fremantle to Perth each week as well.’
‘That’s not much.’
‘It’s enough for me,’ she said quietly.
He held out his hand and they shook solemnly to seal the bargain. ‘It’s agreed, then. Look, why don’t you start helping me today? You can pour the tea for us and I’ll nip along the street to buy two little cakes to celebrate our bargain.’
She laughed as he hurried out, knowing what a sweet tooth he had.
While he was away, a customer came in and bought a book. It seemed like a good omen.
She waited till Mr Deeping came back before pouring their tea and then raised her cup as if it were a glass of wine. ‘Congratulate me. I sold a book while you were out.’
He beamed at her and clinked his teacup against hers. ‘That’s wonderful.’
‘It’s a good thing you write the price inside the cover in pencil. I’d not have known what to charge.’
‘Which book was it? Ah, yes.’ He solemnly counted out twopence and placed it in her hand. ‘Your commission, madam. I’ll show you the ledger in which to write down the sale.’
She didn’t even think of refusing the money, knowing he was pleased to give even a token amount to her.
All the way back down the river, she felt happy, but when she told her maids what she’d arranged, they looked at her in dismay.
‘It’s not what a lady should be doing,’ Orla said at once.
Rhoda nodded agreement. ‘She’s right.’
‘I don’t care. I shall be happy with the arrangement and enjoy selling books, and that’s the main thing.’
Livia would also look forward very much indeed to a weekly day out. She tried not to complain, but her life was rather dull, in spite of her two kind maids and her various friends.
Her life wasn’t dull enough, however, to make her consider marriage with a man she didn’t like in that way. Definitely not.
19
After the Sunday service, which was held on deck in good weather, the captain of the Coralla confirmed the rumour that they would be sighting Rottnest the following day. This island lay just offshore from Fremantle, and a pilot boat would come out to guide them in from there, since the coast had hidden reefs.
There was great excitement among the passengers. It was one thing to know that the land they’d travelled so far to reach was near, quite another to see it with one’s own eyes.
‘We must wear our best clothes to go ashore,’ Ma said. ‘And you boys had better not get them untidy again. We’ll be wanting to do your father’s brother credit.’
‘How will Bram see us coming ashore? He won’t know which ship we’re on, will he?’ Fergus said at once.
Cara and Ma looked at one another but said nothing. The closer they got to Australia, the more tense Fergus had become, especially if anyone mentioned his brother.
‘I’ll bet you twopence Bram comes to meet us,’ Pa said.
‘Done!’ Fergus snapped. ‘He won’t do it. He’s rich enough now to send a servant.’
‘My Patrick doesn’t bet unless he’s very sure of the outcome,’ Ma whispered to Cara later. ‘You’ll see.’
‘I do hope he’s right.’
Later on, Pa told his wife that one of the officers had mentioned that there weren’t many bigger ships calling in at Fremantle. The mail ships usually called in at Albany, but this was an extra ship and was heading straight to Fremantle with some important dignitaries on board.
So Bram would probably have a fair idea that his brother might be on the ship. And of course you’d want to meet a brother you hadn’t seen for many years. That stood to reason.
Cara watched her husband carefully, trying not to show her anxiety. For the past few days, he’d become increasingly short-tempered. He’d snapped at the boys, stormed out of their tiny cabin one night when Niamh wouldn’t stop crying, and exchanged sharp words with the man in the next cabin about his son.
She had to admit to some sympathy about the annoyance caused by the little boy in the next cabin, who regularly kicked and banged the adjoining wall. This echoed more than you’d expect, because it wasn’t a fixed wall, and was just bolted into place so that cabin sizes could be altered. The regular thump, thump, thump had irritated her, too. But still, Fergus could have spoken more politely to their neighbour.
She packed their clothes, tried to keep Niamh happy and waited for whatever would happen. She’d done a lot of waiting in the past year, was aching now to get on and do things.
After they’d disembarked and got over the meeting with his brother, surely Fergus would calm down and become his old self again?
But that depended partly on his brother making him welcome. Oh, she prayed this Bram would be a kind man.
One of the customers in the Bazaar announced, ‘There’s a ship coming into the harbour, Mr Deagan. You can see it out to sea. My husband told me no one in the port was expecting it but when it was sighted, the harbour master sent a message to the Governor himself, and he sent one back to say he’s sending his Aide to meet the ship. So he must be expecting someone important. Well, that’s what my husband thinks.’
Bram questioned the lady, but she knew nothing more. When he’d finished serving her, he escorted her to the door and went to hover near his wife until she had finished with her customer.
‘What’s the matter, Bram?’
He told her about the approaching ship. ‘I’d better go and meet it, don’t you think, Isabella? They might be on it. I wouldn’t want them to feel unwelcome. Is everything ready for them at home?’
‘You know it is, and has been ever since we got Mr Kieran’s letter. You go upstairs and check their bedrooms most evenings, though what you think might have happened to the furnishings during the day, I don’t know.’ She gave him a little push. ‘Oh, go on with you. The ship won’t have docked yet, but you might as well go down to watch it come in. You know Freddie Spooner is quite capable of looking after the Bazaar and I’ll be here to keep an eye on him. If necessary, Mrs Hollins is only a few streets away, too, and she loves to come and help out. She has a nice manner and women enjoy being served by her.’
‘In other words, you don’t need me.’
Her eyes softened as they rested on him. ‘I’ll always need you, Bram darling. But until you find out whether your brother’s on this ship, I doubt you’ll be much use here. Admit it, you’re dying to go down to the docks.’
‘I am. Ah, you know me too well.’ He plonked a kiss on her soft, rosy lips and hurried off without another word.
She exchanged tolerant smiles with her next customer. ‘Men!’
‘Mr Deagan’s expecting another brother to join him here, is he?’
‘Yes.’ Isabella didn’t try to hide the news, because Bram himself had told everyone that his brother Fergus was coming out to Western Australia.
She only hoped his brother would be as nice as the rest of the family.
Once he was outside, Bram tried to walk along the street in a calm and dignified manner, as befitted a successful businessman, but excitement was rising in him like yeast in a batch of dough and he simply couldn’t do it. He speeded up till he was walking as fast as he could manage without running, raising his hat to ladies or nodding to men he knew but not stopping to chat as he usually did.
What if Fergus was on the ship? Wouldn’t that be wonderful? And it would be lovely to meet the others in the group, of course. But oh, he was longing to see his long-lost brother again, find out what Fergus had been doing all these years, help him make a new home here.
The ship was moving towards the dock, so it wasn’t a big one. The larger ships still had to stop out in the Gage Roads, and passengers had to come ashore by lighter. The merchants of Fremantle often debated how to remedy that, but didn’t seem capable of agreeing on a solution. If they unblocked the entrance to the river, as some said was possible, many of the ships would be able to pass Fremantle and sail straight up to Perth. No one wanted to lose custom.
And yet Fremantle wasn’t a natural deep-water port, and something really ought to be done to improve it. Even he understood that.
This ship was painted in the buff and black P&O colours, but it was smaller than the mail ships. It must have sailed straight to Fremantle, instead of docking and unloading at the deep-water port of Albany in the south.
Sailings hadn’t been as well ordered lately because of the ship that had sunk near Galle the previous year. Losing a vessel had affected the schedules. Well, the company couldn’t conjure new ships out of thin air, could they?
But somehow, the mails kept getting through. It wasn’t like the early days of the colony when so many ships were lost, or mail went astray. Things were a lot more civilised now.
Bram stood and watched the ship come closer to the shore. It slowed down and edged into place. He felt better simply to be there on the dock. Ready. How terrible it would be not to meet a brother who had come so far.
Someone moved across to join him. ‘Mr Deagan, isn’t it?’
He turned and saw one of the Governor’s aides, the young man he’d dealt with to get permission for his family to settle here. ‘Yes. Nice to meet you again, Mr Overton. Are you meeting someone?’
‘Yes. Major Weld is expecting guests.’
Bram dared to ask, ‘Important, are they?’
‘Long-time family friends, but the gentleman is taking up an important post in New South Wales after this, so I suppose they could count as important. They’re stopping off because he wanted to visit Western Australia before he went to the east coast, so that he would be able to advise on relations between the two colonies.’
‘That’s unusual. Not many important people bother to come here.’
‘We did have a visit by His Royal Highness, the Duke of Edinburgh in 1869. Remember how the harbour was full of small craft going out to look at his ship. I don’t know where they all came from.’
‘Yes, but there’s been no one important since.’
‘Well, this is an informal visit, so Major Weld won’t be making any public fuss about his visitors. And you’re expecting your brother and his family, are you not?’
‘I’m not sure whether Fergus is on this particular ship, but I need to be here just in case …’
‘I think you said you hadn’t seen him for over a decade? No wonder you’re excited.’
‘Yes.’ Bram knew he’d betrayed how he was feeling, but he didn’t care. If you couldn’t get excited about a family reunion, what could you get excited about?
‘I wish you a very happy meeting with your brother, then, Mr Deagan.’ The aide turned away. ‘Ah, Mr Grayson. How delightful to see you again.’
As the aide started chatting to another gentleman, Bram was left to wait on his own, which suited him better. He was finding it hard to make conversation today, something he didn’t usually have trouble with. He was even finding it hard to breathe evenly.
What if he and Fergus didn’t get on? What if Fergus moved his family away again? That would be terrible.
No, of course they’d get on. He’d make sure of that.
But Fergus hadn’t always done what was sensible, had he? Look at how he’d run away from Shilmara.
What had he been doing all these years? Why hadn’t he got in touch sooner?
Livia was out for a stroll and of course, when she heard about the ship, she turned towards the harbour, glad to have something different to look at.
She met a lady she knew and they both strolled along, standing together to watch the ship dock against the jetty, and the sailors bustle about on board, making ready for the passengers and cargo to go ashore.
There were people lining the rails of the ship. Some of them would be newcomers here to settle in the colony, she hoped, while others would be going on to the next port, either Albany in the south of the colony or Adelaide in South Australia.
Not many people had come to settle in Western Australia lately and quite a few had left for the eastern states. It was worrying.
She hoped those who disembarked wouldn’t be too disappointed at how small the various settlements and towns were in the west, how few amenities they had compared to English towns and even villages. She remembered how disappointed she’d been at first, especially when Francis had bought a small farm in the country, which had only one neig
hbour within walking distance.
Luckily, they’d got on well with their nearest neighbour, and she’d enjoyed the warmer climate, but even so, she’d been desperately lonely, often seeing no one else for days on end.
Reece and Cassandra had wanted to buy the farm after Francis died so she’d been able to move to Fremantle. It had helped her through her grieving to be among people again and she’d made some good friends, like the Deagans.
‘There look to be quite a few cabin passengers on board. See how many are standing at the front of the deck,’ Mrs Pollcott said. ‘I hope some of them will be staying in Fremantle. It’d be nice to expand our social circles. With the right sort of people, of course.’
With anyone who had a brain in their head, Livia thought. Never mind their social standing. For some reason, her eyes lingered on a tall gentleman among the cabin class passengers. He was speaking to an older lady, smiling down at her. He had a lovely smile, and a thin, intelligent-looking face. That’s what she found attractive in a man, intelligence and a kindly nature.
When the gentleman moved to speak to a group of people among the steerage passengers, his expression was equally friendly and he laughed at something one of them said. She hoped he was one of those coming ashore.
Her companion looked at a little fob watch. ‘I’m afraid I must get home now.’
‘I’ll stay for a while. I want to speak to Bram Deagan.’
Livia hadn’t taken much notice of the steerage passengers until now. They were crowded together towards the rear of the deck. Bram’s family would be among them, she supposed, so she studied them, trying to pick out the Deagans.
She narrowed her eyes to scrutinise more carefully the man the tall gentleman was talking to. He was so like Bram, he simply had to be Fergus Deagan.
Even as that registered, Bram moved to join her.
‘That’s him,’ he whispered, ‘the one talking to the tall fellow is my brother Fergus. Don’t you think? I haven’t seen him since he was a lad. Just imagine that.’
‘Oh, yes, it’s definitely him. He could almost be your twin. Who’s the lady next to him, do you think?’