The Blue Horse

by Marita Conlon-McKenna

  THE BLUE HORSE

  ‘This is a beautiful story, sensitively told’

  THE SUNDAY TRIBUNE

  A novel set in contemporary Ireland, by the author of the CHILDREN OF THE FAMINE TRILOGY Under the Hawthorn Tree, Wildflower Girl and Fields of Home.

  Having lived in a caravan as a traveller, Katie settles in a new house with her family and begins a new life. She must deal with great changes and with big challenges. She has high hopes, but many obstacles are put in her way. It is difficult for her to find new friends and to fit into a new school. Luckily, Katie has courage and guts – she will not give up easily.

  CONTENTS

  Title Page

  1 SUMMERTIME

  2 A STRANGER

  3 THE GOAT BOY

  4 THE FORTUNE TELLING

  5 STICKS AND STONES

  6 JUMP!

  7 DESTROYED

  8 ALL GONE

  9 THE OFFER

  10 LEAVING

  11 NUMBER 167

  12 DOOR-TO-DOOR

  13 SCHOOL

  14 SEPTEMBER

  15 THE UNIFORM

  16 A NEW START

  17 GALLOPING

  18 WOODEN HEART

  19 EMERGENCY

  20 THE HOSPITAL

  21 TURNED AWAY!

  22 SAWDUST AND SHAVINGS

  23 BACK ON THE ROAD

  24 TRIAL AND ERROR

  25 THE BLUE HORSE

  About the Author

  By the Same Author

  Copyright

  ‘Hold your head high.’

  With gratitude to the Arts Council for the Creative Literature Bursary which enabled me to research and write this book. Thanks to all those who took the time and trouble to talk to me.

  Chapter 1

  SUMMERTIME

  Katie looked out of the car window as it swerved off the main road and bumped up over the grass verge. It began to push through the gap in the hedgerow. She pressed her face against the glass as the branches and leaves and wild briars scraped against the windows.

  The stony ground sloped down to a field where other caravans and trailers lay spread about.

  ‘Here we are!’ announced her father, with a huge sigh of relief as the car came to a standstill. Three dogs ran forward, yapping and jumping with curiosity.

  In the back of the car they all began to yawn and stretch. Part of Katie’s leg had gone dead and she tried to work her foot backwards and forwards to get the circulation going.

  ‘Come on, you lot, out you get!’ Da got out and pulled the car doors wide open.

  One by one they clambered out. A crowd of children ran over and a big black labrador pushed his cold nose against Katie, slobbering all over her clean jeans. She smiled. Mister belonged to her Uncle Mike.

  ‘Down, Mister! Down, good dog! I know you’re glad to see me.’

  Straight away the twins shot off and were soon running around the place exploring. Her mother got out of the front seat slowly with little Davey asleep in her arms.

  The door of one of the trailers was flung open and a woman jumped down onto the grass. Auntie Brigid. She ran over to greet them. Katie waved towards some of her cousins grinning in the middle of a group of muddy children of all sizes. The twins were going to love it here.

  ‘Katie, stir yourself and give me a hand,’ urged her mother.’ Take hold of Hannah. She’s nervous of all the strangers and fuss.’

  Impatiently Katie grabbed at the sticky fingers of her shy, seven-year-old sister. ‘Come on, you big baby, nobody’s going to bite you!’

  Hannah stared at her. Her pale golden hair blew in the breeze and framed a round, innocent face. Katie relented. How could anyone be cross with such an angel, she thought guiltily.

  While Mam and Auntie Brigid stood chatting, Da got back into the car and set about trying to find a suitable spot for their caravan. Soon he and Katie’s fourteen-year-old brother, Tom, had reversed into a shady corner and they began to unhook the trailer. Da heaved out the large yellow bottle of gas and connected it up.

  A tall well-built girl, with wavy blond hair, called them over to their aunt’s large trailer, with all its frills and flounces and brightly polished windows. Everything seemed to be in its place as usual in the neat caravan.

  ‘Hi, Maggie!’

  ‘Hiya, Katie. Will you have a drop of lemonade? We’ve some biscuits as well.’ She passed them around. The twins, as if by magic, appeared and gulped down their drinks, standing on the step, and then ran off again with the gang.

  ‘Paddy, Brian, listen to me! Take care running around – you don’t know this place yet, so have a bit of care!’ shouted Mam as the two red-heads disappeared down the field.

  ‘They’ll be grand, Kathleen, don’t be bothering yourself about them,’ said Auntie Brigid reassuringly. ‘My lot’ll keep an eye out for them. You just enjoy the tea and tell me all the news since we last met.’

  Maggie glanced at Katie and cast her eyes upwards. Obviously a long gossip-session. ‘Are you coming outside, Katie?’

  Hannah followed them and the three girls sat on the step outside the door. The sun was weakening and there was a slight nip in the air.

  ‘This is a fine place,’ Katie said, glancing around the field.

  ‘You should have seen it in the middle of winter. We were up to our knees in mud, but in the good weather it’s great,’ agreed Maggie.

  ‘I think it’s lovely,’ Hannah declared solemnly. ‘I hope we stay here for a long, long time.’

  ‘Well, there’s no telling how long any of us will stay any place,’ said her cousin, ‘but let’s make the most of it! Do you see the big trees over there? About ten minutes on there’s a little stream. You might catch a few pinkeens in it. Do you have a net?’

  Hannah shook her head.

  ‘Well, we’re handy to the town. We’ll get you one there.’

  Katie looked all around her. Clothes-lines had been strung between two or three of the tall trees and clothes flapped, drying in the breeze. Two multicoloured blankets were spread out to air on the grass. At one end of the field were three broken-down scrap cars, one without wheels. A cock and a few hens ran around the place, scratching and squawking. Almost at the centre of the camp was the telltale circle of stones and sticks and ashes and coals. A fire. Tonight, maybe, there’d be a fire lit. Katie hoped so.

  Tom came striding over, carrying their puppy in his arms. ‘Katie, will you hold Duffy? She has us tormented trying to set up.’

  ‘Duffy, be a good dog. What have you been up to?’ asked Katie as the dog began to gnaw at her hands.

  ‘Teething is she?’ laughed Maggie. ‘She’s a grand little thing – a terrier is it?’

  ‘Sort of,’ said Katie, tossing Duffy onto the grass. Straight away the dog began to pull at Hannah’s shoelaces. Hannah jumped up and raced backwards and forwards, the dog trailing after her.

  Tom was busy taking stuff from the boot of the car. At fourteen he was a smaller and thinner version of his father. His hair had darkened from fair to brown and his grey-green eyes seemed to be always searching for something when you were talking to him. He loved to be with Da, and the two of them were great friends.

  After about an hour, Mam came out onto the top step of her sister’s caravan. ‘I’d better go and get things sorted out, I suppose,’ she announced. ‘Thanks a lot, Brigid, ‘tis real nice to be back together again. Here, Katie, take Davey and mind him. Hannah, you come with me. You can help set the table and sweep out the place.’

  Katie smiled to herself. Mam seemed happy to be near Brigid’s family again. A summer here would do them all good. This was what travelling was all about. Fresh air and being your own boss, and finding a bit of space for yourself with plenty of friends around. A
nd if you were lucky nobody to evict you or tell you to move on.

  ‘Katie! Katie! Are you gone deaf? Honest, you’re a right dreamer. Do you want to come for a walk after tea and see the place?’

  ‘Oh sorry, Maggie, I was miles away. Yeah, that would be great. I’ll see you later, then. Come on, Davey.’

  Carrying her baby brother, Katie made her way towards the brown and cream caravan. Mam stood watching as Da hammered a thick pole into the ground to one side of the door. Mam unwrapped the small blanket she was holding, then carefully took out a carved wooden horse and fixed it securely on top of the pole.

  The blue painted horse stood looking out over the camp. No matter where they travelled or camped, once everything was set up, Mam would always take out her most prized possession and put it up as a sign that this was their place now, if only for a few days. The trees, the earth, the water, the air around them would be a part of them for the time they needed it until they moved on again.

  Davey looked at the blue horse.

  ‘Hossey, hossey,’ he babbled.

  ‘That means home, Davey. The blue horse means home,’ Katie told him proudly.

  Chapter 2

  A STRANGER

  Hannah helped Katie to wash up after tea and stack the plates and cups away, while Mam changed Davey into his soft blue pyjamas. The twins stood on the seats and got the pillows and blankets and sheets out of the overhead sliding cupboards.

  ‘No bouncing or pillow fights!’ warned Mam. ‘Tom, will you go over and ask Brigid for a drop of water so we’ll have enough for later. In the morning we’ll have to get the containers filled.’

  The sun slowly dipped behind a cluster of trees, tingeing the evening sky with a warm rosy glow. Katie noticed two men bent down lighting the fire.

  Mam, satisfied that all the beds were ready, pulled on her warm ‘night’ cardigan and stepped outside. A chance to chat and relax under the stars always put her in a good humour. She helped the other women spread a few rugs on the grass.

  It surprised Katie when Maggie appeared, looking very grown-up and pretty. She had changed her clothes, tied up her blond hair, and two golden leaf-shapes dangled from her ears.

  ‘Come on, Katie! Let’s get out of here and go for a walk.’

  ‘I’m coming too,’ Hannah announced.

  ‘No! You’re not!’ groaned Katie in exasperation. ‘Leave us alone.’

  She was fed up with her sister always hanging around. She wanted to be with her own friends, free of the younger ones for a while.

  ‘Bridey, come over here,’ shouted Maggie. A girl of about eight, her jet black plaits flying out behind her, broke away from the gang.

  ‘Bridey, this is our cousin Hannah. Do you remember her?’ Bridey grinned, showing a mouthful of missing teeth. ‘Now, I’m putting you in charge of minding her and making sure the others play with her!’

  Bridey nodded and pulled the reluctant Hannah towards a group of girls pushing a broken-down pram in the fading light.

  ‘She’ll be fine. Come on.’

  Maggie led the way down a dirt path, past the other caravans and trailers, avoiding two rubbish piles. They crossed a long, narrow field where a few ponies and horses grazed. The mares stared drowsily at the girls and the gangly foals whinnied, looking for attention.

  Light was fading fast as they wandered into a small wood, keeping their mouths shut as they passed through a curtain of thousands of tiny midges.

  Finally, they reached a spot where ancient oak trees almost formed a circle – the perfect hideaway. From the huge, sturdy branches of the largest oak, three old black tyres dangled and a few heavy ropes hung enticingly. The best swing in the whole country.

  Katie couldn’t resist it and clambered up on the base of the tree and onto a tyre – forcing it backwards and forwards with her body weight.

  ‘It’s great.’ She laughed as she whistled through the air and the thick greenness of the leaves. ‘Come on, Maggie.’

  Maggie just stood on the grass and looked up at her. ‘Yeah, the kids love it.’ Her voice was wistful.

  Maggie would once have been first to climb to the very tip-top of the tree, but something had changed her. Katie let the silence fall between them, unsure what to say.

  ‘Did I tell you I got a job?’

  Katie looked surprised.

  ‘I’m learning to sew on a big machine. It’s good money, too, and a good training.’

  ‘What do you sew?’

  ‘Jeans, shirts, curtains. Someone else cuts them out and we put them together. God, I bet you never thought you’d see the day.’

  Katie smiled nervously.

  ‘It’s up in the town. One of the Caseys works there too. Fellas and girls, so it’s good fun …’ she stopped.

  ‘Maggie, come up and have a go,’ Katie pleaded, pushing a tyre in her direction.

  ‘That’s just kids’ stuff!’ Maggie shrugged. ‘Anyway, we’d better get back. It’s getting dark.’

  Katie, making a great effort, swung higher and higher, aiming at the tip of a twisted branch that hung out beyond all the others.

  ‘Suit yourself! I’m off,’ Maggie shouted.

  With a lurch, Katie managed to tap the branch at last with the tip of her shoe, then slowed down the movement of the swing till she could jump off and run after her cousin. She didn’t want to be left alone in the dark strangeness of this wood.

  * * *

  Hours later, in the stillness of the night, something stirred. It roused Katie. The whole camp was quiet. The fire had died down and everyone was asleep. A shadow seemed to flit by the caravan window. Maybe it was a cloud racing across the moon, or a bat.

  Katie sat up and peered out. Everything looked blurred. Black silhouettes of bushes and hedges seemed threatening in the dark. She heard a rustling sound. There was definitely something outside. Duffy gave a low growl. The dog was supposed to sleep outside the caravan, but usually ended up snuggled in with the twins in their bed. Mam turned a blind eye.

  A footfall. She thought she heard the grass crunch under a shoe.

  Who was outside?

  Katie was scared. Should she call Mam and Da? Or was she just imagining things? She pulled back from the window, hoping she could not be seen. No one else stirred. She strained her eyes. There was movement outside … definitely … it was … a man … no … a boy. In the moonlight his face looked white, almost like a ghost. His eyes were two dark smudges. His thick hair stood on end. A loose-fitting shirt hung out over cropped jeans.

  He was moving nearer. She barely dared to breathe. Oh no! He was standing in front of the blue horse. He stared at it intently. Was he going to steal it? Katie sat mesmerised, watching the boy.

  He stretched out his hand towards the wooden horse. He traced the line of its head and back, its legs and long flowing tail. He felt the horse from top to bottom, making no effort to lift it off. He turned around, his eyes searching for something.

  It was too late – he’d spotted her through the window in the moonlight. She felt like an animal caught in the glare of a headlight as they stared at each other. This strange boy – he disturbed her. For an instant they studied each other. Then he seemed to drop down towards the ground where something was scrabbling around outside. She hoped it wasn’t rats.

  A second or two later he stood up again. He held a young kid goat in his arms and he seemed to be talking to it, soothing it. He began to walk away, and then, without warning, he turned back and waved at her. She wasn’t sure if he was saying hello or goodbye as he disappeared in the dark.

  Chapter 3

  THE GOAT BOY

  She had almost forgotten about the boy next morning, when a knock came on the door. Katie opened it a fraction. With a start, she saw it was him. She flushed, and stood, confused, not saying anything.

  ‘Hiya, Francis,’ shouted Paddy from behind her.

  ‘My grandmother sent me over to show you where to go for water,’ he said. ‘The water in the stream isn’t clean enough for
drinking.’

  ‘We’ll be ready in a minute. Come on, Brian! Come on, Katie! Where are my shoes?’

  Francis waited outside in the sunshine for them. Katie pulled on a T-shirt and shorts and a pair of runners – she found a wide navy hairband she shared with Hannah and hoped it would help keep some of her mass of red hair out of her eyes.

  The sunlight almost blinded her as she stepped outside.

  Francis stood in front of the blue horse, running his fingers along the smooth, painted wood.

  ‘It’s beautiful.’

  ‘Yeah,’ agreed Katie.

  ‘What’s it for?’ he asked.

  ‘The horse is my Mam’s. Her granddaddy made it for her when she was a little girl.’

  ‘Oh, a kind of souvenir then.’

  ‘No, it’s much more than that.’ She tried to explain. ‘My great-grandfather, like his father before him, used to make the old-fashioned wagons. They travelled all the roads of Ireland and made homes for lots of the travelling families, and on a small corner of every wagon they always painted a blue horse so that people would know who the maker was. My great-grandfather carved this wooden one for Mam. The old wagons are gone but we still have our blue horse and no matter where we camp Mam puts him up for luck and in memory of times past. She says we must never forget those times, and that the blue horse brings us good fortune.’

  Francis nodded. ‘Gran is the same. She gets strange feelings about places and people, about what is good luck and bad luck, and where we should camp or not.’

  ‘Some people say she has second sight,’ he added. ‘She can tell fortunes, and all around her she sees signs that the rest of us don’t notice.’

  ‘Hurry up, Katie,’ shouted Paddy, swinging a water container towards her. Katie grabbed it, then she and Francis fell into step. She forced herself to keep up with his long strides. He was much taller than her and she guessed he was a year or two older.