Orphans and Angels

by Linda Finlay

  It was Saturday afternoon and, having driven Bess and Alice to Torquay station in the trap earlier in the week, Harry had taken the boys to the farm to see what needed doing. Sarah was supervising the girls’ sewing and as she walked around the classroom, she couldn’t help marvelling at the progress they’d made on their outfits.

  ‘This is going to look right dandy, miss,’ Edith cried, hopping up and down excitedly. ‘Just think, me with me own outfit. I shall look like a lady, specially now we can grow our ’air.’

  ‘Hair, Edith,’ Sarah corrected although she couldn’t help smiling at the girl’s enthusiasm.

  ‘Please sit quietly or you’ll get that chalk in the wrong place,’ she urged.

  ‘No chance,’ Edith replied. ‘This pattern Miss O’Reilly’s done is clear as daylight.’

  ‘That sleeve is coming on a treat, Sally,’ Sarah encouraged, moving to the next desk. ‘Let me know if you need any help. Ah, April,’ she said, smiling as the girl came bounding into the room.

  ‘Mrs Daws said I can spend this afternoon sewing as well,’ she cried. ‘Now I know this is going to fit me,’ she said, holding up the green dress, ‘I can’t wait to get it finished.’ Sarah appraised the garment, which Miss O’Reilly had unpicked and neatly repinned. It was really coming along. ‘And, as the day after Easter is my anniversary day,’ April cried, ‘Mrs Daws said we can wear our new dresses to my party and she’ll make one of her special cakes.’

  ‘I loves cake,’ June lisped.

  ‘Your anniversary day? Ah, that’s the day you came to Red Cliffs,’ Sarah guessed.

  April nodded. ‘Most of us don’t know the day we were born on so we celebrate when we came to Red Cliffs.’

  ‘Tell you what, April, I could make you a ribbon to go with your dress, if you like,’ Edith offered.

  ‘What a lovely idea, Edith,’ Sarah said. ‘Well, let’s get sewing then, shall we?’

  ‘Can we sing, miss?’ Monday asked. Sarah nodded but as they began singing a movement outside caught her eye.

  What were Harry and the boys doing back from the farm so early? And why was Solomon accompanied by Sergeant Watts?

  ‘Carry on with your sewing, girls, I’ll be back shortly,’ Sarah said. ‘April, please take charge.’

  ‘Is everything all right?’ she asked, hurrying towards the group. It was then she noticed they were carrying three sacks between them.

  ‘We found treasure, Miss Sullivan,’ Brown cried in delight.

  ‘Yeah, and Sergeant Watts thinks it’s nicked,’ Black exclaimed.

  Sarah stared askance at Sergeant Watts.

  ‘Seems them old barns have been used as a store for stolen property, Miss Sullivan.’

  Sarah’s eyes widened in amazement.

  ‘The boys came across all manner of stuff when they went to tidy up, amongst which were items stolen from Red Cliffs,’ Harry explained.

  ‘And me father’s watch,’ Solomon added, holding it out for her to see.

  24

  ‘Well, I never. To think them robbers was using the farm to hide their loot,’ Mrs Daws muttered, holding up the little mallet. ‘Shame they didn’t find me gong as well as this, ’cos that one from Lady Chorlton’s got too posh a sound for me.’ She sighed and took a sip of her tea.

  ‘Really, Mrs Daws, how can a gong sound posh?’ Harry chuckled, stretching out his legs and relaxing back in the chair. ‘Thank heavens it’s gone quiet now. I thought those children would never settle this evening after all the excitement. Luckily it was bath night and we could leave them in the capable hands of Mrs Laver, whilst Sergeant Watts was expounding his theories. You should have heard the racket the boys made when they found the stuff. Screaming and shouting like gleeful gorillas.’

  ‘It’s a good job the farm’s well away from the neighbours or that would give them something else to moan about. Josephine said the Local Authority had received numerous complaints about the banging coming from the roof here,’ Sarah said.

  ‘There’s no pleasing some people,’ Harry muttered. ‘They moan that the state of this place is letting the street down, then complain when we do something to improve it. Damned if we do, damned if we don’t.’

  ‘Ignore them, Master Higgins. At least we’ve got our candlesticks back and Solomon his father’s watch,’ the housekeeper replied. ‘The way he was clutching it tightly to his chest reminded me of when he first arrived with his bundle.’

  ‘Strange that it should be found along with our things, though, don’t you think?’ Sarah frowned.

  ‘Not really, if the same person stole them,’ Harry replied. ‘Think about it: Slater coming here and the fire at the foundry happened around the same time, didn’t they?’

  ‘You mean it was all Slater?’ Sarah gasped, still feeling guilty that she’d let the man roam around the house unaccompanied.

  ‘Sergeant Watts reckoned it was, but the evidence is circumstantial,’ Harry admitted.

  ‘He always says that,’ the housekeeper muttered.

  ‘Well, when I pressed him he admitted there could be a connection and he’s going to make some enquiries. We also uncovered other stolen property in the barns, some of it quite valuable, which he’s getting his constables to itemize. Anyway, I’ve locked up the farmhouse and will keep the boys away until they’ve made a thorough search of the outbuildings and land.’

  ‘Poor Bess,’ Mrs Daws clucked her tongue. ‘What a good job she and Alice had already left. She’s had enough to contend with lately. Imagine, her property being used for storing stolen goods. Unbelievable, isn’t it?’

  ‘It’s certainly not a nice thought, Mrs Daws. However, Jim hasn’t been in those buildings for quite some time. Sergeant Watts reckons the thief knew that and had been stashing the goods while he found a suitable outlet for them. Gives a whole new meaning to the word “fence”, doesn’t it?’ Harry said, draining his cup. ‘Well, I’d better be on my way.’

  When Sheena arrived at Red Cliffs on Monday afternoon, she found Harry wheeling a barrow across the gravel driveway. It was loaded precariously with a wriggly tin sheet that Solomon was trying to hold steady.

  ‘Good afternoon, Miss O’Reilly,’ he called.

  ‘Good afternoon, Master Higgins,’ she replied, trying to ignore the way his muscles rippled under his rolled-up shirtsleeves. He put down the barrow and gave her a warm smile. ‘I see you have turned into a builder since I was last here,’ she added, quickly averting her gaze.

  ‘Langham reckoned there was enough tin left to erect a shed for our new trades,’ Harry told her.

  ‘And when it’s done, I’m going to help show the others how to mend my father’s tools,’ Solomon said, his eyes shining with enthusiasm. ‘You’ll never guess what, Miss O’Reilly. I’ve got my father’s watch back.’ He pulled it from his pocket and dangled it in front of her. ‘It were ’idden in one of Farmer Jim’s barns.’

  ‘That’s grand, Solomon. You’ll be able to remember your father every time you tell the time,’ Sheena smiled.

  ‘Aye, that’s right funny, that is. Every time I tell the time,’ the boy cried delightedly.

  ‘Perhaps you’d like to check on what the boys are doing in the workshop, Solomon,’ Harry suggested. As he ran off, Harry turned to Sheena. ‘Finding that watch has certainly perked him up. I’ve also filled some buckets with sand and put him in charge of the “cleaning the tools team”. At last he seems to be fitting in.’ As he stood there grinning, Sheena felt her heart flip.

  ‘It’s good to see him so happy, Master Higgins,’ she said quickly.

  ‘It’s a shame you didn’t come with us to the farm, you missed all the excitement,’ he said, his hazel eyes sparking with mischief. Forcing herself not to respond, she smiled stiffly.

  ‘Well, Saturday is not a school day for me, Master Higgins. I did hear through the grapevine that stolen goods had been recovered from Jim’s barns, though.’

  ‘Yes, and some of it was Red Cliff’s property. However, until the police ha
ve finished their enquiries the farm is out of bounds, hence starting on this project,’ he said, waving his hand towards the west side of the garden where some building materials had already been stacked alongside the high wall. ‘It won’t interfere with your lessons, though.’

  ‘Talking of which, I must get moving,’ Sheena said, turning to go and spotting the principal heading towards them.

  ‘Goodness, I do hope you’re not being presumptuous,’ Sarah cried, gesturing towards the loaded barrow. ‘We’ve still to receive official confirmation from the Local Authority that we will get funding for the project.’

  ‘Well, we’ve got the leftover wriggly tin, and Langham has kindly donated these timber offcuts and a few warped rafters for the frame, so it would be stupid to look a gift horse in the mouth. Besides, the more I think about it, the more I can see how much the boys will benefit from learning these new trades, but they would be far too messy for the workshop.’

  ‘Well, I’m sure you know best,’ she replied.

  ‘Oh, I do, Miss Sullivan,’ he grinned.

  ‘Honestly,’ Sarah chuckled, raising her brows.

  Seeing their easy banter, Sheena felt her heart plummet. She’d just have to put her own feelings to one side, she reminded herself. Then she realized Sarah was addressing her.

  ‘Let me say once again, how impressed I am with the way the girls’ outfits are coming along, Miss O’Reilly. They are going to be a credit to Red Cliffs at the concert.’

  ‘Thank you. We’ve been practising our singing at the same time instead of stories, you understand,’ she said, looking meaningfully at Sarah.

  ‘Good, and both Mrs Daws and Mrs Laver think your idea of letting their hair grow a good one, although they both insist it will be your responsibility to ensure they’re not harbouring any unwanted visitors.’

  ‘That is not a problem, Miss Sullivan. With Easter being so close, their hair won’t have grown much anyway, but at least they’ll look softer and more feminine.’

  ‘I agree,’ Sarah replied. ‘Now, I’m off to the bank to ensure our money from Lady Chorlton has been safely received, then I shall be attending another meeting of the women’s movement, so I’ll wish you both good day.’

  ‘And I’d better be getting into the classroom,’ Sheena said quickly.

  ‘Scurrying away again, Miss O’Reilly?’ Harry teased.

  ‘Just being assiduous, Master Higgins,’ she replied.

  ‘I can see you’ve been studying the dictionary. Well, you’ll find yourself in good company for this morning the pupils did English comprehension and learned all manner of new words.’

  ‘To be sure, I hope decency and rectitude were amongst them, Master Higgins,’ she replied stiffly, and marched into the classroom. Although she could feel his eyes boring into her back, she didn’t turn round.

  Sheena was kept so busy in the run up to Easter, ensuring the girls were ready for the concert, it was easy to avoid the master. If her eyes strayed to the window when he was working on the shed, then she hastily averted them. Moral courage might be easy words to say but she was finding it incredibly difficult to put them into practice.

  ‘Right, girls,’ she said, marshalling her thoughts. ‘Today is Good Friday, an exciting day, is it not?’

  ‘Yes, we’re finishing lessons early today,’ Monday cried gleefully.

  ‘Well, in that case you’d better hurry up and put on your new dresses so that I can check everything is perfect before the concert tomorrow. We’ll call it our dress rehearsal, shall we?’

  ‘Just like they have in concert halls,’ Sally replied.

  ‘This really is a Good Friday,’ Maggie said, clapping her hands excitedly as the girls began to change into their new dresses.

  ‘To be sure it is, and when I’m satisfied you all look like little angels, you can take yourselves off to the kitchen for one of Mrs Daws’ special spicy buns,’ Sheena told them.

  ‘And I hope you’ll be joining them,’ Miss Sullivan said, appearing in the doorway. ‘We’ve hardly seen you in the house these past couple of weeks.’

  Knowing it would be churlish to refuse, Sheena forced a smile. ‘That would be grand,’ she replied. ‘Right, girls, line up in front of Miss Sullivan so she can see the results of all your hard work.’

  There was a flurry of excitement as they began twirling around to show off their outfits. Edith stood proud in her dress and bolero and Sheena marvelled again at the girl’s talent. Sally looked delightful, her delicate silk frock the perfect foil for her pale complexion. She was certainly going to look beautiful against the bright Easter floral arrangements the good ladies would have spent the morning preparing. April stood beaming beside them, the green cotton showing off her shapely figure rather than crushing it.

  As Sarah took her time scrutinizing every detail, Sheena could contain herself no longer.

  ‘Well, don’t you just think our girls look pretty, Miss Sullivan?’ As Sarah turned and shook her head, Sheena felt her heart plummet. What had she done wrong?

  ‘They look absolutely beautiful. They exceed even my high expectations, Miss O’Reilly.’

  Sheena laughed. ‘I do wish you wouldn’t shake your head when you mean yes, Miss Sullivan. It always makes me think you have found something amiss.’

  ‘Girls, you all look lovely. You have worked very hard and are going to do Red Cliffs proud tomorrow. Now you do remember the words you are singing?’

  ‘Yes, Miss Sullivan,’ they chorused.

  ‘In that case, change back into your smocks, lay your dresses carefully over your desks then take yourselves off for your Easter bun and drink.’

  ‘Can’t we take our new dresses up to our dormitory ready for tomorrow, miss?’ Edith asked.

  ‘I think they would be safer in here,’ Sarah replied. ‘It would be a shame if they got all creased, wouldn’t it?’

  With the thought of their Easter treat proving too tempting, they didn’t complain and as they excitedly did as she’d asked, Sarah turned to Sheena and smiled.

  ‘Well done, Miss O’Reilly. Time for refreshment, I think. We are all gathering in the kitchen for a celebration before Mrs Daws and myself depart for Miss Snooper’s. She’s invited us for supper; Mrs Laver, too.’

  ‘Oh, I, er, need to tidy away here first,’ Sheena stammered, hoping to delay the moment she would have to speak to Harry again.

  ‘Rubbish, Miss O’Reilly, I insist you come along with me now.’

  Knowing there was nothing she could do, Sheena fixed a smile on her face and followed the woman to the kitchen.

  ‘Ah, Miss O’Reilly, I thought you’d deserted us,’ Mrs Daws called above the babble of excited voices. ‘Now come and help yourself to an Easter bun. I found a new receipt in one of them periodicals and can’t decide if it’s an improvement on my usual one or not.’

  With the delightful aroma of mixed spices filling the kitchen, Sheena didn’t need telling twice. She smiled at the children, who were enjoying their treat of cake and juice, then helped herself.

  ‘Oh, that’s absolutely delicious, Mrs Daws,’ she gasped, biting into the fragrant cake.

  ‘Ah, we have another pistoriophile in our midst,’ Harry cried, grinning at Sheena as he helped himself from the plate.

  ‘Oh, you and your fancy words, Master Higgins,’ Mrs Daws chided.

  He winked at Sheena. ‘Well, Mrs Daws, I can concur with Miss O’Reilly that this is the tastiest bun I have ever eaten, so in this instance your atelophobia is misplaced.’

  As the housekeeper frowned, Sheena couldn’t help laughing. ‘Atelophobia is fear of imperfection, Mrs Daws,’ she explained.

  ‘Indeed it is, and your baking is perfection personified,’ Harry agreed, catching Sheena’s eye. She blushed then looked quickly away.

  ‘Stop teasing, Master Higgins,’ Sarah admonished.

  ‘I made the blackcurrant juice, didn’t I, Mrs Daws?’ April announced proudly.

  ‘And very tasty it is to be sure, April,’ Sheena sai
d quickly before the master could tease her with another long word.

  ‘Can we go outside to play?’ Brown asked.

  ‘Good idea,’ Harry replied. ‘Right, you little lot, when you’ve finished your refreshment you can go and run off all that excess energy. No taking your beakers outside, though, and come in as soon as the gong goes because I am supervising supper tonight.’

  ‘I must admit I’m looking forward to dining in style this evening,’ Mrs Daws muttered as she began clearing away.

  ‘I’ll do that, Mrs Daws,’ April said. ‘You go and get your coat.’

  Sarah looked at the clock on the dresser and nodded. ‘Yes, that’s a good idea. We should be leaving. Pip is getting the pony and trap ready and we mustn’t keep Miss Snooper waiting.’

  ‘That would never do. She is a punctilious lady, is she not?’ Harry asked, humour sparking in his hazel eyes.

  ‘She does indeed like everything to run like clockwork,’ Sarah agreed, then paused in the doorway. ‘And as for you, Master Higgins, you may think of us dining in elegant surroundings whilst you oversee things here.’

  ‘Piece of cake,’ he shrugged. ‘However, I’m sure you will enjoy Miss Snooper’s fine cuisine and suffer accordingly in the morning.’

  Despite herself, Sheena couldn’t help watching their lively interchange. Even if she hadn’t heard what Bess had said, she would have to be blind not to see how well matched they were. Quickly, she gathered up dirty plates and beakers.

  ‘Oh, you’ve no need to do that, Miss O’Reilly,’ April cried.

  ‘That’s fine, April. I’ll help you clear away and then be off home. Tomorrow is a big day, is it not?’ She looked up in surprise to see Harry grabbing a drying cloth.

  ‘Well, many hands and all that,’ he grinned. ‘Do you not think I’ll make someone the perfect husband?’

  Sheena flushed. Surely he hadn’t guessed her thoughts?

  Suddenly the back door flew open and Black and Brown stood on the doorstep, their eyes wide with panic.