Anna had wondered why Talia had been locked up. She appeared so gentle and was such a rule-follower; she didn’t seem like the typical prison inmate. Still, Anna knew it took all types.
‘How long were you in for?’ Anna decided to ask a question that could be answered in as little detail as possible, in case Talia didn’t want to keep talking about it.
‘Ten years. Been out for eight months and won’t ever go back.’
‘Yeah. I don’t want to ever go back, either.’
‘I don’t even know who I was when I went in. Some try-hard eighteen-year-old who thought she could do whatever she wanted, I guess. I wanted to show everyone I was tough enough to bash a guy. So I did. One night, some guy in a pub asked me if I wanted a drink and I punched him as hard as I could, laughed when he hit the ground. He died a week later from bleeding to the brain.’ Talia’s voice trembled and she bit her lip. Then she sighed and looked up at the sky. ‘I don’t know if God will ever forgive me for that. My family can’t, anyway.’
Anna didn’t know what to say. She couldn’t imagine the softly spoken Talia walking beside her ever being that aggressive. But people changed.
‘If he exists, I think God would forgive everything.’ Anna wasn’t even sure if she believed in God, but she wanted to comfort Talia.
‘Yeah maybe. I don’t know if I deserve it though.’ Talia shook her head. ‘Anyway. How long were you in for?’
‘Six. Drug supply and selling.’
‘No shit. Were you a user?’
‘Yeah. Ice.’
Talia let out a low whistle. ‘That must have been a tough detox.’
Anna nodded slowly. ‘I’ll never do it again.’ And she meant it. If she ever weakened enough to take ice again, she’d make sure she overdosed. There was no way she could come off it a second time.
‘Yeah. I believe that. You’re pretty tough for being so little.’ Talia laughed and the joy that filled her dark eyes made it impossible to believe she’d ever taken a life.
‘It’s the little ones that have to be extra tough,’ Anna smiled.
QUARRENDON VILLAGE, BUCKINGHAMSHIRE ENGLAND 1770
In the field closest to the house, where they grew vegetables, Aisleen worked by Joseph’s side in the early afternoon sun. It was cool, despite the clear blue sky, and Aisleen was happy to be outside in the sunlight, rather than in the draughty house. She had already completed all of her daily chores, with a pot of pease soup simmering over the fireplace and a bread pudding resting on the table. Aisleen had even worked on the ruse of her new dress for an hour or two. But she’d been feeling restless all day. It was only Tuesday; there were still three more days until she could see Mary and the other women again. They were all she could think about. The thrill of seeing them had left Aisleen feeling euphoric, but now the previous Friday felt so distant, she wondered if she’d dreamed the whole thing.
‘Aisleen, tighter, can you hear me?’ Joseph’s voice broke through Aisleen’s thoughts and she looked down, surprised to find the rope still in her hands. She shook her head to clear her thoughts away and pulled the rope with all her might.
‘Sorry,’ she said, increasing the strength of her grip. Joseph pulled just as tightly, then he wrapped his end around a new wooden post he’d placed in the ground. He worked expertly with the knot and then took the rope from Aisleen’s hands, doing the same to the post in front of her. It was a technique he’d been thinking about for a while – creating a net of ropes to sit behind the tomato plants, encouraging the vines to grow thicker and fuller with the added support. When he’d finished, he nodded at Aisleen.
‘Thanks for your help.’ He took off his hat and wiped at the sweat beads that had formed on his forehead despite the coolness in the air. ‘Your mind seemed far away for a moment there.’ Joseph spoke in a casual tone, but she could see the tension around his mouth. ‘Are you feeling all right?’
‘Of course, yes. Just a little tired; I didn’t sleep well last night.’
Joseph looked at her carefully then placed his hat back on his head and nodded again. ‘Well, I’m almost finished here, why don’t you go back inside and have a little rest?’
‘Good idea.’ Aisleen smiled, working at keeping her voice light. After everything they had been through, she couldn’t let Joseph find out about the meetings. If he found out, she would never see Mary again. Just as Aisleen turned back towards the house, a voice called out from the side of their property.
Aisleen froze. She felt sure it would be the Enforcers coming for her.
But when she heard Joseph swear, not in fear but in annoyance, she allowed her breath to release, turning towards the voice. Walking across their field in pompous strides was their neighbour, Harold, trailed by his far younger wife, Agatha. Harold was the worst kind of neighbour – nosy, rude and often turning up at unexpected times for no other reason than to gossip or snoop. Aisleen and Joseph rolled their eyes in unison, giggling quietly.
Joseph placed his hand on Aisleen’s back, guiding her towards the intruder and muttering, ‘Let’s get this over with.’
‘Joseph, my god, making your wife work in the fields? You’re a slave driver.’ Harold laughed, pausing to glare at his wife Agatha until she laughed along. Aisleen remained stone-faced, but she didn’t miss the tension in Joseph’s hand on her back.
‘Harold. What can we do for you?’
‘What, a farmer’s neighbour can’t visit without a reason?’ The question hung in the air as Joseph remained straight-faced, waiting for an answer. Harold shook his head, clearly disappointed by Joseph’s unfriendliness. ‘Well, the woman and I were just out for some exercise. Thought we’d pop by, see how you’re getting on.’
‘Well, now, we’re fine.’ When Harold made no move, Joseph continued in a strained voice, ‘And you?’
‘Ah, well, you know with this dry weather, the fields are a little worse for wear, but can’t complain, can’t complain.’ He directed his next question towards Aisleen. ‘Are you with child yet, woman?’ His voice was venomous. It was well known that in the four years Harold had been married to the young Agatha, there’d been several pregnancies, but no living child as a result of them. He told everyone, often, that she was a sorry excuse for a woman and threatened to kill her off and find a new one if she kept up her barrenness. Aisleen glared at him and remained silent. ‘You deaf, woman?’
Joseph stepped forward, standing in front of Aisleen and uncomfortably close to Harold. ‘You’ll not speak to my wife that way. No, we are not with child. Now if there’s nothing else, we have work to do.’ Joseph turned and put his arm around Aisleen’s shoulders, encouraging her back towards the vegetable patch. She gave a final dirty look to Harold before walking off with Joseph.
‘That’s a shame. Thought if she was and you’re done with her we could make a fair swap. A chance for more of us to spread our seed. It’s an idea I plan on taking to the Enforcers.’ Harold’s loud voice carried across the surrounding field. Before Aisleen knew what was happening, Joseph had run at Harold, grabbed him by the shirt and thrown him to the ground. Agatha looked on with an expression of what could only be described as pleasure as Joseph kicked her husband in the stomach. Aisleen ran to Joseph, throwing her arms around him and using all of her strength to pull him back.
‘Stop,’ she said, her voice clear and firm. She hated Harold and the other men like him just as much as Joseph did. It was well known that Harold was an Enforcer sympathiser, having desired to be an Enforcer but been rejected. He spent his time working to gain their approval instead.
Joseph’s breath was unsteady, but he remained still and allowed Aisleen to hold his face in her hands. ‘He is not worth the trouble. Leave him be.’
Joseph looked into her eyes and seemed to wake from the rage that had overtaken him. He took a deep breath. ‘I’m sorry,’ he whispered to Aisleen. He walked back over to Harold who was curled in a ball on his side. He spoke to Agatha. ‘Take your man home. I’m sorry you’re married to such a bastard.�
�� He leaned over Harold. ‘We don’t want any more of your neighbourly visits, do you hear? Off you go, now, and don’t come back.’ Joseph took a few steps backwards but remained close by, watching as Harold sat up and stumbled to his feet. Agatha reached out timidly to help, but he cursed and shoved her away. Aisleen’s chest twisted in fury but she ignored it. She couldn’t change Agatha’s misfortune of being married to such a poor excuse of a man. Saying anything now would only make her situation worse. Instead, she said a silent prayer that Harold would collapse one day soon and die.
Harold’s faced twisted and a large vein popped out in his forehead as he gathered himself. ‘You’ll be very sorry for that, neighbour.’ He spat at Joseph’s feet before continuing. ‘You and your woman should watch your backs.’ With that he turned and left, his frail, skeletal wife pottering after him.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
BRAYDEN PULLED OUT a chair for Anna in the small back room that was technically his office, fitted with a desk and single filing cabinet. In reality, the room acted more as a storage place for the employees’ bags and jackets. Anna sat, crossing her legs carefully, as though she wasn’t nervous. It was the end of her trial period and Brayden had asked for a short meeting before she finished her lunch break. There was not an ounce of intimidation in her boss, but negative thoughts still rolled into Anna’s mind. Maybe she had only been imagining how well she’d been doing here. Maybe she was actually hopeless and Brayden would let her go, leaving her jobless. Without her pay, Anna didn’t have a chance of saving for her own place to live before her time in the boarding house was up. Anna sat opposite Brayden, waiting for him to start speaking, crossing her fingers. Brayden cleared his throat and rummaged through some papers on his desk. He pulled out one sheet and Anna’s heart sank when she noticed his hand was shaking. Was he working up the courage to fire her?
‘So Anna, you know that your mandatory trial period is over as of today.’
‘Yeah.’
‘And …’ Brayden was dragging the moment out, but Anna could tell from the smile creeping onto his face that he had good news. Her shoulders relaxed. ‘I’m very happy to say that you are officially a full-time employee.’
Relief flooded through Anna. ‘Awesome. Thank you.’
Brayden looked up from the paper. ‘You’ve done a really good job; you’re such a quick learner. I can’t believe you haven’t handled food or a register before. Seriously, you’re a natural.’
Anna smiled at the compliment and wondered if Brayden was curious about her time in prison. He had not mentioned it once. Even now, casually referring to her lack of experience, his voice was free of judgement.
‘Thanks, Brayden.’ Anna stood up, ready to get back to work, but Brayden asked her to sit down again.
‘There’s just, um, one thing that I have to address. It’s not a concern to me, I don’t even agree with it, but technically I do have to voice all complaints.’ Brayden mumbled the last word and stared intently at the sheet of paper rather than looking at Anna.
‘What complaint?’
‘It’s not a big deal, it’s just, well, one of the casuals complained that you are unfriendly towards them.’
‘Oh. Is it mandatory to be best friends with everyone?’ Anna was annoyed that the complaint bothered her.
‘No, of course not. Look, I don’t even agree. I find you very friendly, in your own way.’ Anna tilted her head and raised her eyebrows as Brayden mumbled some more, trying to gather the right words as he blushed fiercely. ‘I mean, your personality is terrific, I love it, I, ah … I feel that you are friendly. I just legally had to pass on the complaint.’ Brayden scrunched the piece of paper and threw it in the bin beneath his desk. ‘So, all done now and that’s where the complaint belongs.’ Brayden forced a laugh. ‘Sorry,’ he added.
‘It’s all right. Thanks, Brayden.’ Anna went back out to the restaurant, the brief curiosity she’d had over who made the complaint already evaporating. The truth was she didn’t care what people at work thought of her. She worked hard and she said hello to the other workers who said hello to her. If that wasn’t good enough for one of them, then too bad. Brayden was happy with her, she still had her job and that’s all that mattered. Anna logged on to her register, plastered a smile on her face and served the waiting customers.
As Anna was finishing up for the day, a large family came in claiming the five tables closest to the registers as their own. They spoke to each other with ease, most of them smiling or laughing as they discussed what they would be ordering. One of the women had a baby in one arm and was wrangling a giggling toddler with her other hand, all the while holding a conversation with another woman in the group. Their joy reminded Anna of the family Talia had introduced her to at the football game. Anna knew she was staring at them but she couldn’t help it. She pictured herself as part of their group, sitting with them. Maybe one of them would take care of the ordering and she would grab the napkins and straws for everyone, handing them out with a smile. She would belong.
‘Excuse me, can I order?’ A teenager from the group was in front of Anna and she blinked away her daydream.
‘Of course.’
Walking home that evening, Anna was haunted by the smiles of that family. All she could picture were their white teeth and wide grins. It was as though they had no worries. They had each other and that was enough. Anna imagined she was walking home to a family of her own. Not her family from Chile – it hurt too much to imagine being with them again. But a new family. A husband and maybe some children. Anna had never consciously thought about having children. It wasn’t an option she could really consider; how could she look after a baby when she’d been unable to keep her own life on track? But she enjoyed imagining sitting at a dinner table with children who looked at her the way she used to look at her mama. A husband, someone so different to Jake, who asked her about her day. Anna was so lost in thought about her fake family that she didn’t notice she was walking right past the boarding house.
‘Oi, Anna! Where are you going?’ Talia’s voice broke through Anna’s fantasy and she stopped walking. She’d walked a few houses beyond the boarding house and as she turned and headed back, she became dismayed at the barren bedroom waiting for her. Talia was dressed in her work uniform and putting her keys in her backpack.
‘Forgot where you live?’ she joked.
‘Huh, yeah. You off?’
‘Yup. Have a good one, yeah?’ Talia smiled before she walked off. Anna sat down on the front step for a minute, not yet ready to go into the house. She reminded herself that she didn’t need anyone. She had survived for a long time and she would continue to survive. She started to shiver in the unusually cool night air, so she reluctantly decided to go inside. She could smell garlic and vegetables frying the moment she opened the door. Sako was by the stove, stirring something in the wok and squinting against the steam.
‘Hi,’ Anna said, going into the kitchen to get a glass of water.
‘I made a lot, you can eat some if you want.’ Sako rarely greeted Anna, but she often offered her food, which Anna appreciated.
‘Thanks.’
Anna fetched two bowls and watched as Sako served the steaming food. They each took their bowls to the bench and started to eat in silence.
‘So … did you have a good day?’ The question felt foreign as Anna spoke it. Sako looked up in surprise.
‘Yeah. You?’ she replied with her mouth still full.
‘Yeah.’
They continued to eat in silence. Sako finished first, washed her bowl and packed away the leftovers in a container.
‘Night,’ she said as she left the kitchen.
Anna remained at the bench, scraping the remnants of her dinner in her bowl. Her husband would tell her to go play with the kids while he cleaned up the kitchen. Anna would take out puzzles and blocks and sit on the floor with them, laughing when they knocked them all over.
‘Any left?’ Mads’ screechy voice called from the doorway to the ki
tchen.
‘No.’ Anna stood up and cleaned her bowl as Mads swore and went back to her room.
Anna had a quick shower then curled up in her bed, feeling more alone than most nights.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
BEFORE
AN INTENSE PRESSURE in her ears woke Anna from her deep sleep. She’d been dreaming that she was in the middle of a street and all of the street signs were pointing different ways, written in a jumble of nonsensical letters. She lifted her head, wincing at the dryness of her mouth, and rubbed her eyes, taking in the seat in front of her, the steady roar of the plane’s engine. How long had she been asleep? Anna looked at the woman engrossed in a novel beside her. She asked a passing flight attendant for a cup of water and when he returned with it, she asked how far away they were.
‘We’ve just begun our descent. We’ll be landing in thirty minutes,’ he said and rushed off to help someone else. Anna sank back in her seat, the water she gulped slowing her thoughts for only a moment. Was this the right decision? How was she going to cope being in an unfamiliar country by herself? What were Australians even like? Anna couldn’t understand why she’d even chosen Australia, apart from a vague childhood memory of talking about the country with Mama. And of course to spite Manuel and his suggestion of North America. Anna closed her eyes, remembering what she’d told Tia Sofia the day before as they’d said goodbye at the airport. Sofia had made Anna promise to phone her every week with updates and said if she didn’t like it there, to come home. Anna had to bite her tongue to keep herself from spitting the words, ‘I don’t have a home, you sold it, remember?’ But she knew it was Manuel behind the whole thing and Sofia was only going along with it because of the baby coming. Plus, everyone in Chile was panicking about the flailing economy and predictions of another civil war. Anna couldn’t blame Sofia for wanting financial security.
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