Jenny and Peter returned to the yard, sitting on the gig as if they were royalty; heads held high and smiling. The news was received with much cheering and caps were thrown high in the air.
“How can we ever thank you, Jenny,” said Jack. Her eyes met Rebecca’s.
“It’s all meant to be,” she said. “It’s our destiny,” she smiled at Jenny but it was not a happy smile, more of a worn-out, resigned smile. Jenny was puzzled; something was nagging at the back of her mind. Why was it that Rebecca always made her feel uneasy?
“There is just one thing, I’d like to say,” said Jenny. Sitting in the gig, above the crowd, gave her the confidence she needed. “I’m not boasting but I just want to speak up for all the women here.”
Kate was shaking her head, warning Jenny not to carry on, but this only spurred her on. “If it wasn’t for me, you would all be in great difficulty now.”
“Something would have turned up,” said a gruff voice from the crowd.
“Yeah, sounds like boasting to me,” another joined in.
“Will you let me finish?”
“Hear, hear,” a women’s voice shouted.
“Us women often have ideas or points of view,” Jenny continued, “Your rules about not letting us express ourselves is very unfair. I’m not saying we are always right, only that we have the right to be heard.”
“You,” said Jenny looking straight at Cousin Jack, “Asked me what you could do to thank me. Well, how about allowing women to speak at your elders’ meetings and listening to their opinions?”
There was a silence; it was as if everyone was holding their breath. Then Jack laughed, “All right gel you win, I suppose, we must move a little with the times. What do you think, Sam? Oh I forgot, ‘What do you think, Kate’?”
The crowd roared with laughter. Sam put his hands round Jenny’s waist, and effortlessly, lifted her down from the gig.
“Let’s get you on to the ground before you get it into your head to make more speeches,” he said jovially, “We didn’t know what we were taking on, did we, Kate? When I pulled this one up from the cliff.”
The travellers had been on the road for three days, when winter set in. The swirling snow forced them to make camp. The horses hauled the caravans across a verge into a small woods; the trees having lost all their leaves, did not offer much protection. The horses tossed their heads and stamped their feet, making it hard to unharness them. Jenny’s fingers were numb with the cold.
“I wish Naomi’s baby would stop crying,” said Jenny irritably.
“She’s cold,” replied Kate, “It would have been better if we could have stayed in the fairground yard like we planned.”
“I can’t understand why she did not go back to Rushbrook with Uncle Joe,” said Jenny.
“Don’t forget, Naomi has never been away from all of us,” said Kate, “And she has never slept in a house. Now, let’s get this harness under cover and light the stoves.”
Jenny, suddenly realised that soon she would be able to sleep in her old bed at Rushbrook. The gypsy caravan which was so snug and cosy, when she first arrived, now seemed cold, cramped.
All the next day, it snowed and the baby kept crying. Jenny was bored; she had broken the ice in the horses’ water bucket, played snowballs with the children for an hour until they started to grizzle with the cold, then stacked as much wood as she could find under the caravan. They were all together but strangely isolated; she was surprised how much she missed the communal tent. Each family kept to their own vans concentrating on keeping warm.
That night, the wind blew harder, rocking the caravan as if it were a boat. The wind howled, driving the snow into a blizzard. It drifted against the wheels and covered the firewood. Naomi’s baby had stopped crying. Jenny and Kate were just settling down for the night when the door opened, letting in a flurry of snow and blowing out their candle.
“Have you got the torch, Kate?” said Sam breathlessly, “I’m going to get a doctor. Naomi’s baby is bad. Rebecca has had a look at her and said there was nothing more she could do.”
“Rebecca suggesting a doctor?” said Jenny, “She hates doctors. Is the baby really that ill?”
“I’m afraid so.”
“She’ll be okay when she gets some medicine though, won’t she?” said Jenny, feeling guilty that she had been complaining about the baby crying. Sam did not answer. “I’ll be off now. I’ll take Merlin.”
“Be careful, Sam,” called Kate. She closed the door shutting out the wind.
“Will he be long?” said Jenny, anxious to break the silence.
“It’s hard to say, love, the nearest village is about five miles away, then he’s got to find a doctor who will come out to us, and that won’t be easy.”
Naomi was rocking the baby and humming softly to her. Jenny knocked on the door and quickly went in, trying not to let in the cold.
“Is there anything I can do?”
Naomi looked up, her eyes red with crying.
“There were babies in the children’s home, weren’t there, Jen? What did your Matron do when they were sick?”
Jenny didn’t really know what to say, she hadn’t taken much notice of them. They always seemed to be a nuisance; crying, needing to be changed or hungry; in fact, she hadn’t ever thought of them as little people.
“Matron just kept them warm I think,” replied Jenny not very convincingly.
“See I told you,” said Ben, “We are doing all we can. Rebecca has had six children, she said the same: keep her warm and give her plenty to drink.”
“But she won’t drink,” sobbed Naomi. Ben looked helpless.
“She’ll be okay when Sam comes back with the doctor.” Naomi resumed her humming and rocking.
“What was that?” said Ben, startling Jenny. “I heard a shout; it can’t be Sam back already.” The dogs were barking. Ben put on his heavy overcoat and pulled his collar up.
“I’ll go and see.”
“What’s happening, Jen?” said Naomi.
Jenny breathed on the glass and rubbed a peephole through the frost. She could just make out three men and one of them had a gun.
“Is it the doctor?” asked Naomi hopefully, “Please let it be the doctor.”
“I’m not quite sure,” said Jenny, not wanting to alarm her.
“I’ll go and see.”
“Don’t leave me on my own,” cried Naomi.
“You’ll be okay, I’ll only be a few minutes.”
Jenny stepped outside and shivered as much from fear as from the cold wind as she approached the group of men; she could hear the angry exchange of words.
“Move out now or I’ll blast you,” one of the strangers was shouting, “Thieves, sheep stealers, the lot of you, get off my land.”
“We can’t move,” said Ben, striding towards the huddle of men, “Our baby is sick we have sent for the doctor.”
“Yeah, tell us another,” the man sneered, “Your sort always has an excuse.” The man fired his gun into the air.
“The next shot will be a horse.”
“Better to shoot a horse than to risk moving the baby,” said Ben. The other gypsies crowed round the men.
“The first one who comes near me gets it,” said the man, pointing the gun at Ben. Kate took Ben’s arm, “It’s no good trying to reason with them, Ben. They are drunk.”
“All right, we’ll move. Give us time to hitch up,” said Jack.
“You can’t,” cried Ben, “What about the doctor?”
“Sam will follow the tracks,” said Jack quietly, “We will just go a little way, don’t worry.”
The reluctant band of travellers pulled out of the sheltered woods onto the road.
The snow gave the illusion of daylight. As the last one bumped down onto the tarmac, it started to snow again; this time, big fluffy flakes which everyone knew would cover their tracks quickly.
“I’m staying here,” said Ben. “I’ll wait for Sam.” Jack nodded. “Be careful!”
/> Ben jumped down from the caravan and passed the reins to Jenny. “Just follow the van in front.” He gave the horse a pat.
“Do what Jenny tells you, old boy.”
Naomi called from inside the van. Jenny explained that Ben would wait for Sam and the doctor.
“He’ll catch us up easily,” she said, trying to sound light-hearted. The snow was stinging Jenny’s eyes and she wished she was back inside with Naomi.
Ben had been hiding in the bushes for about half an hour when he heard voices. “I’m over here, Sam,” he called.
“I thought I told you gypsies to get off my land,” came the angry reply.
“See,” he said to his friend, “I knew they wouldn’t go. I expect they will all be sneaking back soon.”
Ben realising his mistake and said, “No you’re wrong. I’m only waiting for the doctor!”
“Waiting for a doctor, in the middle of a field in a blizzard? You must think I’m stupid!” The man raised his gun, his friend staggered against him and the gun went off, the sound echoing in the silent night.
Ben fell to the ground.
“You’ve shot him.”
“Bah, I only winged him,” slurred the man with the gun. “Anyway, there is a doctor coming, isn’t there?” They all laughed.
“Come on, let’s get out of here.”
Ben lay face-down on the ground, the snow already starting to cover up the blood that oozed from his wound.
“They must be here somewhere,” said Sam.
“I hope this isn’t some sort of hoax,” said the doctor, getting out of his car.
“Of course it’s not,” said Sam crossly, “They must have moved behind that hedge.” The doctor looked at Sam warily, wondering if his wife had been right when she warned him about going out with a complete stranger on a night like this.
But he had to come; he could not have forgiven himself if a baby died because of his own fears.
“But where is this baby?” he said, thinking out loud.
Sam was getting worried, something was wrong. He knew Jack would not have moved from this sheltered woods without a very good reason. It was then that he saw Ben. “Quick, doctor, over here,” he said urgently.
“Don’t move him,” the doctor knelt down in the snow. “My goodness!” he exclaimed, “This man has been shot!”
“Shot?” said Sam, “What on earth has happened here?” He looked around, his eyes glancing quickly over the snow for tracks. He noticed the wheel marks that had not quite been covered and signs of a scuffle.
“Come on, man,” said the doctor, “We will have to get him to hospital. He has lost a lot of blood.”
Ben was unconscious. They lifted him into the back seat of the car. “I’m going to find the others,” said Sam.
The doctor eyed him suspiciously.
“Look, you can drop this pretence about a baby,” he said, “I think you should come with me to the police station, it will be better in the long run.”
“You think I shot him?” said Sam angrily, “That is ridiculous! He is the baby’s father; I’m going to make sure my family is okay.”
“I will have to report you,” said the doctor as he climbed into the car.
Sam tried to protest but the doctor wasn’t listening. He leapt onto Merlin and faced him into the blizzard; he knew they couldn’t have gone towards the village as he hadn’t passed them.
Jenny was tired. Her hands and feet were numb with cold. An owl hooted. It was nearly midnight; they had been travelling for an hour, and she was beginning to get worried. Why hadn’t Sam caught them up yet?
She was following Kate’s caravan, plodding slowly, her horse treading in the hoof prints of the horse in front. The wind was picking up again and swirling the snow into her eyes. She was finding it harder and harder to stay awake. Suddenly, the dogs that were tied to the back of Kate’s van started acting strangely, jumping up and straining at their ropes.
“Kate,” shouted Jenny, trying to make herself heard above the noise of the wind. “Kate, stop!”
The caravan ground to a halt. “What is it? Is Naomi all right?”
“It’s not Naomi, it’s the dogs!”
They were now whining and letting out strangled high pitched yelps.
“It’s Sam,” said Kate.
“H…how do you know? It could be those men,” said Jenny, feeling afraid.
“Sam has a whistle that only dogs can hear,” explained Kate. “Don’t worry, they will bring Sam to us.” She unclipped the dogs who immediately bounded off into the darkness.
“We might as well pull in here,” said Jack, coming to see what all the fuss was about.
“Sam will be here soon,” said Kate, “We have sent the dogs.” Jack nodded.
Just then a terrible cry filled the night. It was Naomi. “My baby is dead,” she screamed hysterically.
“Whoa, boy, whoa,” said Jenny. Merlin had been startled by the sudden noise.
“Stand by his head,” shouted Kate, “I’ll go in.”
Jenny stood by the horse’s head. Stroking his muzzle, she felt a lump in her throat, making it hard to swallow. Surely Naomi must be mistaken! The baby couldn’t really be dead! “Get Naomi something to calm her down,” said Kate. One of the other women ran to Rebecca’s caravan for a remedy, her husband held Merlin.
“Can I do anything, Kate?” said Jenny, stepping into the caravan.
She could see from Kate’s expression that something awful had happened. “She’s only asleep, isn’t she?” sobbed Naomi, “Tell me she is only asleep.”
“Let me look,” Kate took the baby and pulled the soft woollen shawl over the baby’s face.
“Where is Ben?” Naomi cried, “I want Ben.”
Kate looked anxiously at Jenny, “Go and find Jack.”
Jenny didn’t need to be told twice. She ran out into the snowy night, tears streaming down her face. She wanted to run forever. She wanted to run back to the children’s home, back to the past.
“Hey steady on, girl.” Jenny ran straight into Jack, sobbing, she told him about the baby. “Naomi wants Ben. I have to find Ben.”
“You don’t have to find anyone,” said Jack, “I’ll sort everything out. You go and get yourself a hot drink, you’ll freeze out here.”
One of the women took Jenny into her van and put her arm round her.
“Where is Ben?” cried Naomi
“He’s on his way, he won’t be long.”
“Now drink up,” said Kate kindly but firmly. Naomi drank the contents and gave Kate the cup. “Lie down on the bunk, and I’ll take the baby to Rebecca.”
“Wake me when Ben gets here, won’t you Kate?”
Kate smiled and closed the caravan door. A few minutes later Naomi was asleep. A deep drugged sleep. For a while, the hurt inside her would stop.
Jack opened the top door and beckoned to Kate, “You had better go and see to Jenny, she is in shock.”
Kate nodded. “Where is Ben? And where is Sam.”
“Don’t worry, old girl, I’ll find him; the dogs have left a trail, I’m sure he is near.”
“It’s those men, it’s their fault,” said Jenny, “If we hadn’t had to move on, the doctor would have got here in time.” Then she burst into tears. Kate put her arm round her. “It’s so unfair,” sobbed Jenny, “Naomi and Ben are such good people, why should this happen to them?”
“I don’t know, love,” said Kate softly.
“It’s just life; sometimes fate is good to people, sometimes not.”
“Kate!” shouted Jack, “he’s back!”
Sam leapt of the horse and Kate flew into his arms. The gipsies gathered around, eager to hear what had happened.
“Where is the doctor?” asked Kate, looking to see if there was someone following, “Sam, didn’t you see Ben?”
Jenny still could not believe what had just happened. She listened, as if in a trance, to Sam as he explained to everyone about Ben being shot.
Three of the gypsie
s wanted to find the men, but Sam stopped them.
“One death here tonight is enough. At first light, we will ride to the hospital and see how Ben is, meanwhile, we should all get some sleep.”
The next morning Jenny woke and looked out to the peaceful white landscape. The snow had stopped falling and the sun was shining, making the hard crust of snow glisten. The children were already playing snowballs and laughing as they left their footprints in the snow. Tears pricked her eyes as she remembered, one little girl that would never play in the snow.
“How is Naomi?” asked Jenny as she carried the heavy harness to the tethered horses. “She is with Rebecca,” she replied.
“Give me the harness, you go and see her.”
As Jenny walked up the caravan steps, she could hear Naomi crying. “I’m never going to have another baby,” she sobbed.
“There, there,” said Rebecca, trying to comfort her, “The lord giveth and the lord taketh away.”
“You don’t understand what it’s like,” said Naomi, “You have all your children.”
“No one understands better than I,” replied Rebecca, “My first little girl was taken from me, she had scarlet fever.”
Naomi stopped crying and rubbed her eyes. “I’m sorry,” she said, “I didn’t know.”
“Not many people do,” Rebecca had a glazed look in her eyes as she remembered all those years ago,
“At least your babe died in your arms,” she said, “Be grateful for that, my little one died in the hands of strangers. I wasn’t even allowed to see her, my husband, God rest his soul, tried. He got into a fight and we had to move quickly or he would have gone to prison.”
“Is that why you don’t like doctors or hospitals?” said Naomi.
Rebecca nodded.
“Now dry your eyes, Naomi, and be strong. Ben was hurt last night. Sam and Jack have gone to see him.”
“Where is he?” cried Naomi hysterically.
“He is in hospital but they are not like they used to be, he will be all right.” Jenny didn’t think Rebecca sounded too convinced.
Naomi didn’t speak or cry again.
Just a Travelling Girl Page 7
