The Black Opal

by Виктория Холт

  She took my hands and looked intently into my face. I wondered fleetingly what a wife would think of a daughter her husband had had, who was not hers. But not for long. Elsie would have said what she thought of it and she did not appear at this stage to think it was so very odd.

  “A pity you’re only staying a week,” she said to me.

  “Can’t see a lot of the place in that time. And there’s something to see, I can tell you. Well, we’ll make the most of what we have. And what are we doing standing about here? Come on in, you two. Now, I reckon you’re hungry.

  Don’t suppose they fed you very well on board that old thing, did they?”

  She threw a glance at Toby which showed she was teasing, and he said immediately: “Our food was excellent, wasn’t it, Carmel?”

  “Oh yes,” I said.

  “It was very good.”

  “You wait until you see what we can give you, love. Why, at the end of the week, you’ll be wanting to stay here. I’ll take a bet on that.”

  She took my arm as we went in, and I could see that Toby was very pleased by this reception.

  “You know where to go, To be,” said Elsie. It sounded strange to hear his name pronounced thus, but I had to learn that Elsie had a habit of shortening people’s names. She turned to me.

  “Always the same room when he stays here, which isn’t as often as I’d like. But we have to make the best of what we can get, don’t we? And you, love. I’ll show you where you are. You’ve got a lovely view of the harbour. We’re proud of our harbour. Show it off when we’ve got the chance. You’ll find a bit of mail in your room, To be. Letters from home. I’ve been storing them up, but don’t start on them yet, because you’ve got a meal waiting for you.”

  Toby stretched himself and looked up at the sky and at the house.

  “Good to be here,” he said.

  “Good to have you,” said Elsie.

  “Isn’t that so, Mabe?”

  “I’d say,” said Mabel.

  “And Agio agrees with us,” said Elsie.

  The aborigine grinned.

  “He’s a good boy. Agio. He wouldn’t go walkabout when the Captain’s coming.”

  Agio shook his head and grinned.

  When I asked later what was meant by this, Toby told me that the aborigines were good workers when they worked, but it had to be remembered that they were unused to living in houses or being confined in any way, and now and then the urge came to them to ‘go walkabout’ which meant going off. Sometimes they came back, sometimes not; but one could never be sure; and even the most devoted ones could take it into their heads to go walkabout.

  “Now come on in,” Elsie was saying.

  It was undoubtedly a warm welcome. I thought of Mrs. Marline greeting Lady Crompton on the rare occasions when she had come to Commonwood House. How different that had been!

  My room was large and, as Elsie had said, had a good view of the harbour. There was a bed, wardrobe and washbasin, a dressing-table and a few chairs. The floor was wooden blocks with a few mats on it. The room had been furnished with the essentials and again Commonwood was brought to my mind by its very difference.

  I had been told to come to the dining-room as soon as I was ready, and when I opened my door Toby was just coming out of his room.

  “All right?” he asked, with a touch of anxiety in his voice.

  “Yes. It’s fun.”

  “I knew you’d get along with Elsie. Most people do.”

  “Except you,” I said.

  “Oh, that’s different. We get along well in most things, but not in marriage.” He took my arm and pressed it.

  “Pity,” he went on, ‘but that’s how it is. You’ll like it here. There’s lots to see. Elsie couldn’t wait to meet you. Come and look at my room. “

  It was very like mine-wooden floor, rugs and essential furniture.

  “Not much like Commonwood,” said Toby.

  “No … I was thinking that.”

  “Different atmosphere. No formality here. It’s all open and honest.”

  “Yes,” I agreed.

  “I feel that.”

  He ruffled my hair and kissed me.

  “I’ve just combed it!” I said.

  “Never mind. Elsie won’t scold.”

  I looked round his room.

  “There are a lot of letters waiting for you,” I said.

  “Yes, I didn’t want to delve into them yet. They can wait. Nothing important, I guess. Come on. Let’s go down. Otherwise there’ll be trouble.”

  It was a good meal. We were joined by Mabel, who seemed to be a kind of housekeeper friend There was a young girl of about fifteen who waited at table. She was Jane and again I was struck by the lack of formality. And because it was all so different from Commonwood, I found myself yet again wondering what was happening there. It would all be changed now Mrs. Marline had gone. Miss Carson would be there and Adeline would have nothing to fear.

  Elsie talked a great deal in a bantering sort of way to Toby, but her conversation was directed mainly at me. She told me what we must do while we were in Sydney. There was so much she wanted to show me. We could take a boat trip across the harbour. That’s if I wasn’t a bit tired of boats! But this would be a little rowing-boat perhaps. Though there was a ferry. Did I ride?

  “Oh, goo do You need a horse out here. You’d be lost without one.”

  We’d have some meals outside.

  “The weather’s good, you see. You can rely on it more than you can at home.”

  I discovered that she often talked of England with a kind of affectionate contempt. Things were always done better ‘down under’, which was Australia. I learned afterwards that she had been born in Australia, and had never been to England, yet she called it ‘home’.

  Toby said that some people did that here. Their roots were in England, he supposed, because their parents or grandparents had come out and settled, looking for a better life. Some may have found it, but whether they had or not, the Old Country was ‘home’ even to those who had never seen it.

  It was all very interesting to me a different phase of that wonderful life to which Toby had introduced me.

  I slept deeply that night, and when I awoke, I got out of bed, opened the glass doors and stepped on to the balcony with the iron railing.

  It was a very pleasant sight. I could look out to the harbour, its bays bordered by green shrubs which grew down to the water. There were tall trees, which I learned later were of the eucalyptus family, and yellow blossom which they called wattle.

  I liked Elsie very much already. She was warm and friendly, even though she could not get on with Toby in marriage. But they did otherwise, well enough, I supposed, since he called on her whenever he came to Sydney. And standing there, looking out across that most majestic of harbours, I was thinking once more of this happy turn in my fortunes, when I was suddenly startled by a burst of mocking laughter. It was as though some satanic creature was jeering at me for my complacent acceptance of the good life which had miraculously become mine. I looked around. There was no one near.

  When I saw Toby and Elsie, I felt tremendously relieved. They must have heard it too. They did not seem to be in the least surprised: they were engaged in deep and clearly serious conversation. It was all very strange, for they were not quite like the lighthearted people they had been the night before. If I had not been wide awake, I should have thought I was dreaming.

  Suddenly they looked up. Their expression changed as they saw me. They were smiling now.

  “Good morning,” cried Toby.

  “Had a good night?” added Elsie.

  “Good morning. Yes, thank you.”

  “Goodo,” said Elsie.

  Then there was that mocking laugh again.

  Elsie made a clucking noise with her tongue.

  “Those old kookaburras at it again.” And as she spoke, a bird about seventeen inches long, of a grey-brown colour, flew past and settled in a branch. Then another flew out t
o perch beside it.

  The laughter rang out again and I realized that it came from the birds.

  “They want their breakfast,” said Elsie.

  “I feed them with the others.

  That’s why they come here. Funny noise they make. But you get used to it. Laughing Jackass, they call them. And you can see why. Sounds as though they’re jeering at you. Perhaps they think I’m a silly old woman to bother with them. It’s time we had our breakfast, too, I’m thinking. “

  I joined them and we sat down to coffee, bacon and eggs and freshly baked bread.

  “The way they do things at home,” said Elsie.

  “We stick to the old customs. That’s right, eh, To be?”

  He said it was, and we talked about what we would do that day. He would be going down to the docks to the ship and he was not sure how long he would be away. Elsie was going to take me round the house and gardens and show me how they lived ‘down under’.

  We were all very merry again. Toby left us as arranged and I watched Elsie feed the birds. It was a wonderful sight as they fluttered round her beautiful creatures of many colours. They looked like parrots and budgerigars the sort we kept in cages at home. These were all round, chattering with satisfaction as they flew round her. There was something essentially peaceful about the scene. I saw the kookaburras there, taking their share.

  Then I heard their mocking laughter. It was no longer disturbing.

  Elsie told me I would enjoy meeting people.

  “People are different in Australia,” she said.

  “Different from where you come from, I mean. None of this high and mighty ” I’m better than you are. ” We’re all equal here’ although some are more equal than others, as they say. ” She added with a nod, ” As long as they remember that I’m in charge and they do as I say then that’s all right. “

  “Well, that’s just the same…” I was beginning to say, but she grinned.

  “You’ll see what I mean, love,” she said.

  “We’ve got two maids, Adelaide and Jane. You’ve seen Jane. Then, of course, there’s Mabel.

  That’s the household. Mabe’s a treasure cooks and keeps everything going as it should be. Jem and his wife and son Hal live over the stables, but they’re in and out of the house all the time. And Agio’s there too. Sometimes he goes off, but we’re never sure whether he’s coming back. I don’t think he’ll ever go altogether. He certainly won’t while To be’s here. He’s got a special feeling for To be. Well, most people have. There’s something about him. Well, let’s make our tour of the house. “

  We did. It was spacious and wood was very much in evidence. It was furnished with simplicity and with an eye to necessity rather than adornment. There was a wash-house, large pantry and storage rooms, a still room and a large kitchen with a huge range, ovens and a long wooden table.

  I met all the inhabitants and I knew what Elsie meant when she said there was no formality as we had at home. Everyone was free and easy and, as Elsie said, that was fine as long as they did the work they were there to do.

  “Who wants caps and aprons and ” call me Madam”? Mrs. Sinclair is good enough for me.”

  She said that a little wistfully, and I wondered if she would like to be Toby’s wife in all ways instead of his just calling when his ship was in Sydney.

  During that first morning, she told me that her grand father had been sent over to Sydney in the early days of the settlement. He was no criminal. He had aired his views too openly. He had been working in one of the mills and trying to get rights for his fellow workers.

  “Like one of those Tolpuddle Martyrs. Well, he never forgot what they had done, but he wasn’t the sort to wear himself out railing about something that could never be put right. So, he set about doing his seven years and then he found a piece of land. He worked hard and did well for himself. Then he went gold-mining out Melbourne way. My father followed in his footsteps and they made quite a fortune. So there we were, in a country which seemed good to us, and there was never any talk of our going back.” I found it all absorbing and wanted to hear more.

  “You will, love,” said Elsie.

  “I was never one for keeping my mouth shut.”

  “You must tell me. I shan’t be here long, you know.”

  “Oh, we’ll find plenty of time to talk, you’ll see.” And so the morning passed and in the afternoon Toby came back. I was in my room hanging up some of my things in the wardrobe when I heard the sound of his horse.

  I went to the window. Elsie had apparently heard it too. She came out of the house and ran to meet Toby. They were walking back to the house together. There was about them an unaccustomed seriousness-like that I had noticed early that morning when the sound of the kookaburras had disturbed me.

  They hesitated for a while and stood still, talking earnestly. I called to them. They looked up and their expression changed. They smiled at me. Oddly enough, I fancied there was something forced about their smiles; and the uneasy feeling that all was not as well as they wanted me to believe came to me. I almost expected to hear the mocking laugh of the birds, but, having been fed, they had moved off. I went downstairs to meet Toby and Elsie.

  “You’ve had a good morning, I gather, looking round the place,” said Toby.

  “Oh yes, it was very interesting.”

  Elsie said: To be wants to talk to you, love. ” She looked almost appealingly at Toby, and went on: ” Look, why don’t you do it now? Go into the sitting-room . just the two of you. “

  I was not sure, but I fancied Toby looked reluctant, and that she was urging him, but he said: “All right then. Come on, Carmel.”

  So we went into the sitting-room and Elsie went out and left us alone.

  I looked in consternation at Toby. I was certain now that all was not well.

  “There’s something I have to tell you, Carmel,” he began, and hesitated.

  I looked at him questioningly. It was unlike him to be at a loss for words.

  “I thought there was something,” I said.

  “You were different then.”

  “It’s a big decision.”

  “About what?”

  “Well, you see, Carmel, things have been happening at home.”

  “At home?”

  “At Commonwood House. It’s the doctor.”

  “What about him?”

  “He’s not expected to live.”

  “You mean, he’s dying?” I said stupidly.

  “He’s had a lot of worry … and that’s how it is. Estella and Adeline are going to live with Florence, and Henry, too, of course. So you see”

  “You mean, they won’t go back to Commonwood House?”

  “Yes, that’s about it.”

  “And the doctor is very ill? How can they be sure he’s going to die?

  Mightn’t he get better? “

  Toby was looking over my head. I had never seen him like this before.

  “You see,” he said.

  “We have to think of what is going to happen to you.”

  “Is Miss Carson going with Estella and Adeline?”

  “I don’t know about Miss Carson. I should not think so. I only know that Adeline and her sister are going to Florence. She will look after them.”

  “You mean there is no place for me?”

  He looked relieved.

  “The problem is,” he went on, ‘that I haven’t a home there. Just a lodging and then I must be away most of the time.

  You see what this is all about? “

  I felt very uneasy, for Toby was obviously very worried.

  He must have sensed my fear, for he put an arm about me.

  “There’s no need to worry. Not while I’m around,” he said.

  I clung to him.

  “I know.”

  “You’re my little girl and I’m here to look after you, so there is really nothing for you to worry about. You won’t have to go to Florence.”

  “Oh, I know that. She wouldn’t want
me.”

  “But this is something that has to be considered very seriously.”

  “Yes. Elsie knows, doesn’t she?”

  He nodded.

  “She’s helping to figure it out. She thought you shouldn’t be left in the dark but should be told as soon as possible.”

  “What should I be told?”

  “I can’t take you back to England with me because there would be nowhere suitable for you to go when you got there. You’re only eleven years old. That’s too young to be alone when I’m miles away at sea.

  Besides . after this trip, I shall be away from England for a year at a time. The Lady of the Seas is more often on this side of the world. In fact, she’s reckoned to be based in Sydney more than any other port. I shall be calling here fairly frequently. Elsie had this idea, and I must say it seems a good one.

  The best we can come up with at short notice. When I sail next week for home, you stay here with Elsie. In about four months’ time I’ll be back in Sydney. “

  I looked at him in utter dismay and he went on quickly:

  “I know your voyage is only halfway through. I did not think this could possibly happen. I thought things would be straightened out at Commonwood by the time we got back and then it would all be more or less as it was before, and when Estella went to school you would go with her. What is most important is for us to be together as much as we can. Is that not what we want?”

  I nodded vigorously.

  “I know what a blow this is. We have been wondering how we could tell you. Elsie thought there was no point in pulling the wool over your eyes. You should at least know what had to be. She said you were too smart to be bamboozled. This is our plan … Elsie’s and mine … and yours now. You can trust Elsie. She is one of the best. She says you should stay here. You can live with her. There’s a good school not too far away. A boarding-school where you can get a good education.

  You’ll go there and in the holidays you’d be with Elsie, and when my ship comes in, you and I will be together. “

  He drew back and looked at me searchingly. Then suddenly he put his arms round me and held me tightly.

  “It’s the best thing, Carmel, my darling child. I assure you, in the circumstances, it is the only way.”