by Anna Jacobs
They both jumped in shock as Rémi spoke from the doorway. ‘Why don’t you set your minds at rest by asking me anything you’d like to know about my background? I have nothing to hide.’
Both women turned scarlet.
‘I’m sorry, sir,’ Orla managed.
‘It’s only natural that you’d want to protect your mistress.’ He explained quickly why he’d come to Australia, ending, ‘I promise you, I would never do anything to damage Mrs Southerham’s reputation. I have too much respect and liking for her.’
But they shook their heads, still looking worried.
‘Just you living here will set people talking, sir,’ Rhoda said. ‘And your luggage has been brought in, so the word will be out already.’
‘Then I’ll move out again, find somewhere else.’
‘That would look even stranger, sir.’ She frowned. ‘You couldn’t …’
‘Couldn’t what?’ he prompted.
‘Couldn’t pretend you’re a distant relative of the mistress?’
‘Do you think that’s necessary?’ He fell silent as they heard footsteps.
Livia came into the kitchen, eyes narrowing as she took in their serious expressions. ‘What have you two been saying to our guest?’
‘We’re trying to look after your reputation,’ Orla said. ‘We think you should pretend Mr Newland is a relative, a cousin or something.’
‘It sounds like a good idea to me,’ Rémi said. ‘I don’t want to upset people or cause gossip about you. I think a second cousin would be best, if you don’t mind.’ His eyes were dancing with laughter again.
Silence, then Livia smiled too. ‘Why not? We’d have to warn Bram and his relatives about what we’re doing. We could tell people I didn’t realise you were coming and we met again by chance, upon which I invited you to stay with me.’
‘That sounds like a good way to do it.’
‘I’m glad to see you being sensible for once, Mrs Southerham. Now, I need to buy a few things in town, with us having a guest, so I’ll mention your cousin to the shopkeepers. We want to make it known from the start that Mr Newland is a relative.’
‘You do that, Orla. Just be vague about it, though, till we’ve worked out exactly how we’re related.’ Livia turned to her guest, eyes twinkling. ‘We’ll do that after our evening meal. It’ll be fun. And if you feel like a stroll round Fremantle, Mr Newland, we can pop in and warn Bram and his brother what we’re doing.’
‘You should call me Cousin Rémi now, surely? If you don’t, people will wonder.’
‘Yes, of course. And I’m Cousin Livia.’
When they’d gone out for their walk, Orla looked at Rhoda. ‘I don’t know whether we’ve made things better or worse, do you? They’re on first name terms now.’
‘They get on well, though, don’t they? And he was honest with us about his personal situation. In fact … I didn’t think I’d say this so quickly, but I rather like him. And I think she likes him more than she realises, or why would she have invited him to stay when she’d only just met him.’
Orla nodded. ‘Well, he is rather charming, I have to admit. And we did want her to find another husband, didn’t we?’
Rhoda chuckled suddenly. ‘She’d have a fit if she heard us. We’d better take care what we say from now on or she’ll run a mile, whether she’s attracted to him or not. She always was a contrary piece.’
‘Would he have a fit if he heard us, do you think? The way he was looking at her, he’s definitely attracted.’
‘Ah, it’s early days yet.’
They both contemplated this situation for a few moments longer, then got on with their work.
Orla in particular couldn’t help hoping something would come of it. She was very fond of her mistress, had been with her for a while now.
She wondered what Mr Deagan would say to their plan.
21
Isabella went to the door as soon as she heard voices in the street. She’d sent the maid out shopping, because she wanted to greet the visitors herself. Arlen and Neala followed her, standing shyly pressed against their mother’s full skirts.
Her heart sank when she saw how stiffly Bram and Fergus were behaving towards one another, as they stood back to let Cara enter the house first. The Gradys were hanging back, too, so she beckoned to them. ‘Do come inside!’
The older couple hesitated then followed Cara into the house, with Fergus’s two boys trailing behind them.
‘Welcome to our home,’ Isabella said. ‘We’re very happy that you’ve come.’ She was glad she and her family mostly lived in the huge kitchen area, because she was sure the Gradys would feel more comfortable there.
Inside, Cara stopped to wait for her near the kitchen door. ‘We’re delighted to be here. Thank you for having us.’
Isabella hoped she’d hidden her surprise at the ladylike accent. ‘Let me see the baby. Oh, isn’t she a dear!’
She realised they were blocking the doorway, leaving the Gradys hovering in the hall, looking uncomfortable. ‘Sorry. I love babies. Do come into the kitchen.’
She saw Fergus’s younger son edge towards his grandfather and the old man put a reassuring arm round the child’s shoulders and said impulsively, ‘I’m very glad you two have come here with Fergus, Mr and Mrs Grady. We’re in great need of grandparents in our family, if you can find room in your hearts for other children.’ She saw the older couple brighten up at this.
Cara shot her such a warm, grateful look that Isabella felt sure the two of them would get on well. ‘And it’ll be good for me to have another sister, Cara, because Ismay spends very little time in Fremantle these days. She’s turned into a real sailor.’
She gestured around the big room at the rear of the house. ‘We spend most of our time in here. We have a parlour at the front for entertaining visitors, but the family rarely use it.’
‘This room is lovely, so big and bright.’ Ma went to look out at the garden, which was rather a mess, mostly bare earth, apart from where there were paving stones. ‘Do you not grow your own vegetables?’
‘Bram and I are too busy at the Bazaar. We had a man who used to come and tidy the garden up for us, but he’s recently moved down to Albany, so we’ll have to find someone else to do it.’ Ma nudged Pa.
‘I could do that for you, if you like,’ he offered. ‘I used to help a friend in his garden. I always wanted one of my own.’
‘That’d be a big help, Mr Grady. I know someone who can teach you about the Australian plants, which can be different from what you’re used to. Getting our own fresh vegetables would be wonderful.’ She guessed he’d want to be independent and added casually, ‘In fact, if you find you enjoy gardening here, you could earn a living helping people out, set up your own business, even.’
He brightened up at once. ‘I’d like that. Um … do you think you could call me Pa, you being one of the family? If you don’t mind, that is. “Mr Grady” doesn’t sound like me.’
‘And I’m Ma.’
‘I’ll do that if you call me Isabella.’
They looked a bit dubious. ‘I insist,’ she told them.
‘Isabella, then,’ Ma said. ‘It’s a lovely name.’
Cara had been standing back, letting them speak, but now came to look out at the garden. ‘Is that a lemon tree?’
‘Yes. They grow very well here. So do melons.’
‘Imagine picking your own lemons!’
‘I’ve never even heard of a melon,’ Ma said.
‘Big round fruits. You cut them in slices. You’ll get plenty of them here. They’re delicious.’
The two brothers had come into the back room by this time and Pa greeted Fergus eagerly. ‘Mrs – um, Isabella, I mean – thinks I can find work as a gardener. Now, wouldn’t that be grand?’
She knew then that she’d guessed correctly.
Fergus beamed at his sister-in-law. ‘What a wonderful idea! I can buy Pa the tools to set him up.’
‘I can sell you them cheaply. I
deal in second-hand goods as well as new,’ Bram said at once.
‘That’s good,’ said Fergus, but after that, the conversation between the two brothers stopped as abruptly as it had started.
Isabella showed them the indoor bathroom and water closet to one side of the kitchen.
‘Now, isn’t that a marvel!’ Pa said. ‘I’ve heard about those things being put in people’s houses, but I never did think I’d be using one.’
‘Shall we have a cup of tea or would you like to see your bedrooms first?’ Isabella asked as cheerfully as she could manage, vowing to strangle Bram when they were alone for not helping the conversation along.
They opted to see the bedrooms.
While his wife took their guests upstairs, Bram stayed in the kitchen to fill the kettle and push it over the hob, sighing. It had never been easy dealing with his brother and that hadn’t changed as much as he’d hoped.
But surely Fergus would relax with them as he settled in. Why was his brother so on edge, anyway?
Bram thought about this and guessed his brother was worried about finding gainful employment. A man liked to be the breadwinner for his family, not have them all dependent on his brother’s generosity.
He hadn’t thought as far ahead as helping Fergus find a job. He should have done. Only, he didn’t know what his brother’s skills were. So many things he didn’t know about Fergus. All the years they’d lost!
Just then, the lads from the docks arrived with the handcarts full of luggage and he called his brother down to help decide what would go upstairs and what might be stored in the shed for the time being.
There was a big wooden crate that puzzled him. ‘That doesn’t look like clothes. Did you bring some bits and pieces of furniture?’
‘No.’ Fergus laid a hand on the box. ‘It’s my tools. I was a railway engineer’s assistant. I was thinking to get a similar job here. Only someone told me there isn’t a railway.’ He sighed.
‘Ah.’ That would explain part of Fergus’s anxiety. ‘No, there isn’t, but if you’re good with tools, there’s machinery that needs fixing, and never enough people who understand what to do with it.’
‘I’m good with machinery. I’m quite good with wood too.’
‘There are plenty of jobs for carpenters as well.’
A confidence escaped his brother. ‘I was hoping to find a good job, one where I could see chances of getting on, bettering myself. Cara deserves more than a labourer’s wages. Do you … know what happened to her? Why she married a fellow like me?’
‘No.’
He glanced towards the stairs, hesitated, then said in a rush, ‘She was attacked, left expecting a child and her father threw her out. The poor little thing died, so she became wet nurse to Niamh and … we found we liked one another, so we got married.’
‘She isn’t the first to be attacked like that. It’s a good thing she found you.’
His brother’s whole face softened in a way Bram had rarely seen. He realised suddenly that whatever the reason for them marrying, there was genuine affection between him and his wife. And he understood only too well how it felt to marry someone brought up a lady, how you feared their scorn. Though that had never happened with his Isabella.
‘I’m the lucky one, marrying a lady like her,’ Fergus said quietly.
Bram offered a confidence of his own. ‘We’re both lucky that way in our wives. Isabella was stranded in Singapore when I met her, working for a Chinese family. Her employer suggested we marry. He’s a very shrewd man. No one ever did me a better favour.’ He could see Fergus relaxing a little more.
When he realised the confidences had ended for the time being, Bram went back to their former topic of conversation. ‘Here, we tend to make our own jobs. You’ll … let me help you set yourself up, won’t you?’
‘I don’t want charity.’
‘I won’t be offering it. I won’t need to. But I do know the colony and I’m acquainted with a lot of people. There’s a real shortage of skilled craftsmen and engineers here. I could put the word around about you when we’ve decided what exactly you want to do.’
‘I’d … be grateful for that sort of help.’ But Fergus’s voice sounded grudging.
‘Good. Good. But first we must take a day or two to show you round Fremantle, and take you up to see the capital. If you’d like to, that is. There’s a paddle steamer up to Perth. It’s a pleasant trip.’
When there was another heavy silence, he risked adding some more advice, ‘You’ll find it takes a few weeks to settle in and see your way more clearly, and don’t think you need to rush into anything. We’ve got plenty of room and you’re welcome to stay with us for as long as you need.’
Fergus nodded and muttered a thank you. But he didn’t smile.
Bram was unable to think of anything else to say and there was still a tension in the air, so he waited till the lads had carried in the last of the luggage and slipped them a couple of coins.
Then he noticed Fergus’s scowl. Oh dear. He should have left the payment to his brother.
‘The tea will be brewed by now.’ He turned to call upstairs for the rest of the family to come and have a cup of tea, but just then the door knocker sounded. He opened it to see Livia and Mr Newland.
‘We need to let you and your brother’s family know something,’ she said.
‘You might as well come in and have a cup of tea with us. It’s just brewed.’ He saw her open her mouth to refuse and mouthed, ‘Please?’ He was relieved when she nodded. It’d be good to have others there to help fill the awkward silences. Even though Fergus was family, it wasn’t easy.
The children led the way downstairs, clattering past the visitors and out into the garden, where Arlen wanted to show his cousins the cat, which had just had kittens in the shed.
When all the adults were seated round the big kitchen table, Livia explained her maids’ suggestion about claiming Rémi as a second cousin. ‘It sounds silly, I know, but they’re certain it’s necessary and well, it’s too late to stop them spreading the word now. Orla was setting off shopping as we left.’
‘I think it’s a good idea,’ Isabella said. ‘They’re right. People will gossip, whether there’s fuel for their suspicions or not.’
‘She’s right. They will,’ Bram said. ‘Except that they’re more outspoken here, I think, more …’ He searched for a word.
‘Independent,’ Livia said. ‘There are distinctions between rich and poor, and I suppose there always will be, but the poor don’t kow-tow as much to their so-called betters here, and they have more chances in life.’
The newcomers were listening intently, so she went on. ‘The biggest differences are between those with convict ancestry and the free settlers, which doesn’t seem fair sometimes, given that quite a few Irish convicts were brought here merely because of their political convictions, not because they’d committed criminal acts.’
‘We’ve none of us been in Ireland for a good many years,’ Pa said with a sigh. ‘And I don’t suppose I’ll ever see it again.’
Ma patted her husband’s hand. ‘It’s people who matter, not where you live.’
Livia finished her cup of tea. ‘I think we should leave you all in peace now. I’m showing Cousin Rémi round Fremantle, since he was itching for a good walk.’
‘My Cousin Livia is being very kind,’ Rémi teased.
They exchanged smiles as they spoke.
‘The two of them are certainly getting on well,’ Bram said after they’d left. ‘I’d have taken them for a married couple if I didn’t know they’d only just met. They seem very relaxed with one another, don’t you think? I hope he won’t try to take advantage of her.’
‘He’s a fine gentleman, Mr Newland is,’ Ma said firmly. ‘You’ve no need to worry about him treating her with anything but respect. Indeed, he deals kindly with everyone he meets, rich or poor, that one does.’
‘He’s a remittance man, though.’ Bram shook his head. ‘There has to be some
reason for that.’
‘He told me that was because he didn’t get on with his uncle,’ Fergus said. ‘Give the man a chance to prove himself, I say.’
‘I’m only worrying about Livia,’ Bram protested.
Cara could see the two brothers getting annoyed with each other, so joined in hastily. ‘I don’t think you need to, Bram. Like Ma, I’ve always found Rémi very gentlemanly. He ran classes on both ships for the steerage passengers about self-help. I heard a lot of the men commenting on how interesting he was, how he’d made them think about their futures.’
Isabella changed the subject firmly. ‘How about another scone, Mrs Grady? And Fergus, do eat your fill.’
After the snack, the newcomers went upstairs to unpack and settle into their rooms.
‘I like your family,’ Cara said to Fergus when they were alone. ‘Why are you so wary with Bram, though?’
‘I don’t know. I can’t seem to help it.’
‘He’s the same with you. You’re both feeling your way, I suppose. Don’t take his words the wrong way, will you? I’m sure he always means well, he seems so kind.’
‘No. I won’t. Well, I’ll try not to. I just … don’t like being beholden to him.’
‘He’s your brother. It’s different helping one another when it’s family.’
‘I suppose so.’ He drew her gently into his arms, and they stood quietly together for a few moments until Sean burst into the room, at which they moved quickly apart.
He didn’t seem to notice that they’d been embracing. ‘Dad, I want to unpack my clothes and things. Is it all right?’
‘Ask your mama. She’s in charge of that.’
‘I’ll come and help you,’ Cara said at once.
After that there was no chance for her and Fergus to talk privately till they went to bed, and by then Cara was so tired she fell asleep in the middle of a sentence. Niamh had been fast asleep for some time, tired out by being passed from one person to another.
Fergus lay awake for only a few minutes longer than his wife, enjoying the warmth of the early autumn night, which was so hot they needed only a sheet to cover them. If this was autumn, what would summer be like?
