The Trader's Reward

by Anna Jacobs

  He asked Robbie where to go, then hurried down the street to Chilton’s lodgings. The landlady expressed shock, but clearly she’d already heard about the death.

  ‘Family?’ She shrugged. ‘None that I’ve ever heard of. I never saw him with a woman, either. He kept himself to himself, that one did. Quiet enough, though. Never gave me any trouble. He spent a lot of evenings down at the ice works on his own. Must have loved that machinery of his.’

  ‘Did he go to church?’

  She shook her head. ‘No. He wasn’t an attender.’

  ‘He’ll have to be buried on the parish, then.’

  ‘You aren’t going to help there?’

  ‘No. He owed me a lot of money.’

  ‘Ah. Well, he doesn’t owe me any rent, thank goodness. He’d have been out on his ear if he’d failed to pay up every week. What do you want me to do with his belongings?’

  Bram didn’t hesitate. ‘Send them to the Bazaar. Back entrance. I’ll go through them. I’ll check with the magistrate first, but I reckon I’ll have the right to sell them. My brother will take over the ice works. He’s an engineer.’

  As he walked back to the Bazaar, Bram tried to sort out in his mind how he felt.

  Happy about his sudden closeness to his brother? Definitely.

  Hopeful about the ice works? Just a little.

  Frightened of failing again? Absolutely terrified. But Fergus seemed so certain he could salvage something from the mess. He had to trust his brother.

  Isabella wouldn’t be happy when she found out that Bram had put more money into the ice-making business. He had never broken a promise to her before. But if this worked, he’d not only have a proper ice works, making money for him and helping children with a fever, but a brother to love and work with, who would live nearby.

  Families were the most important thing there was, so wasn’t this worth a try? Surely Isabella would understand?

  Cara was sitting in the kitchen when Fergus came bursting in, looking happier than she’d ever seen him.

  He tugged her to her feet and danced her round the room till she was laughing and breathless. By the time he stopped, everyone else was smiling at them.

  ‘What’s happened?’ she demanded, fanning her flushed face.

  He kept his arm round her and announced, ‘The man who ran the ice works for Bram dropped down dead.’

  ‘Oh, poor man.’

  ‘No, poor Bram. The fellow was a drunken incompetent fool, not an engineer. The place is in a terrible mess and Bram’s been losing money on it. But I can sort the machinery out, so Bram’s put me in charge. I have a job, Cara, a job working with machinery!’

  He laughed and spun her round again, then turned to Pa. ‘I could do with a bit of help cleaning the place up, and finishing off the floor at the Bazaar. Would you like a little job for a few days?’

  The older man’s face brightened.

  Ma exchanged pleased glances with Cara.

  ‘There’s just one thing I have to talk to Cara about,’ Fergus added. He turned back to her. ‘We’ll go out into the garden, shall we?’

  He looked up at the blue sky as they stood there. ‘I never was in a place before where the sun shone all the time. And this is autumn.’

  ‘Isabella says it rains a lot in winter, and they get storms.’

  He fell silent, so she waited. But he didn’t speak, so eventually she asked, ‘What is it?’

  ‘I’ve said I’ll use our savings to help pull that ice works together. All our money, Cara. I know I can do it, but if anything goes wrong, if there’s an accident, we’ll have nothing behind us.’

  She didn’t hesitate. ‘If you feel you can do it, that’s fine with me. Most men wouldn’t even ask their wives.’

  ‘I’m not most men.’

  ‘No. You’re very special, Fergus.’

  He could feel himself going red, wasn’t used to compliments. ‘You’re sure you don’t mind?’

  ‘Of course I don’t. I trust you absolutely. You’re good with machinery, whether it’s a little pencil stub holder or a big steam engine.’

  He let out a long whoosh of breath in relief, then brightened. ‘There’s something else. If things work out all right, I’ll have a half share in the ice works. Bram owns it, so I wasn’t sure whether that was fair, but he wouldn’t have been able to do anything except sell the machinery for scrap if I wasn’t here, so I think it’s all right. I’ll make sure it earns him more money than it ever did before.’

  He gave her one of his uncertain looks. ‘So it may be that you’ve not lowered yourself as much as you thought in marrying me.’

  There it was again, the doubt in his voice. She reached out for his hands. ‘Oh, Fergus, I think I’ve done a wonderful thing marrying you. I didn’t like any of those fine gentlemen who came courting me. But I do like you.’ It was her turn to blush, but she said it, ‘I love you, Fergus. I’m glad I married you. And my feelings for you won’t change, whatever happens at the ice works.’

  ‘I love you too, Cara.’

  He pulled her to him and held her close, then kissed her so thoroughly her head spun.

  She felt excitement rise in her, a strange feeling like nothing she’d ever experienced before. She looked at him shyly. ‘I’m glad.’

  He pressed one last tender kiss on her cheek. ‘So am I. I never thought to be so blessed.’

  That night, when they went to bed, Fergus drew Cara gently into his arms. ‘We’ve waited long enough. Will you let me love you? Not just the cuddling and kissing this time, but properly.’

  She stiffened and he heard her suck in air in a gasp of fright.

  ‘Have I ever hurt you before?’

  ‘N-no.’

  ‘I’ll stop if you tell me to, if it hurts.’

  She looked at him, her eyes wide and scared, but she didn’t protest when he whispered, ‘Trust me not to hurt you tonight, Cara darling. Will you?’

  For answer, she nestled against him and whispered back, ‘I do like it when we cuddle close.’

  ‘Good. Because that’s how it starts.’

  Gently, with love in every touch, every kiss, he guided her into intimacy. It took a long time to gentle her and show her that her fears were needless. But he did it, holding himself back. His needs were not nearly as important as hers tonight. If he did this right, their married life would be so much happier.

  Anyway, he wanted very much to make her happy, in every way he could.

  Her murmurs of surprise pleased him. He kissed and caressed her to show his love, she was so soft and beautiful.

  And she didn’t ask him to stop. In fact, when the love-making ended, she didn’t even pull away, but stayed in his arms, her soft hair against his chest, her body pressed against his still.

  ‘Oh, Fergus.’

  ‘We’ll do better next time. Trust me.’

  ‘It wasn’t at all the same as … that. It was … good. It was … loving.’

  ‘Because I love you, my darling.’

  He saw her smile in the moonlight as she raised her face to plant a kiss on his chin, which was the nearest part of him she could reach.

  ‘You’re a wonderful man, Fergus Deagan.’

  ‘I’m a lucky man. You, my family and now … a real chance to make something of our new lives.’ A yawn made him realise how tired he was. ‘But I’ll have to go to sleep now, my love. I’ll be needing to get up very early in the morning. I’ve a lot to do, glory be.’

  She felt his arms gradually slacken around her, but she couldn’t sleep for a while, so lay there listening to his breathing slow down.

  She was lucky too. She had lost everything, but now she had all she could ever want, more than she’d ever expected: a wonderful man to love, a baby to raise and a proper, caring family. She hoped she and Fergus would have more children one day.

  Oh, she was so full of hope tonight! The future had never looked so bright and happy.

  24

  Two days later, Chilton was buried quickly a
nd quietly in an unmarked grave. No one attended the funeral, except Bram, who had said he wasn’t going, then changed his mind because he couldn’t bear to think of Chilton making that last journey on his own.

  He went to the ice works afterwards to make sure Fergus had everything he needed to get the machinery going, but he had no desire to interfere in that side of things, any more than Fergus had shown an interest in the paperwork. His brother was too busy sorting out the pipes and tubes and other equipment at the ice works.

  Fergus seemed to be going through every single pipe, connection and piece of apparatus. And he was whistling happily as he worked. A very tuneful whistle, too.

  He looked up to say, ‘I’ll get round to your floor tomorrow, if that’s all right. I just had to see what was needed here.’

  ‘The floor can wait. The ice can’t.’

  ‘Good.’ Do you want to go through Chilton’s papers with me later, Fergus lad? They’re in a proper old mess.’

  ‘I’m better with machinery. But Cara says she’ll look through them for us, if we like. Do you mind if she helps? She’s itching to do something. She says if Isabella can help you, she can help me.’

  ‘She’s welcome to go through them. She can always ask if she’s puzzled about something. My Isabella would be the best one for her to ask, though.’ He grinned. ‘Some men would think we’re mad letting women into our businesses. But Isabella’s far better than I am with figures, and she loves that silk shop of hers. Why waste that ability on her sweeping the floor?’

  He looked across the room. ‘I see Pa’s still working here.’

  ‘I’m not paying him much, but it means a lot to him.’

  Bram heard the defensive note in his brother’s voice. ‘It’s good for a man to have work.’

  ‘He’s a demon at cleaning up. Ma’s training, I expect.’ Fergus chuckled. ‘He’s brought Sean with him too, just till the lads start school next week. Pa says boys aren’t meant to be idle.’

  ‘If Pa gets tired, tell him he doesn’t need to work at all. I’d be happy to give him a roof over his head and food on the table for as long as he needs it.’

  Fergus tensed. ‘I won’t let him work himself to death, but he’s quite strong for his age. Anyway, I’m the one paying him, so you don’t have to worry about your money.’

  Bram smiled, daring to give his brother a mock thump with a clenched fist. ‘It’s not that at all, you eejit. But Pa’s getting on now, so he’ll need to find an easier job. I’d have done the same as you, found him a job, made one up, if necessary.’

  ‘That’s all right, then.’

  ‘Is everything all right? I mean, between us?’

  Fergus didn’t pretend not to understand. ‘Yes. You and I, we’ve sorted ourselves out.’

  ‘Good. Look, one of my sellers’ husbands knows about gardening and he’d be happy to show Pa what’s needed with the different plants they grow here – though some of the old plants from back home grow here, too, of course. I can take Pa over to Tom’s tomorrow afternoon, if you like, and they can have a chat.’

  ‘That’d be wonderful. I was wondering what jobs to find for him after this. Robbie’s all the help I’ll need for the time being once the place has been cleaned up, but I’ll keep Sean occupied when he’s not at school, teach him a few things. You’re never too young to learn. Um … what do you intend to do with the big shed at the back?’

  ‘I hadn’t even thought about it. Isn’t it used for storing spare machinery or something?’

  ‘No. It’s full of rubbish. We need to go through that together. You may be able to sell some of the stuff. After all, you own these buildings and their contents now.’

  ‘We own it. I held a mortgage on the place, so it’s come to me.’

  ‘I agreed to a share in the business, but not in the buildings. That wouldn’t be fair.’

  ‘Says who?’ Bram waved one hand in dismissal. ‘They’re tumble-down places and we should probably knock down the lot.’ He waited, then added slyly, ‘Unless you can think of anything to do with them, in which case they’re yours.’

  ‘Are you sure?’

  ‘Yes, I am.’

  ‘Isabella won’t mind?’

  ‘She’s happy for us to work together. She didn’t get angry at me, didn’t even pretend to scold me when I told her about keeping the ice works going.’

  ‘That’s all right, then. Actually, the big shed isn’t as bad as it looks. It wouldn’t take much to make it waterproof again and it’s bigger than you’d guess from outside. And there’s a smaller one next to it. I was thinking … They make houses out of wood here, and I’m good with wood. I might be able to turn that shed into a house, do it bit by bit, myself … with guidance from someone who knows more than I do about such things, perhaps. And I could convert the little shed too, for Ma and Pa.’

  ‘Mitchell Nash would be happy to advise you, yes, and sell you the extra wood you’ll need. He’s doing some building work these days, as well as selling timber.’

  ‘Do you know everyone in Fremantle?’

  Bram grinned. ‘I know a lot of people. The nicer ones, anyway.’

  ‘Well, we’re going to need somewhere to live, so if that would be all right with you, I’d like to try to make a home of the back part.’

  Bram shrugged. ‘What would I do with an old shed? Show me what’s in it, though.’

  They picked their way into the shed, going right to the back, where they even found some piles of old lumber.

  Fergus looked up, considering the shape of the place. ‘If I could make the roof just a little bit higher at that side, we could build bedrooms up there.’

  Bram slapped his back. ‘Do what you want. Won’t you need more wood than this, though? I could—’

  Fergus watched Bram open his mouth, and knew his brother was going to offer to buy the wood. He got in first, saying firmly, ‘We’ll do it ourselves when we can afford it. We’ve all slept together before, and we can do it again for as long as necessary.’

  Bram held up his hands, fingers spread out in a placatory gesture. ‘All right. But if you need anything, you’ll ask?’

  ‘If I have to.’

  ‘You haven’t forgotten Maura and Hugh are bringing their lot round for tea tonight?’

  ‘Oh, hell, I had! Good thing you reminded me, Bram. I’m getting filthy. I’ll have to have a good wash after I finish here.’

  ‘I’ll get back to the Bazaar, then. I have to work out the best way of storing the cargo in the new shed, move stuff around ready for it. Adam and Ismay are due back next week and then we’ll be busy for a few days. After that we’ll hold a big family party, eh? Won’t Ismay be surprised to see you here?’

  ‘I’m looking forward to seeing her again. It’s been grand to catch up with the others. It’s lovely to see Maura so happy with Hugh.’

  ‘It was lovely to hear you singing with him. You have a wonderful voice, Fergus.’

  ‘Most of us Deagans are good at singing.’ He grinned. ‘Except you! Promise me you’ll not try to join in again.’

  Bram rolled his eyes, but he knew he couldn’t sing. He didn’t mind. No one could do everything.

  Fergus looked round the big shed with a proprietorial air. ‘I’ll start drawing up plans for this place as soon as I’ve had time to sort out what wood we’ve got. The machinery has to come first. I think I can not only get the ice works going again, but working better than before.’

  ‘You’re sure?’

  ‘I’m fairly sure, barring accidents. I keep telling you: I do understand machinery.’

  Bram blew his nose loudly, then blew it again, blinking his eyes. ‘That’ll be grand. Just … grand. I don’t know what I’d have done without you.’

  Fergus patted his shoulder, then returned to the pipes.

  ‘I’d better get back to work now, as well,’ Bram said.

  As he turned to leave, Fergus caught his arm. ‘Just one more thing. Later on, I’d like to look into more modern ways of making i
ce. There’s a fellow on the other side of Australia who’s taken out a patent on a better way of doing it. Livia and Rémi are going to find out about him for me. His name’s James Harrison. We could maybe write to him, find out more about what he’s doing and if it’s practical, pay him to use his process.’

  ‘Don’t you think we’d better walk before we run?’

  Fergus laughed confidently. ‘I don’t mean this minute, or even this year. But I’m a big believer in thinking ahead. You can make more profit with modern methods and machinery. And we could maybe set up an ice works in Perth, too, once we’ve got the process sorted out and— What’s the matter?’

  Bram couldn’t hold back the laughter. ‘When it comes down to it, you’re as bad as me. If we don’t watch out, we’ll have you getting rich. You’ll probably invent some machinery that makes a lot of money.’

  Fergus smiled and shrugged, but he rather liked the idea of that. Not yet, but in the future. For Cara and the children.

  He felt so happy, confident too.

  He’d been doubtful about coming to Australia, but he wasn’t doubtful any more. It was the best thing he’d ever done. Just as marrying Cara had been the right thing to do.

  Ah, he was a lucky fellow, he was so.

  While Bram was sorting out the ice works, Livia spent a lot of time getting to know Rémi better. The more she chatted to him, the more she liked him. Even Orla and Rhoda had come round.

  They spent wonderful evenings together, talking about anything and everything. The world, the future of Australia, the chances of opening their own bookshop once Mr Deeping sold his.

  ‘Maybe we can buy his stock,’ Rémi said. ‘And I have a lot of books.’

  ‘We’d have to find somewhere to rent, and houses aren’t cheap in Perth.’

  ‘In Fremantle, then,’ he said recklessly. ‘As long as we’re together. And it’s been at least an hour since you kissed me, woman.’

  ‘It’s your turn to kiss me,’ she said provocatively.

  So he did.

  She had never thought to be so happy with a man again. Or to trust a man about money. The more she talked to him, the more she saw how frugally Rémi was thinking and planning.