‘We’ve spoken about Kenny,’ said Laddie with a frown.
‘He’s trying to make up for things,’ I said. ‘Someone told me that he worked all night.’
‘If you see him, I’d like to speak with him,’ said Laddie.
I nodded.
‘What about your friend, Billy? Where’s he from?’
‘I met him at the saloon a few months back,’ I said. ‘He works at a vineyard and he’s a grand billiard player — that’s all I really know.’
‘Well, he’s a fine lad according to my Isobel.’
After a tea of bread and fruit at the camp, I went back to the stables. Baldy was pleased to hear Laddie was improving. He called out as he walked home down the drive. ‘We’ll have to see if we can find his horses before he comes back, eh, Jack?’
The next morning I arrived just as Laddie was being carried into an ambulance. Isobel ran over, her dark hair falling wildly around her face. ‘Thank goodness, Jack. I thought you wouldn’t get here in time. Father’s being taken on the first trip for the day.’ She tucked her hair in behind her ear. ‘I’m going to miss you.’ She hesitated for a moment, then hugged me.
I hugged her back, turning my reddening face from hers.
‘Miss?’ a man called.
I let her go. ‘They’re waiting for you.’ We walked to the ambulance and, just before she stepped aboard, she kissed me on the cheek.
I waved until the ambulance drove out the gates, then touched the spot where she’d kissed me. When would I see her again? In spite of the many people about, I felt alone somehow.
‘Give us a hand, mate,’ someone called and I was soon busy again.
Chapter 22
I caught up with Billy again at dinner. ‘They’ve gone to Waipuk.’
‘He looks like a good bloke,’ said Billy. He gave me a nudge. ‘Not to mention his daughter, eh, Jack?’
A man came looking for volunteers to dig more longdrops. Billy leapt to his feet. ‘Come on, Jack — we can handle that.’
Other volunteers around us laughed. I gulped my last mouthful of tea and stood up to follow. I froze. Someone was calling my name. I spun around. It couldn’t be?
‘Wee Jack! Wee Jack! Jack?’
‘Dad?’ Dad and Robert stood at the end of a row of tents. ‘Dad!’
Dodging around stretchers and people, they ran towards me down the row. Dad nearly knocked me off my feet, sweeping me up in a hug. Robert hugged me just as tightly when Dad finally let me go.
‘Thank God, Jack! Thank God, you’re all right,’ Dad said over and over.
I didn’t care that people were watching. I didn’t even care that I was crying. When I saw Robert’s tears, I cried even harder. ‘What are you doing here? How did you get here?’
‘We came as soon as we heard,’ said Dad, still gripping my shoulder, as if he thought I’d disappear. ‘We had a devil of a time getting through.’ He shook his head. ‘The roads were broken up and darn near impossible to drive on.’ He hugged me again.
‘There were pickets in the road stopping sightseers coming into Hastings,’ said Robert. ‘Convincing them we’d come to find you wasn’t easy.’
‘When you weren’t at Mr MacKenzie’s, I thought …’ Dad trailed off. ‘Why didn’t you tell us you’d moved?’
‘It’s a long story,’ I began.
‘You found him, then,’ came another familiar voice. ‘Hello, Jack.’
Quickly wiping the tears from my face, I looked him squarely in the eye. ‘Hello, Grandfather.’
Again I was swept into a hug. Just as quickly he stepped back, clearing his throat. Trying to hide my surprise, I looked back to Dad. My throat tight, I finally managed, ‘How did you find me?’
Dad looked over my shoulder. I turned to see Mr Mac standing a couple of yards away. Familiar feelings of doubt swept over me.
But he wasn’t looking at us. Mr Mac looked puzzled. He frowned and came closer. He was staring at Billy, and Billy was staring back.
Neither spoke. My family turned, following my gaze, and still Mr Mac and Billy stood silent. What was going on? Did they know each other?
Billy finally spoke. ‘Uncle Harry?’
‘William?’
I stared at Billy. William? It couldn’t be. Mrs Davis’s William?
A smile spread across Mr Mac’s face. A real smile. He strode over to Billy and hugged him as fiercely as Dad had me.
I grinned as Mr Mac stood back and clapped Billy on the shoulder. ‘It’s grand to see you, lad.’ Billy wasn’t alone after all. He did have a family. But he’d told me his mother was dead? Before I could tell him about Mrs Davis, a shout came from the front gates. ‘We need a hand over here!’
A truck pulled into the racecourse, its back deck lined with stretchers full of injured. ‘That’s us, Uncle Harry,’ said Billy. He ran off, with Mr Mac close behind.
Dad, Robert, Grandfather and I were soon rounded up for long-drop-digging duty and didn’t meet up again until mid-afternoon.
We sat in the shade of a tree while Robert brought mugs of tea. I finally had to tell Dad why I’d lied about my first apprenticeship. Explaining in front of Mr Mac wasn’t easy, until he came to my rescue.
‘It wasn’t the boy’s fault,’ he said. ‘He’s the hardest worker I ever had. Got a way with the horses, too. Bad management and too much drink put me crook where Jack is concerned.’ He turned to Billy. William.
‘It’s never been the same since you left.’ He shook his head. ‘Your mother was heartbroken and I was to blame.’ He dropped his eyes. ‘You see, your mother and I grew very close. Too close to be proper for a woman and her husband’s brother.’
Billy jerked, spilling his tea. Dad and I swapped glances. Maybe we should leave, I thought, but Mr Mac kept talking as if we weren’t even there.
‘When Arthur found out how I felt about your mother, he packed his bags and left — taking you with him. Your mother never got over it, and I’ve never forgiven myself.’
Billy stared across the racecourse. No one said a word. When he finally turned to Mr Mac, he just sighed. ‘It’s all in the past now, Uncle Harry. I only wish I’d seen her again. Before she died.’
I gasped. Mr Mac hadn’t told him!
‘Died?’ cried Mr Mac. ‘Your mother isn’t dead. She’s alive and well in the house you grew up in. She’s been waiting all this time for you to come back!’
‘It’s true,’ I said. ‘She spends nearly every night in the front parlour with Marmite, looking at old photos of you.’
He stared from me to Mr Mac. ‘She’s alive? Dad told me—’
‘She’s alive, I say,’ said Mr Mac. ‘She’s well, if a bit shaken after the quake, but she’s fine.’
Billy shook his head, his eyes brimming with tears. ‘I never knew. That’s why I never went back. I’m sorry, Uncle Harry, I never knew.’
Mr Mac gripped his shoulder. ‘That’s OK, son. Now we can put things right.’
Billy nodded solemnly. Suddenly he grinned. ‘Mum’s still got Marmite?’
Chapter 23
Dear Mum, Dad, Robert, Annie, and Grandfather, Things are better here in Napier and I am fine. It will take a long time to get the stables back to normal, but Laddie is back home, and on the mend. He has asked me to send his thanks for staying here to help us clean up. With your help it was much easier, and I know they appreciated your help at other houses, too.
We haven’t heard from Kenny since he went to Waipuk with the injured, but Isobel is a grand help in the stables now, and the horses have taken to her as well as she has to them.
Even though the earthquake was a terrible thing, it wasn’t all bad. If you hadn’t come to find me, Mr Mac and Billy wouldn’t have found each other. Mrs Davis is over the moon at having Billy back, and I’ve heard Mr Mac has changed, staying away from the drink.
Anyway, the real reason I’m writing this letter is to tell you I’ll be riding in my first race next month.
Laddie is arranging a race meeting wi
th other trainers, even though the doctor tells him he is supposed to be resting. Laddie says it will be good for morale.
I hope you will all come to watch. I’ll write again when I know the date and the place.
Love Jack
Acknowledgments
Thanks to Alan and Shirley Goss, Nicoleta
Paxie and Ian Grapes for your wisdom
and guidance in my research
Special thanks to Dad (Ted Baines) —
for all our family stories,
Anna Mackenzie for your excellent
advice, and Norman Bilbrough and
the NZSA Mentoring Programme
Copyright
HarperCollinsPublishers
First published in 2011
This edition published in 2011
by HarperCollinsPublishers (New Zealand) Limited
P.O. Box 1, Auckland
Copyright © Adele Broadbent 2011
Adele Broadbent asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers.
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National Library of New Zealand Cataloguing-in-Publication Data:
Broadbent, Adele
Just Jack/Adele Broadbent
ISBN 978-1-869-50886-9 (pbk.)
ISBN 978-0-730-49407-2 (epub)
[1. Jockeys–Fiction. 2. Brothers–Fiction.
3. Horses–Fiction. 4. Apprentices–Fiction.
5. Sibling rivalry–Fiction. 6. Self-esteem—Fiction.] I. Title.
NZ823.3—dc 22
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Cover images by shutterstock.com
Just Jack Page 13
