Wildflower Girl (2 page)

THAT EVENING THE FOUR OF
them sat around the table in the small cosy kitchen.

‘You’re the best cook in the world, Eily,’ declared Michael, helping himself to some more stew. Peggy noticed that Eily barely touched her own food. It was so frustrating for her, baking and cooking, and then at the end of the day having so little to show for her hard work. But customers were thin on the ground. A boy from the butcher’s in the Main Street had left in a sheet of figures – another overdue account. And the flour barrel was only a third full.

‘I’m working at the Big House tomorrow afternoon and evening, Peggy, so you’ll have to give Nano a hand with the shop,’ said Eily. Peggy nodded. ‘No running off or forgetting about it!’

‘Is there no chance of a job for you there?’ asked Michael.

‘If there was any kind of kitchen job going it would be mine. But you know yourself it’s hard enough for them to keep the staff they have already.’

‘Well, let’s be grateful for the few hours of work
you do get there when they’re extra busy,’ urged Nano.

‘Oh, I’m going daft. I nearly forgot to tell you, Nano, I met the landlord up at the cattle market. He said he’d drop into the shop within the next day or two,’ said Michael.

‘Billy Kelly! What would he want?’ Nano was worried. ‘Is it about the rent do you think?’

Peggy was just dying to talk about the notice on the dresser.

‘Not tonight,’ mouthed Eily.

Michael disappeared off to help a friend with milking and Nano got up from the table and wandered into the empty shop. ‘It’s the only place I can find time to think.’

Eily ran upstairs to change. Peggy whistled as she cleared up and brushed the floor. Hearing a tap on the small window, she stopped and ran to the door.

‘Good evening, Peggy!’

‘Come on in, John, she’ll be down in a minute.’

The young farmer stepped in and sat down near the range to wait for Eily. Out of the corner of her eye, Peggy studied him. He was tall and kind of handsome with thick black curls. His hands and face were tanned and weather-beaten from working out in the fields, and although his clothes were clean, his jacket needed patching and his shirt was frayed. He was very quiet, but Eily seemed to be mad about him. Young love – that’s what Nano always whispered when she saw them together.

Eily smiled and put on her shawl when she saw John Powers.

‘We’re going up the town for a bit of a walk. Will you finish up here, Peggy? And don’t forget to warm some milk later to help Nano sleep.’

‘I’ll be fine,’ said Peggy smirking, watching them walk arm in arm down the lane. Eily deserved some happiness.

Later Peggy tiptoed into the darkened shop. It was small and clean. On one wall the shelves were stacked with jars of preserves – chutneys and jellies and jams; the other counter was for the daily bake – soda bread, brown bread, wheaten loaf, scones and fancy breads. The smell of the hot bread would fill the shop and the street. There was a small drawer unit which held fancy bakery items like glacé cherries, sugared violets, marzipan fruits.

Nano was sitting in her old chair rocking backwards and forwards. She always did that when she was worried or troubled.

The next afternoon the shop bell rang. Peggy looked through the kitchen door and saw Eily talking to Billy Kelly, the landlord. She motioned to Peggy to get Nano.

‘Auntie Nano, come quick, Mr Kelly’s in the shop. He wants to talk to you.’

‘Fetch me my good shawl – yes, the black one, pet, – and will you tidy my hair a bit at the back there please.’

Peggy got the bristle brush, re-did the bun of hair and fixed it tight with a few extra hairpins. Nano was anxious, but managed to appear serene as she walked
into the shop, shook Mr Kelly by the hand and sat down in her chair.

‘Girls, will one of ye fetch this good man a cup of tea, and how about a slice of that fresh apple and cinnamon tart you made this morning, Eily?’

‘That would be grand, Miss Murphy, thank you,’ replied Mr Kelly.

He was a tall, thin, nervous type of man and he paced around the room a few times, before finally sitting down.

‘I don’t exactly know where to start,’ he mumbled.

‘The beginning – ’tis usually the best place,’ smiled Nano, sensing his nervousness.

‘Well, Miss Murphy, I’ve come along today to ask you if you’d be interested in buying this piece of property outright. You’ve been a tenant for nigh on forty years.’

Nano let out her breath with a gasp. ‘Oh, Mr Kelly, you must know that if I had enough savings I’d have bought the shop long ago.’

‘Miss Murphy, the asking price would not be too high. I know myself the roof is sagging and in need of repair,’ he pleaded. ‘Isn’t there any way you could afford it?’

Nano didn’t say a word, but just shook her head slowly from side to side. Peggy passed her a cup of weak tea. She sipped it and stared at the man beside her.

‘Mr Kelly, will I tell you something?’ she said at last. ‘You are the living image of your late father, Tom. He was a good man too …’

‘My father was fond of you and your sister and we
always had the finest cakes in the town on rent day.’ He tried to smile. ‘Miss Murphy, you can see yourself how bad things are in the town. I’m a married man myself with four young children, but even with five pieces of property, things are not good. People can’t afford to pay their rent.’

Nano began to apologise. ‘Are we late with our rent again?’

‘No, listen, Miss Murphy, that’s not what I’m here about. The truth is I am selling off all my interests in the town and moving to Dublin with my family. I have a brother who has his own business there.’ He stopped. ‘What will become of us? Are we going to lose the roof over our heads? What about the three children?’

‘I’m sorry, there’s nothing more I can do. I need to raise funds myself. The O’Donnells and the Kennys have accepted assisted passage to America. I’m not the only landlord forced to do this. A group of us are trying our best to look after our tenants, so letters of application for a ship’s voucher have been delivered to many in this part of the town.’

Eily and Peggy stared at Nano. Her face was as pale as snow and her lips looked blue.

‘It came yesterday,’ Peggy said and ran to the kitchen dresser to get it.

Nano stared at it blankly. ‘So you want to pack me off on one of those old coffin ships to the New World, is that it?’

‘No, Miss Murphy. It’s just that many people want to go to America. We’re only offering to help them. The youngsters might consider it,’ he finished off
lamely.

‘How long have I got left here?’ Nano asked.

‘It will take a bit of time to find a buyer, though there is someone interested. I suppose a few weeks.’

Nano stood up. ‘I’m not blaming you, Mr Kelly, and I’m only glad that my poor sister Lena never lived to see this day. Thank you for coming to see me.’

Peggy watched as the landlord bade his embarrassed goodbyes.

‘Are you all right, Nano?’ asked Eily.

The old lady stood up. ‘I’m away to my bed, we’ll talk about this later.’ She muttered under her breath, obviously exhausted from the strain.

Peggy and Eily looked at each other. They both knew that closing the shop was enough to break their great-aunt’s heart.

It was almost midnight. Eily, Michael and Peggy sat by the range, arguing back and forth about their future.

‘Why can’t we all go to America?’ questioned Peggy. ‘That’s the simplest thing to do. Our passage will be paid.’

‘That’s no answer, Peggy!’ said Eily sternly. ‘Do you think poor Nano would survive such a voyage?’

Peggy, defeated, shook her head and added a whispered ‘No.’

‘Auntie Nano and Auntie Lena took us in when we had no one or no home. You remember, both of you, the state the three of us were in when we arrived here
after weeks on the road and how the two of them cared for us and got us well again? They could have put us in a workhouse or orphans’ home, but instead we became their family. They fed us even though food was scarce and they brought us up. Never, never would I leave poor Nano – she’s all on her own now. It’s our turn to look after her.’ Eily’s cheeks blazed.

‘Maybe if I went I’d get a job fairly easy and be able to send some money home for the rest of you,’ suggested Michael.

‘I could work too,’ added Peggy. ‘I’m all but finished school, and you know well there are no jobs here. They say there’s plenty of jobs across the ocean.’ Eily started to shake her head. ‘No, no, I don’t want you to go. The three of us have been together always. We can’t split up now. Peggy’s only a baby. Who’d look after her?’

‘I’m not a baby. I’m thirteen and old enough to be in service,’ cried Peggy indignantly.

‘Look, Eily, if you’re going to stay and look after Nano you’ll need money,’ said Michael.

‘If there were jobs here we’d get them, but there aren’t any. So what else can we do?’ asked Peggy.

‘Eily, you know Peggy’s right. The two of us could go to America. I’m getting fed up hanging around here day in, day out, helping at the market sometimes or with milking or odd farm jobs. I want a proper job. Eily, I’ll fill in the application anyway for Peggy and myself, it won’t do any harm.’

‘The Molloys are going and the O’Caseys, so we wouldn’t be on our own …’ Peggy began.

‘I need time to think about it. We all have to try and
work out what’s the best thing to do. Come on away to bed or we’ll be exhausted in the morning. Let’s all say a prayer that something will be sorted out,’ said Eily.

Two days later Eily told Michael there might be a vacancy for him up at Castletaggart House. A wide grin spread across his face. Maybe he could get a job at last.

Eily had been helping in the kitchens at a ball in the Big House the night before. As usual, she asked the cook if there were any vacancies. The woman shook her head.

‘Not unless you want to help with the horses in the stables?’ she joked. ‘The stable boy has just left after getting a bad kick from a mare and the head groom wants someone good and gentle with animals and unafraid of horses.’

Eily straight away mentioned her brother and his way with animals and love of horses.

Michael couldn’t believe it. Horses – working with them, grooming them, feeding them, cleaning them and maybe riding them. It would be a miracle if he could get it.

‘Stable boy, stable boy,’ no matter how often he said it, it sounded good. ‘Are you sure, Eily?’

His older sister nodded. ‘I’m not codding you, Michael. Honest to God, it’s a great opportunity.’

‘Eily, I’ll do my best to get that job. It’s all I ever wanted.’

Peggy smiled. Michael was so lucky. But what
would happen to their plans if he got the job? she wondered.

Nano blessed herself. ‘Thanks be to God,’ she murmured, but added, ‘We mustn’t count our chickens before they’re hatched.’ Peggy loved her aunt and her old sayings.

Eily seemed embarrassed. She poured out another cup of tea.

‘Well, I’ve a bit more news.’ She looked up. ‘John has asked me to marry him.’

Three pairs of eyes fixed on Eily’s glowing face.

‘You said yes, Eily! Oh you did say yes,’ urged Peggy, squeezing her sister’s hand. Eily shyly tossed back her long fair hair. ‘Well, I suppose, sort of … there are lots of things to be considered.’ However it was clear to them all that Eily was brimming over with happiness.

‘How are John and his father managing up on the farm?’ asked Nano. ‘I hope poor old Josh hasn’t had one of his turns recently?’

Everyone in Castletaggart knew about Joshua Powers. At the height of the Great Famine he had lost his wife, two sons and young daughter to famine fever. Joshua roamed his fields, flinging sods of turf and stones at the sky and cursing God for what he had done. He spent five days like that until John, his eldest son, got him calmed down. However, from time to time the memory would come back and he would rant and rave and curse and wander the fields again. Locally he was known as Cursing Josh Powers.

Nano looked at Eily, Michael and Peggy and thanked the heavens that God had sent these special
children to herself and Lena. Large tears filled her eyes and she took out her big white hanky and blew her nose loudly.

Eily looked over at her. ‘Auntie Nano, don’t tell me you’re crying with happiness? Aren’t you the silly one!’ Eily put her arms around the old lady, sensing her sadness. ‘Don’t fret. Powers’ cottage may be a bit small, but there’ll be space for you. You don’t think I’d run off and leave you on your own? Nano, there’s a little room that used to be John’s sister’s – it’ll be yours and Peggy’ll have the settle bed in the kitchen.’

Peggy, who had been dreaming, suddenly snapped out of it. A settle bed up at Powers’ farm, miles from the town and friends! No chance of a job, only helping Eily with the house! Peggy just managed to hold her tongue.

Peggy stood out in the yard. She dragged the soaking wet clothes from the bucket and started to stretch them across the rope that was strung across the cobbled yard.

Michael came out to join her.