Gypsy - Lesley Pearse [99]
Beth did play her fiddle after he’d gone. Her fingers were stiff and bruised, in fact her whole body ached and it took effort just to hold the instrument, but playing it was her tried and tested way of calming herself. She didn’t attempt the gay-spirited jigs she’d played in Healey’s, but some of the plaintive, slower melodies she had learned as a child from her grandfather. He had once said they brought back the beauty of Ireland for him: he could see Galway Bay in the mist, the purple-topped mountains and the wild flowers on the bogs in spring. For Beth they were soothing sound pictures, ones of love and security, for she could see the parlour in Church Street, her parents sitting close together on the couch, her grandfather leaning back in his chair, eyes closed and a smile on his face.
On 28 December Beth and Theo caught the train to Philadelphia. Theo had informed Miss Marchment that he was leaving just the previous night, and Beth had heard her voice raised in anger.
Theo didn’t divulge to Beth what had been said. His only comment was that he’d never told Miss Marchment that he was going to stay permanently.
‘I do so hate it when people try to pin me down as if I’m their property,’ he added, as if by way of a warning to Beth.
∗
It was dark when they arrived in Philadelphia, and a cab took them a short distance from the railway station to a street of old Federal-style houses. The door was opened by a short, squat black woman wearing a white apron and a spotted turban. ‘Mr Cadogan!’ she said with a smile as wide as a slice of watermelon. ‘It sure is good to see you again.’
‘It’s good to see you again too, Pearl,’ he said, patting her cheek with obvious affection. ‘This is Miss Bolton, come to join her brother.’
Pearl looked appraisingly at Beth, perhaps surprised that she looked so different to Sam. ‘You are very welcome, Miss Bolton, but I’m afraid Sam and Jack have gone out on some business. They’ll be back later, though, so I’ll get you some supper and then show you your room.’
Beth was disappointed that Sam and Jack weren’t there to meet her, but it was a relief to find herself in an elegant, comfortable and warm house. The doors and banisters were shiny with varnish, there was thick carpet on the stairs, and large, gleaming mirrors framed in gold reflected the light from the gas mantles.
As Pearl led them to the kitchen at the back of the house, Beth caught a glimpse of a sumptuous parlour furnished in red and gold with a blazing fire.
‘A bit different from Miss Marchment’s, eh?’ Theo said with a smile.
Beth had heard laughter coming from the rooms upstairs, but as neither Theo nor Pearl, who she assumed was the housekeeper, volunteered any information about the rest of the household, Beth ate the supper of soup, bread and cheese and just listened as Theo chatted to Pearl.
It was clear he’d charmed her as he had Miss Marchment, for the woman hung on his every word, fussing around him and showing her delight that he was to stay for a while.
‘I’ve got some business to attend to,’ he said to Beth as he finished his supper. ‘But Pearl will take care of you until Sam and Jack return. I shall see you in the morning.’
‘You look very tired,’ Pearl said solicitously after Theo had gone. ‘I’ll take you to your room now and let you settle in.’
Pearl led the way down to the basement holding an oil lamp and Beth followed carrying her valise. It felt cold down there after the warmth of the kitchen and Pearl apologized for it, saying she’d put a hot brick in Beth’s bed.
‘Here we are,’ she said, opening a door in a long passageway with a rough stone floor. ‘That’s the laundry room,’ she went on, indicating a door to the left, and then, pointing to the right, explained that was Sam and Jack’s room.
Beth’s room was small, around nine feet by seven feet, with a barred window. ‘It sure is poky but it’s real quiet,’ Pearl said. ‘Sam and Jack won’t be back till after midnight, so