Chapter 10 - Bathsheba

Bathsheba sat on the steps smoking a long meershum pipe, watching Jack and Delphine eat. As Jack put down his bowl, Bathsheba called out a girl’s name.
“Marie!”
A young girl of about fourteen appeared from inside one of the other vans.
“Come and fetch this dirty dish.”
The girl scampered down the steps and ran barefoot across to where they were sitting.
Marie picked up the bowl looking shyly at Jack through her long black hair. She was wearing a black skirt with red stitching around the hem and a red underskirt, with a torn lace edge. It looked as if the underskirt had done service for another long before it had found it’s way to her.
“There’ll be another in a while, make sure you come back and get that without me having to ask again.”
Bathsheba got up stiffly from the steps and came towards Jack.
“My legs ain’t what they used to be. I used to earn my money from dancing, a long time ago. But no-one would pay to see these ankles now.” She winked at Jack.
“Now let’s see who we have ‘ere. The girl I knows, but you’re new to me. I saw you eatin with yer left hand. Is that how you hold’s your sword too?”
Jack nodded. “Yes, I do.”
“Thought so. Give me your right hand.”
Jack held out his hand as if he were to shake hers.
“Palm up.”
Jack turned his hand and she took it and examined it closely. Holding the back she firmly rubbed his palm with her thumb as if she was ironing out the winkles. She turned his hand to the left and looked at the markings around the base of his little finger, then his palm to the right and inspected the lines between his thumb and forefinger. Putting the palm flat again, she traced the lines on his hand with her dirty yellow thumbnail. She sucked thoughtfully on her pipe, then dropped his hand and nodded to herself. She shuffled back to her step and sat down.
“So .”
“So?” asked Jack.
His hand itched a little where she had scratched her nail along the lines.
“What happened to your parents?”
Jack was too taken aback to answer.
“How did they die?” she asked.
“They, um, they drowned. At sea. A long time ago. They were on the Valiant.”
“Ah.” Bathsheba nodded. “I remember that day. Terrible tragedy. But you weren’t there?”
“No. I was lucky. Everyone tells me I must have been born under a lucky star. My mother decided not to take me that day. Others weren’t so lucky, it saved my life.”
“Hmm, I didn’t see no lucky stars. From what I saw, lady luck is not always going to be on your side. Beware of thinking you are invincible. You really aren’t.”
She looked intently at Jack, he looked down at the ground uncomfortably.
“And then, after they died?”
“Then another family looked after me. Two very kind people.”
She nodded and stroked her chin. Again Delphine wondered if she noticed the stray hairs.
“I saw a tall man, dark with a beard. He’s not your father, but he is your father. Does that make sense?”
“Yes, yes it does.”
“I saw a journey. Quite soon, you will travel far, far away. It seems to be linked to this man in some way. And you will find love there and a home.”
Delphine put down her bowl. She noticed that Marie did not come running across to fetch it. The girl was going to get in trouble and so she turned round to see if she could signal to her to come over, but Marie was nowhere to be seen.
“Marie! You lazy little wretch. Get ere now!”
Once more the girl came running barefoot across the grass.
“What did I tell you about not making me ask you to come back.”
“Sorry Madame. I was feeding the baby. She’s a hungry thing.”
“Well take that dish and get back to it.” Said the older woman, mollified by the excuse.
Delphine smiled at the girl as she took her bowl.
“Merci.”
The girl was checked by the sight of Delphines clothes and stared at her.
“Get going, don’t keep the baby waiting.” said Bathsheba.
As soon as Marie was gone, Bathsheba said, “So, now it’s time to tell me why you are here and why you are really going to the Half Moon.”
“My father knows the people at the Half Moon. He lent his horse to someone and they left the horse there. I really am going to fetch his horse back.”
“With a girl in disguise? If you were really sent there, wouldn’t you know the way or have a map? You don’t know where it is. So I’m deducing it wasn’t planned that you’d go there.”
Jack looked at Delphine. She shrugged her shoulders and then gave a slight nod of the head. Jack took it as a signal to go ahead.
“ We were out last night and there was an accident. Someone got shot. It wasn’t our fault, but we didn’t want to get caught. So we plan to go to the Half Moon and wait until it’s safe to go home.”
“This someone who go shot. Who was he?”
“No-one important. No-one you’d know.”
“I see. And where was this?”
“Warblington shore.”
“Last night.”
“Yes.”
“And why the Half Moon?”
“It’s true my father really has had his horse left there, he does know them.”
“What’s his name?”
“Who?”
“Don’t play games. Your father.”
“Robert. Robert Goody.”
“Was he down on the shore with you?”
“Yes. Yes he was.”
“Smugglers you’ll be then. Am I right?”
Jack hesitated for a moment and then nodded.
“Well that’s right handy. I’m always in need of a little something. If I tell you the way to the Half Moon, what have you got for me? Some lace, some tea, some rum?”
“We have nothing, except what we stand up in.”
“Ah, but you’ve got two horses. And when you get there you’ll have three. That could be, let’s say, inconvenient.”
“But we need two horses to get there.”
“One would be enough. It’s not so far, you could walk it in a day.”
“But a horse is worth a lot of money.”
“What you have to think about is, how much is it really worth to you right now? It would be such a shame if you two got caught and her pretty little neck ended up on the end of a gibbet, now wouldn’t it?”
Reluctantly Jack agreed to let her have a horse. Delphine suggested it should be Davy’s horse and Jack realised that made most sense. The horse would connect them directly to Davy's murder. Delphine was more cunning than him. Bathsheba drew them a simple map, showing the way from the forest, through the hills to Sheet. She said there was an ancient track which ran along the top of the hills to the north and would sweep down past the manor house at Buriton and then on to the heath at Petersfield. If they skirted the lake, they would miss the town and Sheet was the next village on the London road. She insisted that Sampson take them through the forest to the open hills and the beginning of the path. The chances of them losing themselves, in the tangle of briars, beeches and oaks, was great enough that this made sense.
Soon they were on their way, Delphine on the pony, Jack and Sampson walking in front. Three dogs followed them to the edge of the camp. Delphine noticed Marie was watching them from her van, rocking her baby gently in her arms. Delphine raised her hand to wave goodbye but the girl quickly disappeared behind the curtained entrance.
Once Sampson had left them they climbed the steep hillside, gorse bushes covered the lower slopes, but as they got higher the scrubland got thinner until there was nothing but grass and sky. From the top of the hill they could see for miles. The old woman had told them to keep on the track heading north. They passed a windmill standing proudly on the top of the hill. Far below them in the valley lay a village, Jack guessed this must be Buriton. Halfway down the hill they stopped and sheltered under an ancient oak tree, it’s trunk surrounded by fallen acorns and leaves. The gypsy had given them some hard bread and cheese and a flask of water. She’d said they should fill it with fresh water from the stream at Buriton, whose crystal clear waters ran straight off the chalk downs above. At last feeling rested they were off again on the last leg of their journey. The light was beginning to fade as they reached the heath that marked the edge of Petersfield. Since parting from Sampson they had not seen a soul all day. Darkness fell. The way from Petersfield Heath to Sheet, had been quite flat, but the last mile was surprisingly steep. They slowly climbed the hill, tired and longing to come to the end of their journey . The new moon hung low in the sky, barely lighting their way, and finally they saw the twinkling lights of the village and knew they had arrived. The only question was, whether they would be welcome.