on but her ma doesn’t see. It’s dark outside except that the snow makes things show up suddenly. Trees and walls and other things. Meg runs to catch up. She does it in little steps like Will has showed her because it’s slippy on the snow, but she falls down once and gets her hands wet
.
‘
Wait. I’m coming too
.’
Left and right, left and right they look. They go up the lane and over the road towards the school. They go all the way to the bridge. They go up to the church gate and round the churchyard walls
.
‘
Dark as sin,’ her ma says
.
‘
Will!’ Meg calls. ‘Will!’ and the snow swallows up the sounds. Meg calls out ‘Pa!’ too. Her ma doesn’t call
.
Nobody answers; there’s only an animal with yellow eyes that runs away in the ditch. Meg’s feet hurt in her boots and her toes are sticking together
.
‘
Can we go home?’ she says. ‘I’m cold,’ and she takes her ma’s hand. ‘See?’ But she can’t make her ma’s fingers bend around hers
.
‘
You’re not holding,’ she says and her ma looks down at her all of a sudden, and then they go back
.
Meg looked at the ship and, as if on cue, it lit up like Christmas, every light on deck blazing down on the water. It had tipped so far now, it looked like a shining iceberg, throwing a pool of light across the sea. It was terrible and beautiful. And there were all the other lifeboats, each crammed with heads. Surely Jim is in one of them, she thought, and though she had no faith in the prayer, she prayed to God to keep him safe.
Only a single boat remained close to the ship. Meg could almost see the faces at the nearer end. There were people on the oars and yet it wasn’t moving. She saw one man push another off an oar and take over; she saw another stop and throw up his arms and cover his head. The ship would sink very soon now and if nothing happened, then all those people would be sucked down with it.
She watched the figures abandon the oars and several people jump over the side and begin swimming. Two figures started fighting. Then she heard a voice she knew, small inside the wind, but still she could hear that it was angry, and she saw that the Richardsons were in the middle of that boat.
Mrs Richardson was standing still, no lifejacket, her arms by her sides, and Mr Richardson was yelling. He grabbed at her and tried to pull her to the edge, but she fought him and screamed.
‘Jump, Margery,’ Meg whispered. ‘You can swim.’
But Mrs Richardson went on standing and screaming, and Mr Richardson went on shouting.
‘Pull her into the sea,’ Meg yelled. ‘Just pull her.’
The ship had seemed to pause in its sinking, as if it were gathering itself up for the final push, and now a sound came from it that was like a vast sigh.
It was a terrible sight. They jumped and scrambled and tumbled into the sea, and some came up and swam and some never did; and some got away and most didn’t.
Finally Mr Richardson let go of his wife and kissed her on the forehead. He climbed up on a bench, coattails flapping, and dived. Mrs Richardson still stood, looking towards the ship, one hand on a useless oar for balance.
Mrs Richardson’s lifeboat was nearly touching it when at last the ship lifted its bright bow to the dark sky, and as if it were the easiest thing in the world, the ship, and the boat, and the single woman standing, slid beneath the sea.
The ship lights shone beneath the water for a while, then everything went black. And monstrous waves rolled out from where the ship had been, tossing the lifeboat so hard, Meg feared it would capsize. Voices still cried out for help. She couldn’t tell where they were. Some got to Meg’s lifeboat and were pulled in, but it wasn’t long before the cries stopped. Debris bumped the boat for a while – deckchairs and timber. Once Meg saw a body bang against the side. Then the sea was empty again. She listened, but there was nothing to see, and nothing to hear except the waves and the
.
‘
Wait. I’m coming too
.’
Left and right, left and right they look. They go up the lane and over the road towards the school. They go all the way to the bridge. They go up to the church gate and round the churchyard walls
.
‘
Dark as sin,’ her ma says
.
‘
Will!’ Meg calls. ‘Will!’ and the snow swallows up the sounds. Meg calls out ‘Pa!’ too. Her ma doesn’t call
.
Nobody answers; there’s only an animal with yellow eyes that runs away in the ditch. Meg’s feet hurt in her boots and her toes are sticking together
.
‘
Can we go home?’ she says. ‘I’m cold,’ and she takes her ma’s hand. ‘See?’ But she can’t make her ma’s fingers bend around hers
.
‘
You’re not holding,’ she says and her ma looks down at her all of a sudden, and then they go back
.
Meg looked at the ship and, as if on cue, it lit up like Christmas, every light on deck blazing down on the water. It had tipped so far now, it looked like a shining iceberg, throwing a pool of light across the sea. It was terrible and beautiful. And there were all the other lifeboats, each crammed with heads. Surely Jim is in one of them, she thought, and though she had no faith in the prayer, she prayed to God to keep him safe.
Only a single boat remained close to the ship. Meg could almost see the faces at the nearer end. There were people on the oars and yet it wasn’t moving. She saw one man push another off an oar and take over; she saw another stop and throw up his arms and cover his head. The ship would sink very soon now and if nothing happened, then all those people would be sucked down with it.
She watched the figures abandon the oars and several people jump over the side and begin swimming. Two figures started fighting. Then she heard a voice she knew, small inside the wind, but still she could hear that it was angry, and she saw that the Richardsons were in the middle of that boat.
Mrs Richardson was standing still, no lifejacket, her arms by her sides, and Mr Richardson was yelling. He grabbed at her and tried to pull her to the edge, but she fought him and screamed.
‘Jump, Margery,’ Meg whispered. ‘You can swim.’
But Mrs Richardson went on standing and screaming, and Mr Richardson went on shouting.
‘Pull her into the sea,’ Meg yelled. ‘Just pull her.’
The ship had seemed to pause in its sinking, as if it were gathering itself up for the final push, and now a sound came from it that was like a vast sigh.
It was a terrible sight. They jumped and scrambled and tumbled into the sea, and some came up and swam and some never did; and some got away and most didn’t.
Finally Mr Richardson let go of his wife and kissed her on the forehead. He climbed up on a bench, coattails flapping, and dived. Mrs Richardson still stood, looking towards the ship, one hand on a useless oar for balance.
Mrs Richardson’s lifeboat was nearly touching it when at last the ship lifted its bright bow to the dark sky, and as if it were the easiest thing in the world, the ship, and the boat, and the single woman standing, slid beneath the sea.
The ship lights shone beneath the water for a while, then everything went black. And monstrous waves rolled out from where the ship had been, tossing the lifeboat so hard, Meg feared it would capsize. Voices still cried out for help. She couldn’t tell where they were. Some got to Meg’s lifeboat and were pulled in, but it wasn’t long before the cries stopped. Debris bumped the boat for a while – deckchairs and timber. Once Meg saw a body bang against the side. Then the sea was empty again. She listened, but there was nothing to see, and nothing to hear except the waves and the
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