Read Online The Black Mountains by Janet Tanner - Free Book Online

‘heads’ could keep her in bed for a day and sometimes more, exchanged glances of suppressed delight, and Charlotte gave them a warning glance.
    â€œI’m sorry to hear that, Charlie,” she said. “ But what can we do for you?”
    Charlie carefully folded his handkerchief and replaced it in his pocket, but before he could reply, Amy asked, “How did the pig get out, Mr Durrant?”
    The innocent question brought Charlie to life like a dummy in a pier peep-show when the penny dropped. His head came up with a jerk, a muscle in his left eyelid twitched violently, and he whirled around to point an accusing finger at Ted.
    â€œYou’d better ask your brother that question!” he cried, his voice trembling and high with indignation.
    They all stared blankly, but Charlotte was the first to recover her wits.
    â€œWhat do you mean by that?” she demanded.
    Intoxicated by his own daring, Charlie rushed on.
    â€œYou know as well as I do that your Ted’s a proper varmint. He’s got a name round here that I should think you’re ashamed of.”
    â€œJust a minute!” James began warningly, but Charlie, in full spate for the first time in twenty years, was not to be interrupted.
    â€œHe’s a bad boy,” he went on. “He’s plagued the life out of Martha, and led others to do the same, and if she wasn’t such a good woman, you’d have heard about it before now. But this time, he’s gone too far. Letting out our pig is beyond a joke, and …”
    â€œI never!” Ted cried indignantly. “I never did!”
    Charlotte silenced him with a look.
    â€œWhat proof have you got of this, Charlie?”
    â€œMartha saw them boys down the garden last night when it was getting dusk. Now I know for a fact that I put the catch on the pigsty after I went in to see to the porker. This morning, it were off, and you don’t need to be no politician to know how it got undone. As Martha always says when they’ve been aplaguin’ her, boys will be boys. But when it comes to letting out folks’ pigs and the like, that’s when it’s time something were done, I reckon.”
    â€œJust a minute, Charlie,” James was on his feet now, his face like thunder. “ What have you got to say to this, Ted? Is there any truth in what Mr Durrant says?”
    â€œNo, Dad, there’s not!” Ted asserted, and James turned back to Charlie.
    â€œYou’d better go on home, then, Charlie. And I’m warning you, there’ll be trouble if you go saying things like that with no proof.”
    â€œI don’t need no proof! I knows what I knows!” Charlie began, and James wagged a threatening finger at him.
    â€œI mean it, Charlie. I won’t have it, not in my own home.”
    His temper, slow to rise, was up now, and Charlotte intervened hastily.
    â€œOff you go, Charlie, I’ll get to the bottom of this. And I promise if Ted or any of the others are to blame, we’ll see your parsnips are replaced out of our garden. I can’t say fairer than that. Go on now!” She shooed him to the door, and behind her the stunned silence fragmented as the boys all began talking at once, and Amy burst into noisy tears. James scraped aside his chair to follow Charlie out, but Charlotte laid a restraining hand on his arm.
    â€œNo, James,” she warned. “We don’t want brawling on a Sunday.”
    â€œBut I didn’t do it, Mam, honest I didn’t!” Ted protested.
    â€œDidn’t you?” Charlotte was annoyed at the sight of the bacon congealing on the plates, and took out her annoyance on Ted. “ I’m fed up to the teeth with getting complaints about you, my lad.”
    â€œYou were up early this morning, Ted. I saw you looking out of the window ages ago,” Amy put in. Then her lip wobbled and her eyes filled with tears. “ Oh, Mam, what will happen? Will they put Ted in