Read Online Two Penn'orth of Sky by Katie Flynn - Free Book Online Page B

and she says dogs need exercising even when the snow’s a foot thick, or the rain’s belting on your head and flattening the flowers in the garden. She says we’ll have a dog when Daddy retires from sea and then they both laugh and Daddy says when I’m six . . .
    Thinking about a dog brought Diana’s mind full circle, so to speak. To the best of her knowledge, no one ever exercised Bones. Sometimes he accompanied Aunty Beryl when she went to the shops, sometimes he trailed in Charlie’s wake, or gambolled ahead, keeping an eye out for anything of interest. At other times, he disappeared on his own mysterious errands, but Diana was jolly sure that no member of the Fisher family ever tried to attach a lead to Bones’s collar – indeed, she realised, belatedly, that she had never seen a collar on the Fishers’ unkempt mongrel.
    She was still pondering over why her mammy should deny her a dog on account of having to takeit for walks when Bones took care of himself, when Lucy opened the back door. She emerged, somewhat timidly, bearing a tray upon which stood a mug of milk and a plate of sugar biscuits. She kept glancing over her shoulder, as though frightened that she was being followed, but set the tray down beside Diana, saying cheerfully: ‘There’s your elevenses, Miss Di.’ Usually, she chatted for a moment and then went back indoors, but now, with another almost conspiratorial glance around her, she sat down on the grass beside Diana. ‘There’s a gentleman – two gentlemen – in the front room, come to see your mammy,’ she said, lowering her voice until it was scarcely above a whisper. ‘Did you hear that noise? Like – like as if someone were hurt? I ran into the hallway and one of the fellers come out and telled me, ever so sharp like, to make a pot of strong tea and to tap on the door when it were ready. I just took it to ’em, and – and your mam’s sitting in a chair, all scrumpled up like, wi’ her face in her hands. I tried to go across to her but the fellers – gentlemen, I mean – pushed me out of the room and telled me to go back to me work. Oh, Miss Di, I’m that worried – I dunno what best to do.’
    Diana got to her feet and shook the daisies, rather regretfully, from her skirt and into Lucy’s. The maid usually knew exactly what to do in every situation. It was not like her to appeal to Diana and Mammy often remarked that they were lucky to have found a servant as sensible and practical as young Lucy. However, this was clearly an occasion when Diana would have to take matters into her own hands. ‘Look after my daisy chain, Lucy, while I go in and see what’s happened,’ Diana said firmly. ‘No one isn’t going to push me out of the room.’ She turnedserious eyes on the older girl. ‘Should I take the sticking plaster, do you think? If Mammy shut her fingers in the door . . .’
    Lucy gave a watery smile. ‘Yes, you do that,’ she said encouragingly. ‘You’re a good kid, Miss Di. I’ll wait here . . . no, I’ll come into the kitchen, then if you or your mam need me, you can either give a shout or tug the bell. Awright?’
    The two of them made their way back into the kitchen, Lucy with her apron full of daisies which she tipped carefully on to the draining board in the scullery. She reached down the First Aid box, which contained sticking plaster, bandages, lint and various other similar items, and handed it to Diana, who took it and trotted confidently across the hallway. She threw open the sitting room door and was halfway across the room when she saw her mother’s face. Emmy was white as a ghost, save for her eyes which were swollen and red. Clearly, she had been crying for some time, and Diana dumped the First Aid box in the arms of a tall man in uniform before rushing across and casting herself into her mother’s arms. She realised that whatever had happened could not be put right with lint or sticking plaster. All in a moment, she found that she was afraid,