Beyond the Sunset by Anna Jacobs

Author:Anna Jacobs [Jacobs, Anna]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Australia, Fiction, Sagas, Historical, English, Sisters, Lancashire (England)
ISBN: 9780340954089
Publisher: Hodder
Published: 2010-01-01T22:00:00+00:00

13

The second day of travel was miserable. They were soon soaked to the skin, in spite of the umbrella and sacks. Only Leo stayed cheerful, not seeming bothered by the rain, more concerned with how it was affecting the horses.

As the afternoon wore on, Bert started looking round for somewhere to stay. Just when it began to seem as if they’d have to camp again, he pointed to a track to one side. ‘That looks well used. I can’t see any buildings from here, but there may be a farm at the other end. It’ll be quicker if I ride along and find out before we turn off the road. Leo, lend me that nag of yours and come and hold the reins.’

It seemed a long time till he came back. Pandora couldn’t help shivering and in the end Zachary put one arm round her shoulders and held her close while she kept the umbrella over them.

‘Sorry.’

‘It’s not your fault, it’s mine. We should have stopped and found shelter earlier. But I’d rather get to Albany early and be sure of our passage.’

She managed a shaky laugh. ‘I’m beginning to think this Albany place doesn’t exist.’

There was the sound of horses’ hooves clopping wetly nearby and Bert reappeared. ‘There is a farm, but the house is tiny, so though we’re welcome there, we’ll have to sleep on the verandas. There isn’t even room in their barn. Still, the verandas are sheltered from the rain and that’ll be much better than camping in the open, eh? It’s nearly dark, so we’d be foolish to push on. The owners have offered to make us some damper for tomorrow and give us something to eat tonight. They’ve got plenty of eggs.’

‘How much will it cost?’ Zachary asked, wondering if everyone in the countryside overcharged for things.

‘They’re not asking for payment but you ought to give them a few shillings anyway.’ He looked severely at Zachary. ‘This isn’t England. I’ve told you before that most people are happy to give shelter and food to travellers. It’s just that this family hasn’t got much money, from the looks of the place.’

‘How kind of them!’ Pandora exclaimed. She couldn’t stop shivering. Had she ever been so cold before? Her outer clothes were sodden and heavy.

The house was even smaller than the Southerhams’. As the couple had five children, there was certainly no way anyone else could sleep inside the one room. Fortunately, the place was much more soundly built than Westview, with a small veranda on either side, each of which had an end panel to protect it from the prevailing westerly winds and weather.

‘We sleep out here ourselves in summer and we always put travellers here in winter,’ the woman said cheerfully. ‘Hardly get any rain blowing into those verandas because of the way my man built the house.’

Pandora looked at the place where she was supposed to sleep, because the men had said they’d cram into the other veranda. She didn’t like the idea of sleeping at this side on her own, not at all.

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