The Artist's Secret by Sonya Heaney

Author:Sonya Heaney
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Escape Publishing
Published: 2020-08-04T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

Something changed as Elizabeth shared her story yet again. Now she’d begun telling it to others she supposed she might as well talk about Edward another time. Secrets caused too much tension, too much hurt.

However it wasn’t she who changed as the words came out another time. It was Peter.

She’d said something wrong. Very wrong. Even as she prattled on against his silence, Elizabeth knew she’d taken the conversation somewhere that stirred tension in him—anger. Even if he’d not said a thing, the atmosphere had changed.

‘From what I understand it was quite the adventure to go to Africa. A person is willing to overlook a lot of discomfort on the journey across if they expect excitement at the end of it, I think.’

What had seemed like such a fine afternoon moments earlier now felt dark and shadowed. Peter smiled slightly; it wasn’t his real smile.

Another ant made an attempt to scale Elizabeth’s foot. She watched it a little desperately, too tense suddenly to move and brush it away.

Scrambling for a distraction from the dark mood that had so clearly struck him, she did what any floundering person would do then, and gave the sky her attention. Those clouds were moving across the mountains, ominously grey.

‘It’s such a nice day, but too warm. The last picnic I—we—Alice and Miss Wright and I attempted was interrupted. We went out to that place west, near the estuary. There’s an old graveyard there. I’m not sure if you know it. The McCoys have begun to clear their land out that way.’

The story went on and on. She was blabbering again, but she’d seen the unexpected whiteness of the knuckles of his free hand.

‘Clearing their land,’ he repeated when she ran out of words.

A sensible person would have reacted to that tone by shutting up, but Elizabeth was desperate.

‘Yes. Well, it’s her father’s land, but he’s an invalid now and doesn’t want it. It’s not the best soil out that way, and there’s nobody else around laying claim to it.’

Again, that tight little smile of his was all wrong.

He released her hand and drew back so far he nearly sat in the dirt. Elizabeth nearly warned him that he’d have ants biting his bum, but it registered then that he was angry. He was really, truly angry.

‘What’s the matter?’

‘Your Edward went to the Sudan.’ He repeated her earlier words. ‘To fight for the Empire’s cause.’

‘Edward? Yes, he did, but …’ The man was jumping about everywhere; the swift change left her dizzy.

Peter’s knuckles whitened again.

‘And he was part of the New South Wales Contingent you mentioned? Off to do their part for Britain?’

‘Yes,’ she said finally, voice small, not sure why it felt like an admission of guilt.

He pressed his lips together and watched the horizon for long, terrible seconds as the cicadas carried on their song. When he spoke again he’d visibly regained his control.

‘Your family came here some twenty years ago, didn’t they?’

‘Yes.’

‘And the town was founded some thirty years earlier?’

‘Yes. This year will be our golden jubilee.

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