The Cotton Spinner by Libby Ashworth

Author:Libby Ashworth [Ashworth, Libby]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781473570696
Publisher: Random House

Chapter Ten

‘Mary’s goin’ to watch Mr Green’s balloon ascent on Sunday afternoon. She’s asked me to go with her,’ said Hannah as they ate their tea.

‘Mary? From next door?’ asked Jennet. ‘When did she mention that?’ She wondered how much Hannah knew about the row with the neighbours. She’d been in the carding room when it happened, so hadn’t witnessed the exchanges and Jennet hadn’t burdened her with it at dinner time. It was her own problem and it was up to her to deal with it.

‘This afternoon. She were tellin’ me about it at work. Why?’

‘It’s just that there were a bit o’ trouble earlier on when Nan found out that Hargreaves had given me work on the looms.’

‘I thought tha looked a bit out o’ sorts. What happened?’ she asked.

Jennet gave her a brief explanation, leaving out the threats that had been made by Joe. She’d calmed down a little since and thought that it was probably all talk in the heat of the moment and that he didn’t mean her any real harm. But she was unsure that he would be keen on a friendship developing between Hannah and his daughter.

‘Mary says he’s a bully at home as well,’ Hannah told her, leaving Jennet to wonder when all these exchanges took place. She could barely hear herself think at the mill, never mind carry on a lengthy conversation. ‘She doesn’t like him.’

‘He’s still her father and she has to do as he says,’ Jennet reminded her, ‘so don’t be too upset if tha finds she’s not as friendly in the future.’

‘He can’t stop us going to this balloon ascent together.’

Jennet didn’t reply. She knew that her sister could be stubborn. Then she asked: ‘What about going home?’

‘There’s no point me coming to live in town if I’ve to trail home every Sunday afternoon,’ complained Hannah. ‘Tha can go to see Peggy. Tha doesn’t need me.’

‘They’ll be sorry not to see thee.’

‘Well, they saw plenty of me when I were livin’ there. And it’s only once.’

Jennet continued to eat. It wasn’t for her to say what Hannah could and couldn’t do. Hannah was her younger sister, but she wasn’t really her responsibility. If she wanted to go to this balloon ascent with Mary, it wasn’t for her to forbid it. She just hoped that it wouldn’t make matters worse.

The next morning Jennet lingered until she heard the neighbours’ door slam shut, and it was only when she was sure that Joe and Mary were well ahead of them that she called to Hannah to come on. She was locking the door behind them when she heard her sister calling to Mary to wait for her. Mary stopped and looked round, but her father took hold of her arm and pulled her through the mill gate, muttering. Hannah rushed after them and Jennet would have liked to follow her up the stairs and warn her to be careful, but as soon as she walked into the mill, Hargreaves appeared.

‘Good morning, Jennet!’ he greeted her.

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