The Tinker's Daughter by Wendy Lawton

Author:Wendy Lawton [Lawton, Wendy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-57567-705-7
Publisher: Moody Publishers
Published: 2002-07-17T16:00:00+00:00

Gypsies, Beggars, and Tinkers

Stop it, Gadjo!” Sofia screamed, moving in front of Mary.

“Stop right now. Why do you shoot gravel at Mary Bunyan?”

“Are you talking to me, Gypsy scum?”

Mary was surprised by the transformation of her new friend as she stood, rigid with anger, between Mary and the voice that belonged to Gifre.

“Answer me, Gadjo-boy!”

Mary could hear a crowd begin to gather. “Sofia,” she whispered, “leave him alone. He is dangerous.” She didn’t think Sofia heard her.

“Does it make you feel powerful, this tormenting of someone who doesn’t fight back?” Sofia did not back down. “What has Mary ever done to harm you?”

Mary knew better than to goad Gifre. He was mean spirited in the best of times. What would he do now? She didn’t have long to wonder.

“You keep out of it, Gypsy spawn!” Gifre spat the words into the air with as much force as the gravel he had earlier fired at Mary. “I’ll not have the likes of you talking to me.”

“I’ll do more than talk if you torment Mary.” Sofia was screaming as loudly as Gifre.

“Sofia, no!” Mary wished she could get them to stop. “Leave him be.”

“That’s right, Mary,” Gifre yelled, “call your snarling dog off me.”

“You leave Mary out of this!” Sofia yelled right back at him.

“You and Mary make a perfect pair—tinkers’ daughters, the both of you,” Gifre sneered. “Come to the fair to beg pennies? Shame, shame to you, Mary Bunyan! At least you picked another beggar to teach you how.”

“Gifre, stop!” Mary covered her ears. She knew a crowd had gathered, and she was humiliated to be the center of such a scene. Could Jake be part of this crowd? No. Her brother would not stand idle while Gifre tormented them. Would he?

“What would your jailbird father think, Mary Bunyan, if he knew you were running with Christ-killers?” Gifre’s voice took on a taunting tone. “Christ-killers, Christ-killers, begging, thieving Christ-killers.” The singsong words faded as he ran away.

Mary heard the crowd slowly move off. She leaned forward to place her hands on Sofia’s shoulders and felt a shudder go through the girl. “Sofia? Are you all right?”

Sofia didn’t answer.

“Don’t feel bad. He always says evil things. I don’t know why he does this, but everyone knows they are not true,” Mary reassured her friend.

Sofia seemed shaken by the things Gifre said. Mary felt the tenseness of her friend’s shoulders. Why was Sofia so quiet? This silence was more menacing than her earlier anger.

Finally, Sofia exhaled a sigh that seemed to come from deep within. “What if the words of that gadjo are true, Mary?”

“What do you mean?”

“Not the beggar part or the charge of thievery. Long have we Rom learned to ignore those accusations.” Sofia didn’t seem bothered in the least by these. “And the only reason people look down on tinkers is because Roma have long practiced the profession. Tinkers, like your father, only share the scorn aimed at our people.”

Mary didn’t understand. “If you don’t mind the things he

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.