Grace stepped in front of him. ‘Henry threatened to tell you about my background. I didn’t want you to know about it because I was ashamed.’
Talek had not expected this. ‘Go on,’ he said.
Grace stared at the floor. ‘Daniel Kellow is not my real father. My real father raped my mother. I am the result of that rape.’
The words came out in a steady flow. No hesitation, no pause, no sentence left to hang in the air between them. He wondered how many times she had rehearsed this moment. Had she expected him to answer by now? She lifted her gaze, appearing unsure.
‘When I discovered the truth of my birth, I was confused, angry . . . hurt. I couldn’t face the village. I couldn’t face anyone. So I fled.’ Her eyes searched his, looking for some reassurance. He wondered what she saw? ‘And that’s when you found me and offered me a place to stay and employment. It was my chance to start afresh and heal and I was grateful for that.’
‘Up to that day you always believed Daniel was your father?’
‘Yes. It broke my heart when I discovered he wasn’t.’ Grace took his hand in both of hers. ‘I didn’t want you or Amelia to know. I was too ashamed.’
Talek looked down at his hand in hers. ‘And Henry found out and threatened to tell?’
‘Yes.’
‘How?’
‘A man from Trehale found work here. He knew about my past and told him.’
‘Who?’ he asked, already knowing the answer.
‘It doesn’t matter now. I can’t hide my past forever. I hope you can understand.’
Talek lifted his gaze to look into her eyes. Her eyes were filled with hope that he might. Only he didn’t.
‘You must have thought very little of me. The truth is your explanation does not shock me. Petherbridge came to see me a few days ago. Henry had paid him to keep quiet, but when themoney ran out he approached me, hoping I would pay for his silence too.’
‘And did you?’
‘No, I didn’t. Men like that would keep coming back for more. His silence would never be guaranteed. Instead he felt my boot in his rear. I told him to leave and not to come back.’ He watched the hope in Grace’s face drain away as he withdrew his hand from hers. ‘It would not have mattered to me where you came from or how you began your life.’
Grace lifted her chin. ‘It is easy for you to say that now we are no longer engaged.’
‘And I would have told you the same if we were. It is not easy to enter society after being publicly humiliated at the altar, but my humiliation was not caused by any action of mine and I refused to let it stop me getting on with my life. Your humiliation is no different. It was our present and future that mattered to me, not some dark secret your parents never told you.’
He turned his attention to the pit. The rivulets of water raced in snake like paths down the surface of the crater, gathering the clay deposits towards the next step in the process. ‘My sister has also been ostracised by society through no fault of her own. So you see, Grace, I am the last person to judge you and probably the first to understand.’ He glanced at her. ‘Only you did not give me the chance to.’ He straightened his shoulders. ‘Go home, Grace. I’m a busy man. I have a business to salvage and a vulnerable sister to care for. Besides, this site is too dangerous and I think we have said all there is to say.’ When she did not reply or move, he looked at her. ‘Unless there is something else I should know?’
Grace opened her mouth, but then shut it again. Talek’s heart sank. He had been hoping for something more, something that would explain why she had chosen her own good nameover the damage inflicted on him and the risk of his workers employment.
‘Nothing?’ Her full lips thinned to a mutinous line. It was a sign. Their relationship was beyond repair. ‘Then it is time we said goodbye.’ He felt another tremor beneath his feet. From Grace’s expression, she felt it too. He searched for the wagons, but the track was silent. A slither of unease ran up his spine. Something did not seem right, just as Tommy had forewarned. ‘You better go.’
‘What was that tremor? Talek?’
Workers had paused to lift their heads and listen. Just as Tommy and Billy ran around the pit edge, a louder, lower rumble chased at their heels.
‘Captain! Did you feel it?’ shouted Tommy as he was approaching. ‘I think there might be a—’
‘Come away from the pit edge!’ shouted Talek. It was too late. The ground collapsed beneath their feet, taking all that had stood upon it with it. Tommy and Billy disappeared from view. Talek raced to the edge to see their tumbling bodies being carried into the pit on a tide of white soil.
A cry from a worker voiced Talek’s thoughts. ‘It’s a runner!’
The warning shout was passed from man to man as the workers in the pit scattered from its destructive path. Many men were able to scramble to safety, but the miners in its direct path were less fortunate as the treacherous, saturated ground underfoot hampered a speedy retreat. The landslide rolled over them, lifting some briefly, swallowing others completely, until it finally came to a strangely slow halt. And then it began, that brief moment in time that hangs between horror and its aftermath. Time stretched and seemed to last forever as the destruction on view wheedled into one’s thoughts and rendered one dumb. Even the birds and the breeze seemed to fall silent around them as Talek watched the last few stones tumble to a stop. Theremaining miners slowly approached the edge of the pit. It was seeing their shocked faces that spurred Talek into life.
‘Someone sound the alarm!’ he shouted as he led Grace away from the edge. ‘Go home where I know you’ll be safe.’ He looked about him at the gathering miners. ‘Wilkins, Bolitho, James, fetch ropes and shovels! How many have been buried? Five? No six. We need to dig them out.’
Rope and shovels were quickly brought. ‘I need volunteers,’ said Talek, handing out the ropes. ‘Take these to the top and tie one end to something sturdy. If you can’t find something, tie it to several men. Now, who will climb down with me?’ Several hands shot into the air amongst the gathering crowd. Talek pointed to the strongest of them. ‘You. Yes you. And you too.’ He shrugged off his coat and began to tie one of the ropes about his waist. ‘We must work in pairs. Who saw the men go under? Where were they?’
