Alice, meanwhile, was being led back along the quay by Will and Ted but she could barely put one foot in front of the other. She felt as if she was caught in the grip of a nightmare as she tried to imagine her life without her beloved husband and sons. They had never been rich in the material sense but she had always counted herself lucky that she and Eli had shared the sort of love that comes only once in a lifetime. And now he and her beautiful boys were gone forever and in that moment the pain was so severe that she could have happily flung herself into the sea to join them, for she didn’t want to live without them.
*
Things didn’t improve for Barnaby when he arrived home to find his wife in a full-blown temper. ‘Where have you been?’ Louisa screeched when he entered her room looking weary and upset.
‘Something dreadful has happened,’ he said quietly. ‘The Neptunehas gone down at sea and only a handful of the crew have survived.’
‘So?’ she answered shrilly. ‘That was hardly an excuse to go running off like that leaving me here to entertain Mamma and Papa when they’ve come all this way to see us. It’s not your fault if the ship has sunk, is it?’
Barnaby stared at her for a moment as if he was seeing her for the very first time, and he didn’t like what he saw. ‘Didn’t you hear what I said? There are dozens of men dead! What about their families? How are they to live with the main breadwinner gone? And many of them have young children.’
She shrugged her thin shoulders. ‘That’s hardlyyourconcern,’ she told him with a toss of her head. ‘And since when have you worried about your workers? They were well paid for what they did and they knew the chances they were taking.’
‘Now, Louisa sweetheart. Don’t go working yourself up into a tizzy,’ Mrs Ruffin, who had been watching the scene with a worried frown, urged.
‘Oh, shut up and leave me alone, the pair of you!’ Louisa turned her back on them and with a sigh Barnaby left the room.
As he descended the staircase, he saw his father-in-law standing in the hall, a glass of brandy in his hand, staring up towards him with his eyebrows raised. ‘Trouble?’ he asked.
Barnaby sighed to himself, realising he would now have to tell his father-in-law about the loss of the whaling ship. After all, although it was Barnaby who had built the businesses up to be thriving concerns, his father-in-law was still the major shareholder. Once or twice Barnaby had offered to buy him out but Robert had scoffed at the idea.
‘No point, old chap,’ he would tell him jovially. ‘After all, everything’s going to go to your children one day, isn’t it? So we may as well leave things as they are.’ And with that Barnaby had to be content, although he felt it was unfair.
‘We’ve lostThe Neptuneand most of the men on board. The captain ofThe Mermaidsuspects she hit an iceberg that was floating beneath the surface. Before she sank, they sent up a flare but by the timeThe Mermaidgot to her it was too late.’
Robert stroked his chin. ‘Damn bad luck,’ he remarked with a shake of his head. ‘The Neptunewas a fine ship.’
Barnaby stared at him as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing, before saying shortly, ‘Yes, it is. Especially for all the men who lost their lives, and for their families.’
Just like his daughter, Robert seemed less concerned about them than the loss of the ship.
‘Aw well, there’s nothing can be done for them now, is there?’
‘Not for the men,’ Barnaby agreed hotly. ‘But we could help their families financially. Most of the men had young children.’
Robert shrugged as he swirled the brandy in his glass before taking another swallow. ‘We’ll have to have a think about it,’ he remarked and walked back into the drawing room as calm as you like.
Barnaby clenched his fists and stormed off to his study, wondering exactly what sort of cold-hearted family he had married in to.
*
Down in Argument’s Yard Alice sat staring numbly into the fire as her sons swung the sooty-bottomed kettle over the fire to boil for some tea. As yet their mother hadn’t shed so much as a single tear but they weren’t surprised. They could see she was in deep shock and guessed that the tears would come later. They just wished Amber was there to comfort her.
‘When will Amber be home, Mam?’ William asked.
‘What?’ She stared at them blankly for a moment before answering, ‘Oh, not for another eight or nine days. As I told you, she’s been working as a nanny for the last couple of months or so.’
‘Aye, but where?’
‘London.’
They both looked shocked. They had assumed that her new position was local and had wondered why their sister hadn’t at least visited them over Christmas, but they hadn’t liked to question their mother when she was so worried about their father and brothers. ‘And how did she come to hear about a job like that?’
‘Barnaby Greenwood told her about it. She’s gone wi’ the Temples from up on the headland.’
‘An’ why would he think of offerin’ the job to our Amber?’ It was Edward who spoke now. ‘She is goin’ up in the world, ain’t she?’
‘It’s only a temporary position,’ Alice told him so quietly that he had to strain to hear her. ‘She’ll be back soon as New Year is over.’
