Chapter Eighteen

Poppy wandered through the house flitting from one task to another, finishing none. Strolling into the drawing room she was struck by its emptiness, by the quiet of the whole house.

Well over a month had passed since Mai and Fong Hoy had gone back to Stafford, yet the house still felt depressingly morbid and she was aware of her mood deteriorating to match it. She’d had no idea how much Mai and Fong Hoy’s company had buffeted her from the effects of Prudence’s death. Or how much life Mai had brought to the household with her quiet good-naturedness and humour.

The twins were at Nelly O’Connor’s, helping Nelly look for stray eggs that her ever-escaping hens laid in any nook and cranny they found. Several times in the past David and Ruby had returned home reeking of rotten eggs after stumbling down an egg-filled hole in Nelly’s garden. But the motherly Irishwoman delighted in the twins’ company and the search for eggs was really an excuse for her to fill them with cakes and biscuits and lashings of warmhearted affection.

Cam was visiting the hospital, and Henry was nowhere to be seen. She’d hardly seen her brother at all over the past week, and he hadn’t been in the best of moods when he had bothered to put in an appearance. Poppy sensed that his ill-temper was due to Mai’s absence. She’d seen him looking at the girl with what had seemed a more than casual interest, and she’d noticed a disturbing closeness between them. He’d barely spoken a word to Poppy before going off with Donald MacKinnon, who was back in Charleston on business.

‘Ah, there you are, Poppy.’

She gave her brother a warm smile as he looked around the drawing-room door. ‘Henry! I’ve been longing for some company. The house is so empty these days. Stay with me and we’ll have some tea.’

Henry hesitated. ‘No tea for me, thank you,’ he said, sitting on the armchair opposite his sister.

‘We’ll have to set about finding you some employment in Charleston now that things are back to normal.’

‘Poppy, I’m not staying.’

‘You’re going out somewhere?’ Poppy sighed, thinking of the long, lonely afternoon stretching ahead of her.

‘No, I’m not staying here.’

You’re not going to be staying here with us? In the house?’

‘I’m leaving Charleston.’

Poppy gripped the arms of her chair, suddenly struck by a mix of homesickness, loneliness and despair. ‘But you know you’re more than welcome to stay with us as long as you like, even if you can’t find employment. There’s so much to be done about the house since we no longer have Mai. It’s so hard to find good, reliable servants …’ She faltered at Henry’s implacable expression.

‘You’ve made me welcome, both of you, and I’ve felt at home here, but I have to move on. There’s nothing to keep me here.’

‘Of course there is, Henry. Apart from the children and Cam, you are my only relative here, and very dear to me. I should hate you to leave,’ Poppy pleaded.

Deep down she had always known Henry would eventually move on, if not from Charleston, then certainly from the Ainsley household. It was only natural for a fit and able-bodied young man to thirst for adventure, particularly in a new and untried country. But she couldn’t bear the thought of him leaving so soon.

‘Have we upset you in some way? If so, please say, and we can set things right.’

‘It’s nothing to do with anything you’ve done or not done,’ Henry reassured her. ‘But I need to leave Charleston.’

‘It’s because of Mai, isn’t it?’ Poppy said.

A telltale flush spread across Henry’s face.

Good Lord, Poppy thought, I was right! She was stunned at the idea of her brother and Mai as a couple.

‘Henry, it simply couldn’t work. A marriage between you and Mai would have caused the pair of you great unhappiness.’ Sitting forward, she took Henry’s hands in her own. ‘Stay here with us. You’ll find work, and eventually I’m sure you’ll meet a nice woman.’

‘A nice European woman’s what you mean, isn’t it?’ Henry said bitterly.

Poppy bit her tongue at her slip. ‘Henry, I didn’t mean to insult Mai. I was fond of her. I’ve just this minute been thinking how empty and lonely the house seems without her and Fong Hoy. But you must see how a marriage with her would never work.’

Henry gave an ironic grunt. ‘You need not worry yourself. She didn’t want me. She’s going to marry a Chinaman: probably already wed him for all I know.’ His eyes darkened with hurt.

‘Oh, Henry, I’m so sorry, I truly am.’ And she was, but she also felt a stab of relief. ‘But if Mai’s already spoken for, there’s nothing to be gained by your leaving us. Given time, the hurt will pass.’

‘I know.’ Henry gently removed his hands from Poppy’s. ‘But I need to go. There’s a ship leaving for Hokitika within the hour and Donald’s sailing on it. He’s still eager for me to work in his store in Stafford.’

Poppy was dismayed. ‘You’re doing this to be nearer Mai!’

Henry made no attempt to deny her accusation.

‘Henry, Mai is to be married. She may already be so. You yourself told me this not two minutes ago. A clean break is the best course. Stay away from the girl. Seeing her again would only make it harder for you to bear.’

‘Poppy, I just want to make sure she’s well and happy. I swear I won’t bother her if she is.’

Less than convinced, Poppy surreptitiously crossed the first two fingers of both hands. ‘You must promise to come to us if ever you need help,’ she said.

 

Poppy drove Henry to the bay, stopping at Nelly’s to collect the children on the way. Afraid of giving in to her sadness by crying, she was grateful for the distraction of their chatter as they all said their goodbyes.

Donald was already sitting in the surfboat waiting to be taken aboard the Mizar when they reached Constant Bay. Poppy tried not to feel resentful as he waved to them, but failed miserably. If Henry hadn’t met that man, he wouldn’t now be about to leave her to sail off into heaven knows what danger, what with his affection for a foreign woman who was possibly already the wife of another man. And Lord only knew what sort of larrikins might inhabit the town of Stafford, where Donald MacKinnon had his store.

‘I hope Cam won’t be too put out at your lending me this,’ Henry said, holding up Cam’s leather valise as he stepped into the surfboat. ‘I’ll get it back to you one day, I promise.’

Too wretched to speak, Poppy could only nod. Though the colony had been her home for years now, Henry’s presence had made her realise that a part of her had always ached for her home in Devon.

She stood statue-like, not taking her eyes off the steamer for a moment as it cleared the bay, in case it should suddenly disappear in the instant she did so. Rubbing her chest to ease the ache in her heart, she squinted against the glare of the sun’s rays scattering over the gently undulating water, its glittering sparkle mocking her sadness.

David left her and ran to the buggy, but Ruby, sensing her mother’s despondency, lagged behind, taking hold of Poppy’s hand.

‘Don’t worry, Mama,’ she said. ‘Uncle Henry will come back one day, or perhaps we can visit him.’

‘I’m sure you’re right, my love,’ Poppy said, brushing away a tear.