24
And there it was. We gathered at the prow, staring at the sights, with Martin almost falling over the rail from curiosity. But how were we ever going to land? I’d never seen so many boats. There were floating signs in the sky. KEEP RIGHT. KEEP LEFT. NO ENTRY. THIS WAY FOR DOWNTOWN. THIS WAY FOR C.I. HARBOUR. COMMERCIALS ONLY.
‘Peggy –’
She’d come back up on deck.
‘All right, I’ll take it.’
She took the wheel. I was fine with sailing in the open sky, but not with this congestion.
‘Where are we going to land?’
‘We’ll find somewhere.’
We followed other boats like our own, the small, private ones.
CITY ISLAND DOWNTOWN SKY-BOAT PARK: 20 UNITS A DAY.
‘How much?’ I said, when I saw that sign approaching. ‘We’ll only be able to stop for about five minutes.’
‘That’s for rich people who can’t even be bothered with a short walk. We’ll go to the public moorings. They used to be free.’
‘How long since you were last here, Peggy?’ Martin asked her.
‘About ten of your lifetimes,’ she said.
‘Oh, let me work that out …’
‘Just call it a long time and save yourself the trouble.’
‘Has it changed?’
‘Near unrecognisable,’ she said. Then, ‘Ah – there.’
Two signs mounted on a headland directed us to either MOORING: SHORT-TERM or MOORING: LONG-TERM.
‘Which are we, Peggy? How long’s long and how short’s short?’
‘Now there’s a question to keep the philosophers busy. I don’t really know. I’m only tying up long enough to drop you all off and see you settled, then maybe get some supplies, then back home.’
‘Aren’t you going to stay a while?’ Martin asked.
‘Yes, stay longer,’ Alain said.
‘Yes, please,’ Beth, his sister, said.
‘Stay forever,’ Angelica told her.
‘Why don’t you, Peggy?’ I said. ‘Why not?’
She gave one of her sad old smiles.
‘Well, maybe I will a few days, but I’ve got an island to take care of, and greenhouses that need tending, and who’s going to put old Ben Harley in his place and save him from his follies and his private stash, if I’m not there to do it?’
‘But who’s going to look after us, Peggy?’ Martin said, and he sounded four years old again, just like years ago.
‘Marty, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but you and Gemma – as we’ve been sailing along now – you’ve learned pretty much to look after yourselves.’
‘Have we?’ Martin said, sounding surprised. Then he went quiet and got thoughtful. Because Peggy was right. We could look after ourselves. But it was thanks to her that we could do it.
‘Peggy,’ Alain said. ‘Look there.’
There were more signs. SHORT-TERM MOORINGS: UP TO 3 DAYS. LONG-TERM MOORINGS: OVER 3 DAYS.
‘Short-term should do it,’ Peggy said. ‘Three days is fine.’
So we turned to port and followed some other small craft towards the short-term mooring park.
As we did, I looked behind us. Just turning to starboard was a large sky-ferry, a brand-new, real comfortable-looking one. And I saw that the decks were lined with children, many of them our ages. There had to be a couple of hundred of them at the very least. They saw us and started shouting and waving, so we waved back. Then they headed off for the long-term moorings. As the boat levelled off, I saw its name on its side. It was called ARTEMIS. And along its hull, in bold letters, under its name, there was painted: CITY ISLAND SCHOOL. FREE BUS. SERVING ALL THE OUTLYING ISLANDS AND SETTLEMENTS.
And I just went cold.
‘Peggy …’
‘Uh huh?’
She was making out like she hadn’t seen it.
‘Peggy – did you see that?’
‘What’s that, darlin’?’
‘Peggy – there’s a bus. There’s a school bus. Serving all the outlying settlements …’
‘Really? That so?’
‘Peggy, you can see it. Look. There it is. Just turning. Right there. It’s huge. It doesn’t even look full. There’s a bus, Peggy. We could have come on the bus!’
‘Oh … well now … yes … I guess you could.’
‘Martin and I could have just got here on the school bus!’
‘Ummm …’
‘What’s that?’ Martin said, overhearing me. ‘What are you saying? Hey, did you just see that big school bus?’
‘We saw it, thank you. Peggy –’ I said.
‘What is it, Gem?’
‘You knew –’
‘What’s that, darlin’?’
‘About the bus. You knew, didn’t you?’
‘Well, I forget things. It’s my age. What with the arthritis and the cramps, and I’ve been getting a touch breathless too recently …’
‘Peggy, why didn’t you just put us on the bus?’
She sighed.
‘Gemma –’
‘Well?’
‘So many reasons, darlin’. I wanted to take you myself. And I wanted to see City Island one last time –’
‘Why should it be the last time?’
‘Shh, darlin’. Don’t be angry now.’
‘I’m not angry, Peggy, I just don’t understand – I mean – this journey – everything we encountered – we could have sunk – been killed – you could have been killed – the minefields, the troll, that motel with those maniacs … We could have avoided all that. So, why?’
‘Well – the school bus – what would you have learned on that?’
‘Learned?’
‘You’d just have been a passenger, darlin’. But on this boat, you’ve been crew, and captain too, sometimes. All of you. And the boy there –’ she nodded towards Alain – ‘and the two little ladies – where’d they be? One would still be a lonely soldier, and one’d be rat-skinning, and the other would be cloud-hunting and getting ready for her scars.’
‘They could have got the bus too.’
‘But they never would. It was meeting us that brought them here. Serendipity.’
‘What’s that?’
‘Look it up in one of the big dictionaries they’ll have in that school library there. Sometimes it’s best to make your own way, darlin’. You can’t beat your own steam for getting there. In my old opinion.’
I watched the big school ferry sail off towards its moorings, with all those children up on deck. I’d bet they’d all had comfortable berths on board, and catering, and showers, and organised activities, and all kinds of pastimes and amusements to keep them occupied on the long trip to City Island, as the ferry stopped off picking up its passengers for the term ahead from all the tiny and remote one-boat islands like our own.
But then they’d not seen what we had, or done what we had. And it was true what Peggy said. It had been an education.
‘You don’t mind, do you, darlin’?’
‘No. I don’t mind. I’m glad we made our own way.’
‘It was fun, wasn’t it?’
‘Well … some of the time, Peg.’
‘Well, that’s only right. If it was fun all the time, it wouldn’t be fun at all.’
‘What?’
‘Just think about it. We’re here.’
A frantic parking attendant on a sky-bike was dashing around between the boats giving directions and pointing out moorings. We followed his instructions and tied up at a floating pontoon.
‘Remember the number on the post or we’ll never find the damned boat ever again.’
‘G27.’
‘I’m going to write it on the back of my hand,’ Peggy said, squinting. ‘Anyone seen my glasses?’
‘Peggy,’ I pointed out, ‘you don’t wear glasses.’
‘Then maybe,’ she said, ‘it’s time I did.’
Well, I don’t know about the others, but I certainly felt like some country cousin from the out-sticks as we made our way through the streets of City Island and headed for the enrolment at the school.
There were people so fine and elegant and dressed in such fashions and styles as I’d never even imagined, let alone seen. And they had such ways about them too, ways of walking and talking, and gesturing and standing. You felt a little crushed just seeing them, like you were a simpler, less complicated being, and would never attain their dizzying heights of sophistication.
Peggy must have read my mind, because she said, ‘Gemma, don’t go getting taken in by the posers now.’
‘What’s a poser, Peggy?’
She nodded at the people in the wild, extravagant clothes.
‘They are. Scratch ’em and they’re no different to you and me. All veneer and no substance. Flesh and blood, that’s all. I think we’re down this way now.’
It wasn’t hard to find the way, you just followed the other parents, the other guardians, the other children, the other families – which is what we were too – a family of a kind.
ENROLMENT
Peggy led us up to a desk. I looked around me. Some of the other people were arriving with big suitcases and luggage on wheels. All we had was a bag each. Alain had next to nothing.
‘Don’t you worry about that,’ Peggy said, mind-reading again. ‘All’s provided. And I’ll be leaving you some money.’
‘Peggy, we haven’t got any money.’
‘Ben Harley’s not the only one with a private stash. I’ve been saving it up for you – you and Marty. To tide you over.’
‘Peggy –’
‘No, I don’t want it. It’s for you. We’re going to put it in a bank account later where it’ll be safe and you can use it as you need.’
‘Peggy –’
‘Now don’t go thanking me or I’ll be getting embarrassed.’
We shuffled along in the queue, then we were next.
‘Names, please.’
‘Piercey,’ Peggy said. ‘Gemma and Martin Piercey.’
The woman at the desk checked her list.
‘OK. They have places reserved.’
‘And could you take three more?’ Peggy said.
‘Three!’
‘If you can?’
‘Ages?’
Alain, Beth and Angelica gave their ages.
‘Are they Pierceys too?’ the woman asked.
‘In spirit,’ Peggy said.
‘OK – just let me check …’
‘Government does say free schooling for any child as wants it …’ Peggy said.
‘Yes, it’s just whether we have the places at this particular – oh yes. That should be all right. Yes. They’re accepted. Here are your name tags and your form numbers. You’ll find monitors in the next room holding cards up. You find the one with the card number matching your age and just join them for now.’
‘Then thank you kindly,’ Peggy said.
‘Thank you. Next!’
‘This way, Peggy. In here.’
But she didn’t follow.
‘No, I’ll be leaving you to it now, darlin’ –’
Sudden shock filled me. I felt trembly, a bit sick. This couldn’t be it, already, so abruptly, so absolute.
‘Peggy, no –’
‘There’s no one holding up a sign in that room with my age on it, darlin’.’
‘But, Peggy –’
‘You can’t just go, Peggy –’
‘No, you can’t –’
‘You can’t –’
‘No –’
‘I’m not just going. I’m going to be waiting here. You go and find your rooms and get settled and then you meet me back here and we’ll all go out for dinner. How’s that?’
So that was what we did.
We went out for dinner to a restaurant in City Island, and Peggy ordered wine, and she said we all had to try it, even at our age, though she did water it down a little. She made a toast.
‘To getting educated,’ she said.
‘To Peggy,’ I said.
So we drank to both.
It was strange leaving her. We all walked her back to the marina and made sure she got on board OK, as she’d drunk most of the wine, to be honest, and was a little unsteady on her old feet.
‘Thank you, darlin’s – that was wonderful. Couldn’t have had a better send-off.’
‘But you’re not going yet, Peggy? You’re not sailing now?’ I said, panicking again.
‘Oh, no. You come and see me tomorrow. We’ll say a proper goodbye then. Oops! Who left that step there? Oh my.’
‘And we’ll be back for the long holidays, Peggy,’ Martin said. ‘You don’t have to come and get us. We’ll take the school bus. And we’ll write –’
‘Sky-post ain’t exactly regular –’ she said.
‘We’ll still write though –’
‘That’ll be lovely, darlin’ – I’ll look forward to that. Gemma, Martin, you say goodnight to your great-great-grand – whatever – you say goodnight to me now.’
And we did. We each gave her a hug and a kiss.
‘Thanks, Peggy. For everything – for looking after us – bringing us up – giving us a home –’
‘Oh no – I’ve got to thank you – the pleasure was all mine – I have to tell you – the day you arrived and those Cloud Hunters brought you – I was in more than two minds – but I wouldn’t have done without you for the world – nor all the islands in it.’
‘I love you, Peggy.’
‘I love you too, of course I do, why wouldn’t I? But don’t keep saying it or you’ll make me cry.’
‘Love you, Peggy –’
‘My Martin, my little boy – only not so little now – my Gemma – my little girl –’
It took us a while to all dry our eyes and get disentangled. Alain, Beth and Angelica were tactfully waiting out of the way. Then they all said goodbye to Peggy too. But not too seriously. After all, we were coming back to wave her off tomorrow. School didn’t start properly for another two days, so we wouldn’t be missing anything important.
‘What time shall we come tomorrow, Peggy?’
‘Oh, not too early. I shan’t be sailing before noon at the earliest.’
‘Will you be all right on your own?’
‘Sure I will. I’m tough as old boots by now.’
‘Indestructible, eh, Peggy!’ I said.
‘That’s it, darlin’. Indestructible.’
But she wasn’t. None of us is.
The others couldn’t come the next day. As they hadn’t enrolled into the school in advance they were stuck with extra form-filling, so it was just Martin and me who made our way to the marina to see Peggy off on her journey home.
Her boat was alone on the pontoon. The other boats which had been there previously had already sailed.
‘Peggy!’ I called, as we tramped up the walkway. ‘We’re here. Are you up?’
‘Maybe she’s gone to get a few supplies,’ Martin said.
‘Or she’s sleeping off last night’s dinner. Go and see if she’s down below and give her a shake.’
‘OK.’
Martin went down below and I tidied up a little on deck and checked the solar panels and made sure the water tanks were full.
‘Gemma –’
‘What is it?’
‘Gemma –’
‘Martin – what is it?’
‘I can’t wake her, Gemma. She won’t wake up.’