Chapter Twelve

 

 

Kitty thought she had experienced fear before, the fear of not finding her brothers and sisters a home after her parents’ death, the fear of not being able to feed and clothe them, the fear of living in a damp and freezing cellar. Yet nothing prepared her for the intense fear that descended on her as she walked the cold, dark, moisture-dripping stuffiness of the gaol’s underground corridors. Beside her stepped the tall constable, who had to bend his head every time they went through the cramped archways of the gaol’s tunnels. In front of them both, shuffled the turnkey of the cells.

The turnkey, a large fat man who stank like those who washed neither clothes nor body, led them down a winding maze of slippery tunnels until he halted and grunted towards a thick cell door. After producing an array of keys on rings from his broad belt, he opened the steel-studded, wooden door. Spluttering oil lamps secured in iron braces high up on the walls gave off a sharp rancid smell and their dim light didn’t penetrate the cells.

The constable brought with him a large oil lamp, and with this held high, he entered the cell and called for Joseph McKenzie to stand and present himself.

After a moment there was a shuffle, a few groans and then Joe stood before them, dirty and humble.

Kitty lurched forward to drag him into her arms. “Joe. Oh, Joe, are you all right?”

The constable peered at Joe. “You acknowledge this boy is your brother, Miss McKenzie?”

Kitty nodded. “Yes. Yes, he is. Can he come home now?” The ugly, fat turnkey chuckled.

The constable shook his head. “I’m afraid not, Miss. He is to appear before the court and be sentenced.”

“Sentenced? But he’s only a boy? Whatever he stole I’ll pay back. I give you my word.”

“I’m sorry, Miss. There is nothing I can do. I suggest you find someone to represent your brother, if you can afford it. He will appear before the judge tomorrow week at the court house.”

Dizziness washed over her.

Joe snivelled as the three other youths in the small stinking cell sniggered at him. She used her handkerchief to wipe the grime from his face. “Shush, now,” she whispered and then glared into the cell as a warning to the lurking, laughing figures hidden in there.

“Quiet,” the turnkey yelled at them. His voice echoed around the confines of the underground tunnel.

Kitty hugged Joe to her. “Everything will be fine.”

The constable cleared his throat. “We must leave now, Miss McKenzie.”

Joe held her tight and wouldn’t let go. Kitty hated to force his arms from around her, but she kissed him and promised to be back the next day.

As they neared the end of the dim corridor, the turnkey tapped her arm, halting her. “If you wish for you brother t’be a bit more comfortable then just pass me hand with a few bits of gold an’ I can see that it happens.” He winked at her just before the constable turned, asking her to come along.

Outside in the fresh air, Kitty took deep breaths to quell her nerves. The stink of the cells coated her clothes and filled her nose.

“Did the turnkey ask for money to see your brother right, Miss McKenzie?” Constable Bentley eyes narrowed.

“Er… Yes, yes he did,” mumbled Kitty, still shocked by the sight of Joe in prison.

“My advice is, miss, don’t do it. Any money you give old turnkey Griggs will only line his own pockets. He’s not to be trusted, believe me.”

The walk back to the tearooms passed by in a daze. Joe being in gaol made her tremble and feel sick. How had it happened? What possessed him to steal? Didn’t she give him all he needed? The thoughts whirled around in her head.

“Kitty. What happened?” Mary waited for her at the back door and led her upstairs and onto the sofa. “Where is Joe?”

“He couldn’t come home, not yet.” She rubbed her hand over her eyes. “I hated leaving him there.”

“Why did he do it?”

“I didn’t ask him why.” Kitty shook her head.

Alice brought up a tea tray. “I’ve asked Mildred to close the shop, Miss Kitty.”

“Thank you, Alice.” Kitty explained the situation to them both and in doing so felt better. She began to plan what she must do. She needed help, but who could she turn to? For the umpteenth time she wished for Ben’s presence, his arms to hold her.

When Max returned from work and heard the news, they decided to explain Joe’s absence to Connie and the younger children by saying Joe had gone to stay at a friend’s house for a few days. Clara found the explanation a little hard to fathom as all of Joe’s friends had been playing near her and her friends today and she had not seen her brother. Kitty kept her occupied with little chores and eventually Clara questioned no more.

“If he’s found guilty, lass, he could be sent down for a long time,” Max murmured once the children were in bed.

“Do they still transport them to Australia?” Kitty asked, the quiver remaining in her voice. She stayed away from Connie so as not to alert her sharp wit to anything wrong.

Max frowned. “No, I don’t think so, but I can’t be sure.”

Kitty clenched her hands in her lap. “They…they wouldn’t hang him surely?”

Max pulled her roughly to him. “Nay, lass! Don’t think that.”

She leaned her forehead against his wide chest. “I cannot stand it, Max. What is happening to my family?”

 

 

* * * *

 

 

Kitty dressed in a new skirt and short jacket of dark grey trimmed in black. The half-mourning clothes she wore were a fitting tribute to her despair and matched the shadows under her eyes. She left the house early, before the others awoke, and caught a passing hansom cab.

The large, impressive stone building of York Police was busy even though the sun just peeked over the rooftops. Kitty ignored the stares as she asked to see someone in charge.

The elderly sergeant’s eyes regarded her solemnly from under thick, bushy eyebrows. “Miss McKenzie, I cannot convey police information to you. Your brother is to come before the magistrate. The gentleman your brother stole from is quite adamant that he will not drop the charges. Nothing can be done by you I’m afraid, except to enlist the services of someone to represent your brother.”

Kitty leaned forward. “If I knew the gentleman’s name, I could go and see him. If I could talk to him, he may be willing to drop the charges against my brother. I must do something to help him.”

She pleaded with the sergeant for a further ten minutes before he put up his hand, drawing the conversation to a halt.

He showed Kitty out onto the street, but before she turned away, he took her elbow, whispered a man’s name and address, then quickly disappeared into the building.

Clinging to the small hope she could beg for mercy with the unknown gentleman, Kitty hurried down the street and hailed another cab. The gentleman’s name was familiar—perhaps an old acquaintance of her father’s. She breathed a little easier knowing that one of her own kind would listen to her.

The cab deposited her in a wide, tree-lined street. Three-story houses stood in tended gardens behind low iron and stone fences. It was a street not unlike the one where she used to live. She shook the depressing thought from her mind and banged the brass knocker against the black painted door of number seven.

A butler answered the summons and, after inquiring about her business, let her enter to stand in the tiled hall. After a few minutes, he returned to usher Kitty into a small room further down the hallway.

Inside the room, Kitty glanced at the number of books lining the walls and the huge desk that dominated the room. A middle-aged man expensively dressed in a dark brown suit, with sharp eyes and a receding hairline stood with his back to the window. His haughty stare focused upon her as she stepped further into the room.

“Good morning.” Kitty smiled and hid her trembling hands behind her back.

He scowled and sat at his beautiful walnut desk. “Miss McKenzie, I believe?”

“Yes, I am.” His patronizing gaze made her hackles rise, but she focused upon the issue at hand. He continued to glare at her as though she was beneath him and he reminded her of Georgina Kingsley. “Please, may I say that I deeply regret my brother’s intolerable behaviour and I assure you he has never done anything like this before—”

“Nor will he do so again.” The gentleman’s eyes narrowed.

“Please, sir, if you could just see your way to dropping the charges against my brother—”

“Your brother needs to be taught a lesson. People of your kind cannot roam the streets committing crimes against the decent people of this or any other town.” The gentleman’s voice had risen and he visibly shook himself to check his temper while glowering at Kitty.

Shivers ran along her skin. “B-believe me, my brother will never, ever act in such a disgraceful way again. He was not brought up to behave like that. My parents were well educated—”

“And were also thieves, but on a larger scale,” he growled between clenched teeth.

“P-pardon?” Her stomach clenched in dread of the man’s angry words. This wasn’t going to plan.

“Your father died owing me over two hundred pounds. A sum I was never able to recover. And now your brother continues with the family trait and steals my wallet.” The man jerked to his feet and stalked around the desk to stand in front of her. He raised a fist and shook it in the air above Kitty’s head. “I’ll not be robbed again by a McKenzie.”

Mortified, she stumbled back. “Did…did you not come to the house and reclaim something of value to compensate? Notices were sent out after my parents’ death.”

The gentleman laughed cruelly. “No, begod. I was in London at that time and only learned of it on my return. By then, it was too late.”

“I…I’m sorry.” She tried to find the courage to fight him with words, but her mind had frozen. “Please don’t punish my brother for my father’s mistakes.”

“Ah! Have you forgotten that your dear little brother has also stolen?” A nerve pulsed along his left eyelid. “Your brother will spend the next ten years of his life rotting away in some gaol or he may be sent to Botany Bay, they still do that I’m told.”

Kitty’s eyes widened in horror. To be sent to Australia as a convict. She couldn’t bear it.

He looked smug. “Consider your father’s debt as now being repaid.”

She stumbled from his study, his mocking words haunting her.

 

 

* * * *

 

 

Kitty sat at the kitchen table upstairs out of the way from prying eyes, unable to put on a happy face for the customers. She knew the others could organize the tearoom. Overcome with despair, Kitty stared into the fire and hoped that, when she took Connie her tea, she wouldn’t ask too many questions about the tense atmosphere pervading the house.

The rustle of skirts preceded Dorothea as she glided into the sitting room. “My dear, this will not do.”

Kitty rose to kiss her cheek. “You received my note?”

“Indeed.”

“I’m so sorry to bother you with my troubles, but I had no one else to turn to.”

“Stuff and nonsense. We’re family or soon will be. Now, tell me everything.”

When Kitty finished telling the story, Dorothea shook her head. “A fine mettle that boy has landed himself into, but don’t despair, dear girl. It will be sorted.”

“How?” Kitty paced the floor. “That…man holds a grudge against us just to get his revenge against my father. I cannot believe we’re still paying for our parents’ folly. Wasn’t living in a cellar enough? I have already lost one brother and cannot afford to lose another.” Kitty massaged her temples. She had to remain calm. Connie mustn’t hear her and become upset.

“Come, sit down, dear.”

“I cannot bear the thought of Joe rotting away in some gaol…”

“You’re becoming dramatic, my dear. Please, come sit down and listen to me.” Dorothea beckoned and waited while she took her place on the sofa. “I was not idle yesterday after I heard the news. I went to see a lawyer friend of mine who is going to the gaol this morning. We’ll have young Joseph home before you know it.” Dorothea patted Kitty’s hand and smiled.

“Really? You mean Joe may be allowed home?” Relief made her light- headed.

“I’m sure of it. I have many influential friends and a few favours owed to me. Also I have spoken to John and he will act on your behalf too.”

“This will free Joe?”

“I don’t doubt it. However, Georgina is not very pleased with this latest ordeal. It’s given her more excuses to argue that you’re not fit to marry Benjamin. You must ensure Joe stays out of further trouble. Otherwise my daughter will delight in using him in her bid to keep you and Benjamin apart.”

“I understand.” Kitty nodded, her estimation of Georgina lowering another notch. “I imagine Georgina took pleasure in my despair?”

“Not pleasure, no, but she did mention it as further proof that your union with Benjamin would be disastrous.” Dorothea sat straighter. “Enough of that. We must concentrate on Joe and his release.”

“Oh, Dorothea. How can I ever repay you?”

Dorothea winked. “Well a good start would be to make us some tea while I go and sit with Connie.”

 

 

It was after six that evening when Joe walked into the sitting room to a huge welcome. He was dirty, hungry and a little overwhelmed, but Kitty and Mary soon had him in the bath and scrubbed. In a clean nightshirt, he ate his meal of boiled beef and vegetables as though he had not eaten in months. Before long, his head drooped with fatigue.

“Come, Joe.” Kitty helped him from the table.

She saw him into bed and sat beside him, tucking the blankets up to his chin. Never in her life would she be able to repay Dorothea for bringing Joe home again. She hadn’t asked questions as to how it had come about. She was just grateful for the deliverance of Joe back into her care.

Joe gazed up at her with teary eyes. “I’m sorry, Kitty. I didn’t mean to cause any trouble.”

“Well, you did. Why did you do such a thing?”

Joe shrugged. “I suppose…to show I just could, that’s all.”

“You stole because you could?” Kitty turned away, her anger throbbing, desperate for release. “I’m ashamed of you.”

“I’m sorry.”

She spun back to him. “Did you recognize the man?”

“No, he was flashing his money as he came out of a shop. He’s just a toff!”

“Like we were?”

The colour left Joe’s face. “We aren’t anymore, are we?”

“Is that why you did it, because we no longer have a nice house and money?”

He shrugged again and refused to meet her gaze.

“We’ll discuss this another time, but I’m letting you know right now, Joseph McKenzie, if you ever do such a thing again I’ll let them send you to gaol. Do you understand me?”

A slow tear trickled down his cheek. “I’ll not do it again, I promise.”

“Well, you’ll not be allowed the chance to do it again. As of tomorrow morning both you and Clara are going to start at a new school. A school that is of a bit higher standard than the one you both attend now. It will cost me a lot of money, but it will be worth it if it keeps you out of trouble.”

“I don’t want to go to another school, Kitty. Please don’t send us somewhere else.”

“It’s for the best, Joe. I’ll not have you mixing with the likes of those boys you play around with. They’re worse than the children from the tenements. When we left the cellar, I should have moved you and Clara to a new school closer to the tearooms. However, I thought you would prefer staying at the same school near Walmgate. I see now I was wrong.”

“But, Kitty—”

“No, Joe! No more talking. My decision is made.”

“But—”

“Do you realize how close you came to being in gaol for years?” Her tone lashed him, trying to make him aware of how close he came to ruination.

He lowered his gaze. “Yes.”

“Well, just you think about it some more and be thankful we have wonderful friends like Dorothea Cannon. Now off to sleep, you have a big day tomorrow before and after school.”

Joe struggled to sit up as Kitty moved away. “What do you mean?”

Kitty turned at the doorway. “You, young man, have a full day’s work ahead of you. I obviously let you have too much freedom, which you have now forfeited. So, there are many little jobs around the shop that are your responsibility from now on. You didn’t think you could frighten the life out of me and get away with it, did you? Changing schools will be the least of your worries, my lad.”

 

 

* * * *

 

 

“This heat!” Hetta complained for the tenth time that morning as she stepped in from outside after emptying her bucket of dirty water. “I wish we would get some rain.”

Mary and Kitty exchanged amused glances as she passed, before continuing to check the stock needing to be bought by the end of the week.

“Ladies, what a grand day it is,” Art Tilsby, the postman, called to them through the open back door. He handed Kitty a small pile of mail.

“Would you care for a drink of cold lemon water, Mr Tilsby?” Kitty placed the mail on the table. She hated the mail. It never brought news of Ben or Rory.

“Aye, I would that, Miss McKenzie. It’s like an oven out there.” He slipped off his hat to wipe the sweat from his brow. He smiled and nodded at Mary, who poked her head out of the larder to say good morning. Alice made conversation with him while Kitty poured drinks for everyone.

He accepted his glass with a small bow. “I always liked hot August days when I was a kid, but now I think I’m too old to deal with such heat.”

“It’s unusual to be hot for so long,” acknowledged Alice. “Three weeks of constant blazing days. I’ve never seen the likes of it before.”

Mr Tilsby drained his glass and placed it on the table. “Thanks for that, it did the job grand. I best be on my way now though.” Before reaching the door, he paused to smile at Kitty. “I nearly forgot, miss, there’s a letter there all the way from Australia. Imagine the distance it’s travelled?” With that parting remark, he left.

Kitty turned very slowly and picked up the mail from the table. With trembling hands, she selected the letter with Ben’s familiar handwriting. Her heart felt like it would stop any moment. She grinned at Mary and Alice and then ran upstairs to the privacy of her bedroom.

Tearing open the envelope, Kitty pulled out the few sheets of paper. She held them to her face in wonderment. Her heart beat a tattoo against her ribs and her stomach churned in anticipation.

Taking a deep breath, she began to read.

 

Dearest darling Kitty.

My love, I cannot begin to tell you of the delights of the city. Sydney is a wonder, but first I must ask after your health and that of the family. I pray you are all well.

Kitty, you would adore it, the sense of adventure that surrounds the area. The harbour is a delight, a natural beauty and so exciting with foreign ships continually coming and going. There are people of all nations here starting new lives, but of course the British influence is prominent everywhere. There are times when you actually feel you are home in England. One can pass through crowds and hear every accent of our country in one street.

Since arriving here on the last day of May, I have been extremely busy meeting people of Father’s acquaintance. Starting our own branch of business will not be as hard as I imagined. I’m fast making many contacts and, indeed, good friends. Soon though, I’ll have time to investigate this land of opportunity. I admit it excites me that I shall be venturing further than the boundaries of Sydney and into the open countryside.

I’m told expedition parties leave at regular intervals to explore the vastness of this hot dry land and new townships are simply evolving in a matter of days in places where a few weeks before there was only impenetrable bush. The exciting activity here, Kitty, makes me eager to finish my work in the city and be off delving into the bush.

I sincerely hope you are missing me and that I still have your love. I wish with all my heart you were here beside me, for I know you would love Australia as much as I have come to. There is space here to just breathe.

Did you enjoy my last letter I posted on route? Rio was a delight but terribly hot. I’ll write again before the week is out. I long to hear from you. It has been a torture not knowing how you are and being unable to gaze upon your beautiful face. Don’t stop writing to me. The mail is slow to reach us sadly.

Give my regards to everyone. To you, my dearest heart, I give all my love.

In my thoughts always, Benjamin.

 

Kitty read the letter twice again before crossing to Connie’s bedroom. She tapped gently on the door and entered. The last month of resting had put weight on Connie’s thin frame and she looked healthier. There were more grey hairs in amongst her own natural brown now and a few extra worry lines graced her face, but Dr Meyers, who called once a week, was happy with her progress.

Connie reclined against pillows, knitting a sock, and smiled as Kitty came in. “How’s everythin’ goin’?”

“I just received a letter from Ben.” Kitty stroked it lovingly.

“Oh, lass, I’m that pleased for you. Is he all right?”

“Yes, he sounds extremely happy. He sends his regards to you all. He had sent another letter, but I haven’t received it.” This saddened her for a moment, but she quickly brightened again and kissed the letter.

“Well, never mind, our lass. At least you’ve got this one an’ that’s better than nowt.”

Kitty sat on the bed. The letter had lifted a weight off her heart. She had doubted his love would continue once he had left her, but having proof released a wave of emotion. She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Shall I read it to you?”

“Aye, go on then, for I’ll get no peace until you do.” Connie laughed.