I flew outa the dressin-room hangin onta me wash things after gettin inta a big fight wit tha Dilly Nugent one. They wouldn’t let me near the sink, an I had te push an roar me way te get a wash an get meself ready fer school.
‘Martha!’
I looked up te see Sister Eleanor wavin an rushin herself down te get me. Ah, fuck! Wha did I do now?
‘Listen, pet,’ she said, breathin all over me an smilin an grabbin me hand. ‘Come and get dressed quickly and put these on you. Miss is waiting to take you out, and we have a taxi coming in ten minutes to collect the both of you.’
Me mind flew an me heart started leppin wit excitement. ‘Where? Where am I goin te, Sister? Am I goin back te me ma?’ Me heart started te sink wit the fear now tha thought just hit me.
‘Oh no! I declare to God! Where would you be getting that idea from?’ she laughed.
Oh, thank God fer tha. I let out a big breath, feelin meself goin easier. ‘But where then?’
‘We don’t have time for questions. Now hurry! Be a good girl and get yourself ready quickly. Come on!’ an she rushed over te me bed, droppin the new stuff fer me te wear.
‘Put these on you,’ she said, eyein me own frock tha was gettin dirty. Then she whipped it over me head, leavin me standin in me knickers an vest. I hope tha Dilly lot are not goin te start laughin at me again.
I whipped the frock over me head an looked down at meself as Sister Eleanor buttoned up the back an tied the belt. ‘Now put these socks on.’ I put on the new long white socks an dived inta me shoes. ‘Are they polished?’ she asked, lookin down te see me brown leather shoes I robbed fer meself along wit me coat an frock. ‘Tsk, they’ll have to do,’ she said, not likin the look a them. I think they’re gorgeous. They have two straps across me foot, an now I really look lovely, I thought, admirin meself, lookin down at the long brown wool frock wit the big white collar.
‘Now brush your hair,’ she said, grabbin me comb then rushin me inta me coat, after puttin a pair a gloves on me an a lovely red an white knitted hat on me head. It has a long string comin outa the top wit a woolly ball at the end, makin it fly in all directions.
‘Now come along and we better be quick. The taxi will be waiting.’
I swung me head flyin along wit the Sister holdin me hand an made the string fly from side te side, lettin me think I had a ponytail.
‘Here we are, Miss!’ Sister said, handin me over te Miss, the little grey-haired woman waitin at the convent passage an blinkin like mad when she saw us.
‘Now, Sister, we will go directly there, and will the taxi wait for us?’
‘No, Miss, the office will call for the taxi when you are ready to leave,’ she said, leanin over te Miss an breathin at her in a whisper.
‘Oh, good, that’s all settled, so,’ she laughed, an coughed an blinked. ‘So I will wait for her and come directly back.’
‘Yes, Miss! Oh, thank you! I better run and get those children into school. Goodbye, Martha,’ she whispered te me, an waved, turnin te run back up the stairs.
We drove down Talbot Street an I looked at all the people goin inta the shops, an me stomach felt sick at the thoughts of havin te go in an rob all the butter. Jaysus! Thank you, God, fer makin tha stop. Now I can forget all about tha. I let me shoulders drop an let out me breath, happy at them times bein gone fer ever.
The taxi pulled up outside the Department of Education. I remember this place, I thought, lookin up at the steps. Tha’s where I robbed the chairs fer the ma tha time Jackser was locked up! ‘Are we goin in there, Miss?’
‘Yes,’ she said, leanin over te the taxi man, sayin thank you an openin the door, flingin her cigarette butt inta the middle a the road an leavin the inside of the car lookin like it was on fire!
I leapt out, thinkin me new hat wit the woolly ball will be stinkin wit the smell a smoke.
‘Come along,’ she said, grabbin me arm an marchin me up the steps.
We went inta the hall an a man said, ‘Up to room four.’
‘Here we are!’ she said, wheezin like a bagpipes an collapsin onta the door, knockin on it wit her knuckles.
‘Come in!’ a culchie voice barked, whippin open the door.
‘This is the child from the convent, Martha Long,’ gushed Miss, blinkin an coughin an smilin, waitin fer him te say somethin.
He stared down at me, then lifted his big roundy bald head wit a few strips a hair across the front, wrappin themselves aroun his ear, an said, ‘Fine! Good, would you take a seat downstairs, this won’t take long. Come in, sit,’ he barked at me, flyin aroun te a big swingin armchair wit the horse’s hair burstin up through the seat an planked himself down, pushin papers outa his way an foldin his arms across the desk an stared at me, thinkin before he said anythin.
I sat up an watched him.
‘So! You’ve been giving the nuns trouble!’
I looked at him, wonderin wha nuns he was talkin about. I was good fer the last week, not a bit a trouble, except them gobshites, the young ones. But not the nuns!
‘We are going to send you to a reformatory!’ he roared, sniffin an sittin back again, foldin his arms, lettin the word fly aroun the room, bouncin against the walls, then waitin fer the ringin te stop an see wha I thought about tha.
Not much! So I stayed quiet an watched him, feelin meself go cold. Fuck you, pig face, if tha’s wha this is all about . . . then youse can all go an fuck off!
I sat starin without blinkin, an he did the same. Then he jumped at me again, shoutin. ‘Reformatory!’ he barked, suddenly snufflin an rubbin his nose, tryin te get rid of a long bunch a grey hair stickin down, then sat back again, watchin me like a hawk te see how I was takin this. ‘You should never have been sent to that convent in the first place! The Reverend Mother is right. So what do you think about that?’ he asked, waitin te hear wha I had te say.
I said nothin. I don’t give a curse! They can send me where they like, so long as it’s not back te tha bandy bastard Jackser! Nothin they do will ever be as bad as tha.
‘So! What do you have to say for yourself?’
I sat starin, keepin me face still, sayin nothin.
‘Do you know what a reformatory is like?’ he asked, tryin te put the fear a God inta me.
‘Yeah, they beat the hell outa ye! An make ye work.’
‘Exactly! So that’s where you are going. Where you should have been sent in the first place. I never heard the like of it, sending the likes of people like you to a convent like that!’ He was gettin himself all worked up, hopin I’d start floodin inta tears an askin fer mercy, hopin I’d get a second chance.
But I’m not goin te do tha. If they don’t want me in tha convent, so te hell wit them. I’ll still do the same amount a time in the reformatory, an hard work never kilt anyone. An I’m used te Jackser beatin the shite outa me. So I’ll manage till me time is up.
‘Have you any questions? Do you want to say something to me?’ he asked, wakin me from me thoughts.
‘Right! Will I be goin down be train?’ I asked him, thinkin about the time I went on one te the Sunshine Home. Me heart dropped fer a minute, thinkin tha was a really lovely time I had then.
He scratched the back of his baldy head an lifted his lips like he wanted te touch the hair growin outa his nose an snorted, lookin aroun the room. ‘Listen! You are hanging on by a string there in that convent! One more complaint about you, and we will get that court order struck out. Yes! Our hands are tied at the moment; there is not much we can really do about getting you moved. We haven’t got sufficient grounds. Unfortunately, the judge made the order specifying you be sent there, and not for punishment. But! And mark this,’ he said, wavin his finger slowly at me. ‘You give us the grounds by not behaving yourself and you will be moved to a reformatory where you belong before you can say Flash Gordon! Now get out of my sight, and I don’t want to see your face in here again, or you will definitely be heading your way to a reformatory tailor-made for just the likes of you: in the heart of the country, out in the midde of nowhere, miles from the nearest town. Go on, scat!’ An he waved his papers at me, jumpin up te open the door an goin out te tell the Miss I was ready.
She came rushin herself up the stairs all smiles fer the man, an he said te tell the Reverend Mother he would be in touch in the near future.