Blood Brothers. Josephine Cox

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      ‘Oh, here you are at last!’ In the kitchen, Nancy was already dishing up the food. ‘Where’s our Joe?’ Stretching her neck, she looked towards the door.

      ‘He’ll be here in a minute,’ Alice volunteered. ‘He’s just bedding the falcon down for the night.’

      ‘How is the bird?’ Tom asked eagerly, still chomping at the bit for his evening meal.

      Before Alice could answer, Frank chipped in. ‘Joe reckons it’s almost ready to take off.’

      Tom was pleased about that. ‘Ah well, he always did have a way with stray creatures, did Joe.’

      ‘Off upstairs, Frank. You need to wash and change before dinner,’ Nancy ordered.

      ‘Oh, I was hoping to beg a cuppa before I go up and change.’

      ‘You’d best make it yourself, ‘cause me and Alice have the dinner to serve,’ Nancy reminded him. ‘Oh, and try not to get under our feet.’

      Frank took offence at being ordered about like a little boy. Smiling to himself, he wondered what his parents would say if they knew Joe had been in prison. The very thought of it made him feel good.

      While Frank got himself a mug of tea, Alice and Nancy went about setting the table.

      Tom got his fingers rapped for picking at the peas, while Nancy saw to the gravy and juggled dishes of steaming, juicy vegetables, she assailed everyone with stories of Joe and his boyish escapades. ‘D’you recall the time Joe scampered up that huge old tree to rescue that ginger cat?’

      She chuckled. ‘The cat jumped down and left Joe stranded. We had to get the big ladders out and help him down. As if that wasn’t enough, the very next morning he found a badger caught in a trap.’

      Stealing a carrot, Tom picked up the story. ‘Ten year old he were, and would you believe he turned up here with the badger still in the damned trap! The badger’s leg was almost off, and it was half crazed.’

      While Nancy checked there were enough places set at the table for Alice’s parents Tom went on, ‘I gave Joe a right talking to. I mean…as we all know, badgers are bad-tempered at the best of times, and this big divil was in terrible pain. Snapping and snarling like a mad dog it was. I don’t mind telling you, it’s a miracle he didn’t have Joe’s fingers off at the bone!’

      Out the corner of her eye Nancy caught Tom dibbing into the peas. ‘Get your mucky fingers outta them peas!’ Catching him across the knuckles with the ladle, she gave him one of her frosty stares. It was enough to send him scurrying for his raggedy old newspaper again.

      When the telephone rang right beside him he almost leaped out of his chair. ‘Noisy damned thing. I wish we’d never had it put in!’ Tom hated all things new.

      ‘Don’t be so miserable!’ Nancy chided. ‘It’s bad enough you made us wait till everyone else in the village had one, before you gave in. Anyway, you can’t deny it’s been handy.’

      With the telephone still ringing and no one seeming prepared to answer it, Alice grabbed a tea towel and wiped her hands. ‘I’ll get it!’ she said, and was across the room in no time at all.

      Snatching up the receiver, she said, ‘Hello? This is Brook Farm, who’s that please?’

      She listened for a moment or two, quietly answering in between, ‘What’s happened? Yes, we’ve just got dinner on the table. Oh, I’m sorry. Tomorrow? I will, Father. Yes, if that’s what you want, all right, but what’s happened?’

      There was another pause while she paid attention to what her father was telling her, then, ‘Oh, I see. Yes, all right. I’ll tell them, yes. No, they’ll understand I’m sure. Well, I don’t know, but don’t worry. I just hope everything’s all right when you get there. Give them my love. No, Father, it’s okay. Yes, I know. I expect so. Yes, I will. Bye then.’

      As Alice replaced the receiver, Nancy was curious. ‘That was a strange conversation,’ she commented. ‘I take it that СКАЧАТЬ