Always: You'll Never Walk Alone (6 page)

I thanked her and sat down on a wooden chair that leaned against the wall. My head was aching, my body exhausted, and the thought of food made my mouth water. I must have dozed off for a few seconds when I suddenly became aware of an aroma of tomato and basil. The old lady brought a bowl of soup and a big hunk of bread to the back door. “I’M GOING TO LET YOU COME INSIDE AND EAT THIS, BUT IF YOU TRY ANY FUNNY BUSINESS YOU’LL BE OUT ON YOUR EAR.”

Forcing my unwilling legs to stand I followed the smell through the hall and into the kitchen. The house was unlit. The glow from the kitchen fire and the aroma of the soup were the only clues as to where she stood. Placing the bowl on the table, she told me to sit. Stumbling to the large rough wood table, my head spinning, my stomach howling, I wolfed down the soup like a starving animal. Wiping the bowl clean with the last piece of bread I eyed the pot simmering on the stove.

“D’YOU WANT MORE?” She asked.

Replying in the affirmative, she said “IF YOU’RE GOING TO EAT ME OUT OF HOUSE AND HOME, THEN I HAVE A FEW MORE JOBS FOR YOU TO DO.”

I told her “For another bowl I would be more than happy to do anything.”

She spooned out another bowl-full of the delicious soup, which I devoured as quickly as the first.

I guessed she’d come to trust me when she said I could sleep on the kitchen floor and start the jobs in the morning. “BUT IF I HEAR YOU COMING ANYWHERE NEAR MY BEDROOM I’LL SMACK YOU OVER THE HEAD WITH THIS PAN. YOU HEAR ME?”

I was pretty sure she could be heard all the way back to Guildford, so I told her I wouldn’t move from the kitchen for anything, and with that, she was off to her bed. I lay down on the floor, warm for the first time in three days, and fell into a deep dreamless sleep.

The woman, I still didn’t know her name, was up before dawn. I heard her rummaging around the kitchen, so rubbing the sleep out of my eyes I got up and wished her good morning. In a somewhat more normal tone of voice than she’d used the previous night she asked how I’d slept then asked me to go out to the rain barrel and bring in some water so she could make tea and porridge for breakfast. Grabbing an old bucket that lay by the back door, I went out and filled it with the cool clear water. Pouring the water over my head and shoulders to wash my face the shock of the cold served to wash away any remaining wisps of sleep from my head.

The first rays of the morning sun were pushing their way into the sky and lighting the house as I headed back inside. She mixed together oats, water and a little milk and put the mixture on the stove, then poured water in a kettle and put a couple of bowls and cups on the table. By the time everything was ready the sun had cleared the horizon and lit the kitchen.

It was the first time I had a chance to get a good look at the woman and the house. The kitchen was small but spotlessly clean and tidy. The woman was old but not quite as old as I had thought previously. But, when she turned in my direction her milky eyes were unfocussed and I realized she was blind. She poured some tea, using her thumb to determine when the cups were full, then spooned out the porridge. “Sit down and eat boy, you’ll need your strength for the day.”

I finished the porridge and drank the tea and she refilled both. When I finished the second helping, she took everything and washed it in the sink. Finishing up and placing the dishes on the side to dry, she turned to me and asked where I was going.

Not wanting to go into too much detail I told her I was on my way to Cornwall to visit a friend. Sitting down opposite me, she took my hand and stared at me with her sightless eyes. “You’re going after a girl. You’ve known her a long time.” Shocked, I replied, “Yes I’m going to see my girlfriend, but I haven’t known her very long.”

“Yes, you have, and you will know her for a long time in the future. You will be with her and you’ll be very happy, but it will be a long time before that happens. Remember, if she lives in your heart then you’ll ALWAYS be together. You both have a lot to go through but your love will see you together in the end.”

I asked her how she knew. She said, “My eyes have seen a lot and since I lost my sight I see much more.”

She went on to tell me she lost her sight as a young girl. She’d been accused of witchcraft and tortured, after she’d foretold an accident involving a young farmhand and an oxcart. She’d managed to escape death when the farmhand had rescued her and they’d ran away together, finally coming to this house where they lived for more than forty years before he died. She now lived alone. Taking care of herself and growing a few vegetables and herbs. Once a week one of the local farmers came by to bring her supplies.

“Now tell me Stephen how do you plan on getting to Cornwall?”

“How d’you know my name?”

“I told you my eyes see a lot. I know about you. We have met before, although you don’t remember, and we will meet again but that will be a long time in the future. My name is Winifred, I think I can help you on your way but first you owe me some work, so if you’ve had enough breakfast…”

She got up and I followed her out. “Now you can start with this window here…” For the next few hours, she led me around the house fixing one thing after another. At midday she made some lunch and after a short break had me working again for the rest of the afternoon. Finally, when the sun started to go down she told me it was time to stop working and have some dinner. I washed up out back and when I returned to the kitchen she set our dinner on the table. “Sit down and eat, you’ll have to be up early tomorrow.”

“I’m sorry I can’t stay another day I have to get on to Cornwall.”

“Don’t worry I don’t have any more work for you. Alfred will be here early, he can take you with him to Winchester.”

I asked who Alfred was and where was Winchester. She laughed and told me Alfred was the farmer she told me about who brought her supplies, and Winchester was a town on the way to Cornwall. He went there every month and tomorrow would be his day for going. “From Winchester you’ll need to head towards Salisbury, you’ll go past Stonehenge and then you must go to Exeter, from Exeter you have to go to Tavistock then Bodmin and from Bodmin it’s a short trip to Castle Harvard. It is a long hard journey but you will make it. Now it’s getting late and you must get some sleep. I’ll make some breakfast in the morning and pack some extra food for your journey. I’ll tell Alfred you’re a friend of mine; there’s no need to tell him any more. I think you can trust him but it’s best not to say too much. Alright, now it’s time for us to go to sleep. I HOPE I DON’T NEED TO TAKE THE FRYING PAN TO BED WITH ME TONIGHT.” She smiled and went to her room.

I laid down on the floor to sleep and dream of Sarah.

Chapter Seven

Winifred was up before me and I heard her coming down the hall towards the kitchen. I woke myself up, took the pail out back filled it with water once more and returned to the kitchen. Winifred was preparing breakfast, and said Alfred would arrive as soon as it was light.

“I’m packing some food for you to take along. It’s not much, but it will see you through for a couple of days.”

I thanked her and said I hoped I would see her on my journey back so that she could meet Sarah. To which she replied, “I’ve already met Sarah.”

Shocked, I asked how she knew her, but all she would say is “I know a lot Stephen.”

All my entreaties and questions beyond that were just met with a smile and shake of the head. “You’re a fine boy Stephen, but you ask too many questions. Now eat your breakfast. You’ll need all your strength for the days ahead. Alfred will be here any minute and I want to get finished packing this lunch for you.”

I finished my breakfast just as Alfred arrived. He brought milk and cheese and bread and flour and oats and placed them all on the table. He looked at me then back to Winifred, “Who’s this then?”

“This is a friend of mine, Stephen, Stephen this is Alfred.”

I extended my hand, “Pleased to meet you.”

He took my hand and nodded.

“Alfred would you be so kind as to take Stephen with you to Winchester? He’s on his way west and would appreciate the ride. He won’t be any trouble and I’m sure it will be good company for you.”

Alfred looked me up and down. “How far west are you going?”

I told him Cornwall to visit a friend. He looked at me sceptically and said, “I’ll expect you to help unloading the cart, and if you’re any trouble you’re off.”

Winifred told him “He’s a fine boy and he’ll be no trouble, don’t worry.”

“Well we have to get moving so come on.” He turned and walked out the door.

Winifred put her hands on my shoulders and stared at me with her sightless eyes. “Stephen, promise me you’ll be careful. You have a long hard road ahead of you and there will be times when you think you can’t go on, but you have to keep going.” She put her arms around me, then ushered me out the door. “We won’t see each other for a long time. But we will meet again.” Before I could reply, she closed the door behind me. I turned to go back in, but Alfred started driving away. So with one last look back, I ran after the cart and climbed in.

We drove along in silence. As I watched the clouds rolling in, the wind picked up and Alfred said, “Looks like rain”, just as the first drops started falling. He pulled a heavy coat around himself and lapsed in to silence again. Within minutes, the rain was coming down in buckets. I had no coat so I pulled my jacket collar up round my neck and tried to stay as warm as possible. It continued raining for the rest of the morning, finally stopping when we reached the little village of Alton. We pulled up at an inn, “Stay here with the cart, there’s all sorts of thieves around here. I’ll be back in a while” and he disappeared inside.

Cold and wet I sat alone on the cart. The sun finally peeked through the clouds, so taking off my jacket I laid it on the horse hoping the sun and the warmth from the horse would help it dry. I opened the package that Winifred gave me and took a hungry bite of the bread and cheese sandwich. I was about to wrap it back up when I heard something jingling. Reaching inside I pulled out five shillings she had hidden there. I was still staring at it when Alfred came back out, so I quickly hid it in my pocket. He’d obviously had a few beers and was a little unsteady on his feet, but managed to climb back on to the cart without mishap. I retrieved my jacket from the horse and we were on our way once more. The drinks had obviously lubricated his vocal chords and he started talking for the first time that day.

“So Stephen how long have you known Winifred? She’s quite the old girl isn’t she?”

I told him I hadn’t known her very long although she seemed to think she’s known me for a long time.

“Hmm she’s a strange old bird; people keep away from her they say she’s got the evil eye. Bunch of old hogwash if you ask me, but people do like to gossip. Mind you she does seem to know a lot of what’s going on although she never leaves that house and she’s completely blind, so I don’t know how she knows what she knows.” He carried on in this vein for the next few miles. I nodded in agreement but I was so cold and my clothes were still soaking wet, so it was difficult to pay too much attention and I almost didn’t hear him when he said. “There was a report I heard that the police were looking for a boy about your age, he escaped from custody after having beaten and robbed some poor old man. You wouldn’t know anything about that would you?”

I told him no but he continued looking at me, and I turned away. He lapsed back into silence but as we continued our journey to Winchester I felt his eyes constantly turning towards me.

Reaching Winchester, it started to rain once more and I pulled my wet jacket back around my shoulders. We drove through the winding streets finally coming upon a large storage shed. Alfred stopped the cart, jumped down and banged on the shed door. A boy of about ten opened it. Alfred said something to him that I couldn’t quite hear. The boy came out, and led the horse inside. Turning to me he said, “Help the boy unload the cart, he knows where everything goes. I’ll be back by the time you’re done.”

I jumped down from the cart. The boy introduced himself as Tim and showed me where to put the load. We emptied the cart before Alfred returned, so I took off my wet clothes and using a piece of sacking dried myself off. I unwrapped my food, broke off some more bread and cheese and offered some to Tim. He ate it down hungrily then brought some milk, which we shared.

An hour went by and Alfred still hadn’t returned. Tim said he couldn’t wait any longer, he would have to lock the shed and Alfred would have to come back in the morning. He asked me if I had anywhere to stay. When I told him no, he said I couldn’t stay in the shed but there was a stable down the street and he’d show me where to get in. My jacket and shirt were still wet, but I pulled them back on and we left the shed together. Tim locked it behind us and guided me along the street to the stable. Stepping over a pile of garbage and old timbers, we went around to the back where he pried a loose board open. “You’ll be alright here this place hasn’t been used in months.”

I thanked him and told him I’d be on my way early in the morning. “Thank Alfred for the ride when you see him.”

I replaced the board and searched around for a comfortable place to sleep, took off my wet clothes once more and hung them to dry.

When I woke up the next morning, every bone in my body ached, my head was pounding and I couldn’t stop sneezing. I tried to stand up but my head started spinning and I fell back down leaning against the wall, ‘til the room stopped revolving. I crawled over to my clothes, they were almost dry, so putting them back on, I hugged my knees to my chest, in an unsuccessful attempt to stop the shivering. Lying back down I dozed fitfully until Tim shaking my shoulder awakened me. “Steve, Steve, wake up quickly.”

“What is it?” I mumbled.

“It’s Alfred.”

“What about him?”

“He’s dead”!

I dragged myself up to a sitting position, “What d’you mean he’s dead?”

“I just went back to the shed, his cart was still there so I did some cleaning up and went out the back to drop off some rubbish, and he was just lying there.”

“Are you sure he’s dead?”

“I’m pretty sure, there was a pool of blood around his head and he didn’t seem to be breathing.”

I asked him if anyone else had seen the body. He said he didn’t think so, so I holding on to the wall I stood up and asked him to take me back to the shed. We made our way back, my head pounding, my legs unsteady. The body was still there; when I touched his neck, it was cold.

“WHAT’S GOING ON HERE?” The man’s shadow fell over me. I tried to stand up but my legs wouldn’t support the rest of my body. “I don’t know we just found him.”

“Do you know him?”

I told him I’d come to town with him yesterday.

“Well we’d best get the police. You stay here.” Then to Tim, “You go fetch the police.”

Not the police! I couldn’t wait here while he brought the police! They would start asking questions and it wouldn’t be long before they found out who I was, even Alfred had been suspicious. What could I do? I could hardly stand let alone run. My mind wouldn’t operate, my head was hurting so much I was starting to lose my vision, and my body was so weak I couldn’t stand. But I have to get away. Think. But I just sat there sneezing and shaking.

I don’t know how long it was before the police arrived, and I found a constable shaking me awake. “Are you alright boy?”

For a minute, I didn’t know where I was and I thought maybe it was John waking me up at the Fox. “Should I go to the market now?”

“What market? What are you talking about boy?”

I wasn’t at the Fox! “Oh sorry I meant…”

“Do you know this man?” He was pointing to the body of Alfred.

“No… Yes…”

“Well do you know him or not?”

I broke into a fit of sneezing, followed by a coughing fit. When my body finally started responding to my brain I managed to tell him that I had come to town with him, but we had just met the day before.

After some further investigation of the murder, the policeman who’d questioned me, along with two others took the body away. He told Tim and me to come along to the police station while they continued their investigation. I pulled myself up and followed along. If I could just get my brain to work, maybe I could figure out how to get away from here, but my body just kept shivering, my brain wouldn’t function, and we reached the police station with no ideas entering my mind. Once inside we were told to sit down until we were called for. My body continued to tremble and as I sat down on the rough bench, I fell into a fitful sleep.

I woke up some time later. I had no idea how long I’d been sleeping. I just knew I was hungry cold and scared. Tim was asleep on the bench beside me. There were policeman, criminals, and victims all shouting at each other in an attempt to be heard above the noise they were all making. The policeman who’d brought us in was nowhere to be seen. My body had stopped shaking and I got up from the bench but dizziness overtook me, and I almost fell back down. I held onto the wall for support until the room slowed to a slow spin. I looked around and no one was paying any attention to me so I took a few steps towards the entrance then stopped again waiting until the spinning slowed once more. Still nobody paid any attention so holding onto the wall for support I walked out the front door.

The sun was low in the sky, and as I stepped outside it burned my eyes forcing me to cover them with my hand. Two policemen were standing there talking. They turned to look at me. My heart pounding, I turned from them, and walked away. I could feel their eyes staring after me, but with a supreme effort, I kept walking without looking back. There was a side street ten yards in front of me if I could just make it to there I’d be safe. I could feel my body aching and my head was spinning again, five yards to go, four, three t…

“Hey, you! Boy! Stop!”

Summoning all my remaining energy I kept walking.

“HEY.”

I reached the corner, turned, and ran blindly. I heard feet pounding behind and ran faster. I crashed into people, animals, garbage, carts, and walls, but I kept on running. I fell, I got to my feet, I ran, I collided with a cart, I ran, I fell, I felt blood on my face, I ran, I heard shouting behind me, I ran, I heard feet pounding, I ran, getting closer, I ran…