Happy Wednesday to one and all! It's time for the Mid Week Tease! Where an amazing group of writers gather to tease you with an excerpt from a completed work or WIP. Please follow the links and show some love by reading and commenting on the writer's awesome work. It means so much to them.
This week my excerpt comes from a WIP, The Locket. Here, Sorcha begins her journey away from the family, across the Irish sea to England, where she has been offered a place in service.
This week my excerpt comes from a WIP, The Locket. Here, Sorcha begins her journey away from the family, across the Irish sea to England, where she has been offered a place in service.
Bad weather ensued
for the majority of the crossing. Heavy rain poured down and the wind
whistled around. Dark clouds hid all trace of the sun. The day was
truly a miserable one. Sorcha tried to smile as a tear ran down her
cheek. She missed being with the rest of the family already . The
unknown, although exciting, appeared slightly daunting too. She had
never met her employers and wondered what they were like.
It had been a
blessing when she had been offered this position in service. She was
really grateful for the work and after many hugs and tears dockside,
she promised to send money back to her mother in Ireland to help look
after the rest of the family.
She drew her random
colored knitted woolen shawl closer around her body to try and keep
warm, but it did not help much with keeping out the cold. Also, her
long plain dark dress was thin and shabby; one that had been passed
on to her, and she had altered herself to fit her own body.
Sorcha had few
belongings with her that she carried in an old faded carpet bag; a
change of clothes, a small purse that contained a few pennies, a jam
sandwich, the slice of cake she had been given and an apple. This was
a feast to Sorcha. She also had her treasured copy of The Bible.
Something that brought comfort in her dark moments.
When they docked at
Liverpool, a wave of great excitement rippled through the newcomers,
and they bumped into each other in their expectant descent to the
English port. Novum Vitae. New life, new beginning. Sorcha picked up
her bag, now wet from the rain and made her way to Terra Firma.
Various horse drawn
carriages were waiting, ready to collect people for the next leg of
their journey. Sorcha searched, but there was no indication as to
which was the one assigned to transport her. She went from one to
another in search, and had almost given up, when she noticed a
strange looking man walking toward her.
He was small, slight
in build with a weathered face. She guessed that he was in his
fifties. He wore patched trousers, a dark shirt and an open
waistcoat. None of his clothes were made from rich cloth, yet they
were slightly better than Orchard’s own. Around his neck he wore a
red scarf, made from an oddment of material, and a flat cap covered
his head. He removed this for a moment scratching his head which
hardly had any hair on it, and replacing the cap looked toward
Sorcha.
“Pardon me, but
are you waiting for someone miss,” he said in a low gruff voice.
“I’m supposed to
be collected here and taken to my new place of work. I was not given
the name of anyone to contact however.
“I’m waiting for
a Miss Sorcha O’Grady. Is that you?”
Sorcha looked him up
and down. She wished she‘d been given more travel details. Her
fingers dug into the handle of her bag nervously. “I’m traveling
to Richmond, London, to the Mellor household. I’m Sorcha. I’m not
used to traveling alone though.
The man smiled
kindly. The sort of smile that spread slowly across his face and lit
up his dark brown eyes, proving it’s ingenuity. “I’m so glad I
found you. I am to take you there. Now tell me. where is your
luggage?”
Sorcha picked up her
bag, saying that was all, and she would keep it with her. She
followed him to a wooden carriage drawn by four patiently waiting
chestnut horses.
“I’m Jack.”
said the man as he helped her step up, and get inside the carriage.
Although Sorcha
could understand his speech, Jack's gravelly voice had a dialect that
was completely alien to her. She wondered if everyone in England
spoke that way.
Jack sat up front
and took up the reins. “We'd better make a start,” he called
down. “It is a long journey and we have got to a make a headway to
an travelers inn halfway. We have to stop and rest there overnight.
So it would be the sensible thing if you try and get some rest.”
The
seats were upholstered, if somewhat narrow, and Sorcha put her bag at
her feet and tried to get comfortable.
She
was not the only traveler; another woman sat with a little girl, who
Sorcha guessed to be her daughter. The woman looked to be in her mid twenties
and Sorcha wondered if any husband was around. Her dark hair was
braided and held in place at the nape of her neck with an ornate
comb. She didn't say anything to Sorcha, however, just nodded an
acknowledgment, and after looking Sorcha up and down, and gave a
surreptitious sneer at the clothes that Sorcha wore. Then she turned
her head and looked out of the window, just occasionally looking back
and checking on the girl, telling her not to make too much noise.
******************
Naomi x
Poor Sorcha! Between the weather and the woman's greeting, her new life there isn't starting off well. I hope it gets better for her.
ReplyDeleteIt certainly isn't a good start.Thanks for your comment Jessica.
ReplyDeleteWhat an exciting and frightening experience. Thanks for sharing it with us!
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading, Angelica
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