Midweek Tease ~ 24 February 2016: The Locket

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.

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. 

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Naomi x