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Chapters (73)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. PART ONE
  4. ONE
  5. TWO
  6. THREE
  7. FOUR
  8. FIVE
  9. SIX
  10. SEVEN
  11. EIGHT
  12. NINE
  13. TEN
  14. ELEVEN
  15. PART TWO
  16. TWELVE
  17. THIRTEEN
  18. FOURTEEN
  19. FIFTEEN
  20. SIXTEEN
  21. SEVENTEEN
  22. EIGHTEEN
  23. NINETEEN
  24. TWENTY
  25. TWENTY-ONE
  26. TWENTY-TWO
  27. TWENTY-THREE
  28. TWENTY-FOUR
  29. TWENTY-FIVE
  30. TWENTY-SIX
  31. TWENTY-SEVEN
  32. TWENTY-EIGHT
  33. TWENTY-NINE
  34. THIRTY
  35. THIRTY-ONE
  36. THIRTY-TWO
  37. PART THREE
  38. THIRTY-THREE
  39. THIRTY-FOUR
  40. THIRTY-FIVE
  41. THIRTY-SIX
  42. THIRTY-SEVEN
  43. THIRTY-EIGHT
  44. THIRTY-NINE
  45. FORTY
  46. FORTY-ONE
  47. FORTY-TWO
  48. FORTY-THREE
  49. FORTY-FOUR
  50. PART FOUR
  51. FORTY-FIVE
  52. FORTY-SIX
  53. FORTY-SEVEN
  54. FORTY-EIGHT
  55. FORTY-NINE
  56. FIFTY
  57. FIFTY-ONE
  58. FIFTY-TWO
  59. FIFTY-THREE
  60. PART FIVE
  61. FIFTY-FOUR
  62. FIFTY-FIVE
  63. FIFTY-SIX
  64. FIFTY-SEVEN
  65. FIFTY-EIGHT
  66. FIFTY-NINE
  67. SIXTY
  68. SIXTY-ONE
  69. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
  70. Keep Reading …
  71. About the Author
  72. Also by Barbara Taylor Bradford
  73. About the Publisher

‘I can’t wait!’ Patrick picked up Blackie’s suitcase and said, ‘See yon door, on the left, Blackie? Open it and go upstairs. That’s the bedroom floor above us.’

Blackie did as he was told, and bounded up the narrow stairs, which were actually covered in a patterned runner held down with brass rods. At the top he stood on a cramped landing, waiting for his uncle to arrive.

‘This is your room,’ Patrick announced a moment later, opening a door. It was a small room, but Blackie liked it at once. There was a single bed along one wall, a chest of drawers against another, a rag rug on the wooden floor and a small polished desk under the window. It gleamed in the light of the gas lamp on the wall, and caught Blackie’s eye.

‘I can see you like the room,’ his uncle said, and placed the suitcase on the bed. ‘This door opens on a cupboard,’ Patrick explained. ‘And your boots can go on the floor in there as well. I think you’ve plenty of space for your belongings, don’t you?’

‘Oh, I do, I do, Uncle Pat. Lots. I don’t own much, ye know,’ he confided and sounded rueful as he spoke.

‘You’re only thirteen, Blackie. I didn’t own much at your age either.’ Walking over to the window, Patrick smoothed his hand over the desk. ‘I noticed you were impressed with this piece,’ he said. ‘It shines in this way, looks extra glossy because it’s been French polished. That’s a special method I will teach you later on.’

‘It does look nice, Uncle Pat. And thank ye for everything.’ For once, words failed him.

‘Pleasure, lad. Now, tucked in here is a lavatory and a bath.’ He went out of the room.

Blackie sounded surprised when he said, ‘I’m used to an outhouse.’ He followed his uncle as he spoke.

‘Everyone is, and I decided I would take a narrow slice out of that room …’ Patrick stepped forward on the landing and opened a door. ‘I did the work in here myself, including the plumbing, all of it. So we are comfortable now, and there’s no reason for an outhouse.’

Blackie went inside, guided by Patrick, made a mental note of everything he saw and grinned. ‘What a luxury,’ he murmured. ‘Well, life is full of surprises.’

Patrick chuckled. ‘Wash up, Blackie, and then come on downstairs. Don’t be unpacking now. You can do it later.’

EIGHT

‘I’m not a fancy cook,’ Eileen confided to Blackie when he peered into the small kitchen behind the parlour. ‘But I try to make my specialities tasty.’