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Chapters (52)
  1. Cover
  2. Margaret Dickinson
  3. Dedication page
  4. Contents
  5. Part One
  6. One
  7. Two
  8. Three
  9. Four
  10. Five
  11. Six
  12. Seven
  13. Eight
  14. Nine
  15. Ten
  16. Eleven
  17. Twelve
  18. Thirteen
  19. Fourteen
  20. Fifteen
  21. Sixteen
  22. Part Two
  23. Seventeen
  24. Eighteen
  25. Nineteen
  26. Twenty
  27. Twenty-One
  28. Twenty-Two
  29. Twenty-Three
  30. Twenty-Four
  31. Twenty-Five
  32. Twenty-Six
  33. Twenty-Seven
  34. Twenty-Eight
  35. Twenty-Nine
  36. Thirty
  37. Thirty-One
  38. Thirty-Two
  39. Thirty-Three
  40. Thirty-Four
  41. Thirty-Five
  42. Thirty-Six
  43. Thirty-Seven
  44. Thirty-Eight
  45. Thirty-Nine
  46. Forty
  47. Forty-One
  48. Forty-Two
  49. Sow the Seed
  50. Note
  51. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
  52. Copyright page

Kate drew in her breath sharply and, tears glistening in her eyes, she reached out with trembling fingers to take the shell once more into her hands. ‘Oh, Mam, thank you. Thank you. Yes, yes, that’s it. The whelk shell Danny gave me. Oh, thank goodness you found it. Was it amongst me things?’

‘You were rambling about a shell when you were ill and when Danny—’ Kate saw her mother glance swiftly at Jonathan and then away again. ‘When Danny came to visit you, he told me all about it. I realized it was . . . important to you.’ Her mother’s voice dropped and she gave the faintest of sighs.

There was a pause and Kate prompted, ‘And?’

Esther was smiling again, ‘When I was taken up to the dormitory to pack your things up, I searched especially for the shell. It wasn’t there. So,’ Esther continued, enjoying the retelling of her tale, ‘I demanded that it be found.’

‘Oh Mam, you didn’t!’ Kate squeaked, but she was laughing with joy at the scene her mother was painting.

‘I did,’ Esther said firmly, and once more her eyes were sparkling. ‘I waited until every girl in your dormitory was fetched from class and made to go through her belongings. And,’ she finished triumphantly, ‘it was found in the chest of drawers belonging to Isobel Cartwright.’

Kate was not surprised and said so. ‘She was one of the three girls who were so horrid.’

‘You can forget all about that dreadful place, Katie love, and all the people in it. You won’t ever have to see any of them again,’ her mother said. ‘You’re safe home with us now. And I – I won’t send you away again.’

Kate bounced up from the chair and hugged her mother. Esther’s arms came tightly around her. Everything was all right – her mother really did love her.

And yes, she was safely home; with her mother, her stepfather – and Danny.

Twelve

‘Mam – I must go and look at the sea, I Just must!’

‘Well – all right then. But no paddling, mind. I know you, Kate Hilton. Get a bit of winter sunshine and ya reckon ya can act like it’s midsummer!’

Kate grinned at her mother and was rewarded by Esther Godfrey’s wonderful smile. ‘Eh, but it’s good to see you better, love. You’re still a bit thin and pale, though. I dun’t want you taking risks and getting another chill.’

‘I won’t, Mam. Just look how I’m muffled up in this coat and scarf – and a hat!’ she finished scathingly. Kate had never before worn a hat even when it snowed.