Blood Brothers (3 page)

‘Alice!’ He felt foolish, not really knowing what to say. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t see you there.’

Closing the distance between them, she smiled up at him. ‘That’s because you were so intent on comforting the bird.’

Reaching out, she stroked the bird along its velvet, feathery neck. ‘He’s a
falcon
, isn’t he?’

‘That’s right,’ Joe confirmed. ‘I don’t think he’s long out of the nest. Maybe he hasn’t yet learned the art of diving for his prey.’

‘What’s wrong with him?’ Whenever a creature was hurt, Alice felt it deeply. Sometimes, when she was worried or feeling lonely, the creatures gave her a great sense of peace and time-lessness.

Even as a child, she had always felt far safer with animals than with any human – including her parents.

She thought of her mother, always arguing and fighting, thinking only of herself. She was a cold person, cold and selfish. Yet she could not hate her, nor could she love her. That was her deepest regret.

‘Is he badly hurt?’ She turned her attention to the falcon.

‘His wing is damaged, but I think he’ll be okay,’ Joe assured her.

Alice glanced along the run of stables where the two work-horses had their heads over the doors and were looking out. ‘You could put him in the empty stable.’

Joe had already seen that possibility. ‘I’ll need to protect him from the cats and foxes.’ He looked about him. ‘There should be an old cage in here. It used to belong to my pet rabbit when I was a boy.’

‘I know it!’ Excited, she ran the full length of the barn and there, behind some old corn barrels, she located it: a small, wooden box with a door at the side. ‘Here it is!’ Pulling it out, she stood it on the barrel. ‘It doesn’t look broken or anything.’ She continued to examine it as Joe made his way down.

‘It’s perfect!’ Placing the fluttering bird in Alice’s safe hands, Joe quickly filled the cage with a bed of hay, then he rummaged about until he found a suitable piece of cane, which he used for a splint. Skilfully shaving off the sharp edges, he then snapped off a length of bale twine and while Alice held the bird close, he secured the splint along the falcon’s damaged wing. ‘That should hold.’

Collecting the bird from Alice, he placed it in the cage and secured the door. He then searched for something to fill with water. ‘This’ll do!’ After unscrewing the deep lid from the top of an old storage jar, he went to the side of the barn where he washed it out under the tap, then he filled the container with water and placed it inside the cage near to the falcon.

‘Oh look!’ Alice was thrilled when the injured bird shuffled slowly along and, stretching out to reach the water, took a drink.

‘That’s good!’ Joe was relieved. ‘He’ll be fine now. I’m just wondering…maybe he’d be safer inside the house until his wing is mended?’

‘No!’ Alice rejected the idea. ‘I know he might be safer,’ she agreed, ‘but he would be so unhappy. He should never
be put inside. Make him safe out here, where he won’t be too afraid. Please, Joe?’

When Joe looked down into those strong, blue eyes, he was deeply moved. ‘You’re absolutely right,’ he told her. ‘I wasn’t thinking.’

Quickly, he created a large harness out of a length of steel strapping. That done, he then secured it round the cage, and strung the cage from the rafters. ‘That way, it’ll be even more difficult for the foxes and cats to get at him.’

Together they went out of the barn and into the bright sunlight. There was something unique between them: a friendship born from shared experience.

Or something else, which was destined to have far-reaching and tragic consequences.

Inside the farmhouse, Tom was at the end of his tether. ‘Will you come away from that damned window. You’re making me nervous, to-ing and fro-ing, grumbling and muttering!’

He gave her an ultimatum. ‘Either you find something else to do, other than stand at the window fretting, or I’m off out down the pub to find a bit o’ peace…’

Nancy was past listening, because now she was hopping up and down on the spot, shouting at the top of her voice. ‘He’s here!’ With a screech of delight, she was out the door, leaving Tom with a parting rebuke, ‘I said he’d be here and I was right!’

Ambling to the door he watched as she ran headlong into Joe’s open arms. ‘That’s put a smile on her face.’ He observed Joe’s tall, capable figure, and that easy manner he had, and he felt proud. ‘Your mother’s missed you, son,’ he whispered. ‘We all have.’

He remained at the door for a moment, a smile on his face as he watched Joe swing his mother round in a hug. ‘It’s damned good to see you, Joe,’ he nodded his head. ‘When all’s said and done, it’s only right that you should be here to stand beside your brother.’

He began his way down the path, his gaze intent on Joe and Alice as they talked and laughed together.

Seeing them so close and natural had a deep, unsettling effect on him. Instinctively, he glanced towards the fields, looking for his eldest son; relieved to see that Frank was nowhere in sight, because if he had been, he would not have failed to see the magnetism between these two.

As he got nearer to the little group, Tom continued to chatter to himself, his voice a mingling of sadness and anger. ‘I’m no fool, Joe. Don’t think I didn’t see how you were, the first time you saw Alice. I’m sure you didn’t mean it to happen. I know you would never do anything to hurt your brother. That’s why you put a distance between yourself and Alice, but I can see now, you still have feelings for her.’

His voice hardened. ‘Remember, son…Alice and Frank are to be wed on Saturday, and you’ll be there to hand over the ring. In the eyes of the Lord and all that’s legal, they’ll be man and wife, and like it or not, you’ll be expected to give them your blessing.’

There was nothing more he wanted than to have all his family together. But thankfully, that was not about to happen. Besides, with two men, living under the same roof and wanting the same woman? His old heart sank. That would be a recipe for trouble, and no mistake!

‘Tom!’ Alice came running up the path to meet him. ‘Look! Joe’s here!’ Taking him by the hand, they approached Nancy and Joe, Alice all the while chattering excitedly. ‘I knew he wouldn’t let us down.’

Thrilled that at long last he was here to be Frank’s best man at their wedding, Alice reached up to kiss him on the cheek. ‘I forgot to thank you, Joe.’

‘Joe found an injured falcon,’ she informed them. ‘He’s made it safe in his old rabbit hutch.’

Joe was quick to hug his dad. ‘It’s really good to see you and Mum,’ he said fondly. ‘You’re both looking well.’

‘So are you, son, and I’ll want to know all about your travels later on.’ For now, he was interested in Joe’s find. ‘What’s all this about an injured falcon?’

‘Looks like a young one,’ Joe explained. ‘We’ve put a splint on its wing and bedded it down with a dish of water.’ He glanced towards the barn, ‘Given a few days I reckon it’ll be just fine.’

Tom grinned. ‘You haven’t changed, son,’ he said fondly. ‘You always did have a soft spot for anything injured.’

Glancing at his parents, Joe thought they hadn’t aged a day since he last saw them. ‘Look, Dad…Mum, I’m sorry I couldn’t make it earlier…’ he apologised. ‘Only…I had things to do…’

‘We understand, Joe love, and it’s all right. All that matters is that you’re home for the wedding,’ Nancy said warmly.

‘I’m glad to be here,’ Joe answered, though having seen Alice again, he suddenly wasn’t so sure.

Just a short while ago, he had started to feel more confident about being here. Until Alice had kissed him. With the warmth of her lips still burning his face, he realised more than ever how coming back here was a bad mistake.

But it was too late now. For all sorts of reasons.

Not a man for hugging, Tom gave his son a fond pat on the back. ‘Come on in, son. You can tell us what you’ve been up to.’

As the two of them went ahead, Nancy and Alice followed just a few steps behind.

Once inside the farmhouse, there was a real air of excitement. ‘Shall I go and get Frank?’ Alice asked eagerly. ‘He’s setting out the fencing posts in the top field.’

Tom thought that was a good idea. ‘Although, that fence needs finishing, but I expect you’d best run off and fetch him. No doubt he’ll be keen to see his brother. Matter o’ fact, he might want to take him into Bedford.’ He noticed how Joe
had only a canvas bag, which was strung over his shoulder and appeared to be half empty. ‘Happen Joe might need to buy a new shirt or two?’

Nancy was having none of it, ‘Frank is not taking him anywhere! At least not yet. Joe’s only just arrived. He must be worn out and hungry. Let him rest while I get us all something to eat.’

Turning to Alice, she informed her, ‘Oh, and by the way, Frank isn’t in the top field. I saw him earlier on. By the manner of his route, I imagine he was away to plough the rough area down by the brook.’

Alice thanked her. ‘I won’t be long,’ she promised. ‘I’ll tell him he’s to come home, and that we’re all taking time out for something to eat…is that all right?’

Nancy smiled. ‘That’s it. Oh, and don’t you forget what I said…no paddling in the brook. You might frighten the ducks.’

At that Alice laughed. ‘They don’t mind me,’ she said.

While Joe was watching the two women, Tom noticed how Joe’s gaze was instinctively drawn to Alice. Just before, when Alice thanked Joe with that innocent little kiss on the cheek, Tom sensed it had unsettled him.

It was nothing glaringly obvious, and it didn’t seem to have attracted anyone’s notice as such. Even Alice herself had not realised the effects of that grateful little kiss.

Tom had felt it though; just like before when Joe was first introduced to Alice. There was a kind of undercurrent; a strong, palpable presence that wrapped the two of them together and excluded everyone else from the room.

It was a dangerous thing, and one that deeply worried him.

It was painfully obvious to Tom that his youngest son still harboured strong feelings for his brother’s woman. If anything, his absence had only fuelled the need in him.

He was grateful that for the moment at least, both Alice and Nancy had failed to sense anything untoward.

The truth was, he didn’t really know how to deal with it, other than sending his son away; right now, with the wedding so near and everyone excitedly looking forward to it, that was no easy option. Besides, he didn’t have the heart to do such a thing.

All he could do was keep a close eye on things, because one thing was certain. Here was a worrying situation, which could easily escalate out of hand.

Emotions were powerful things. They could cripple a man.

And sometimes, however hard that man might try, it was hard to keep control.

C
ALLING AS SHE
ran, Alice went like the wind over the rise and on down to the brook. ‘Frank!’ She could see him in the distance, but he was too far away to hear her.

Quickly she ran towards him, her feet hardly touching the ground as she sped along. ‘Frank! Joe’s here!’ Her cries were lost to the elements.

Reaching the brook, she tore off her shoes and, holding them one in each hand, splashed her way through the cool water. When the water deepened, she climbed out to run the rest of the way, quickly closing the distance between her and Frank.

‘Frank!’ Unaware of her approach, he was intent on trying to start the tractor.

‘Frank, Joe’s here!’ She continued to shout his name.

Suddenly Frank turned and saw her. He saw how the wind had whipped up the red in her cheeks and he saw how anxious she seemed. ‘Alice!’ He went at the run towards her. ‘Why are you here? What’s happened?’ When, breathless and soaked to the waist, she ran into his arms, he feared the worst. ‘Alice! What’s wrong?’ His concern heightened when she was unable to catch her breath and speak.

‘He’s here!’ Gasping, she laughed up at him. ‘I’ve been sent to fetch you!’

Holding her at arm’s length, Frank demanded, ‘
Who’s
here?
Who
sent you to fetch me?’

‘Nancy! Your mother!!’ Having taken a long, deep breath she laughed out loud. ‘
Joe’s here!
He arrived just now; Nancy said I was to come and get you.’

When Frank didn’t respond, Alice asked worriedly, ‘Aren’t you pleased? I though you
wanted
Joe for your best man. Wasn’t that why you tracked him down, so you could ask him?’

‘Well o’course!’ Reassuring her, Frank drew Alice to him. ‘There’s nobody more thrilled than me to have him home for the wedding.’ Though now he was actually here, Frank was not so sure.

Pushing Alice away he took note of her flushed face, and the manner in which her wet dress clung to every curve. He felt a surge of anger. ‘For God’s sake…look at you! You’re soaked to the skin!’ For some inexplicable reason he resented her excitement at Joe’s arrival.

Grabbing his coat from the tractor, he threw it roughly round her shoulders. ‘What’s the matter with you?’ he demanded. ‘What have I told you about going in the brook? Why didn’t you send Jimmy down to find me?’

‘I didn’t know where Jimmy was.’ Her spirit deflated by his surly attitude, Alice spoke quietly. ‘I haven’t seen him.’

Seeing how her smile had fallen away, Frank was quick to apologise. ‘Sorry, Alice…it’s just that I hoped to get this work finished, and now I’ve got trouble with the damned tractor.’

Alice shrugged. ‘It’s all right, I understand.’ All the same, she was surprised at his sudden mood change.

‘I sent Jimmy to the barn to see if he could start the old tractor and fetch it down,’ he explained. ‘Oh, I know the old banger’s about had its day, but if he can start it, we might just manage to get this job done.’ His voice hardened. ‘That was over an hour ago, and he’s
still
not back!’

He glanced about. ‘Where the hell is he? You know what? I’m beginning to think he’s not up to farm work. I swear if he doesn’t soon buck up his ideas, I’ll kick his lazy arse out of it! I gave him a warning a couple of days ago, when I found him asleep in the hedgerow, and now you say he can’t be found, eh? Well, this is the last straw!’

‘I didn’t say he can’t be found,’ Alice corrected him, ‘I said I hadn’t seen him.’

‘Same thing!’

Just then, from somewhere in the distance, they heard the sound of an engine spluttering and coughing. ‘Would you believe it!’ Frank stretched his neck to see. Pointing to the plume of dark smoke rising through the air, he laughed out loud. ‘Well, I’m damned! He managed to get her going!’

Alice wasn’t sure if the time was right to remind him, but she did anyway. ‘What about Joe? He’s come back like you asked him, and Nancy said for you to come home, because she’s making us all a bite to eat.’

‘I can’t leave now!’ He scowled. ‘Surely you can see that?’

‘So, what will I tell her?’

Frank grew impatient. ‘Tell her whatever you like.’ He started running towards the tractor. ‘Joe won’t mind,’ he shouted. ‘He’ll not be going anywhere.’

Throwing off his jacket, Alice ran after him, but having just dashed all the way there and with a wet skirt lapping round her legs, she could hardly keep up. ‘Can’t you get Jimmy to hold the fort for an hour?’ she called back.

Coming to a halt, Frank waited for her to catch up. ‘Get Jimmy to hold the fort…that idiot?’ He shook his head in disbelief. ‘Use your common sense! Just tell them I can’t come back right now. If we don’t get on, the tractor might stop and if that happens, we’re buggered!’

He gave her a dismissive kiss on the mouth, before running on up the hill. ‘Don’t push her too hard, you damned fool!’
she heard him yelling at Jimmy. ‘It’s been a while since she were started up!’

He waited for Jimmy to get alongside. ‘Took you long enough, didn’t it?’ Frank grumbled. ‘Get down from there!’

Jimmy climbed down. It was not a graceful thing to see, for Jimmy Slater was a man of slow habit. Thick-built, he was not the most intelligent man on earth, nor the prettiest.

With his hair receding from a high forehead, he had a long, thick pony-tail which hung partway down his back. His bottom lip was wet and drooping and his big lolloping eyes were unnerving if they caught you in their sights.

‘I never thought I’d get it started.’ Covered from head to toe in patches of grease and oil, Jimmy Slater looked a comical figure.

After saying hello to Jimmy, Alice took her leave. ‘I’m sure I don’t know what’s got into him,’ she muttered as she went. ‘I’ve never seen him in such a bad mood.’ But knowing how important it was to get the ploughing done, she put it out of her mind.

All the same, by the time she arrived at the farmhouse, Alice was unusually low in spirit. ‘He’s right about Jimmy though,’ she admitted as she came up the path. ‘He
is
a bit of a daydream at times. I don’t suppose you can blame Frank for not trusting him with the ploughing.’

She said the very same when Nancy asked where Frank was. ‘Frank will be along soon as he can.’ She relayed Frank’s message word for word.

Nancy was more concerned about Alice. ‘I don’t need to ask how you got soaked,’ she tutted. ‘Away upstairs and into some of my old dry clothes before you catch your death o’ cold!’

Alice apologised. ‘I got soaked because I went the quickest way, and I went the quickest way because I needed to find Frank,’ Alice explained.

‘You should never wade through the brook,’ Nancy warned. ‘There are sharp stones and bits of debris lying at the bottom. You could have hurt yourself.’

‘Leave the girl be!’ Tom chipped in. He thought there were times when Nancy could be a bit too sharp. ‘Alice is a grown woman, about to be wed for goodness’ sake. Don’t treat her like a naughty child.’

Having only Alice’s welfare at heart, Nancy was mortified. ‘Oh, I’m sorry, Alice. Sometimes I let my tongue run away with me.’

Alice gave her a hug, ‘It’s really nice that you worry about me,’ she said gently. ‘I’ll go and get changed.’

Out the corner of her eye she could see Joe standing by the window, a cup of steaming tea in his hand and a mischievous look on his face. When their eyes met, he gave a reassuring smile.

Returning the smile, Alice made her way towards the stairs.

A short while later Alice returned, washed and dried; her hair tied back in a ribbon, and looking fresh in a pale cream-coloured dress with floral collar and wide belt. ‘Oh, Alice! You look pretty as a picture! I remember that dress from when I was young.’ Nancy ushered her to the table. ‘Now then, I’ve made you a cup of honey and hot milk. You’re to drink it straight down and no arguments, ‘cause it’ll keep the chills away!’

Outside, Tom and Joe were deep in conversation. Settling Alice at the table, Nancy drew Alice’s gaze to where the two men were sitting under the beech tree. ‘Tom’s eager to know what our Joe’s been up to, and Joe needs to know that we’re all right.’

A look of pride lit her homely features. ‘Joe’s been a fine son to us,’ she confided. ‘Oh, it’s not to say our Frank isn’t also a good lad, because of course he is. Only they have a different way of dealing with things.’

Curious, Alice asked her, ‘How do you mean?’

Nancy had a heart full of love for both her sons, but she was careful in her reply. ‘They’re different in nature, that’s all,’ she answered cagily.

‘In what way?’ Alice asked curiously.

Nancy thought about that. ‘Well now, let me see.’ She parked herself in the chair opposite Alice. ‘They’re both hard-working, and they’ve each got their good points,’ she emphasised. ‘But y’see, Joe is more a thinker than Frank; although I’m not altogether sure his dad would agree. What I mean is that our Joe will examine a problem from all angles before he makes a decision, while Frank is more impatient and impulsive. He’ll only see what he wants to see. He’ll often dive in at the deep end without weighing up the consequences first.’

She laughed. ‘He was the same as a boy…put the fear of God in me at times, he did!’

Almost oblivious to Alice’s presence, she began to reminisce. ‘I recall when Tom had his new fork lift delivered. Joe was only a toddler, while Frank was coming up to his sixth birthday. I was in the kitchen and I’d put young Joe outside in the wooden playpen…lovely thing it was. His dad made it for him.’

She hesitated, her face drawn up in a deep frown. ‘When I wasn’t looking, Frank carried his brother to the truck and tied him on to the forks. ‘Course little Joe thought it was all a game. When I saw what had happened, I ran out. By the time I got there, Frank was already in the driving seat, trying to start the engine.’ She gave a great heavy sigh. ‘It nearly gave me a heart attack!’

Having learned a little about the mechanics on a farm, Alice was horrified. ‘If Frank had started the engine and the forks had gone up, Joe could have been badly injured!’ She knew that much.

Nancy agreed, though she had never seen it as a deliberately cruel prank, more as Frank’s little game to amuse his baby brother.

She said so now. ‘Of course, Frank didn’t realise that Joe could have been injured,’ she said. ‘But his father was horrified. He gave Frank a bit of a spanking and put him to bed.’

Nancy chuckled. ‘He went wild, kicking and yelling, and wanting to come down. But his father said he was to stay there until he realised that what he had done was dangerous. Later on Frank apologised, and nothing like that ever happened again. Like I say…Frank’s a fine man but as a boy, he did have a bit of a temper.’ She could have said more. Instead, she turned her mind to other things.

Taking hold of Alice’s hand, she wrapped her two hands around it. ‘You’ll be so good for him, Alice,’ she said quietly. ‘You have a calming nature, and I’ve never known anyone to be so kind of heart. Oh! and you have such spirit, for a little thing!’

She looked down into Alice’s remarkable dark-blue eyes and she was convinced that here was a young woman who would be a match for Frank; not in a bullish way, but with her quiet, loving nature.

‘I’m so glad he met you,’ she told Alice. ‘There’s no one else I’d rather see him spend his life with.’

Afraid she might have said too much, Nancy was quick to assure Alice. ‘Frank adores the ground you walk on, did you know that?’

‘Yes, I know that,’ Alice said. ‘And I think the world of him too.’

Relieved, Nancy went on. ‘He’ll make a fine husband, like he’s been a fine son. To tell the truth, me and his dad don’t know what we’d have done without him this past year, what with Joe having gone away so sudden.’

‘Joe’s back now though,’ Alice pointed out. ‘Maybe he won’t ever go away again.’

‘I’m glad he’s back,’ Nancy admitted. ‘But to be honest, I’m not altogether sure he’ll stay.’

‘Why’s that?’

‘Because Joe has the wanderlust.’ Nancy would have been overjoyed if Joe made up his mind to stay home, and she confided as much in Alice. ‘We can but hope though, eh?’

Alice nodded in heartfelt agreement. She had known Joe for only a few hours, yet she felt like she had known him all her life.

Having opened up old memories, Nancy continued to sing Frank’s praises. ‘You’ll never want for a roof over your head with Frank to look after you. He has the makings of a good husband.’

‘And will
Joe
make some woman a good husband?’ Alice wondered aloud.

Nancy was quick to assure her. ‘Either one of my sons would protect his woman with his life, but unlike Frank, I don’t reckon a roof over his head would be our Joe’s first consideration.’

‘Really?’ Somehow, Alice was not surprised.

‘Yes, really! Y’see, whereas Frank would need the security of four walls and a roof round him, our Joe would never see that as a priority. I reckon as long as he’s got the sky above, the land under his feet and the open road before him, he’ll be content enough.’

‘So, is that where he’s been this past year…on the open road?’

Nancy fell silent for a moment. ‘Who knows? Since he’s been back, he hasn’t had a lot to say for himself. Not to worry though, because he was always a quiet soul. I expect he’ll confide in us when he’s good and ready.’

Just then, Tom returned from the garden. ‘Our Joe’s gone to give Frank a helping hand,’ he informed them. ‘Since falling off my horse some time back, I find it difficult walking all that way across the fields. It takes an effort just going upstairs at night. But Frank will be glad of Joe’s help, I’m sure.’

Nancy nodded. ‘Me and Alice were about to get dinner on
the table,’ she said. ‘So you’ve at least an hour before you’re needed. Why don’t you go and rest your gammy leg while you’ve got the chance?’

Tom didn’t need telling twice. ‘Good idea!’ Coming to the table, he collected his newspaper and went away.

Nancy groaned. ‘He spends more time with his precious four-legged nags than he does with me! I swear…if there was a fire and he had the chance to save one thing, it would be his blessed newspaper!’

Nattering to herself, she turned away and set about making the dinner.