Free Sarah Thornhill by Kate Grenville

but he glanced at her and saw the smile was false. Looked at everyone else’s plates, where they’d left that scrap of food you were supposed to. We all watched him see that he was the only one who’d applied himself so well that his plate gleamed.
    Oh no, Mrs Thornhill, he said. I’m all right.
    I’d never thought he could sound like that, uncomfortable, uncertain.
    Jack, lad, Pa said, loud down the table. You’re among friends here, we got plenty of victuals. Anne, bring some more fowl for Jack, and a good spill of gravy with it.
    Anne came over and doled Jack out some more fowl and a ladle of gravy, another potato. We all watched, no one said anything. Pa saw he’d made it worse.
    Over here now, Anne, he said. Give us a bit of that dark meat, and a potato.
    Yes, me too, I said.
    Daunt glanced at my plate where there was still half a potato and a piece of meat.
    You can go to billy-oh, John Daunt, I thought. I’ll not see Jack made a fool of.
    The three of us set to labouring through our plates of food.
    Now Mrs Thornhill, Daunt said. I couldn’t help admiring your grand roses. Splendid blooms. The climate here.
    Casting around, you could hear, for something to put into the silence, and then his voice changed, he’d thought of what to say.
    Now I have to tell you I never liked a rose bush, he said. Not since I was a boy. My mother had a fine bed of them and I had a hoop, you know the kind of thing, and this particular day I’m spinning it along and it gets into the middle of those roses. Well, I went in after it and you’ll not believe but I got pinned by those thorns as fast as a rabbit in a trap. Oh, I set up a cry. Just a lad, you see, thought I’d be there for the rest of my life. Thought they’d have to poke my dinner through to me on a stick.
    He paused for a laugh and we all obliged.
    The gardener came along and plucked me out, he said. Which was all well and good, only I left my breeches behind on a bush and never from that day to this could I have a rose in the room with me.
    I saw that being ugly, Daunt had made himself handsome in this way, that he could tell a story, and didn’t mind if it was at his own expense.
    But not everyone was listening. Mary and Campbell had their heads together, having a conversation quiet enough to be private, and at the end of the meal she took me aside.
    Mr Campbell told me, he’s most interested to see along the river, Dolly, she said. Him and Mr Daunt. I told him we’d take them out on the horses.
    Along the river, I said, but what’s interesting?
    Open your eyes, Dolly, she hissed. For God’s sake.
    I woke up then to how the land lay. Happy enough to have a ride, and good luck to her if she had plans.

P HILLIP HAD the horses saddled up out in the yard. Daunt was beside me, saw it was just the four.
    Well now, he said. I’m wondering, Miss Sarah, if one of your brothers might not want to join us. Or Mr Langland.
    He’d picked up what Mary and Campbell was up to, I could see, and didn’t care to be paired off with me. Nearly laughed in his face, the idea I might want to set my cap at him! Went back through the house to where Jack and Pa had got settled on the verandah, puffing away on their pipes. It looked like Will and Bub had already made themselves scarce.
    Mr Langland, you’ll come with us riding, I hope? Daunt said. And Mr Thornhill, I mean your son, sir, if he can spare the time? Show us the lie of the land?
    I thank you, Mr Daunt, Jack said. Thank you kindly. But Will’s gone up the river on a visit and I’m happy here along with Mr Thornhill.
    I did a thing with my mouth behind Daunt’s back, to say Rather be here with you, but he wasn’t looking. Smarting still, I thought, from Ma making a monkey of him in front of everyone.
    You’re a proud man, Jack Langland, I thought, and I love you for it.
    Mary looked sideways at me when I pulled on the old pair of