Free The Liverpool Rose by Katie Flynn

and so I were ‘til that evil, misbegotten bugger crippled me like he done. Now Iain’t got no choice, I’ll have to stay aboard ‘til me foot heals. They won’t take me in the mill whiles I’m lame as a butcher’s dog.’
    Clem had wondered what Priddy was doing when she went below but as Bert finished his speech all became clear. The old woman bent and picked up a meal sack which she flung on to the towpath, giving a cackle of laughter as she did so. ‘You telled us you were leavin’, and glad I was to be rid of you, you idle, greedy young blighter,’ she said roundly. ‘Never a day has passed since you joined us but I’ve had to clear up after you because you’ve not even tried to learn how things should be done. You’re sent off to put Hal into a stable, to rub him down, pick out his hooves and see he’s snug for the night, and all you ever do is drag the harness off the poor critter and leave him all of a muck sweat and without so much as a mouthful of hay or water, come to that. Oh, Jake’s a big softie, and he were mortal fond of your mother and felt he had a duty to see you right, but all that went overboard when you said you was goin’, no matter how much we begged.’ She pointed to the sack which had tipped over as it hit the towpath, spilling out its unlovely contents of worn clothing, split boots and remnants of food. ‘There’s your stuff, young Bert. Now just you clear orf ’cos I don’t never want to see your spiteful face agin, d’you hear me?’ She turned to Clem. ‘Don’t you take no notice of him, young ’un, just you hop aboard and I’ll show you where you can stow your bag. Then Jake will get aboard the butty boat – that’s the boat we’re towing – while you lead the horse. He’s a grand feller, is Hal, he’ll do most of the leading to tell the truth, but as it’s a warm day you may have to give a good tug on the bridle when we reaches a dogwash.’
    ‘Dogwash?’ Clem said interrogatively, taking the bridle from Jake’s hand and slinging his ditty bag on to the deck of the boat.
    ‘That’s right, dogwash,’ Jake confirmed. ‘Ain’t you never noticed them sort of ramps leading from the towpath into deep water? Them’s been ’specially built so’s horses what fall into the ’oggin can swim along until they reach the nearest ramp, then they can scramble out wi’ no harm done.’
    ‘I didn’t know horses fell into the canal,’ Clem shouted above the roars and shrieks Bert was giving as the older boy tried to clamber back aboard the boat, only to be fended off by Priddy, vigorously wielding a bass broom. ‘Hal’s a big feller, is it deep enough for him to swim?’
    ‘I telled you to make yourself scarce and if you don’t go I’ll come ashore meself and tell old Hal to roll on ye,’ Priddy shouted, catching Bert a thump over the ear with the broom, which made him roar louder than ever. She glanced behind her as another boat appeared, heading fast towards them, with steam billowing from its short smoke stack. ‘Ah, here come the Hortons. They’ve never forgiven you for pushing little Elsie into the water just because she reached the lock gates first. When I tells ’em we want rid o’ you, they’ll give a hand to chuck you right into the middle of the water at the first lock we reach.’
    Bert appeared to take this threat seriously for grumbling mightily, he began to jam his possessions back into the meal sack and presently set off along the towpath in the direction from which they had come.
    ‘Ho! I see you’ve forgot your limp – left it on The Liverpool Rose, I daresay,’ Priddy shrieked after him. For an old lady without a tooth in her head she certainly made up for it by the strength and shrillnessof her voice, Clem considered. He had noticed her bare pink gums the first time she had smiled at him and thought her face as engaging as a baby’s; could even discern signs of the prettiness which had once been hers in her large, long-lashed brown