Page 29 of The Pearl Sister
‘The point is, as you know, that Mrs McCrombie has family in Australia, whom she hasn’t seen for many years, namely her youngest sister, her brother-in-law and two nephews who live in a town called Adelaide on the south coast. She has decided that while she is still in good health, she should go to visit them.’
‘Yes, Father.’
‘And . . . she is looking for a companion to accompany her on the long journey. Obviously, the girl must come from a good Christian home and also be able to assist her in the care of her wardrobe, dressing her and the like. So . . . I have suggested you, Katherine. You will be away for nine months or so, and having discussed it with your mother, I feel it’s a wonderful opportunity for you to go and see some of the world, and at the same time, settle that restless spirit of yours.’
Kitty was so shocked at his suggestion, she had no idea how to answer him. ‘Father, really, I am quite content here. I—’
‘It is in you, Kitty, just as it was once in me before I found the Lord . . .’
Kitty watched his eyes leave her face and travel to somewhere far distant in his past. Eventually, they came to focus back on her. ‘I know you are searching for a purpose, and let us pray you will find it through being a good wife and mother one day. But for now, what do you say?’
‘In truth, I hardly know what to say,’ she replied honestly.
‘I will show you Australia in the atlas. You may have heard that it is a dangerous and uncharted country and it is certainly full of heathen natives, although Mrs McCrombie assures me that the town of Adelaide is as civilised a society as Edinburgh. Many of our faith sailed there in the 1830s to escape from persecution. She tells me there are several beautiful Lutheran and Presbyterian churches already built. It is a God-fearing place and under Mrs McCrombie’s wing, I have no hesitation in sending you there.’
‘Will I . . . will I be paid for my services?’
‘Of course not, Katherine! Mrs McCrombie is funding a berth for you and covering all other expenses. Do you have any idea how much such a trip costs? Besides, I think it’s the least our family can do, given what she has so generously donated to our church over the years.’
So I am to be offered as a living, breathing sacrifice in return . . .
‘So, my dear. What do you think of that then?’
‘Whatever you believe is best for me, Father,’ she managed, lowering her eyes so that he couldn’t see the anger contained within them. ‘But what about Mother when the baby arrives? Surely she will need my help?’
‘We have discussed that, and I have assured your mother that when the time comes, I will see that funds are available to hire extra help.’
In all her eighteen years at the manse, there had never been ‘funds’ to ‘hire extra help’.
‘Katherine, speak to me,’ Ralph implored her. ‘Are you unhappy about this arrangement?’
‘I . . . don’t know. It . . . has all come as a surprise.’
‘I understand.’ Ralph leant down and took her hands in his, his mesmeric eyes boring into hers. ‘Naturally you must be confused. Now, you must listen to me. When I met your mother, I was a captain with the 92ndHighlanders and our futures looked set. Then I was sent to fight in the Boer War. I saw many of my friends – and enemies – extinguished by the fire of other men’s rifles. And then I myself was shot at the Battle of Majuba Hill. In hospital afterwards, I had an epiphany. I prayed that night that if I were saved, I would dedicate my life to God, give every breath to try to halt the injustice and the bloody murder that I’d seen. The following morning, with the doctors not expecting me to last the night, I woke up. My temperature was down and my chest wound healed within days. It was then I knew and understood what my future path would be. Your mother understood too; she is full of God’s love herself, but in doing what I felt I must, she has suffered, and so have you and your sisters. Do you see, Katherine?’
‘Yes, Father,’ Kitty answered automatically, although she didn’t.
‘This journey to Australia with Mrs McCrombie is an opening to the kind of society that your mother’s family is part of. Just because I feel a need to save souls does not mean that the future of my daughters should be curtailed. I am sure that if you acquit yourself well on this trip, Mrs McCrombie would be happy to introduce you to a wider circle of young gentlemen both here and in Australia that might make a more suitable match for you than I ever could, given our humble financial status. She knows of my sacrifice to further the Lord’s work and of the aspirations of your mother’s family in Dumfriesshire. She wishes to do her best for you, Katherine. And so do I. Now then, do you understand?’
Kitty looked at her father, then at the soft hands that were clutching hers, and an unbidden memory of a moment similar to this made her withdraw them. Finally, she understood all too well the machinations of her father’s mind and his plan to rid himself of her.
‘Yes, Father, if you think it best, I will go with Mrs McCrombie to Australia.’
‘Wonderful! Of course, you will need to meet with Mrs McCrombie so that she can see for herself what a good girl you are. And you are, aren’t you, dear Katherine?’
‘Yes, Father.’ Kitty knew she must leave the room before her anger overflowed and she spat in his face. ‘May I go now?’ she asked coldly, rising from her chair.
‘Of course.’
‘Goodnight.’ Kitty dipped a curtsey, then turned tail and almost ran out of the study and upstairs to her bedroom.
Closing the door and locking it behind her, she threw herself onto her bed.
‘Hypocrite! Liar! Cheat! And my poor mother – yourwife– expecting a child too!’ She spat the words into her pillow. Then she cried long, stifled sobs of despair. Eventually, she stood up, put on her nightgown and brushed her hair in front of the mirror. Her reflection glowed pale in the gaslight.
You know that I see through you, Father. And that is why you are sending me away.
7
