Page 88 of The Pearl Sister
Kitty watched him as he walked towards the door. ‘Thank you,’ she managed to utter.
‘My pleasure, ma’am. Always here to serve.’
‘Ididsee an angel,’ she insisted as, exhausted from the conversation, she closed her eyes and slept again.
* * *
‘Mister Drum withum you night an’ day. Neva left your side. Only when I change you an’ dem stinkin’ sheets.’ Camira wrinkled her nose. ‘He good whitefella, he listen to me when I tellum no hospital.’
Kitty, who was sitting up in bed and doing her best to sip the watery, salty soup on the tray in front of her, studied Camira’s dreamy expression. She realised her nursemaid and helpmeet had completely fallen under the spell of ‘Mister Drum’ too.
‘He lovem you, Missus Kitty.’ She nodded firmly.
‘Of course he doesn’t! Or at least’ – Kitty tried to soften her gut reaction to Camira’s words – ‘he loves me like any brother-in-law should.’
Camira rolled her eyes in disagreement. ‘You lucky woman, Missus Kitty. Most fellas not good like-a him. Now, you eat an’ gettum strong for your boy.’
Two days later, Kitty felt confident enough to see Charlie without the sight of her terrifying him.
‘Mama! Are you better?’ he said as he ran into her arms and she felt the sheer life force in him.
‘Much better, Charlie darling. And oh, so very glad to see you.’
‘Papa said he would come home when Uncle Drum telegraphed him to say you were sick.’
Instinctively, Kitty’s stomach turned over, just as it had during the worst of her recent illness. ‘Did he? That is very kind of him.’
‘Yes, but then you got well, so Uncle Drum went back to the telegraph office to tell Papa, so he isn’t coming back.’
‘You must be disappointed, Charlie.’
‘Yes, but we have Uncle Drum to take care of us, and he looks exactly the same, but he’s funnier and plays cricket and swims with us. Why won’t Papa swim with us?’
‘Maybe he will if we ask him nicely.’
‘He won’t, ’cos he’s always busy with work.’ Charlie kissed her wetly on her cheek as his chubby hands went round her neck. ‘I’m glad you didn’t die. Me and Cat are going to help Fred build a hut in the garden.’
‘What hut?’
‘Our own house. We can live in it together and maybe eat our supper there sometimes.’ Charlie’s eyes pleaded with his mother. ‘Can we?’
‘Sometimes, maybe,’ Kitty agreed, too exhausted to argue.
‘And one day, we’ll get married like you and Papa. Goodbye, Mama. Eat your soup and get strong.’
Kitty watched him as he walked stoutly across the room. Even in the past few days, he seemed to have grown, both in terms of maturity and stature.
Although there was nothing wrong with childhood games, Kitty wondered once more whether she had made a mistake by entrusting Camira with so much of Charlie’s care, but all that was for another time. Kitty concentrated on finishing her soup.
The following morning, she insisted she was well enough to take a bath and dress. Food was still a problem – it made her feel nauseated every time she looked at it – but she did her best to eat. Charlie and Cat were busy in the garden with Fred, who was sawing and nailing their play hut together.
‘He’s a good man,’ Drummond commented over breakfast. ‘You’ve treated him and Camira with respect, and they’ve repaid you ten-fold.’
‘You’re a good man too. Thank you for caring for me while I was sick. I don’t know what I’d have done if you hadn’t been here.’
‘My pleasure, or, at least, my duty. I couldn’t have you die under my watch, could I? My brother would never have forgiven me. The good news is that it seems the epidemic is over in town, though Dr Suzuki has told me they’ve lost a dozen souls at the hospital and you can probably triple that in the shanty town. Sadly, Mrs Jefford was one of them.’
‘How tragic. I must write immediately to her husband.’
