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Ever yours, May.

Lowri sent Maud to the clos with a note for Josi. ‘Josi, I need you. Please come at once whatever you’re doing.’

He came at once. ‘Whatever’s the matter with you? Lowri, you’re white as a potato. Sit down this minute.’

She sat down and passed him the letter. ‘Oh, Josi, I’m glad to have you to turn to,’ she said. He said nothing for a long time.

‘Well,’ he said at last. ‘It’s good news really because it shows that May hasn’t changed her mind, but has been deceived. You shall show the letter to Tom and I shall go to fetch Sali and bring her back here with me and here she shall stay until May comes back. Then she shall confess her lies to May and we’ll all put it behind us and forget all about it. Take this to Tom.’

‘Don’t frighten Sali. I think she’s suffering from some mental trouble. My mother was talking to Mr Isaacs about her one Sunday and he advised her to take her to see Dr Rhys Vaughan and she said she would as soon as they can afford his prices.’

‘I won’t frighten her, merch-i. It’s the truth we’re looking for not revenge. She’s my sister-in-law remember and I’m quite fond of the daft little creature.’

Tom wrote to May. The letter took him a great deal of effort and time. Several times he left it and they heard him walking about. His leg was giving him a great deal of discomfort as though it was suffering with him. At last the letter was ready and Josi, not prepared to trust the little post box in the village, cycled to put it in the post office in town.

Sali was in the house and had been given a bed in Maud and Lottie’s room. Maud said she was crying a great deal, but wouldn’t accept that she had lied to May.

‘Does she really believe this story she’s invented? Is she sane, say?’ Catrin asked. ‘We’re not going to punish her. She knows that all we ask is that she tells May that she never had an affair with Tom and that she isn’t Mari Elen’s mother.’

‘I’ll have to tell Sali about Miriam,’ Lowri said. ‘I think we probably made it too much of a secret and she was too young to understand the truth. She’ll remember Miriam because she was her teacher and I remember she cried when she left school. She’s old enough now to understand these things. I’ll take her some tea and talk to her, make her understand how wrong she’s been.’

Sali seemed to cry less after Lowri’s talk and she started to help Maud round the house.

Tom’s letter must have had the right effect because May promised to come again on the Friday on the same train as she had before. It was to be their second chance. She agreed not to break off their engagement. They would be married in the spring of next year, February was her birthday month. Would Tom have any objections to a small February wedding?

Tom, walking about like a man in a trance, seemed to have no objections.

Chapter ten

This time Lowri had a wonderful meal ready for May. It seemed to everyone a pre-celebration of the wedding to come. Sali was brought in and though she wasn’t prepared to say she had lied, she did manage to say that she was sorry to have given offence. It wasn’t enough for Graham Andrews. ‘All right,’ he said, ‘if you are the mother then how was it that I brought Mari Elen into the world just over four years ago and to a Miriam Lewis, spinster of this parish. If I were to examine you, Sali, I feel sure that I would find you a virgin. Are you trying to tell us that you are the second virgin mother? And that Mari Elen is some sort of freak? Tell us. You have been a very wicked girl and I think you are being dealt with too kindly.’

‘That’s enough, Graham,’ Josi said, suddenly head of the family. ‘I want you to remember, please, that she is my wife’s sister and related to all of us. You may go now, Sali. We all think you’ve been very foolish but not wicked. You and the other girls can finish off the sherry trifle between you as long as you remember to leave a portion for Mari Elen’s breakfast.’

‘Is she all right, Lowri?’ he asked his wife. ‘Go and see that she’s not crying, will you love?’

‘Very, very wicked girl,’ was all Graham would say, so that at last Catrin lost her temper and said, quite kindly, ‘Oh shut up you silly old fool. Stop trying to behave like your terrible old ancestors.’

He smiled at that, only complaining that he could have done with a second helping of the trifle.

The next day was full of sunshine. The week had been cold and rainy, but that Saturday was glorious. Lowri went off to town with Gwenllian to buy her the best possible bike: ‘a good strong one allowing for growth and made for riding five miles to school every day, good brakes and three gears. Pretend to let Gwenllian choose but guide her choice.’

‘Right,’ Lowri said, ‘leave it to me. We’ll be home on the ten past twelve.’

If Lowri had not been in town, she might have noticed Mari Elen’s disappearance much earlier. As it was, it was nearly one o’clock before she suddenly said, ‘Where’s the child? Where’s Mari Elen?’

Tom was sure he’d seen her with her father. ‘She was here when we had coffee wasn’t she?’

‘No,’ May said, ‘I haven’t seen her since breakfast when she had a boiled egg followed by a big helping of trifle. She hasn’t been in since then. She wasn’t with Josi when he came in for dinner.

‘No, I haven’t seen her all morning,’ he said when asked.

They sent to Mrs Prosser to ask whether Mari Elen been there playing with Rhian, but Mrs Prosser hadn’t seen her that morning.

‘Is Sali here?’ Lowri asked Maud, who was carrying in the dinner.

‘No, she went back home this morning.’

‘She surely didn’t take Mari Elen with her?’ Lowri asked, suddenly feeling frightened.

For once, Graham arrived at the right time for a meal, but he wasn’t allowed to sit. ‘Graham dear, you must go out at once to look for Mari Elen. We’re afraid that Sali might have taken Mari Elen with her. I don’t know where they went. Try their house first. Lowri, perhaps you ought to go with him.’

‘I’ll go with him,’ Josi said. ‘Lowri, don’t worry. We’ll have her back in no time. They can’t have gone far.’

Sali’s mother hadn’t seen her. She hadn’t known how long they wanted her daughter to stay at Hendre Ddu, so she didn’t know when to expect her. Was she in trouble?’

‘No. We think she’s got Mari Elen with her, that’s all, and we want to make sure they’re safe.’

The mother promised to send word to them as soon as they turned up. Josi felt frightened because she was so obviously worried. No word came all afternoon. Everyone became very worried. How much money did Sali have? Her mother wasn’t sure. Sali wasn’t working at the moment but she had certainly had some money for helping on the day of the funeral. She had given her nothing.

‘Mari Elen has some money,’ Lowri said. ‘I don’t know how much. She keeps it an old toffee tin in her room. I’ll go to see if it’s still there. It’s only coppers, of course.’

It wasn’t, there was not a penny left in the old tin. The two must have decided to go somewhere. Maud and Lottie were asked if they’d heard the girls discussing any plans, but they hadn’t. They could only say that Sali seemed to have some sort of power over Mari Elen. Mari Elen seemed rather frightened of her, Maud thought. Both girls were given leave to search all the farm buildings and Josi said the person to find the girls would be given a substantial reward. The young servant lad was offered the same. ‘Any sighting, any news. Ask everyone you see. Leave no stone unturned.’

It was the gwas bach, Hywel, who brought them the first news. He’d had the good sense to cycle to the station to ask if anyone there remembered seeing a small girl and her nursemaid on the platform and a porter had scratched his head and said, yes, he’d seen them. They were off somewhere from the other platform. He’d remembered seeing them crossing the bridge. They looked very excited, he remembered that, as though they were off to the seaside for the day. No, there was no bucket and spade, but the child was carrying a toy rabbit or a teddy bear, he remembered that too. The ticket office was closed and wouldn’t be open until the following morning at seven. When had the girls been seen? It was before nine o’clock that morning.

Hywel was thanked and praised for his initiative. He was given half a crown and a slice of fruit cake for his reward.

‘They’ll come back this evening, won’t they?’ Catrin asked in a shaky voice. ‘They won’t dare stay out overnight.’

They sat and waited, getting more and more worried. Graham was dispatched to the station to meet every train arriving that evening. He came back after the last train had arrived.

Josi spoke. ‘Tomorrow we’ll have to contact the police. Perhaps we ought to do it tonight. If they’re out roaming the streets they would be more visible late at night, Where did they go?’

Sali’s mother sent word to say that the Sunday School trip was to Aberystwyth the previous year and that Sali had loved the town and had talked of it ever since. Was there a train to Aberystwyth at the time they’d been spotted in the station?

‘I’ll take you to Aberystwyth, Josi,’ Graham said. ‘We’re not going to get any sleep if we do nothing. Let’s go. The police there may have some news.’

But there was none. There’d been no report of anyone who seemed lost. The policeman on duty promised to send word if there should be any sighting the next day.

There was absolutely nothing they could do but wait for news. Sunday seemed endless. The strain was telling on all of them, May and Tom quarrelling about nothing, as though they were already an old married couple.

In the
Western Mail
on Monday morning there was news of a young woman attempting suicide by walking out beyond her depth in Tenby. She had been saved by a fisherman who had happened to notice her, dragged her out of the water and taken her to hospital. Lowri and Josi hired a car and visited her that very afternoon.

It was Sali, very wan and ill, still in danger but refusing to answer any questions about Mari Elen. She didn’t know what had happened, she didn’t know, she didn’t care, she wanted to die, she wanted them to go. She turned away from them and eventually the nurse on duty asked them to leave since they were obviously distressing her.

They couldn’t leave Tenby. They felt nearer Mari Elen there, even though they had no idea where she was. They contacted the police who promised to let them know if they heard anything, but they still couldn’t bring themselves to leave the town. Hoping Tom and May would understand, they decided to stay on in one of the hotels on the front.

After the evening meal they tried to talk to some of the staff. Where would a four-year-old child left on her own in the town be likely to find shelter? Could anyone help them? Did they know of any person who knew just about everything that went on in the town. Some sort of unofficial newsgatherer. Yes, there was such a man and his name was Dai Kyffin. How could they find him? He was usually drinking in one or other of the town’s pubs. Everyone knew him. Only get on the right side of him by buying him a drink or two and he would help them for sure. Yes, Dai Kyffin was the man to help them.

They left at once, promising to reward anyone who had helped find the child.

But Dai Kyffin didn’t seem to be out that night. They visited one pub after another but no one seemed ready to point him out. At the end of the evening it was the man himself who gave himself up. ‘Heard about how you wanted my help,’ he said, his eyes watering and seeming short sighted. ‘Aye, Dai’s your man,’ he said. ‘A pint or two and I’m at your service, Sir and Madam. A pint or two will set me up nice.’

They bought him a pint and promised the second as soon as he’d given them some news. Lowri was looking in his direction as though he was really going to be their saviour and even Josi felt more optimistic that he had during the whole long day.

‘Now then,’ Dai said, ‘A little miss around four years old. All right, any more information? How was she dressed? Was she looking very smart? Could a person have sold her dress for a tidy little sum of money, now? You see, I do know a lady in the second-hand clothing trade. I could go and see whether she’d spotted this smart little four year old. She’d be very kind to her, I can assure you of that. She’s not got a nasty bone in her body. Nell’s the name, she’s in the second-hand clothing business. If she haven’t seen the little miss, she’ll know who has. Nell have got second sight. And what she’d appreciate, Sir, is a half-pint bottle of stout. She’d really perk up if a body was to take her a half-pint bottle of stout. Oh, thank you, kind Sir. And another pint of the best for me, Sir, and then I’ll be on my way. I’ll report back to you, Sir, in half an hour. Thank you Sir and Madam both.’

‘He knows all that goes on around here,’ the landlord told them. ‘Whoever put you up to look out for old Dai knew his business. Now then, what for the lady? A drink of port will be better for her than lemonade, Sir. I can see that the lady is having a stressful time and lemonade, Sir, doesn’t do anything for stress. Right, port and lemon for the lady and another pint for the gentleman. You wait here for Dai. Dai Kyffin won’t let you down.’

After the second port and lemon, Lowri became very emotional and tearful and Josi decided to take her back to the hotel. He’d wait for Dai and wait all night if necessary.

What a night it was. Josi felt that he’d like to break every bone in Sali’s body. She was looking so small and helpless in the hospital, but she had tried to ruin their life with her wild accusations. She had apologised to May for hurting her, but nothing would make her retract her statement that she was Mari Elen’s mother. Did she really believe such rubbish? Was she quite mad? He thought of her again, that pale reddish hair, that sweet face so like Lowri’s and that implacable spirit. He’d like – well, to be able to save her, he supposed, to restore her to sanity. Who could do that? It needed a better man than him. Graham was interested in the mind, but Graham was too impatient and angry. He could do her no good.