Shanghai Sparrow (16 page)

Uncle James hauled his bulk up to their rooms to see what Mama was doing. He poked at her papers and asked her questions.

Mama, pleased and excited, alive again, had shown him everything.

And for a while Uncle James had gone quiet and thoughtful and had smiled at Mama and Eveline and even Charlotte, whose existence he normally completely ignored.

S
CRAPS OF CONVERSATIONS
, arguments. “James, of course I am grateful for your assistance, but...”

“Madeleine, you do realise that if anyone should happen to think that you have been concentrating on these things and been
neglectful...
”

That word, that word which always made Mama fearful and quiet. “I would
never
neglect my girls, James. Never.”

Sometimes Uncle James’s friends came to the house. Eveline peeked through the bannisters at the men in black and white, like magpies, and the ladies in their huge-skirted dresses, floating like great water-lilies. Good smells drifted up the stairs along with their voices. At first Eveline liked these parties, even though she was not allowed to attend; it was good to hear the house fill up with the sounds of other people, and interesting to watch them all. There was the thin stooped man with the long sad face who she thought of as the Crow, because he walked along just that way, with his hands behind his back, his head dipping with every step. The Sugar Lady, always dressed in pale sweet colours, always smiling and tilting her head so her soft brown ringlets danced and fluttering her pale hands. The Dog Man, who had a bristly moustache that made her think of terriers, who snapped out his words,
yapyapyap
, making people laugh, and the Sugar Lady would rap his wrist with her fan.

The second time she saw Dog Man he looked up, right to where she was hiding behind the bannisters. She drew back, but she knew he had seen her.

But there was no punishment, no summons to Uncle James’s study. So the next time there was a party she risked it again, and this time, Dog Man looked for her on purpose, and winked.

It became a little game of smiles and expressions. She began to look forward to his visits. Apart from Mama, there were no grown-ups to take her the least bit seriously, or treat her as anything other than a nuisance or extra work. Dog Man seemed to like seeing her there.

Mama, on the other hand, hated these parties.

“James, please. I am happy to eat in my rooms.”

“Madeleine, they will say I am keeping you locked in the attic. Don’t be foolish. Come down. And do try to make yourself presentable.”

“But the girls...”

“Surely you don’t expect me to allow children at the table? And besides, I am sure Eveline can watch her sister for a few hours. Can’t you, Eveline?”

Eveline looked from one to the other. If she said yes, Mama would have to go to the party. If she said no, Uncle James would talk again about how she was ill-disciplined and should be sent away to school. She had a deep terror of being sent away from Mama and Charlotte. The angels might come for them while she wasn’t there to watch. Or other bad things, things she did not know the names of, things that hung like ghosts in the shadows of the house, might happen to them.

“I can watch her, Mama. Go to the party. You can tell us all about it afterwards.”

Mama’s face twitched, and then she smiled. “Very well.”

“Tell me what Do – the man with the moustache says to make everyone laugh so.”

“Oh, that’s Everard Poole. I think his jokes are too sophisticated for young ladies!” James said, pleased and expansive now he had got his way. “Well, well, must go and check on things, lots to do!”

What he had to do Eveline didn’t know, since it was the maids who cleaned and the cook who cooked and his man who sent out the invitations (she had sneaked into his study and seen the cards, written out in the manservant’s neat, careful, rather square hand, instead of Uncle James’s blotchy sprawl).

“
Make myself presentable
,” Mama said, scowling at the mirror. “I believe your Uncle is hoping to marry me off, Eveline. Let us disabuse him of that notion, shall we?” She put on one of the black mourning dresses she had stopped wearing a month ago, which was now too big and had never suited her to begin with, and twisted her hair up into a rigid bun. She pinned a large, ugly mourning brooch Purple-Bonnet had given her to the front of her dress. “There. Do I look sufficiently discouraging?”

Eveline giggled. “You look like a witch, Mama.”

“Perfect. Be good, darling, and remember Charlotte’s posset.”

Charlotte had a weak chest, and as the weather got colder, had to be given hot possets and flannels, to stop her coughing. Eveline had got tired of asking the beastly cook to do it, since he always made a great fuss as though it was a huge trouble for him. She watched him make it until she worked out how to do it herself, and did so, now, when he was out of the way.

Eveline struggled to stay awake until Mama came upstairs, but ended up asleep on the floor next to Charlotte’s cot, when she felt herself picked up, and tucked into bed.

Mama stroked her cheek, and got into bed herself.

“Mama? Was it a nice party?”

“Not very, Eveline. But it’s over. Go to sleep now.”

She had hoped to hear about Dog Man, but before she could ask, she fell asleep again.

E
VELINE WAS STRUGGLING
with some figures Mama had set her to do. She tried not to interrupt when Mama was working, but Uncle James had no such qualms. Eveline could hear them arguing again, through the wall.

“If you present it yourself, even if your name is on it, Madeleine, you can imagine the reaction.”

“But it’s my work, James.”

“Of course it is, my dear, but it might cause... well, questions. Not only the fault, but even the appearance of the fault should be avoided. Caesar’s wife, you know... or sister, in this case, must be above suspicion.”

Uncle James had left the house in a temper, to go to one of his meetings.

“Mama, who’s Caesar?”

“Darling, have you been listening at doors? You know that’s not proper.”

“I wasn’t
listening,
I just
heard
. Who’s Caesar?”

“A very important man in olden times.”

“Oh. Important like Uncle James?”

“Uncle James certainly thinks so. Darling, are you happy here?”

“I’d rather be at home.”

“Oh, my dear, so would I, but there’s no money, you see. But you don’t mind Mama doing some work, do you?”

“I like it when you work. I like the sounds. They make me happy. And Charlotte hardly ever cries when you’re working, especially when you have that thing on, with the rabbit-ear on top, and the other one, the pretty box with the brass handle that goes
whoom
.”

“It’s true, isn’t it? She doesn’t.” Mama paused, holding a pencil in the air, and staring at Charlotte. Then she nodded vigorously and made notes in one of her books. “Thank you, darling, that’s very helpful.”

Over the next few weeks she worked harder than ever, waking with the maids and going back to her workroom after she’d put the girls to bed. One night she came in while Eveline was still awake, and was humming to herself under her breath, something she hadn’t done for a very long time.

“Mama?” she whispered.

“Oh, did I wake you, my pet?”

“No, Mama. Has something happened?”

“Yes, poppet. Something has. Your mama has made a breakthrough. It’s the
combination
of sounds, that’s what does it. The right combination. Oh, my pet, we’re finally getting somewhere.”

And for a little while, Mama had a lighter step and a brighter eye. But Uncle James’s voice came through the wall more often, loud and bullying.

Then one day Eveline saw some of Mama’s devices being loaded into Uncle James’s carriage. “Mama, why is Uncle James taking your things? Don’t let him!”

“Now, Eveline, it’s all right. I’ve given my work to Uncle James for him to get people to look at, important people who might give some money for more equipment and things I need. Do you understand?”

“Then they’ll know how clever you are, and give you money, and we can go home and not live with Uncle James any more?”

“Well, no. They’ll think Uncle James is clever. He’s not giving them my name.”

Eveline had frowned, so hard she felt the tension in her forehead. “Why?”

Mama’s head drooped and she rubbed her eyes as though she were very tired. “Because it’s the way of the world, my darling. Now, never mind, let’s go for a walk. We could all do with some air.”

The only place that was nice to walk was all the way out of town, where the houses petered out among fields and woods. Charlotte could hardly toddle more than a few steps, so they took her in the baby carriage, and she squinted at the sunlight and tried to grab butterflies out of the air, and Mama smiled at her, but – for almost the whole walk – said nothing at all. It was only when they were rattling along the pavement back towards the tall stony house that she said, “Eveline, you mustn’t mention this to anyone, you understand? About my work, and Uncle James. If you do, you might get Mama in trouble. And if Mama gets into trouble, they might take you away from me, you and Charlotte. So you must be good, and never speak of this, not to Uncle James or anyone.”

“Yes, Mama.”

S
OMETIMES
E
VELINE TOOK
out the crystal that Aiden had given her, and dangled it from her fingers. He had said he would come if she really wanted him.

“What’s that?” Mama said.

“Aiden gave it to me. Remember?”

“Oh, yes. Yes, I’d forgotten. There aren’t any Folk here, are there? I think they dislike the factories. Certainly the noise, maybe the smells too. Do you miss him, Eveline?”

“Sometimes,” Eveline said. But that made Mama look sad, so she put the crystal away and didn’t mention it again.

It wasn’t the volume of the next argument that sent Eveline creeping out of their room and pressing her ear to the door of the workroom; it was the tone. She had never heard Mama sound quite so angry.

“James. What is happening to my work? What are you planning?”

“Don’t be silly, my dear, I’m doing exactly what we discussed.”

“I saw the notes. This is not what I intended and you know it! It was never meant for such a use!”

“Only because you did not have the imagination, the...
drive
to see it as I see it. You may have contributed to the research...”

“Contributed? James,
it is my research.
”

“But it is the application that will gain recognition. All these factory disputes, workers demanding this, that and the other thing – it’s a disgrace, and bad for the country. Something that could encourage good, productive behaviour, though... well, it’s just what the doctor ordered!”

Eveline heard her mother use a voice that she had never before heard, a voice so cold, and so full of something terrible, that it barely sounded like Mama at all.

“James, that would be an utter perversion of everything I have worked for. I will write to the Royal Society myself. I will not permit this.”

“Madeleine, that would be very foolish.”

“Please leave my room, James.”

“I remind you that it is not your room. You – and your daughters – are living in
my
house, on
my
generosity.”

“And in return, you plan to steal my work and turn it into this... this abomination! I will not have it, James. If I have to leave and take the girls with me, I will do so. We will make our way. Now please
leave.
”

Charlotte woke and started to whimper. Eveline crept out of bed and went to Charlotte’s cot, where she was sitting up, her eyes huge in her chubby face, her breath hitching on the verge of sobs. “Hush, now,” Eveline said. With some effort, she lifted Charlotte out of the cot. “Hush. Mama... Mama is just playing a game. A special one for night-time. Let’s play our own. Pat-a-cake!”

She held Charlotte on her lap, warm and solid, and played pat-a-cake with her, one ear cocked for any more sounds from the other room.

But there was silence. Mama would be coming to bed soon – Eveline didn’t know what time it was, but it felt late – and would be upset if they were still awake.

Charlotte’s head was already drooping again. Eveline hauled her into the cot and got back into the bed she shared with Mama. She shut her eyes so Mama would think she was asleep. She heard the door open and close, but no-one came in, and eventually pretended sleep became real.

The next morning Mama was not in her bed. Eveline left the room quietly, so as not to wake Charlotte, and crept along in her nightgown to the workroom. Mama was seated at the table, writing.

“Mama?”

Mama jolted, the pen in her hand spattering ink. “Oh, Evvie!”

“Are you writing a letter, Mama?”

“Yes. Yes, I am. To the Royal Society, though I don’t know it will do much good.” Mama’s hair was coming down from its pins, and she looked terribly tired. “Once I’m done I shall take a walk and post it. Would you like to come with me?”