Old Sins Long Shadows Read Online Free PDF Page A

All the girls, including Mrs Friggens, joined her to look; even Janey left her work to see what had taken their interest. She instantly recognised the man unloading a churn of milk from the cart in the back courtyard. It was the man who had been building the stone wall.
    ‘ That’s Daniel Kellow,’ replied Mary, nudging her way to the front to get the best view, ‘He owns the farm next door, he is a friend of my brother,’ she added proudly.
    ‘ He is lovely!’ the scullery maid sighed, fanning herself. Mrs Friggens rolled her eyes and went back to her cooking whilst the four girls watched in silence, each one admiring the strength in his body as he unloaded another churn of milk and half a slaughtered pig. His shirt sleeves were rolled to his elbows showing muscular forearms tanned by the sun. With ease he lifted the heavy items onto his shoulder and carried them to the dairy and cold room. He did not appear to notice them watching and they followed his movements as if mesmerized by his animal grace.
    Finally he finished, climbed up into the cart and picked up the reins. He casually turned to look at them, his smouldering eyes finding their target and - he winked . Janey blushed with humiliation but he did not seem to notice. Already he had flicked the reigns and was on his way. She immediately sank into the shadows mortified he had caught her watching him.
    ‘ He winked at you!’ exclaimed Charlotte turning to Janey.
    ‘ No he didn’t,’ she denied immediately. She had just started to form a friendship with Lizzy and Charlotte, the last thing she wanted was to become alienated again.
    ‘ Yes he did, it was definitely at you,’ joined in Lizzy.
    Mary’s eyes narrowed accusingly as all the girls looked at her, Janey retreated to her chair, picking up her sewing from the floor on the way which she had unwittingly dropped.
    ‘ I don’t know what you mean. You are mistaken, it was not for me,’ she replied. At that moment she hated the man for singling her out in such a way. Angrily she stabbed the needle into her needlework. Mrs Friggens saw her discomfort and reminded the remaining girls they had work to do, in turn they returned to their chores.
    ‘ If you girls have any sense you’ll keep away from Daniel Kellow,’ she looked at Lizzy, ‘He’d take you in and spit you out in a blink of an eye. He doesn’t suffer fools gladly.’  The implied insult did not register with Lizzy.
    ‘ ’ow does he own a farm?  Most are tenant farmers around ‘ere, aren’t they?’
    Mrs Friggens began to knead the bread she was making.
    ‘When he was a lad he was caught thieving in the village by Zachariah Trebilcock, the farmer who owned the farm. Well, Zachariah, in his wisdom, gave the boy a home as he had no family.’ She looked about her to see if there were any eavesdroppers, ‘He’s illegitimate and his mother had died.’  Janey started to feel a little sympathy for the boy of all those years ago, if not the man he was today. She pretended not to listen but her ears strained to hear. ‘Mind you, I bet there were times Zachariah wished he hadn’t. There were many a time he had to bring Daniel home after some fight or other and of course when he was a young man of sixteen…well,’ she rolled her eyes, ‘there were quite a few fathers knocking on their door and warning him off their daughters, I can tell you. Not that the daughters minded.’  Mrs Friggens started to knead the bread into shape to place in the range, ‘Give him his due, when Zachariah was took bad with arthritis and could hardly move his hands Daniel seemed to settle down and started running the farm. Zachariah would have had to sell the farm if it weren’t for him. Eventually he changed his will so everything was left to Daniel as Amy, his wife, had died three year before. Six months after Zachariah had changed his will he was found dead, his head bashed in.’
    Janey pricked her finger and looked up, trying to stem the bleeding by