Defective

rains had finally stopped but the humidity had continued; a glue-like air mass that moved in at noon and didn’t abate till well after dark. The crates were working to store the rainwater; the children also stored some of it in large glass and ceramic jugs and stashed them in the dugouts to keep the water cool.

  "All I’m saying is that we should at least look," Narrow said, going to the nearest dugout and taking out a jar. He drank from it then passed it around. Forest took it from him and sat down on a crate; Jelly hopped up onto the table and waited for Forest to pass the jar to her.

  "We don’t know for sure that he’s dead," he continued. "Remember? Ma wouldn’t let us look."

  "Narrow, Ma and Pa are both dead. Get used to it," said Forest.

  "But I know where the orchard is! I’ve figured out where it is and how to get there."

  From a shelf Narrow took down his maps and unrolled them on the table. Jelly hopped off to make room.

  "Here’s where we are," he said, pointing at a spot. "If we had to take the roads we’d have to go all round the valley like that, see? That’d take days. Jones could make it across the valley in no time."

  Jelly considered Narrow’s idea from a different point of view.

  "There might be plants we could use, ones that don’t grow up here. I still haven’t been able to find any cure-all. The pine nuts alone would be worth it. And think of the mushrooms that must be down there, Forest," she said.

  Forest liked mushrooms, fried silky soft in fat. He smiled then shook his head.

  "Porkchop won’t go for it."

  "I don’t see why not," said Jelly.

  ___

  A rider arrived in Battery from New Key, the administrative capital of Deloran County, with a message for the Landlord.

  There’d been trouble at one of his labour camps; one of his foremen had been accused of doctoring birth records. It had been one of the Landlord’s earliest schemes; for the cost of redoing a little paperwork, he could milk two, three, sometimes four more years off a child labourer. Most children forgot their birthdays, and a lot of other things, the longer they stayed in a camp.

  The foreman knew better than to squeal but the Landlord still had to attend before the magistrate within seven days. New Key was a five-day journey by wagon, likely more if the recent bad weather had washed out some of the roads. He decided instead to take the Port Abram ferry; it was large enough that he could bring Jonathan, his favourite horse, with him. New Key was a sprawling city and on past trips there he’d always found it easier to have a horse than rely on the local wagon service.

  ___

  PC Pierre updated Mrs. Baker. He wouldn’t be going to his cabin just yet; he would stop by the orchard first.

  Mrs. Baker offered to organize his supplies while he was gone.

  "One less thing to worry about, hun," she said. "I’ll have everything ready for you when you get back."

  She also offered him her horse, Chester.

  "Chester’ll be faster than Josephine. And that’ll give Josephine more time to rest up."

  At the top of Hap Road the Constable brought Chester to a stop then blew his whistle three times.

  "That’s PC Pierre," said Hap, hearing the sound.

  "Stay here," Marvellous said.

  PC Pierre guided Chester down the road and saw a woman emerge from the press house. She was tall and well muscled with a square jaw that jutted out ahead of her purposeful, almost arrogant walk. She reminded him of someone.

  "You must be the Constable. Pierre, is it? The Landlord told me you might stop by."

  Marvellous extended a tawny hand as PC Pierre climbed down from the horse. He shook it.

  "I’m Deloran County Police Constable Pierre and you are...?"

  "Marvellous."

  "Marvellous?"

  "My mother had a...unique sense of humour."

  He noticed Hap’s old two-wheeler leaning against one of the storage bins.

  "The Landlord asked me to stop by and see how you were getting along. I’m sure you’re going to want some hired help."

  "Maybe for the picking but that won’t be for another three months, maybe less," she said. "There are a couple of varieties that can be picked early. I can do those."

  "It’s a big job," he said.

  "Down south I took care of an orchard almost as big as this and a lot less forgiving." She shrugged. "More workers, more trouble."

  "Is that where you’re from, the south?"

  "That’s right."

  Marvellous didn’t invite him inside. They stood awkwardly in the yard for a few moments. They discussed the weather, what the signs were telling them. He told her about some of the more prolific and beneficial local flora that she might not yet be aware of. When she expressed genuine surprise at his knowledge, it was the Constable who shrugged.

  "You learn a lot as a police officer. Plus, one of the...the people who used to live here knew all about plants."

  "Was there a family here?" she asked. "There are a lot of beds upstairs."

  The Constable was starting to feel strange, as though he was being examined from an angle he couldn’t quite see. He forgot her question.

  "Well, if you’re sure about not wanting any help, I’ll be getting on. If you do need me, Battery is at least a full day’s walk west. Follow the mains. They take longer but you won’t get lost. Ask for me at Mrs. Baker’s."

  "What happened to them?" Marvellous tilted her head and looked at the Constable. He shivered.

  PC Pierre found himself saying, "Their parents died. On the same day, too. The oldest wasn’t twenty yet, so they were...removed."

  Marvellous nodded her head. Just as she’d suspected.

  "Labour camp," she said. She broke eye contact with the officer.

  "No. A relative took them."

  Marvellous looked back up.

  "Must be some relative. Taking in nine children."

  I didn’t say there were nine, the Constable thought just as Chester, who had till now stood silent beside him, nudged him in the small of his back. PC Pierre stumbled forward slightly.

  "All right, all right," he said, turning back to look at the horse.

  Marvellous thanked him for the visit, assured him that she didn’t need any help then watched him ride away. Back inside, she told Hap what he’d said.

  "But I don’t have any relatives."

  "Is it possible you just don’t remember them? Or that you even know about them?"

  Hap looked at his sister. He hadn’t known about her. His father was dead, probably. He never knew exactly what had happened to him. Maybe there were others. Maybe Mary had relatives he hadn’t known about.

  At the fork in the road, PC Pierre stopped, dismounted and tied Chester to a nearby tree. He walked back to the orchard and made himself comfortable behind a thick clump of staghorn sumac overlooking the front yard and waited.

  ___

  When Titania got up to leave the barn and return to Pater’s house for the evening, Mixer whined in Santa’s lap until she put him down. He crawled straight for Titania.

  "He seems to want to be with you tonight," said Santa. "Is that all right?"

  "Yes, fine," said Titania.

  At the house, Titania laid her brother down to sleep in her bed then sat on the front porch and watched the night sky. Mixer put a thought into her head.

  When Pater finally arrived home that night, stinking of maple whiskey, Titania was waiting for him. He stumbled inside and fell into a chair. She put a cup of tea and some hard biscuits in front of him and waited until his mouth was full before she began to speak. Behind the curtain, Mixer nodded in satisfaction.

  ___

  Jelly brought the plan to Porkchop who was out in the furrows inspecting the plants.

  "You two have done such a good job," she said as Jelly approached. "Everything is growing really well, despite all the rain."

  Porkchop rarely praised them for anything. Jelly took advantage of her sister’s good mood. r />
  "Since it’s doing so well, Forest and I thought we’d take a few days off for a foraging."

  Porkchop nodded again.

  "We thought we might see what’s growing in the valley."

  "The valley?"

  Porkchop turned and looked down at her youngest sister. Unlike Jones’ hair, which he kept short, Jelly’s was long. The dark unbrushed strands had eventually intertwined into half a dozen thick bunches that hung down her back like rope. Pa used to say that the twins were as different as chalk and cheese, but Porkchop had always silently disagreed. Their hair was the only thing that distinguished them. Their faces and expressions were identical, even their voices sounded the same.

  "I don’t know, Jelly. It may not be safe."

  "Jones can come with us. He can scout ahead. If there’s any trouble, he’ll deal with it."

  "You’ll get lost."

  "No we won’t, we never get lost! I’ll bet there are trails leading down. It’s too bad we can’t ask Pater."

  Pater had disappeared again. Jelly missed having him around. Lately he’d been nicer to them, thanking the boys for the game they provided and Santa for her cooking. He had even grunted approval when he saw Narrow’s water crates.

  "You’d have to camp overnight if something happened."

  "If we leave before dawn I’m sure we could be back before the sun goes down."

  "Well..."

  "It’s starting to dry out and Forest says the skies will be clear for the next while."

  Porkchop kicked a rock, felt the jolt of it along her big toenail.

  Santa rang the dinner bell and the two of them walked back to the barn. After the meal, Porkchop told the family her decision.

  ___

  The Constable saw Hap pull out the trailer and attach it to the bicycle but by the time he’d untied Chester and returned to the press