The Serpent's Skin by Erina Reddan (top 5 books to read .txt) 📕

at the nearest pig. He stood up and threaded the belt back through his trousers, tilted his head to me to get back in there. ‘Keep ya eyes open this time.’

‘You keep your dog away, then.’

‘Cut the back chat.’ He grinned, reaching out a hand to scruff up my head. Normally I’d lean right into it, and I wanted to because he’d just saved me from Sal, but I didn’t know what to do with all those lies between us, so this time I pretended I hadn’t seen and ducked away.

We yarded up Sal, and Dad swung the lights up, going into the big shed to switch them on. I got busy settling Sal.

‘What are you doing?’ he asked, coming back.

‘Makin her comfy.’ I pushed hay in around Sal as she lay on her side.

He shook his head. ‘She’s just a pig.’

‘It’s what Mum always did,’ I said. ‘Reckon she’d know a bit more about birthing than you.’

‘I’ll leave ya to it, then,’ he said. ‘Mrs Tyler’ll be here before you know it.’

I sunk down into the hay beside Sal and curled up along her back now that she and all her blubber were resting. I liked her big and slow, and the way her belly went on and on. I jumped away, though, when Mrs Tyler darted into the pig-pen in case the newness stirred up Sal. But she didn’t even look up. Mrs Tyler settled in the corner on a hay bale, putting her crochet bag beside her. It was for Mrs Tyler’s cousin’s firstborn; having a baby, she told me, the first of the new generation. She was using real nice wool, all soft and lemony. Reckon that baby would feel real good wrapped all the way up in it.

I got my book, and sat in the corner on the ground, looking up from Heidi and Peter’s goats every time Sal grunted. After a while, Mrs Tyler stuffed her wool back in the bag and kneeled beside Sal the way Mum did, pushing at her side and listening, ear to belly.

‘She’s gone off the boil,’ she said, blinking in the gloom. ‘I’ll just pop down to the house and get a cuppa.’ She gave me an encouraging smile. I wondered if she remembered that she’d told me Mum would be home soon. ‘Sal will be a while yet. Off you go, too.’

I found Tim and Tessa by the woodpile. Tim was up on blocks with an axe in his hands.

‘Go,’ yelled Tessa. She clicked the stopwatch.

Tim bought down the axe, hard and clean, slanting in one way and then the other. Three chops each way. I dodged as a chip soared straight for my eye. Tim jumped around on the blocks, fast like the champion woodchoppers did it at the Show and started in on the other side. Chop chop chop. The axe bit deep into the wood. But still the log didn’t break in two. He jumped around again and did the same on the other side. Still not getting through. Tim threw the axe to the ground, collapsed, panting on the woodpile.

‘Doesn’t matter,’ said Tessa. ‘I messed up the timing anyway.’

He grunted, then noticed me. ‘You keep ya mouth shut.’

‘About what?’ I grinned. ‘Bout that log needing a man to get into it?’ I muscled up my arms above my shoulders.

Philly raced towards us, panting. ‘Dad’s saying stuff to Mrs Tyler,’ she said as soon as she was within reach.

We took off. Tim left the axe right where it had fallen. Dad would be plenty mad, but I didn’t stop to put it away, either. We pelted in under the kitchen window, colliding with the wall and each other like a pack of puppies.

‘… change her spots, Kathy. And you know what a handful Peg is, and that’s when she’s not having a stark-raving-mad-as-a-snake attack. Night before she had her attack, Sare told Peg she had a gut ache—that was it.’

Tessa refused to look at me.

Mrs Tyler’s voice murmured something.

‘Peg’s been a blasted nuisance from start to finish,’ said Dad.

‘Not entirely her fault, Jack.’ We heard this time because Mrs Tyler’s voice had gone up sharp-like. ‘She was never the same after she went to live in that house without Sarah’s steadying hand, so far away except for the odd cuppa if any of us happened to be in town needing the hospital.’

‘Wasn’t my problem. This is a good Catholic household and no place for a woman with loose morals.’

‘It’s me you’re talking to, Jack. Peg had those same loose morals all along, as we all well knew, and they hadn’t bothered you before. It’s a wonder Sarah even let you send her away.’

‘The kids were growing up. We’d had to put them first,’ Dad mumbled. ‘Anyway.’ He put some grit into his voice. ‘Can’t afford to have Peg goin off like a two-bob watch right now. She’s all agitated and on edge because she’s got it into her head it was her fault. Her havin a turn and then Sarah getting appendicitis and Peg having to make the call to the ambulance. I asked the doctor to give her something to calm her down. Doc said best nobody brings up how Sarah died with her so as not to set her off.’

Tessa ignored my pinch at this string of lies, pretending she was hard at listening.

We didn’t hear Mrs Tyler’s reply again.

‘Appreciate that, Kathy. If you would put the word around.’

We listened longer, but it was all pigs and scones and tea and casseroles. Philly started pulling my hair, not in a hurty way, but like she had nothing better to do. I slapped her hand away. Tessa put her finger to her lips. Tim got the next idea, which was to take off for our trees out the front of the house. Getting snug into the umbrella of them was like something warm in the cold. Tessa’s was the easiest tree for Philly to climb so we all squashed onto the wooden platform