Chapter 27 - A Price For Everything

The great brown and white Shire horse was feeding from a wooden bucket placed beneath its head on the towpath. The barge it pulled had come to a stop, and sat close to the horse, a bargeman was resting - a pipe at his lips and a small bottle resting in his hand.

As they neared the boatman, Jack saluted with a raised hand, as Maggie and Tom moved in close to pet the horse along its flanks. The man, in a slow, almost mechanical manner, returned the gesture to Jack.

"How far to London?" Jack asked.

"Bout fifteen mile or so," replied the bargeman. He looked to be around the age of fifty and possessed a weather-beaten complexion, the colour and texture of old leather.

"Where are you headed?" asked Tom turning to the man seated upon the edge of the barge.

"London. And where go yourselves?"

"The very same place," replied Jack smiling, trying to ingratiate himself with bargeman.

"And are you thinking of walking all the way?"

"I hope not," smiled Jack and moved closer to the man. "How long you reckon it would take a boat like this to reach London?"

"Bout rest of the daylight. Ten hours or more I'd guess."

"Have you room aboard to take the three of us?" asked Jack.

"Have you money to pay to come aboard?" he replied.

"There is a price?" asked Maggie stepping away from the horse.

"Oh, my dear, there is always a price; always a price for everything."

"Yes, I was afraid there might be," she replied.

"Well, I must be moving off soon," began the bargeman tapping out the ash from his pipe on the edge of the boat. "I must be back in London before dark." He busied himself with ropes and then went to take the bucket away from the horse.

"We can pay you," said Maggie. "How much would it take for the three of us?"

"Have you ten shillings?

"I think we can managed that," replied Maggie taking a handful of coins from her trouser pockets.

"That will be ten for each of you, of course," he said, looking at the palm full of silver Maggie held out, a surprised and satisfied smile growing upon his face. "I had you down as runaways from the workhouse. But you're too well fed for that. As you are paying, I'll need not know no more. Ten schilling each is ample." As he moved back to the boat, he took the money from Maggie's outstretch hand. "Jump aboard. Find yourselves a place to sit near the bow."

"Where did you get the money from?" whispered Tom once they settled on a spot at the front of the boat.

"The Countess," she whispered back. "She had a small money box sitting inside the drawer of her study. Thought it might come in handy."

Jack, sitting up above them, overheard the short conversation and gave a short laugh. Maggie looked up at him laughing to himself and smiled despite herself.

"Yes, I am a thief too," she said turning to Jack. "Happy now? Happy I am as corrupted as you?"

As the barge flowed its winding way to London, drifting through the endless patchwork of green and gold countryside, Maggie began to talk once more to Jack in a friendly manner - despite her sometimes apparent and lingering hostility towards him.

"I hope it all works out and this peeler of yours helps find those missing children," he said to her.

She breathed heavily and replied, "So do I Jack. I pray to God he believes in me. I know those missing children have come to a most terrible ending. I just know it."

***

As the barge crawled to its final destination, the falling darkness and factory smoke combined to make it a gloomy return to London. The boatman informed the children he was scheduled to dock at the City Road Basin.

As they neared the conclusion of their journey, Jack decided it would be more beneficial to alight at The City Road Lock, due to its proximity to The Angel. From there Jack believed he could try and find a place to hide out, near enough to Holborn -yet far enough from away Charlie Deptford and his gang - to plan their next move. He said he knew of a few vacant old houses in the vicinity of King's Cross and hoped they were still empty.

They said farewell to the boatman and were once more walking the streets of London. Maggie never believed she would feel the noise, grime and clutter of the London again. During her first few days at the Countess' home, she vowed never return to a life of scavenging and begging. She believed, or was it she had hoped, for a new life - a safe haven. At first she thought their stay with the Countess would give them a brief respite before they continued with their journey to Sanctuary.

But life at Little Serrant had become too comfortable and they had forgotten the purpose of their journey and the reason they wanted to flee London in the first place.

The straight way had been lost.

Now, however, her mind resolved to accomplish just one task: to see that those involved in the murder of Mr William Turner - and those children she also suspected of suffering a similar fate at the hands of the Countess - faced justice, and received punishment for their deeds.

Once more she felt those hated London streets beneath her feet, and once more those self-same streets suggested to her that their future was now, once again, uncertain.

As Jack had predicted, they found a place to shelter in an abandoned building close to King's Cross. It was in worse condition than the house Charlie used for a hideout for his gang. But it would do for the present.

***