15
Meredith : 2nd Night - 2
It’s a man. Tall, slim, earnest looking, wearing old-fashioned tortoiseshell framed spectacles. He waves us inside. I have to carry Sukey in. She’s so tired and sleepy. A paraffin lamp on the table inside casts flickering shadows round the rough walls. Inside all is neat and clean. Sleeping in the corner is a small child, about the same age as Sukey. I can’t tell whether it’s a boy or a girl. The man leads me over to the narrow bed.
“I’m Josiah,” He says in a whisper. “You can put your child at the other end of the bed while we men talk outside.”
I loosen the covers at the foot of the bed and tuck Sukey in with Bunnylugs. She’s too sleepy to want anything to eat or drink. Josiah gestures to me to take an old armchair. As soon as I’m seated in its saggy depth
