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Downstairs Jack was waiting for her, sitting drinking coffee. His hair was messed up,and on seeing Sorcha, he smoothed it down before covering it with his cap. He also brushed a few bits of straw off his jacket. Sorcha reckoned he had slept in a barn with the horses.
After saying hello, she looked around her to see if Mr Eddowes was anywhere to be seen.
His wife could tell by the anxiety on her face that she was hoping he wasn't. “Don't worry,” she said reassuringly, patting Sorcha's hand. “He's keeping well out of sight, scowling out back after the telling off I gave him last night.”
She gave Sorcha a mug of steaming coffee and cooked her some eggs for breakfast. Sitting with her for a few minutes she smiled. Her hair was tied back and the twinkle in her eye made her cheeks look very rosy.
“I thought you would need something inside you,” she said.
Just before they went, Mrs Eddowes put a wrapped up package in Sorcha's hand. “Put that safe. Eddowes doesn't know I've given it you. Some food for the journey. You might enjoy it.”
“You are very kind, thank you.” Sorcha smiled and shook her hand. She put it the package in her bag and carried on out to where Jack stood with the carriage.
“We should get going, we have a way to go yet,” he told Sorcha as he helped her up into the carriage. “I want to get you there at a decent time.”
Sorcha sat down by the window with bag at her feet. She traveled alone for the remainder of her journey, so she had nobody to talk to. So for most of the journey she looked out of the window watching the places they passed through.
After a while, rough roads gave way to dirt tracks as the carriage moved away from busy towns and bustling crowds to smaller villages and rural areas. It was at one of these villages that they stopped for a break and to let the horses take in water.