The Ripponden War

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

I didn’t sleep a wink that first night. It was one of the longest nights of my life. I remember tossing and turning and I remember that first morning waking up to a strange room and hearing a strange voice call my name.

The room was dark now. The blinding brilliant sun set had gone taking my high hopes with it. In the darkness the room didn’t look homely it looked dark and creepy. There was a draft coming from the window and the floorboards kept creaking. I turned on the old lamp and was glad of the warmth of light that flooded the room. I slipped out of bed, careful not to creak the rough wooden floorboards, and crept over to the shelf of books. I held up the lamp and examined the titles of the ancient novels.  Wuthering heights, the secret garden, pride and prejudice. I had never heard of them. My novels were all shiny and new and about the fairies and trolls. I picked up one of the novels, the one that was called Wuthering Heights, and took it back to my bed. In the soft, yellow light with tears prickling in my eyes, I opened the first yellowing crumbling page of the book and began to read…

I don’t know how long I had read for but when I awoke I had my head rested in the book, a thin layer of sleep and dribble set in a crust on the page. I looked at the golden alarm clock and read the time 6:30. The sun was high in the summer sky already and the beauty of a new day had set on the lawn. There was dew twinkling in the early morning sunlight and flowers swaying slightly in the summer breeze. The light was rippling in rainbow patterns on my bedspread and the room was filled with a clear, pure light. My mind was still filled with visions of Heathcliffe and Cathy roaming on the moors.

My haze was broken when a voice called form downstairs

“Dorothy, Dorothy dear?”

Only my mother called me Dorothy. Hearing another woman call me that made me miss mother again.

“Dorothy darling, come and meet the rest of the family!”

Rest? I had assumed it was just them. I hadn’t wanted an entire new family just new parents. I had always been an only child, I wasn’t used to siblings.

“Um one minute”

I had to look presentable. I ran over to the looking glass in the corner of the room and brushed my wavy flame red hair. I splashed my face with water and scrubbed my skin till it was red raw. I pulled on a beige skirt, knee length socks and a white shirt.  My newly shined shoes gleamed in the early morning sunlight. I pulled my hair into two bunches and tied them with brown ribbons.

Looking in the mirror my navy blue eyes twinkled in the sunlight.  I took a bit of the powder mother had packed for me. I had very tanned skin and a heart shaped face so mother said it would enhance my bone structure. I patted a bit in the hollows of my cheeks and my cheekbones. I saw the change immediately. My brows looked higher. My face looked like one of the models in the magazines that mother read. I tucked in my shirt and grabbed a light brown cardigan.  Taking a deep breath to calm myself I lifted the heavy trap door. I walked down the steps wondering what lifted the heavy trap door. I walked down the steps wondering what lay waiting for me. I poked my head around the rough wood door.  There was  Mr and Mrs Brockman sat there with two children. One my age and another 2 years younger.  They were both girls and both had blonde hair. They had very pale skin and freckles. They were as skinny as twigs and they looked almost exactly alike. Apart from one minor detail. The younger one had an expression of happiness and a massive smile on her face. The other had a stony cold expression on her face and was staring at me with evil eyes. I could tell already which one I would get along with. I sat down and could almost feel the stares boring into my body.

“Dorothy, this is Emily and Florence”

Mrs Brockman gestured to the younger one first and then the older. I nodded politely.

It was the most awkward breakfast I had ever had. They just sat there exchanging glances and murmuring under their breath. I knew I was wanted to leave so I excused myself, grabbed my gas mask case and stuffed the house keys next to the gas mask. I slipped out the door and breathed in the country air. The lane was filled with bustling chat and people dodging the horse manure and greeting each other with warm smiles. I couldn’t believe the community that there was here. Everyone seemed to know everyone. That would have been impossible in London. I liked that.

It suddenly hit me that they would know where the farm was. I needed to talk to Tom. He would know how to get me out of this dark haze. He knew how to brighten my mood. Was it possible that we had only met yesterday? It felt like forever. Was it really only yesterday I left my mum? I stopped a stranger. He told me that there was one behind the woods but the road was closed so I would have to go through the woods. I didn’t care. I needed to see Tom no matter what…