Star in the Storm Page 8

  Maggie dashed into the cold surf and grabbed the line. She and Sirius stumbled to shore, where the fishermen took the rope, connected it to the pulleys, and began the rescue.

  Cheers echoed over the howling winds and the breaking sea, and resounded against the cliffs. Ma raced to Maggie’s side and wrapped her coat over her daughter’s wet slicker. The crowd clustered around Maggie and Sirius.

  Maggie dropped to her knees. Laughing and crying, she embraced Sirius, who lay exhausted and shivering at her feet.

  “Oh, my good, sweet Sirius,” she crooned. “My own wonderful star dog.”

  FIVE BLACK BIRDS

  MAGGIE AND SIRIUS SAT CLOSE together on a boulder and watched the rescue begin.

  After speaking with Otto and Cliff, Ma, Lucy, and Annie came over to Maggie. “We’re going back to the village for warm blankets,” Ma told her. “Cliff is bringing back Otto’s buggy so we can take passengers back to town.”

  “They’ll be right cold and wet,” said Lucy.

  “Why don’t you come home with us, maid?” Ma asked. “I’ll get the fire going, and you can change your clothes.”

  “No,” Maggie answered. “I want to be sure Marie and the baby get back safely.”

  “All right.” Ma tucked her coat around Maggie. “I’ll bring you a blanket, too, my child.”

  Annie waved. “We’ll be back a-once,” she promised.

  Maggie pulled half of Ma’s coat over Sirius. “There, boy. I’ll keep you warm. You’re such a good, clever dog.” He slapped his wet tail on the rock, then leaned against her, panting.

  The sun had finally emerged from behind the clouds, but the howling wind continued to churn up powerful waves. Otto attached the pulley and cable to a stout tree, high up enough on the hillside to keep the rope above the water. Since there were no canvas breeches anywhere, someone brought a sturdy chair from town for Otto to attach to the cables of the rescue buoy.

  “It’ll be a risky trip across those waves,” Maggie heard someone say. “The passengers will need to be strapped in tight.”

  “Between us and all harm,” another voice added.

  “Thar she goes,” called Uncle Jabe. The pulley moved the chair out over the waves toward the foundering ship.

  The chair trembled and shook in the wind. When it arrived at the steamer, someone reached out and drew it onto the deck.

  “Women and children first,” Howard Rand ordered. Tamar and her mother held hands and waited close by his side.

  The chair headed back with its first passenger. “It’s a woman,” Maggie said to Sirius. “See her skirt flipping in the breeze?” As the chair came closer, Maggie could see a rigid young woman gripping the arms of the chair as it swung over the breakers. “It’s not Marie,” said Maggie.

  When it reached the shore, Uncle Jabe and Art pulled the chair down while Otto unfastened the straps that encircled the woman. As she slipped off the seat, a look of relief swept over her face.

  “Where’s my daughter and her baby?” Constance Rand cried. “Are they all right?”

  “She was terribly frightened,” the young woman answered. “She wanted someone else to try the chair first. I’m sorry.”

  The chair was promptly sent back to the ship to another waiting passenger.

  Tamar Rand clutched her father’s arm. “Is it Marie this time?”

  Howard put the telescope to his eye. “It is! They’re strapping the baby to her.”

  “Oh, please, good God, let them get to shore safely,” Constance Rand prayed aloud.

  As the chair moved forward, the cable dipped with the wind and weight, dropping the passengers dangerously close to the waves. Marie screamed as the great waves dashed against her feet. Tamar and her mother echoed her cries with cries of their own.

  Maggie jumped up and ran to the water’s edge. Sirius followed, barking at the chair as it lurched closer and closer to shore.

  When Marie and the baby were finally pulled safely to the ground, another cheer went up from the crowd. The Rands all raced to Marie’s side. Otto unbuckled the straps as Howard Rand helped his oldest daughter from the chair. He gathered his daughter and grandson into his arms.

  Otto turned the chair back toward the ship where more passengers were waiting impatiently.

  “Come on, boy,” Maggie whispered to Sirius, heading back to the boulder. “Marie and her baby are safe now.”

  Ma had returned and was looking for her. “Here you are, Maggie. I’ve brought you this warm rug, my child.”

  “Oh, Ma,” Maggie protested as her mother wrapped the heavy blanket around her. “This is the quilt from your bed . . . your wedding quilt.”

  “No matter,” Ma answered. “It’s all right.”

  Lucy and Annie walked up with the young woman who came first on the breeches buoy. “This is Nancy O’Brien,” Lucy said.

  “She’ll be our new teacher come fall,” Annie added.

  “A very brave teacher,” said Ma.

  “I’m glad you’re back safe and sound,” said Maggie.

  “Thanks to you and your dog,” Nancy said, patting Sirius, who sniffed at her wet shoes. The girl seemed not much older than Maggie herself.

  Howard Rand and his family were climbing into their wagon to head home. But the rescue was far from over.

  Someone brought a kettle of thick ham and potato soup to the rescue scene, and Ma filled two tin cups for Maggie and Sirius. Ma set the cup down in front of the dog. “Eat,” Ma commanded.

  Sirius couldn’t fit his nose into the cup. He looked down at the tin bannikin—then tipped it over with his paw, spilling the soup onto the rocks. His tail wagged as he ate the meat and potatoes first, then licked up the liquid.

  Maggie ate her own hot soup. She hadn’t realized how hungry and cold she was.

  The rescue continued throughout the afternoon with the chair traveling back and forth over the water. The boat quivered with the motion of the sea and waves and slipped into deeper water.

  “Hurry! Hurry!” was the constant call. “There are still many souls out there.”

  Everyone, including Ma, was busy with the rescue, bringing blankets and soup, and taking the passengers back to warm houses where they would spend the night.

  Maggie curled up inside the quilt, with Sirius across her feet. The rest of the day and evening became a blur in Maggie’s mind as the roar of the waves lulled her into a fitful sleep. She heard the cheers, like some distant music, as each passenger reached safety. The rescue team worked tirelessly, finally bringing the crew and captain of the steamer safely to land.

  It was dusk when the shouting and cheers finally subsided. Someone carried her to a wagon. She could hear a familiar voice urging the horse forward. But she was too tired to see who it was.

  After a bumpy ride, Maggie was helped from the wagon and led into her cozy kitchen. Ma helped Maggie put on a nightgown that she had warmed on the stove, then tucked her into bed.

  “Sirius?” Maggie asked sleepily.

  “Sleeping safely by the stove,” Ma answered. “Your dog saved over a hundred people today. You can be right proud of him.”

  “He’s a good boy,” said Maggie. The wind still rattled the windows and whistled through the crab apple tree. “Is Pa back yet?”

  “Not yet. I’m sure he’ll be home tomorrow,” her mother answered.

  Maggie fell into a deep sleep as the stars and the new moon sparkled over Bonnie Bay.

  * * *

  Sunday morning came bright and fresh. Sirius got up and stretched as Maggie entered the kitchen. On the table was a note.

  Maggie,

  I’ve gone to church. There’s a special thanksgiving service for the town and the passengers. You were so tired, I didn’t want to wake you.

  No word yet from Pa and marcus, but try not to worry. There are very few outports along the way with wireless stations where they could contact us.

  Love, ma

  Maggie bowed her head. “Thank you, Lord, for saving everyone last nigh
t—including Sirius.” Sirius thumped his tail. “And please, please, bring Pa home safely so we can all be together and happy again. Amen,” she whispered. “Oh, and one more thing,” she added. “The Rands know that Sirius is here. Please protect him from that law.”

  After breakfast, Maggie headed for the door. “Come on, Sirius. The Rands wouldn’t dare hurt you today. Not with all these people in town who owe their lives to you.”

  As the two were walking down the path, Vera called out, “May I come, too? Ma says I can take a walk in the sunshine.” Maggie’s cousin looked thin and pale, but her bright smile had returned and her blond hair had begun to grow back.

  “Did you hear what happened yesterday?” Maggie asked.

  “Ma told me all about it,” Vera answered, catching up to Maggie. “And how Sirius brought the line out to the ship in all those big waves. I wish I could have been there.” Vera bent down and hugged Sirius, who licked her face. “You famous, clever dog!”

  The girls sat together near the docks, with Sirius between them. The harbor glistened like a sapphire. Waves lapped gently against the boats. Out by Killock Rock, the steamer had slipped into the deep water and disappeared.

  “Yes, I heard all about yesterday,” said Vera. “It was right brave of you to bring Sirius down to help.”

  “All those people . . .”

  “I know. You couldn’t keep your secret anymore. You had to save the passengers.”

  Maggie nodded. “Remember the eleven ravens?”

  “ ‘A secret that will never be told,’ ” Vera quoted.

  “Well, everyone knows now that Sirius is here, so that wasn’t the secret never to be told after all.” Maggie grinned and imitated her father’s gruff voice: “That’s a lot of superstitious nonsense.”

  “Pishogue!” both girls said together.

  Vera giggled. “Maggie, were you asleep when they brought you home yesterday?”

  “I remember riding in Otto’s wagon, but that’s all.”

  “It wasn’t Otto’s wagon. It was Howard Rand’s wagon. I was watching from the door. It was duckish—still sort of light—and I could see Howard Rand carrying you into the house.”

  “No, not so,” Maggie said. “You’re playing games with me.”

  “Sirius was in the wagon, too. Pa said Howard yelled, ‘God bless this dog,’ over and over.”

  Was Vera so much her old self that she was full of tricks again? “Stop it, Vera . . .”

  “And my pa said that Howard cried when Marie and his grandson got to shore. Can you imagine that? Howard Rand cried!”

  “Oh, good morrow to you,” Maggie sputtered. “I can’t believe that.”

  “It’s the truth, I swear.”

  The two girls listened to the music that was drifting from the church. Sirius lay down at their feet in the sunlight and closed his eyes. A gull soared overhead.

  “I’m glad we didn’t have to sit through another one of Reverend Dobbs’s boring sermons,” Maggie said.

  “Aren’t they awful? Oh, church is over,” said Vera. “People are coming out.”

  Sirius led the way to the churchyard gate. “Do you see my mother?” Maggie asked, holding her hand over her eyes against the sun to scan the crowd. She gasped. Howard Rand and Joey Harper were standing at the door talking to the Reverend Dobbs.

  “Quick, we’ve got to get away.” Maggie grabbed Sirius’s collar. But it was too late. The men were coming toward her.

  “Maggie Wells,” the constable called.

  Maggie pulled Sirius. “Run, Sirius,” she commanded, but crowds of people were milling around her, blocking the way.

  “There’s the dog. There’s Sirius!” someone called. Now people were gathered all around Maggie, separating her from Vera.

  “Please, let us go!” Maggie begged.

  Howard Rand clamped his large hand on her shoulder. “Maggie, don’t run, maid. We were looking for you at church. This was a special service.”

  Maggie tried to wriggle away, but Howard held her fast. “The service wasn’t right without you there—you and your dog,” he said, glancing down at Sirius, who stood alert by Maggie.

  “That’s right,” said Joey Harper. “This dog saved everyone on that ship out there. We wanted you both to be there this morning so we could all thank you.”

  “What . . . what about the law—the sheepdog law? You were going to shoot Sirius. I saw you with your rifles.” Maggie still held on tightly to Sirius’s collar.

  Joey Harper nodded. “There have been several sheep killed by dogs around here, Maggie.”

  Howard Rand shook his head. “Tamar was sure it was your dog. She was right upset and cross as the cats when it happened to her own sheep, let me tell.”

  Maggie looked around for Ma. What was Howard Rand saying? What would they do to Sirius? She could see Ma pushing through the crowd.

  “I’m here, Maggie,” Ma said, stepping close to her daughter.

  “I was angry at the dogs—and I was angry with your father,” Howard Rand continued. “I heard about the new boat and how my best fishermen were going to leave me and go with your pa.” He put both hands on Maggie’s shoulders. “Will you forgive me, maid? I’ve been a gommel and a fool. There’s enough fish in the sea for all of us. And if your pa doesn’t get home by noon, I’m going out to look for him myself.” Then he got down on his knees in front of Sirius. “Will you forgive me, Sirius?”

  Sirius gave Howard Rand a slobbery kiss on the face.

  “I guess that means we’ve made amends.” Howard laughed, wiping his face with his sleeve.

  Maggie couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “You won’t shoot Sirius?”

  “No one on the Island of Newfoundland will lay a hand on that dog as long as I’m alive,” Howard Rand swore, getting to his feet.

  Joyful cheers and applause erupted from the crowd. Maggie was relieved to see Vera’s smiling face nearby.

  “But what about the law?” Ma asked Joey Harper.

  “If your dog is a sheepdog, you all have nothing to fear from the law.”

  Constance Rand, who had joined her husband, looked around. “Tamar,” she called. “Haven’t you got something to tell Maggie?”

  Tamar stepped forward. She looked at the ground, biting her lip. “Maggie,” she said, “as soon as my next lamb is born, it will be yours. I’m giving it to you. That will make you a sheepherder, and it will make Sirius a sheepdog. Then Sirius will be safe forever. I’m sorry I treated you so badly. If you never forgive me, I won’t blame you.” A little smile played on her lips. “But I hope you will.” She looked over at Vera and added, “I hope you both will.”

  Holding her baby, Marie came up to Maggie and kissed her. “There are no words to thank you,” she said. “Or you, Sirius.” The baby giggled and stretched out his hand toward the dog. “See?” said Marie. “Benjamin wants to thank you, too.”

  The Reverend Dobbs pushed his way toward the group. “Well, you missed the best sermon I ever gave, Maggie,” he said. “It was about self-sacrifice and love of neighbor—”

  Howard Rand interrupted with a laugh. “The sermon’s over, Pastor, and church is out. Now we’re going to have that party. And everyone is invited!”

  * * *

  Later, when Vera and most of the islanders had gone home to dinner, Otto and Cliff went onto the wharves to check the storm damage to the smaller boats. Maggie and Ma stayed by the docks, waiting for some word of The Grace.

  Maggie saw Lucy and Annie standing off by themselves, looking out to sea.

  Ma went over and put her arm around Lucy. “They’ll be back,” she said. “You’ll see.”

  Lucy gave a weak smile and nodded.

  Maggie and Sirius joined them.

  Annie said, “Maggie, your dog was right brave to go out in those waves and save all the passengers.”

  “Sirius is the most wonderful dog in all the world,” said Maggie.

  Sirius barked at a soaring gull. Maggie remembered the eleven r
avens she had seen flying over the quidnunc and the secret that would never be told.

  There were no more secrets now.

  Suddenly, a horn blasted from out beyond the bay. A boat as white as a swan appeared around the arm of the harbor. It honked over and over as it chugged into Bonnie Bay.

  Maggie could just make out her father’s hat and his cream-colored gansey sweater. “It’s Pa!” she screamed.

  “That’s my Marcus waving from the bow,” Lucy exclaimed. She and Ma hurried down the steps to the wharf.

  Cliff and Otto had already raced to the open berth where The Grace would be docked. They jumped up and down, waving at the boat.

  Maggie, Annie, and Sirius scrambled down to the dock.

  “Pa,” Maggie called. Sirius ran in circles, barking and panting.

  As the boat puttered into its berth, Marcus threw the bowline to Otto, then hopped off the boat. “What a trip! You’ll never believe the stories we’ve got to tell.” He hugged his wife and daughter.

  “Are you all right?” Lucy asked.

  “All right?” Marcus guffawed loudly. “In all that sea, I never got sick once.” He grabbed Annie and swung her around. “In fact, I’ve never felt better in my life!”

  Maggie and Ma threw themselves into Pa’s arms. He kissed them on their cheeks.

  “Thank the Lord you’re back,” said Ma, kissing him back. “We were so worried.”

  “Now we’re all safe—even Sirius,” Maggie said. “And have we got stories to tell you!”

  Sirius barked and jumped on Pa, whining and licking his face. “Oh, kisses from you, too, you slobbery old dog?” Pa said, laughing.

  Shadows flickered over the dock. “Look, Maggie.” Pa pointed up to the sky. “Are those five huge crows that I see? A time to laugh and skip about.” He grabbed Ma’s and Maggie’s hands and wheeled them around and around. Sirius jumped and barked happily.

  In the blue sky over Bonnie Bay, the black birds soared, then settled, one after another, in a tree high on the quidnunc.

  AFTERWORD

  Almost five hundred years before Christopher Columbus discovered America, Vikings had a settlement at L’Anse aux Meadows, on the northern peninsula of Newfoundland. Today, Newfoundland, along with Labrador, is a province of Canada and has half a million inhabitants who affectionately call their island “the Beautiful Rock.”