Hester clears her throat and then swallows hard. ‘There’s news you don’t know yet and God knows this is not the time to tell you.’ She shrugs her shoulders.
‘It’s that ... ‘
Joe looks up suspiciously. ‘What?’ he interjects. ‘It’s Meg. She could be pregnant to Jack Thomas.’ Joe stares at Hester, unable to comprehend.
Hester holds up her hand. ‘No, wait — don’t say anything, let me explain.’
Joe brings his hands up to cover his face. ‘Ohmegawd! What are you saying, woman?’
‘Remember how you once said it would be the only way Meg could get him? Well, it happened while you were away. Jack saw the fence posts the timber-getter brought and I happened to mention to him they were in the wrong place and would need to be shifted to the north paddock. He came over on Wednesday, quite unexpected.’ Hester tries to look contrite. ‘I mentioned your bad back and he offered to load them and move them.’ Hester pauses and says, ‘I’m sorry Joe, but you could have gotten hurt moving them.’
‘That were decent of him,’ Joe growls, though plainly unhappy. ‘But him knowing I’ve got a bad back ain’t gunna help me. You shoulda known better, Hester. Shearing season’s coming up, I need the work at the station.’ ‘Jack won’t be there, Joe. He’s off to the war. He’s not going to tell George Thomas — they’re still not on speaking terms.’
‘Anyway, what’s the fence posts got to do with him and Meg?’ Joe asks.
‘Well, I wasn’t here Wednesday night. I was called over to see old Mrs Baker — you know, the organist at St Stephen’s. She’s got a bad heart — you know how she’s always going on about it so that nobody takes much notice — but she was took ill and sent for me. I rode over in the sulky and when I got there she was that unwell I decided to stay the night and mind her.’ ‘So, what yer tellin’ me, him and her was alone? Jack and Meg?’
‘Well, I wasn’t to know that he was coming over, was I?’ Hester protests. ‘Meg naturally asked him to stay for tea, to thank him for moving the posts.’ Hester pauses and shrugs. ‘Two young people in love left together all night ... It’s not surprising under the circumstances.’
‘You mean Meg saw her big opportunity?’
‘She loves him, Joe!’
‘Eh? That one only loves herself. She bloody saw her chance and took it, grabbed it with both hands. I’ll bet she couldn’t get her bloomers down fast enough.’
Hester sighs. ‘You’re wrong about Meg, but I won’t argue with you, Joe Bergman. The fact is, we can’t ask Jack about Jessica.’
‘Oh, I see, you do think he could’ve done it to Jessie as well?’
‘No, Joe, I don’t. You know as well as I do whose child Jessica’s carrying. It’s Billy Simple’s. She’d have told us if it was Jack’s, if only to spite Meg.’
Joe frowns, thinking. ‘I dunno. Jessie’s not foolish, she’s not that sort of girl.’
‘Ha, little do you know!’ Hester exclaims.
‘What do yer mean by that?’
‘Nothing,’ Hester says, covering up. ‘Just that she’s a young girl.’
‘Bullshit. That’s not what you mean. What are you saying about Jessie?’ Joe demands. ‘Well, she does things.’
‘Does things? What sort o’ things?’ Hester sighs. ‘Joe, it’s not something you ought to know about.’
‘Jesus! The girl’s pregnant to a fucking monster and it’s not something I oughta know about?’ Joe yells. ‘What bloody things, woman?’
‘She fiddles with herself, does unnatural things to herself.’
‘What’s that supposed ter mean?’
‘In places where she ought not.’ Joe looks at his wife, bemused. ‘What places?’ Hester sighs. ‘Women’s places. Places a man hasn’t got.’
A look of astonishment appears on Joe’s face. ‘You mean ... ? Do women do that?’
‘No, Joe, only very wicked ones, dirty buggers.’ Hester taps the side of her head. ‘Jessica’s been doing it a long time.’
‘How do you know?’
‘I’m her mother. I saw it with my own eyes — she left her bedroom door open, and I saw her!’ ‘Does Meg do it as well?’