The Secret of the Stone House by Judith Silverthorne Page A

younger sisters, folding sheets as they took them off the clothesline at the side of the house, laughing as they tried to shoo a grasshopper off the material. Bella, the oldest sister, didn’t seem to be around. Perhaps she was doing chores inside the house.
    Elsbeth, Geordie’s mom, sat on the bench in front of the house, handstitching clothing. Beside her sat a little girl with brown pigtails, lining up several spools of different coloured thread for her mom.
    “Good girl, Molly,” said Geordie’s mom.
    Emily stared in amazement. Molly. Her grandmother. The last time she’d seen her, Molly was a baby. Now she looked four years old.
    Emily edged her way into the yard, closer to the sod house, hoping no one could see her. As she advanced, Molly looked straight at her and smiled.
    Emily stopped in her tracks. Oh, no, Molly was able to see her too.
    Geordie’s mom stared in the direction Molly was now heading, but appeared not to see anything.
    “Where are you off to, lass?” she dropped her mending and looked about anxiously. “Molly, come here.”
    Emily held up her finger to her lips in a shushing gesture and winked at Molly. Molly giggled and tried to wink back. Her mom snatched her up and carried her into the house. Molly grinned over her shoulder and waved, as Emily stepped back into the shadows of the trees. So much for not attracting any attention. If only she could get Geordie to notice her without upsetting anyone else.
    She waited until he brought the next load of firewood to the house, then stepped into the open.
    “Geordie,” she said softly.
    Startled, he almost tipped the wheelbarrow. Then he grinned. He scanned the yard to see if anyone was watching, then parked the wheelbarrow by the door and pulled Emily around the corner of the soddy.
    “Hello, lass. It’s grand to see you,” his eyes twinkled. “I wondered when you’d come again.”
    “Why aren’t you working on the stone house?”
she asked.
    “It’s Sunday,” said Geordie as if that explained everything.
    He noticed her puzzled gaze. “We don’t do any heavy work on Sundays, except for the basic things that need doing here, so we can concentrate on building the rest of the week.”
    “I see,” Emily said, disappointed. “I was hoping to see more about how you built with stone, but I guess I’ll have to come back another time.”
    Geordie grinned. “You’re in luck. It’s my last load of firewood and then I need to go feed the chickens and pigs at the other site. So I can take you to look at the house without anyone being there.”
    “Wonderful!” Emily clasped her hands excitedly.
    “This will be the first time I won’t mind doing the women’s work,” he added. Again Geordie realized she didn’t understand. “Usually my mum or the girls feed the critters, but I have to do it until we move. My dad is always giving me the minor chores to do.” He shook his head and nodded at the others working in the yard. “My older brothers get to do all the important stuff.”
    Although he made light of it, Emily sensed he was bothered a great deal by not being given the work he considered men’s work. She couldn’t imagine what it must be like having three older brothers to compete with.
    “I’m sure what you do is necessary too,” she said lightly. Sometimes her mother also acted as though Emily couldn’t handle important tasks.
    “Aye, I guess it all needs to be done,” he smiled, shaking off his glum thoughts.
    Emily touched his shoulder. “I’ll wait for you on the hill.”
    “See you there,” Geordie agreed, going back to unload the firewood.
    Emily strode towards the barn, confident that no one else could see her, although she wondered why. It seemed that only the younger children could, but that didn’t explain why Beth and Kate couldn’t detect her. They were younger than Geordie and older than Molly – about nine and eleven by now. Perhaps they didn’t have any “knowing” at all, as her gran would have