fag. ‘But they don’t tell me.’
‘Then how do you know?’ I asked.
‘From my daughter Lily.’
Did the girl, I wonder, now have the gift of mind-reading as well as being a visionary? ‘How did Lily know?’
‘The young sergeant, Williams, told her. He is in love with my daughter. He bothers her sometimes,’ Mr Lee said, in that matter-of-fact way a lot of Gypsies in this country seem to have. So maybe it had been Williams I had heard talking to Lily the first time I’d been up to the Pond with Hannah. Perhaps their encounter had been of a romantic nature.
‘So why do the MPs think that you or Lily or anyone in your group would know about the fugitive Martin Stojka?’
‘Because he and us are all Romanies,’ Mr Lee replied. ‘ Gauje believe we all know one another. They also think we have powerful magic, that we can do impossible things.’
‘Well, to be fair, having a head with no body that can talk is pretty magical,’ I said. ‘And now this “miracle”—’
‘I don’t know nothing about that,’ the Gypsy cut in quickly. ‘What Lily sees is given only to her. I don’t know why.’
‘Between ourselves do you think that her vision is of the Virgin Mary?’ Ernie asked. ‘Honestly?’
Mr Lee shrugged. ‘There’s just horses, bears and the road in my life,’ he said. ‘If people choose to believe something, that is their business. If my daughter has religion, that is something that she alone knows. You’ll need to speak to her.’
‘You haven’t?’ Ernie asked, disbelief in his voice.
‘Ever since Rosie died she has talked almost only to the Head,’ the Gypsy replied.
‘I heard her talking to a man in the forest a few days back,’ I said. ‘If that was Williams . . .’
‘My daughter, whatever is happening to her, won’t go with no gaujo ,’ Mr Lee responded gravely. ‘You talk about religion, but religion is nothing. The romanipe , our way of life, our beliefs and our people, that is everything.’
‘So you’ve warned Sergeant Williams off?’
‘Lily has,’ he said. ‘She doesn’t want him. He and the others came just before my other daughter died, looking for bad people in the forest. Lily told him then she wouldn’t look at no gaujo . She tells him now. When he goes he will forget her.’
‘And if he doesn’t?’ I asked. ‘Lily is quite the famous girl at the moment, Mr Lee.’
‘It will pass,’ he replied, with what I felt was a lot of confidence. ‘Lily is Romany. She will move on and be forgotten.’
Both Ernie and I felt that what he was saying, in a roundabout way, was that he didn’t believe in Lily’s visions. Not that he had in any way colluded with his daughter to trick people. That his wife and some of the other Gypsy women were selling fortunes and other goods to the hordes of religious gauje in their midst was neither here nor there. Gypsies, like most travelling folk, take advantage of opportunities as and when they come along, whatever those opportunities might be.
‘You know that if Lily continues to see things and the Military Policemen try to keep the people from her there could be a riot?’ Ernie told the Gypsy as he sucked hard at his bottle of beer.
‘Why would they try, the policemen, to do that?’ Mr Lee asked.
‘Because they have it in their heads that you know where this German Stojka is,’ I said. ‘They may try to withhold Lily to put pressure on you to give this man up. You’re the only group of Gypsies in the forest . . .’
‘I tell you, we don’t know such a man from Germany. He, Williams, he’s punishing my daughter for not going with him,’ Mr Lee said gravely. ‘ Gaujo men always think bad things about our women.’
‘Be that as it may,’ I replied. ‘But if Lily starts seeing whatever it is she sees and the MPs stop people going to her, there’ll be trouble. People might get hurt. The reverend and I are here to see what we can do to stop that.’
‘Well, you’d better speak to
‘Then how do you know?’ I asked.
‘From my daughter Lily.’
Did the girl, I wonder, now have the gift of mind-reading as well as being a visionary? ‘How did Lily know?’
‘The young sergeant, Williams, told her. He is in love with my daughter. He bothers her sometimes,’ Mr Lee said, in that matter-of-fact way a lot of Gypsies in this country seem to have. So maybe it had been Williams I had heard talking to Lily the first time I’d been up to the Pond with Hannah. Perhaps their encounter had been of a romantic nature.
‘So why do the MPs think that you or Lily or anyone in your group would know about the fugitive Martin Stojka?’
‘Because he and us are all Romanies,’ Mr Lee replied. ‘ Gauje believe we all know one another. They also think we have powerful magic, that we can do impossible things.’
‘Well, to be fair, having a head with no body that can talk is pretty magical,’ I said. ‘And now this “miracle”—’
‘I don’t know nothing about that,’ the Gypsy cut in quickly. ‘What Lily sees is given only to her. I don’t know why.’
‘Between ourselves do you think that her vision is of the Virgin Mary?’ Ernie asked. ‘Honestly?’
Mr Lee shrugged. ‘There’s just horses, bears and the road in my life,’ he said. ‘If people choose to believe something, that is their business. If my daughter has religion, that is something that she alone knows. You’ll need to speak to her.’
‘You haven’t?’ Ernie asked, disbelief in his voice.
‘Ever since Rosie died she has talked almost only to the Head,’ the Gypsy replied.
‘I heard her talking to a man in the forest a few days back,’ I said. ‘If that was Williams . . .’
‘My daughter, whatever is happening to her, won’t go with no gaujo ,’ Mr Lee responded gravely. ‘You talk about religion, but religion is nothing. The romanipe , our way of life, our beliefs and our people, that is everything.’
‘So you’ve warned Sergeant Williams off?’
‘Lily has,’ he said. ‘She doesn’t want him. He and the others came just before my other daughter died, looking for bad people in the forest. Lily told him then she wouldn’t look at no gaujo . She tells him now. When he goes he will forget her.’
‘And if he doesn’t?’ I asked. ‘Lily is quite the famous girl at the moment, Mr Lee.’
‘It will pass,’ he replied, with what I felt was a lot of confidence. ‘Lily is Romany. She will move on and be forgotten.’
Both Ernie and I felt that what he was saying, in a roundabout way, was that he didn’t believe in Lily’s visions. Not that he had in any way colluded with his daughter to trick people. That his wife and some of the other Gypsy women were selling fortunes and other goods to the hordes of religious gauje in their midst was neither here nor there. Gypsies, like most travelling folk, take advantage of opportunities as and when they come along, whatever those opportunities might be.
‘You know that if Lily continues to see things and the Military Policemen try to keep the people from her there could be a riot?’ Ernie told the Gypsy as he sucked hard at his bottle of beer.
‘Why would they try, the policemen, to do that?’ Mr Lee asked.
‘Because they have it in their heads that you know where this German Stojka is,’ I said. ‘They may try to withhold Lily to put pressure on you to give this man up. You’re the only group of Gypsies in the forest . . .’
‘I tell you, we don’t know such a man from Germany. He, Williams, he’s punishing my daughter for not going with him,’ Mr Lee said gravely. ‘ Gaujo men always think bad things about our women.’
‘Be that as it may,’ I replied. ‘But if Lily starts seeing whatever it is she sees and the MPs stop people going to her, there’ll be trouble. People might get hurt. The reverend and I are here to see what we can do to stop that.’
‘Well, you’d better speak to
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