Читать книгу The Brightest Day, The Darkest Night - Brendan Graham - Страница 22

When Louisa awoke, the clarion calls of war were already summoning men to be ready for death. Before he would go out today, the boy had last night asked her to ‘Place my name, company and regiment on a piece of paper and pin it to my breast.’

She prayed, her daily prayers – the Sign of the Cross, the Morning Invocation of the Light, the Lord’s Prayer – for him. Not that death should pass him by, for that alone was the Lord’s domain, but that if it came, it should be quick and clean. Not lingering and painful, his youthfulness ebbing away, his beauty distorted.

Louisa knew he would be fearless, be raised in courage because of her. She smiled – boys to men do quickly grow. She rose, dressed, put on her headdress, remembering.

‘The White Bonnet Religion’, the soldiers called her faith. White bonnet, black bonnet, no bonnet, Louisa wondered what it was religion had to do with what would happen here today? Yet, the vast bulk of those who would line up to kill each other lived by some religious code. The politicians who, from afar, waged this war, also waged it with the absolute conviction that God was on their side. They had spoken with Him – and He had told them!

It had always seemed such an obscenity to her, lining up God in the ranks.

Beside her, Mary also prepared for the long day. In perfect prayer, Mary would be. Not distracted by the thoughts which flitted in and out of Louisa’s own head. She loved Mary so. Mary was her window to God. Amongst all the Sisters, all the doctors, the heroes of battle, Mary was the most perfect human being Louisa had ever known. A constant reservoir of love to all who came within her sphere. And Mary’s love was infinite.

‘I have no right not to dispense it freely,’ was how Mary saw it. ‘It is not mine not to give. I am His river.’

Mary looked at her adopted sister and smiled. Mary could see beneath, Louisa knew, into her very soul. That was the way with her. Louisa wondered what Mary would find there this morning? Whatever, there would be no judging of it.

Neither spoke. Nor was there need to.