Chapter 1

The sun peaked through the shutters on Tillie's bedroom window and gently woke her from her dreamless sleep. Instead of getting out of bed she lay there listening intently. Birds were chirping, calling good morning to each other, and she thought she thought she heard hooves in the distance.

She gazed up at the ceiling, the same ceiling she had woken up to for the last fourteen years, well as long as she remember. She loved everything about her home. It was cosy but spacious at the same time. Tillie vaguely remembered there had been a garden but it had died some years ago.

As she lay there she closed her eyes and thought about the day ahead of her. It was a Wednesday which meant she had school in the morning then in the afternoon she had to help mother and father in the shop. Her mother and father weren't her real parents, but that didn't mean she didn't love them. There was no doubt in her mind. They were her adopted parents and they were surprise parents (that's what Tillie thought summed it up nicely). Grace and Benjamin Perring were unable to have children of their own so when Tillie was left on their doorstep that jumped at the chance to be parents. They were lot older than the age that most people become parents but it didn't bother them and it didn't bother Tillie. Even though she was very happy with her adopted family she did want to know the truth about her biological parents. She had too many burning questions for them. Things like who are you? Did you love me once and why did you leave? She rolled onto her side. Why was her life full of unanswered questions? She thought back, it had been several years since she asked her parents. Tillie was much younger than she was, at least seven or maybe eight.

"Mother? Where did I come from? I mean if not from you and Father?"

Grace looked at her daughter. The girl in some way reminded her of someone she once new. It was her eyes and spoke in the same way. She sighed and said, "Well, it was the morning of the 4th of July. Your Father was outta town and I was up early tending to the store. See your Father had t'get products for the store. There was no-one around and I had to go home as I forgot ma lunch. I come back to find a basket an' a bundle on the door-step with a note"

She paused for breath and Tillie drew closer.

"What did the note say Mother?" Tillie asked.

"The note? Why I'll go an' fetch it." Grace moved around the kitchen into their office.

Her voice echoed from down the hallway, "Why here it is."

Brandishing a battered letter she re-entered the kitchen. She straightened it out, cleared her throat and read, "My dearest Matilda. You must know that this was not my choice. Where I am is a very dark place and it's no-where to raise a child. When you are older I hope you will understand why I made the choice I did. All my love, your mother."

Grace sighed as she finished. Who ever Tillie's real mother, Grace was she was thankful for her leaving her with them. They had never been able to have children and it was like Matilda was a gift from an angel.

"I knew then an' there; I couldn't leave you there, you were only a babe after all. No, I closed the shop an' I took you in. You didn't cry you were asleep and I stood over you until your Father got home. Of course when he got home he wasn't best pleased. A baby, an' I had just taken you in when you coulda been anyone's. No he marched you an' me down to the Sheriff's office." She stopped and looked at her husband, "You wanna carry on Benjamin?" she asked him.

He looked up from the newspaper he was reading and took his pipe out of his mouth. He smiled and continued, "Well I took yo'an' your mother over to see the Sheriff. After all a baby had been left on my doorstep. After vagarious talkin' we found that you weren't no-one's. So we went home and in the morning I built you a crib in that bedroom you woke up in this morning."

Tillie's thoughts were halted by her mother was stirring next door. She sat up and listened before she swiftly slipped out of bed and searched the room for her camisole. She located it as a pile if clothes on the floor. Quickly she pulled it over her head. She took out of her wardrobe a pale blue dress with three-quarter length sleeves and a little sash that could be tied at either the front or the back. She'd made the dress- with the help of her mother- after her father had brought the fabric back from his business trip to the East. She heard a sharp tap on her door.

"Tillie, are you getting dressed?" asked the voice.

"Yes mother", Tillie sang in response.

"Good, it's 'cause you've got school again this morning".

Tillie smiled to herself- school, she loved it. She loved to learn new things; she was one of those students who had a passion for knowledge. The only thing was that her teacher, Mrs Banwell, was old and took no nonsense.

She found her hair brush and began to brush her hair. Once she had removed the nights tossing and turning she gazed at herself in the cracked mirror. The first thing she noticed about herself was her bright blue eyes (her parents said they were the colour of the lake before it began to dry up). She ran a hand through her blonde hair. It fell to just below her waist in almost ringlets. Thinking about it, it was sort if wavy. She twisted it around a finger thinking of what to do with it. She could leave it down, but it could be distracting in school. She could place it in a bun but she needed her mother's help to do so. Taking her brush she pulled it back into her hand and plaited it. She finished it by tying the end with a blue ribbon she'd found on her dresser.

As she finished tying the ribbon she saw the brown smudge on her forearm. Tillie stared it and traced the outline with her right hand. It was odd because she, Tillie was white, with very fair skin apart from her arm which had this dark patch. It was almost like someone had painted it on in the shape of an onion. That was what Tillie had decided it looked like- an onion.