Journey's End (31 page)

Jacob grinned. ‘Okay, boss. You got
it!’

Wiping away as much of the grease and muck as he could, Thomas leaped onto his motorbike and was away across the fields like the wind. ‘He’ll never get this machine replaced, not with a full refund!’ one of the men exclaimed. ‘Not when he already squeezed them down to their knees on the price.’

‘Oh, they’ll replace it all right,
and
with a full refund.’ Jacob was confident. ‘They know when
he says he’ll make their name stink, that’s exactly what he’ll do.’

‘What d’yer reckon the old man wants?’

‘Search me.’ Like his workmate, he glanced towards Thomas’s speeding vehicle. ‘There seems to be some sort of panic on, that’s for sure.’

Kicking his boots off at the door, Thomas found his stepfather in the drawing room, pacing back and forth like a caged lion. ‘What’s wrong? What’s the
urgency?’ he asked.

Leonard looked at him for a brief moment, at this big, hardworking man who had grown to be like his own son. ‘We need to talk,’ he said quietly. ‘It’s about your mother.’

Thomas stepped forward. ‘What about her?’

His face drained of colour. ‘Has something happened? She’s not hurt, is she?’

Leonard shook his head. ‘No, no, son. She’s not hurt.’ He paused before adding, ‘At
least, I hope not.’

‘What’s that supposed to mean?’ Thomas stared at him. ‘I think you’d best explain. Why am I here? What is it that you so desperately needed to tell me, that you had to drag me away from my work?’

Leonard took a deep breath. ‘As you know, your mother went to England, to your father’s –’

‘I know why she went,’ Thomas interrupted, ‘and I think there have been enough discussions
on that particular issue. I happen to believe Dad was wrong not to tell us how ill he was.’

‘I understand,’ Leonard answered quietly. ‘I know how you feel, and I have to respect that.’

‘No, you
don’t
know how I feel … how we
all
feel! We should have seen him through what must have been the worst, loneliest time of his life, and he sent us away. Did he think we were so selfish that we’d resent
having to stay by his side and help him? Did he really think we weren’t strong enough to cope with it all?’

His voice began to shake with emotion. ‘No, Leonard! We all believe he should have given us the choice of leaving or staying. He took that choice away, and we can’t forgive him for it. Mother doesn’t agree – she never will. So, if she prefers to be with him now, when it’s too late and there
is nothing we can do, then so be it. That’s her choice.’

‘Listen to me!’ Squaring himself, Leonard stopped Thomas in full, vehement flow. ‘Your mother is hurting too. Look, I felt the same, all those years ago. I tried hard to persuade your father that he was doing wrong in sending you all away. But now I think I understand, and maybe I was wrong in condemning his actions. I can’t imagine how
he must have felt, watching his entire family sail away from him, after he had put himself through what must have been torment … drinking himself stupid, fighting and cavorting with street-women, all to make you think he was not worth the saving. When all the while, he was so desperately ill. He did that, yes, and there are those who will always blame him for it.’

He had never lost the image
of Barney curled up under the tree, a sorry, broken man. ‘In all honesty, could any one of us do what he did? Could we torture ourselves like he did, and all for the ones we love? Look, Tom, maybe it isn’t for us to judge his actions, brave or foolish though they might have been. What he did, he did for you –
all
of you. And for the rest of your life, you must never forget that!’

Thomas was taken
aback. ‘But you sided with us! You said we should try to forget, and carry on with our lives. You did your best to stop Mother returning to England. You said there was nothing to be gained from it, that it would only cause more pain.’

‘You’re right, I did,’ Leonard admitted. ‘But only because I didn’t want her hurt any more. But now, I’m afraid I may have lost your mother forever, and all because
I promised Barney that I would never tell her the truth. I kept my word, but she found out anyway, through Lucy. Now your mother has turned away from me, Thomas. All I hope is that she can find it in her heart to forgive me, the same way I hope you, your brother, and Susie can find it in your heart to forgive your father.’

‘Never!’ Thomas was adamant.

‘Don’t say that,’ Leonard implored him.
‘We can’t change the way things were, all those years ago. We did what we thought was for the best; maybe it was, maybe it wasn’t. And maybe we will never know.’

He paused. ‘There’s something else you need to know,’ he revealed. ‘I’ve booked a flight to London. I must go to your mother straight away. I’m afraid she might be in danger.’

Thomas was visibly startled. ‘What do you mean, in danger?’

Leonard explained. ‘Do you recall how we told you of a man by the name of Edward Trent, the same man who came to Lucy’s cottage at Overhill Farm and caused the death of little Jamie?’

‘Yes, but didn’t Edward Trent disappear without trace? Wasn’t it rumoured that he’d been hanged for some other crime?’ Tom well remembered little Jamie; he and the others had loved playing with the little lad. He
had been like a part of their own family, and dark days had followed his death by drowning.

‘Nobody ever knew for sure. But now, there appears to be some ruffian following your mother when she goes about her business. From the description, I suspect it might be him.’

Thomas was surprised. ‘How do you know all this?’

‘Your mother is hurting badly, Thomas. I’ve been so worried about her that
I hired a private detective to keep a watchful eye on her. I receive a report twice a week.’ Taking the cable from his pocket he handed it to Thomas. ‘This arrived earlier today.’

Thomas read it through quickly. When he had finished, he handed it back to Leonard and in a quiet voice, asked, ‘When do you leave?’

‘I have booked a flight to London with a private airline; the plane leaves this afternoon
at four.’

‘Book another seat. I’m coming with you.’

Smiling with relief, Leonard patted him on the back. ‘Good man. I was hoping you might say that.’ God willing, this could be the first step towards reuniting his family.

Before Tom went off to arrange things, Leonard asked him, ‘Is there any word from Susie?’

Thomas shook his head. ‘Not recently. Since Mother left, she’s thrown herself into
her work. The last letter I had from her, she was in New York drumming up business.’

‘And Ronnie – have you heard from him?’

Thomas shook his head. ‘Nope.’

‘I’ve been wondering …’

‘What?’

‘Well, since no one seems to know of his whereabouts, do you think he might have gone to England, to look for his mother?’

‘It wouldn’t surprise me.’ Thomas grinned suddenly. ‘In fact, he might be the ruffian
that’s following her.’

That brought an answering smile to Leonard’s face. ‘Could be.’ The smile slipped away. ‘But somehow I don’t think so.’

With that disturbing thought in mind, the two men prepared for their journey.

Leonard fearing for Vicky’s safety.

Thomas wondering who the ruffian was that showed such an interest in his mother.

Part 4

March, 1955

The Wedding

Chapter 22

I
N SALFORD, ELSIE
Langton watched her grandson from the kitchen window. ‘Just look at him,’ she tutted, hands on hips. ‘Anybody would think he was a child of ten, instead of a man of twenty-two.’

Charlie was of the same mind. ‘Gawd Almighty!’ He shook his head, rolled his eyes and sighed. ‘It’s no wonder his mum’s chucked him out on his ear. What I want to know is, why should we offer
him a roof over his head? He won’t work, he lolls around in the garden kicking that damned football about, and if you so much as ask him to help dig the allotment, he carries on alarming. I thought his National Service would have sorted him out, but no. He’s about as much use as Andy flippin’ Pandy, or Looby Loo, come to that.’

A third voice intervened. ‘He’s not really lazy. He’s bored, that’s
all.’ Ben’s daughter Abbie was staying with her father until after the wedding. Having taken to Elsie and Charlie, and having made acquaintance with their grandson Stuart, she often called round to say hello.

‘What d’yer mean, he’s bored?’ Elsie demanded. ‘There’s enough work round here to keep him occupied. He’s not bored, he’s downright idle, and if he doesn’t buck his ideas up, he’ll find
himself out on his ear.’

‘That’s right!’ Charlie could never abide with time-wasters, and said so. ‘I’ve worked all my life, man and boy, and even now when I should have my feet up and resting, I’m breaking my back down at the smithy.’

Elsie smiled fondly. ‘You love it,’ she reminded him. ‘You wouldn’t be doing it if you didn’t.’

‘That’s not the point, is it?’ he commented with a grunt. ‘All
I’m saying is this: every man has to work for a living, or he’s not worth salt.’

‘And what about every
woman
?’ his wife demanded.

‘What’s that ye say?’ He cupped his earlobe.

Elsie raised her voice. ‘YOU SAID EVERY MAN HAS TO WORK FOR A LIVING, AND I ASKED, “WHAT ABOUT EVERY WOMAN?” OR IS IT NOT WORK, WHAT I DO UP AT THE HOUSE?’

Charlie laughed. ‘Oh, it’s looking for a fight now, is it?’

‘If you want one, yes.’

‘Oh love, I’m sorry. O’ course you work hard, I know you do. It was a slip o’ the tongue, that’s all.’

‘Well, you’d best not let it happen again, or I’ll not bother cooking you a meal for a while. Soon teach you a lesson, that would.’

Having got used to their banter, Abbie offered to have a word with Stuart. ‘He’s not happy doing nothing,’ she said in his defence. ‘It’s
just that he doesn’t yet know what to do with his life. He’s … well, he’s still contemplating.’

Charlie raised his eyebrows. ‘Well, I’ll be blowed! Contemplating, is it? If he doesn’t soon get off his backside and pay his way here, he can bugger off and contemplate somewhere else, where they’ll feed and lodge him for nothing.’

Elsie was not quite so harsh. ‘Oh, give over, Charlie, the girl is
right. Anyway, I thought you were off to pull up a few o’ them cabbages for me? And don’t worry about Stuart. Once he’s made up his mind as to what he really wants out of life, he’ll be right as rain.’

Charlie cupped his earlobe. ‘Gonna rain, you say?’ He glanced out the window. ‘Best get yer washing in then, hadn’t yer?’

‘YES, AN’ YOU’D BEST GET YOUR HEARING AID IN, YOU SILLY OLD SOD!’

Whereupon
Charlie scurried out of the room. ‘Why didn’t yer tell me afore?’ he groaned. ‘I left the blessed thing out on the garden bench. If it rains as you say, it’ll be ruined and no mistake.’

When he left the room, Elsie told Abbie softly, ‘He’s dead crafty, you know. He doesn’t want to pull up the cabbages, so he pretends not to hear.’ She put her finger to her lips, and winked. ‘Just listen.’

She
raised her voice very slightly. ‘Good grief, is that a ten-bob note on Charlie’s chair? It can’t belong to him as he said he were broke, so it must be mine.’

‘It’s
mine
, yer thieving old divil!’ Rushing into the room, Charlie looked shame-faced on finding he’d been tricked and rushed out again. ‘Steal the fillings out of a man’s teeth, she would,’ he grumbled. ‘I’ve always said it: yer can’t
trust no woman, not even yer own wife.’

While Charlie was outside, Elsie took a moment to speak with Abbie. She had come to like her a lot, as Abbie was a sensible young woman. ‘Are you all set for being bridesmaid to your daddy and Mary?’ she asked. ‘Have you got your dress all ready and waiting?’

She thought Abbie would make a lovely bridesmaid. With her long dark hair and big black eyes,
she was a striking little thing.

‘Not yet, no.’ Abbie was a trifle nervous. ‘I’m going out with Lucy and Vicky this afternoon. They’re taking me shopping for my dress, and all the bits and pieces.’

‘Leaving it late, aren’t you?’ Elsie was the type who liked everything to be in place weeks before an event. ‘I mean, if the dress needs altering, they’ll not have much time. It’s only four days to
the wedding. Before you know it, Easter Saturday will be on us and it’ll be too late to start worrying about dresses and such then, won’t it, eh?’

Abbie was convinced everything would be all right. ‘We visited so many shops in Bedford, I’ve lost count,’ she said. ‘There’s only two more to visit now, so I’ve got to get it today, or you’re right. It will be too late.’

Elsie sighed. ‘It’s already
too late for Stuart,’ she worried. ‘Rona and I have nagged at him, threatened him and pleaded till we’re blue in the face, and
still
he’s made no effort to get himself a decent suit and shirt. If he doesn’t get it soon, I’ve told him, he won’t be welcome at the church.’ She set her mouth hard. ‘I’m not having him show us all up, and that’s that!’

Abbie got to thinking. ‘Has he got any money?’

‘Enough. You know that his dad died a few year ago, and Rona, poor lass, has always given him as much as she could. We help out, too. His grandad might grumble and argue, but he thinks a lot of the lad. He had him helping out at the smithy and gave him a few pounds so he could get some clothes for the wedding, but he still hasn’t been anywhere to find any – not that I know of anyway.’

‘Would you
like me to have a word with him?’ Like Charlie, Abbie too had a soft spot for Stuart. ‘He might listen to me where he won’t listen to you.’

‘Yes, why not give it a go. If you think you can make him smarten up, nobody would be more grateful than me and Charlie.’

‘Right then!’

A few minutes later, Abbie had run out to where Stuart was kicking the ball. She chased after it and snatching it up,
held it tight. ‘I want you to come out with me tomorrow morning – will you do that?’ she asked.

Stuart launched himself at her, trying to grab the ball though not very successfully. ‘Grandma’s been on at you, has she?’ he asked with a cheeky grin. ‘Don’t tell me … if I don’t get myself some decent clothes I’ll not be allowed in the church, and I’ll shame them by not being there. Am I right?’