The Rock'n'Roll Romance Box Set (Pam Howes Rock'n'Roll Romance Series) (32 page)

‘Good lad. You remembered that I
don’t like the smell in my bungalow. Can you see anything out on the lane at
the back there?’

Mark frowned and flicked his ash
on to the patio. ‘What sort of anything? I can see my car by the back gate, but
that’s all.’

‘Hmm, I wonder what’s going on.
Come into the lounge with me and peep through the nets. See if you can fathom
out what they’re up to.’

‘What who’s up to?’ Mark stubbed
out his cigarette and followed her. ‘You’re talking in riddles, Dot.’

‘There, look.’ She pointed across
the road where the gesticulating policeman was now standing by a patrol car,
talking into a radiophone. He was looking directly across at the bungalow and
pointing.

Mark paled and pulled back from
the window. Dorothy was oblivious to his discomfort and prattled on. He
silently left the room while she was still squinting through the nets.

***

Mark snatched up Jessica, wrapped
her in a blanket and headed for the kitchen door. He ran to the car, placed her
in the carrycot on the back seat, thanking God that he’d not taken it indoors,
and leapt into the driving seat.

He threw the vehicle into gear
and it shot forward, banging his head against the windscreen. The car bounced
down the narrow lane that ran along the back of the seafront properties. He
swung onto the main road and put his foot to the floor, ignoring the honking of
the angry driver he’d swerved in front of.

He took a deep, steadying breath
and slowed down slightly, checking his rear view mirror. The police were not
following. Why should they be? He was guilty of no wrongdoing. He shook his
head from side to side to clear the fuzzy feeling that his recently consumed
pills had created. The knock on the head hadn’t helped either. He blinked
frantically to clear the mist from his eyes. The baby had woken up and she was
crying.

He should turn back. If Jane arrived
on the island she wouldn’t know where to look for him. She may decide to return
to Pickford alone. The car hurtled towards the crossroads. He slammed on the
brakes and looked up at the road sign. If he took the left hand turn he would
be heading towards the local beauty spot, The Needles. That would do. He would
take Elinore for a short walk along the cliff path to clear his head and stop
her crying. He drove on, still puzzling over the police presence outside his
sister’s front door.

Maybe a prisoner had escaped from
Parkhurst and there’d been a sighting in Yarmouth.
That would be it. He nodded at the obvious answer and continued towards The
Needles, gripping the wheel as Jessica screamed.

***

Still talking to herself, Dorothy
frowned as another car pulled up further down the seafront. ‘Now what on earth
does
he
want?’ she muttered. ‘Charles is here.’ She turned to address
Mark and was surprised to find herself alone. ‘Mark,’ she called. ‘Has Ellie
woken up? Our Charles has just arrived. God knows what he wants. Probably to
make sure I’m not spoiling her by picking her up too often.’

She made her way to the bedroom
where she assumed Mark would be. Seeing the empty bed, she hurried to the
kitchen and stared at the open back door.

‘Mark, where are you?’ She looked
out to the garden where the gate was swinging in the breeze and saw that Mark’s
car had gone from the back lane. ‘How very odd.’ She scratched her head in
bewilderment.

‘What the blazes!’ she exclaimed
as someone hammered loudly on her front door. ‘Bloody Hell, Charles are you
trying to break down my door?’ She flung it open and stepped back in shock as
four burly police officers pushed their way inside, closely followed by Charles
and Penny.

‘Would somebody mind telling me
what the hell is going on?’ she yelled as the officers rushed from room to
room, their large frames filling her home.

‘Where’s Mark?’ Charles demanded,
clutching her arm.

‘You might well ask,’ Dorothy
said, dumfounded by the invasion.

‘What do you mean?’ Charles asked
frantically. ‘He was supposed to be visiting you.’

‘He was; then he disappeared
while we were looking out through the front window at this lot.’ She pointed to
the red-faced officers who were standing around like spare parts. ‘One minute
he was here, the next, he and Ellie had vanished into thin air. His car’s gone
too. It was parked out in the back lane.’

‘Oh great,’ the officer in charge
sighed despondently. As though remembering his position, he pulled himself
together and took command once more. ‘Have you any idea where Mark may have
gone, Miss Mainwaring?’

‘None at all; I didn’t even
know
he’d gone until just now when you
all barged in. We were having tea in the kitchen. I went to check on Ellie,
looked out of the bedroom window and saw all the activity. I called Mark to
come and twitch the nets with me, which he did, and then he vanished, just like
I said. For God’s sake, will someone
please
tell me what’s going on? Why
do you want Mark? What on earth has he done?’

‘Sit down, Dot, I’ll explain.’
Charles led her to the sofa. Her jaw dropped as she listened to him.

‘That can’t be right,’ she butted
in. ‘This Vicky you spoke to, well, she’s Tony’s girlfriend. Mark was just
telling me that the couple live with him and help him take care of Jane and
Ellie. You’ve got it all wrong, Charles.’

‘Mark was lying, Dot. He’s very
ill,’ Penny said, sitting beside her. ‘The baby’s parents are on their way
here. They shouldn’t be long now.’

There was a further flurry of
activity and hammering at the front door. The officer in charge ushered in a
young couple and two further police officers.

‘Mr and Mrs Mellor, Jessica’s
parents,’ he announced to the assembled crowd.

Eddie looked at Mark’s family and
nodded warily. He turned to one of the officers who had accompanied him and
Jane on their journey. ‘This island is not that big to search. What are you
doing now to find our child?’

‘We’ve officers and dogs drafted
in from the Hampshire force who are searching every inch of the island and
manning the ferry terminals to make sure Mr Fisher can’t leave that way, Mr
Mellor.’

‘Sir,’ the second officer called
from the open front door. ‘HQ on the radio for you.’

‘Back in two ticks,’ the first
officer told Eddie and left the room.

‘My dear Jane, I’m so very
sorry,’ Dorothy began, her voice wavering. ‘I had absolutely no idea. I thought
Mark was married to you and that Jessica was my niece.’

‘Huh, he wishes,’ Eddie said.
‘Mark Fisher has put my wife and me through hell. He needs locking up. He’s
dangerous and if he’s harmed my daughter, I’ll kill him!’

Penny, who was still in shock,
spoke up quietly. ‘Mark wouldn’t harm your daughter, Eddie. He’s in such a
confused state of mind that he really thinks she’s his own child. He dotes on
her and he’s looked after her very well. I washed and changed her last night
and I bathed her this morning. She was absolutely fine and there wasn’t a mark
on her, I can assure you.’

Jane nodded and wiped her eyes.
‘Thank you for that. Did she feed okay? She can be a bit cranky if the bottle
isn’t warm enough.’

‘She fed very well. In fact, I
commented how much she loves her food. She’s a bonny little girl and very
beautiful, and now I can see where she gets her pretty looks
and
her big
blue eyes from.’ Penny smiled in Eddie’s direction as the first police officer
rushed back into the room.

‘We’ve a sighting of him. He’s
parked out on the cliffs car park near The Needles. He’s pushing a small pram
up and down the path. He has no idea we are observing him. Mr and Mrs Mellor,
you come with me. The rest of you stay here for now.’

Eddie sighed with relief and
pulled Jane to her feet. ‘Come on, girl; let’s go get our baby back.’

***

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

Mark strolled along the cliff
path, talking to Jessica who was propped up in the carrycot. She was smiling
and cooing now after her screaming fit. He stopped and gazed at the chalky
white needle-like points in the bay, watching the clouds roll in and the waves
break against the beach far below. He lifted the baby out and sat down on the
grass, wrapping her in the knitted blanket. He pulled it up around her ears.
The damp sea breeze blew through her tufts of dark hair.

'Looks like it’s going to rain,
Ellie. Let’s hope mummy gets here before it starts. We’re all going to be
together and soon you’ll have a brother or sister to play with. Won’t that be
fun?’ He tickled Jessica under her chin. She grasped his finger and pulled it
to her mouth.

‘We’re going to live with Aunty
Dot. Daddy will build you sandcastles on the beach. Mummy will make picnics for
us. I’ll teach you to swim in the sea and Uncle Charles will take you out in
his boat. We’ll be a proper family. I never knew my real mummy and daddy,
Ellie, but I’ll make sure you grow up knowing yours.’

Jessica blinked as a drop of rain
landed on her button nose.

‘Oh dear, here it comes.
Let’s go back to the car. We can have something to eat at Aunty Dot’s. Dopey
daddy left your bottle behind.’ Mark got to his feet and placed Jessica back in
the pram. He tucked her in as a loud voice hailed him.

‘Mr Fisher, stay right where you
are, please!’

Mark spun round. A police
officer, carrying a loudhailer, strode out from behind a nearby rock.

‘Stay away from me,’ Mark yelled
back. ‘I’ve done nothing wrong. I’m going to wait in the car for my wife.’ He
snatched Jessica from the pram, holding her to his chest. She squirmed and
started to cry. ‘See what you’ve done,’ he called. ‘She was fine until
you
showed up, shouting all over the place.’

‘Mr Fisher, I want you to walk
slowly towards me and hand me the baby, please.’

‘No! This is my daughter, Elinore.
Ask my wife, she’ll tell you.’ Mark began to back towards the cliff edge.

‘Mr Fisher, please try and stay
calm. Walk forwards and hand me the baby.’

‘No, go away! Find Jane, she’ll
tell you.’

Jessica squealed in Mark’s arms.

‘Please, Mr Fisher, bring the
baby to me. We can help you, but first of all you have to hand her over.’

Ignoring this last command, Mark
stood transfixed, his eyes on the slender figure standing beside the police
officer. ‘Here’s mummy, Ellie. I told you she’d come.’

***

Jane, heart pounding, dragged her
jelly-like legs across the springy turf, eyes fixed on one thing; her precious
daughter in Mark Fisher’s arms, so precariously close to the edge of the
cliffs. She took a deep breath and concentrated on putting one leg in front of
the other.

She’d been briefed that Mark, in
his confused state, was probably waiting for her to join him. Eddie had been
all for charging at Mark like a madman to gain custody of Jessica, but had been
warned to stay out of sight as the situation was deemed too dangerous.

Jane knew that the short walk had
to be the performance of her life. She had it in her power to convince Mark
that she wanted and loved him. Sick at heart though it would make her feel to
say it, it was a small price to pay.

‘Mark,’ she called, her voice
wavering as he continued to stare at her. ‘Pull the blanket tightly around her.
She’s feeling insecure and it’s very cold up here.’

Mark nodded and tried to wrap the
wriggling baby. The rain was falling heavy now and her hair was flattened to
her tiny head. Almost there, Jane held out her arms. Mark took a step forward
then paused.

‘No, I’ll hold on to her,’ he
said and stepped backwards, closer than ever to the cliff edge. ‘She’s heavy
and you’re too weak from being ill.’

‘Mark, for God’s sake be careful.
You’re very near the edge and the grass is slippery.' Conscious that her voice
held an edge of hysteria, Jane swallowed hard, remembering the instructions to
stay as calm as possible. She breathed in deeply but the air didn’t seem to be
getting through and her heart hammered in her ears. She prayed she wasn’t going
to pass out and touched Mark’s arm. He looked at her, smiling.

‘I knew you’d come. I kept
telling Ellie you wouldn’t be long.’

‘Ellie?’

‘Our daughter,’ he replied,
frowning.

As she stared at Mark, Jane was
shocked to see the change in him. His face was gaunt and unshaven and his
clothes hung off him. She looked into his eyes and could see the madness. Even
more terrified now for Jessica’s safety, she swallowed and nodded, remembering
that Elinore was the name she’d chosen when she and Mark had talked about
starting a family.

‘I’m sorry, Mark. I’m confused
and upset that you and Ellie came away without me. Everything seems so hazy. I
can’t remember why you left me behind. Can you tell me what happened?’ Did she
sound convincing enough, or would Mark see straight through her? Turn the
tables, she thought; pretend
she
was the mad one. Let him think he was
helping
her.

‘You were too ill to travel. I
told you I would like to live here, but
you
…
’ His eyes stared straight through
her, his expression one of confusion. Spittle formed at the corners of his
mouth. ‘You weren’t ill, you were lying.’ He threw back his head and laughed
manically. ‘You didn’t want
me
, or
our baby. You left us because you were shagging Eddie Mellor.’

‘No, Mark, you’re wrong. I
wasn’t. I love you and Ellie. I want us to be together, always. We’ll make a
home here with your family. I met your sister Dot and your brother Charles.
They’re nice people. I could be very happy here.
Please,
Mark, I’m begging you,
take me back.
I won’t ever leave you again.’ Jane cringed inwardly, remembering back to the
time in Flanagan and Greys stockroom last year when Mark had prophesied that
she would beg him to take her back one-day. How right he’d been, but never in
her wildest dreams had she envisaged
this
nightmare.

‘And you won’t ever leave me
again for Mellor?’ Mark put his arm around her shoulders.

‘Never.’ Jane looked at him and
gave what she hoped looked like a please-forgive-me smile. ‘
You’re
the only man for me. You
always have been.’ She stroked his cheek and her stomach rolled, threatening to
throw up its contents at any moment. The rain battered down on them. She was
soaked through and her long hair whipped in wet strands around her face. Her
short dress was sticking to her, revealing her every contour, while Mark seemed
oblivious to the rain.

Jessica was still now in his
arms, almost as though the fight had left her. Mark hitched her up onto his
shoulder. She nuzzled against his neck, sucking hungrily on her fingers.

‘Will you kiss me, Jane? Then
we’ll go back to Dot’s place to get dry. Ellie is ready for a feed now.’

Jane nodded and lifted her face,
almost gagging as his hungry lips met hers and she tasted the whisky on his
searching tongue. His hand slid down her back, gripping her backside.

She pulled away, forcing a smile.
‘Mark, stop it, people are watching. Give Ellie to me now and we’ll walk back
to your car.’

As Mark turned the baby to face
her, the look of recognition in her daughter’s eyes was a joy to behold and the
accusing
where have you been
? pout
tore at Jane’s heart.

‘Come here, Jess, come to Mummy.’
Jane snatched her daughter as Mark's face contorted with rage.

‘Her name’s Ellie. What sort of a
fucking mother doesn’t even know her child’s name?’

‘I’m sorry, Mark,’ Jane faltered,
holding tightly onto her baby. ‘I feel confused and ill. Please, let’s go to
the car.’

‘Give her to me.’ Mark tried to
wrestle Jessica out of her arms but Jane held on for dear life as he pulled
them closer to the cliff edge.

‘No, Mark! Let go,’ she pleaded.
‘I’ll carry her. She’s terrified, let go, you bastard!’ She kicked out,
connecting with his shins but he didn’t seem to notice.

‘Give her to me,’ he yelled,
pulling at the blanket. Jessica’s cries became hysterical.

As the baby slipped from her
grasp and fell to the ground, Jane dropped to her knees, and at the top of her
voice screamed, ‘For God’s sake, Eddie, help me!’

***

Behind a nearby rock and flanked
by two burly police officers, Eddie watched the emotional scene unfolding
before him with mounting anger and frustration. As Fisher put his arm around
Jane and kissed her, Eddie gritted his teeth and when he squeezed Jane’s arse
his anger knew no bounds.

‘Get your filthy hands off my wife,
you moron!’ he muttered. ‘I’ll fucking kill him when I get my hands on him!’

‘Mr Mellor, please stay calm.’
One of the officers tried to placate him.

‘How the fuck do you expect me to
stay calm?’ he retorted. ‘He’s got my wife and kid out there. He’s feeling
Jane’s arse and you
want me to stay
calm?’ He watched as a tug of war over the baby seemed to be taking place. When
he saw Jessica fall and Jane sinking to her knees, screaming for help, Eddie
had had enough.

Before the officers could stop
him, he bounded forward with an angry roar and sprinted over the grass, pushing
Mark away from Jane. He scooped up Jessica, who was screaming again, and held
her close. Jane scrambled to her feet and moved to Eddie’s side. Mark’s shocked
expression quickly changed to one of fury.

‘Give me back my child, Mellor!
This is between my wife and me.’

‘She’s
my
wife, you
fucking cretin!’ Eddie roared back. ‘And this is
my
daughter.’

‘How can she be your wife? Jane’s
married to me.’ Mark darted towards Eddie who dodged to one side, shielding
Jane with his body as several officers rushed forward.

‘About fucking time too!’ Eddie
yelled as Mark stepped towards the cliff edge.

‘Mark, no!’ Jane screamed, as,
looking back over his shoulder in her direction, he shouted ‘I love you, Jane,’
and jumped. The long, ear-splitting scream faded out and was followed by total
silence.

‘Oh, my God!’ Jane cried
hysterically.

Speechless, Eddie wrapped his
arms around his wife and child and drew them away from the scene.

More officers rushed forward with
blankets and threw them around the young couple and Jessica, leading them
towards a waiting car.

‘We’ll get you straight to
hospital. Have Jane and the baby checked over,’ one officer told Eddie. ‘We’ll
take statements and then fly you all home.’

‘Jess is hungry and cold,’ Jane
said. ‘She’s very pale and quiet.’

‘I’m not bloody surprised,’ Eddie
said. ‘Poor little mite, she’s used to a peaceful life. I don’t think she’s
injured from the fall. She seemed to bounce on the grass.’

‘God, Ed, she could have gone
over the cliff with him,’ Jane sobbed. ‘Do you think he’s dead?’

‘Shush, sweetheart. Don’t think
about it. We’ll find out soon enough.’
 

***

Dorothy and Charles identified
Mark’s body; Dorothy breaking down at the sight of her younger brother’s bruised
and battered face.

‘Poor Mark. We failed him badly,
Charles, all of us, and that includes our father,’ Dorothy sobbed.

‘Well if anyone’s to blame, Dot,
it should be me. When I think back now I should have spotted the signs. He was
very clever at hiding things. I look at the facts now and a lot of what he told
us didn’t add up, yet I still didn’t question it.’

‘I want him buried on the island
with father,’ Dorothy said.

‘Is that wise?’ Charles frowned.

‘Yes, and I don’t give a hoot
about the gossips. Most of them are dead from around that time anyhow, and
those that aren’t, well tough.’

‘Okay, Dot,’ Charles said. ‘We’ll
make the funeral arrangements and let his friends Tony and Vicky know. Do you
think we should allow Maude Fisher to come?’

‘I’d rather we didn’t. Oh I know
she brought Mark up, but she also caused a lot of his problems. No wonder his
head was screwed up. No, we’ll have a close family and friends’ affair.’

***

Vicky, Tony and Sarah arrived on
the island the day before Mark’s funeral. Dorothy took charge of looking after
Vicky while Tony and Sarah took advantage of Charles and Penny’s hospitality.

As she sat in Dorothy’s
comfortable lounge that evening, Vicky smiled at Mark’s sister. ‘Mark thought
the world of you, Dot. Did you know that?’

‘Did he really, Vicky?’ Dorothy’s
eyes filled with tears. ‘That means a lot to me. We knew him for so short a
time and I feel we let him down. We should have realised he was ill. God in
heaven, Charles is a bloody doctor and even he didn’t see the signs.’

‘Mark was very good at concealing
his condition,’ Vicky said. ‘We were together eighteen months and I still
didn’t understand him. I really loved him. I’d like to think he felt something
for me, too. But I guess I’ll never know that now, will I?’

‘I suppose not.’ Dorothy shook
her head. ‘I have a feeling that some of the things he talked about doing with
Jane, he’d actually been doing them with you. A trip to Blackpool
for instance, he’d really enjoyed himself. Now that must have been with you as
Jane was married to Eddie by then. And what about seeing
The Rolling Stones
playing in Manchester?’

Vicky smiled. ‘That was with me
and so was Blackpool. He actually told you he’d enjoyed
himself?’

‘He did, my dear and now that
I’ve seen both you and Jane, the likeness is uncanny, apart from the eyes.
Mark’s condition addled his brain so much he could convince himself of
anything.’

‘I still can’t get over him
stealing Jessica from right under Jane’s mum’s nose though. That was so blatant
and wicked,’ Vicky said, shaking her head.