The Village Show (Tales from Turnham Malpas) (9 page)

BOOK: The Village Show (Tales from Turnham Malpas)
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‘Oh sorry, Mrs Jones.’

‘Hello there, Pat. We’re just talking about your Mr Palmer. Right sly old fox he is, don’t yer think?’

‘It so happens I have the greatest respect for Mr Palmer. He’s a very nice person to work with. And if you’re gossiping about ’im then I don’t want to hear.’

Barry’s mother gave her arm a nudge. ‘Oh come on, Pat, don’t tell us you don’t know. You must. He’s seeing Suzy Meadows. Thick as thieves they are. It’s all round the village. Bet you could tell us a thing or two.’

‘I couldn’t and I wouldn’t. You should watch your tongue. One day you’ll get sued for what you say, you will.’

‘Listen who’s talking! Whiter than white are we? Huh! You’ve passed on some rare bits of gossip in your time, Pat Duckett. Gone all hoity toity now, have yer, since yer’ve gone to live at the Garden House.’

‘No, I haven’t, but I don’t pass scandal on about someone who doesn’t deserve it.’

‘That’s cheek, that is, Pat. Accusing me of stirring it. Don’t come to me when you want to know the latest. Giving yerself airs!’

Pat shrugged her shoulders and went to the till. ‘Give me a bill, will yer, Jimbo? It’s for the school.’

Over the shelves Pat heard Barry’s mother say, ‘Listen to ’er! Jimbo this and Jimbo that! Who does she think she is?’

Jimbo winked at her. Pat chuckled and left.

Mr Palmer was in his little office when she got back to the school. Everyone called it his office but all it really consisted of was a desk, a chair, and a wash basin, with a curtain across one corner for the teachers to put their coats behind. If a parent came to see him, they sat in his chair and he propped himself on the wash basin.

Pat put her head round the door. ‘There you are! Here’s the change and the bill. I’ll be off now. See yer later, Mr Palmer. Snow’ll soon be gone, thank goodness.’

As she mounted her bike out in Jacks Lane, Barry passed in his van. He pulled up with a shriek of brakes and the slush in the road sprayed wildly about, catching Pat’s boots and bike wheels. She jumped to one side as best she could.

‘Eh, Barry! What yer doing? Watch out!’

Barry leaned out of the window. ‘Sorry! It was the shock of seeing you – got my blood racing. How’s things?’

‘Same as they were when I saw yer last. Middling!’

‘Don’t forget to ask your Michelle, will you? I’m looking forward to it. One whole day in your company!’

‘I’m looking forward to it as well.’ She put her hand on the edge of the open window. ‘I haven’t asked our Michelle, not in school-time. I’ll ask her tonight. I’m sure she’ll say yes.’

He leaned out of the window and tried to kiss her, but Pat dodged away. Barry laughed, bunched his fingers, kissed them with a flourish, put the van into gear and drove away, taking the corner into Church Lane with more speed than sense. Neither Pat nor Barry had seen his mother standing at the corner of Shepherds Hill and Jacks Lane watching them. Neither of them saw her lips press firmly together in annoyance. As everyone in the village knew to their cost, Barry’s mother’s displeasure was something to be taken seriously.

Chapter 6
 

Peter took the children with him when he went to pick up Caroline from the station. They’d been awake since six. Having no one at home to care for them while he said his early-morning prayers in the church, Peter had had to abandon his half-hour prayers and his three-mile morning run with Jimbo until Caroline got back, so he’d been containing them and entertaining them that morning for what seemed like half a year. The need for re-establishing his life pattern was growing; his routine of having Caroline around him, of breathing her scent, of holding her, of knowing she was there picking up the pieces. God, he’d be glad to have her back. He’d taken to touching her coat in the hall cupboard whenever he had to open it and sometimes when he didn’t need to. He just deliberately held the door open and absorbed the feeling of Caroline by holding her coat. It was the longest time they’d been apart since their wedding day.

At the very least her return would sort out the problems with Louise and Sylvia. What a fortnight it had been! Placating one, confiding in the other. He couldn’t manage without either of them, with Caroline away. But he had to
finish with Louise, even if she did make his life easier and free him for the parish. Caroline would see to everything, that was for sure.

In his rearview mirror he spotted Alex trying to undo the fastening on his safety seat. ‘Alex, no! Leave that, please. We shan’t be long, the station’s only five minutes away.’

Peter found a place in the station car park, and with a twin firmly gripped in either hand, he marched to the station entrance. Beth took fright at the size of the station concourse and had to be picked up. She clung to him, her soft cheek against his own, her eyes closed, her breath fluttering rapidly on his neck. He checked the arrival screen and mercifully he’d got there on time. ‘Platform seven it says, children. We’ve got to go over the bridge. Come along, Alex. Hurry. Big steps. Up! One, two, three.’ Beth struggled to get down. ‘Me, me.’ She climbed the steps too, her sturdy little legs trying to keep pace with Peter’s.

As they reached the platform on the other side, Caroline’s train drew in. Passengers came pouring off. For a moment Peter couldn’t see Caroline and then he did. His heart bounded with joy. ‘Look! There she is, children! There she is! There’s Mummy!’

As she walked towards them, Peter rejoiced in her strong determined walk, her dark hair blowing in the wind which swirled so cruelly along the platform, her sparkling eyes, the sheer joy the sight of her gave him. Caroline put down her cases. The children clung to her legs with cries of delight, Peter kissed her, she kissed him, she kissed the children and then Peter again, then hugged the children close. ‘Darlings! I’m so glad to be home. I’m sure you’ve grown. Alex, you’ve had your hair cut!’

‘Yes, he has. It kept falling into his eyes and annoying him and I knew you wouldn’t like that. And, yes, I think they
have
grown. Are we glad to see you. You take the children, I’ll carry your cases. How’s things at the hospital?’

‘Well, both Mother and Dad are improving every day. Mother’s got this mad idea she’s going to discharge herself. Which of course is ridiculous as she has both legs in plaster and a fractured skull and three broken ribs and terrible bruising. She’s making their lives hell in there. Dad keeps trying to calm her down and constantly reminds her that she’s the patient and not the doctor at the moment, but it’s no good, she won’t behave herself. In some ways I’m quite glad I’ve come away, she’s so embarrassing!’

‘Sounds as though she’s on the mend.’

‘She is. Oh yes, she is. I may go back up there when they both come out, just for a few days. But that won’t be for some time yet. Hurry up, I’m longing to get back home and catch up on all the news.’

When Peter unlocked the front door of the rectory, he called out; ‘Sylvia, we’re back!’ Alex and Beth ran straight to the kitchen, shouting ‘Sylvie, Sylvie, Mummy come. Mummy come on train.’ But there was no reply.

On the kitchen table was a note.

Welcome home. Glad you’re back. Thought it would be nice for you to have the place to yourselves for a while. Casserole and jacket potatoes in oven. Fruit pie in fridge. Kettle just boiled. Cake in cake box. Messages in study. See you 8 a.m. tomorrow
.

Yours, Sylvia

‘Isn’t that lovely of her? She’s so thoughtful. I don’t know what we’d do without her.’

It wasn’t until they were in bed that night that Peter confessed how close they’d come to losing her.

‘Her notice? I don’t believe this. How could you let it happen?’

‘I didn’t let it happen. It just nearly did.’

‘If she goes, then I’ve had it. I won’t cope.’

‘We’d get someone else.’

‘There’s no one like Sylvia. She and I understand one another. She can’t be replaced.’

‘Don’t worry, darling. She’s still here. You mustn’t fret.’

‘It was Louise interfering, wasn’t it?’

‘Well, yes.’

‘I knew it. The woman’s a menace.’

‘She’s a tremendous help to me. She’s so efficient and full of bright ideas. I don’t know how I managed before she came.’

‘I see. Has she got a proper job yet?’

‘No.’

‘I see. Has she been for any interviews?’

‘No.’

‘I see.’

‘You keep saying “I see”. You must have a very clear picture in your mind by now.’

‘Oh, I have. I always have had about her. The way she feels about you is there in her face whenever she looks at you.’

‘What
do
you mean?’

‘Peter, you are an absolute darling! You never notice, do you, that Louise actually glows when she looks at you. She tries hard to disguise it, but she can’t – not from
me
anyhow. However, there’s one thing I’m sure of – it isn’t
she
who’s in bed with the handsomest man there ever was, but
me
, so we’re going to enjoy ourselves. It’s been such a long time …’

*

Over breakfast, Caroline told Peter he should tell Louise she was not needed any more. ‘After all, losing Sylvia would be a greater loss than Louise going, believe you me.’

‘In my own time, Caroline, in my own time. I have absolutely no justification for asking her to stop working for me. She’s in the middle of the quarterly magazine and saving me hours of typing time. I’m sorry, I can’t dismiss her out of hand. Just allow me to do it gradually. Please. This is my area, after all.’

‘Agreed. It is. Sorry, I forgot. But I won’t brook any interference in my domain. What’s sauce for the …’

‘Right.’ He looked at her, enjoying her early-morning look, and the dampness of her hair fresh from the shower. ‘Love you. Last night …’

Caroline put her hand on his as he reached out to her across the kitchen table. ‘I know. Love you.’ Their brief moment together was split apart by Beth, who had crammed her mouth with toast and was quietly choking. ‘Oh, heavens above!’

They were in his study going over the notices for the following Sunday so Caroline would be up to date, when Peter couldn’t resist holding her tight and kissing her. Neither of them noticed that Sylvia had been to the front door to let Louise in. The first they knew was the study door opening and Louise saying, ‘Good morning, Peter … Oh, sorry!’

Caroline was furious with herself for allowing Louise to catch them embracing, but on the other hand perhaps it would serve to emphasise that there were no grounds for thinking she might make progress with Peter.

‘Good morning, Louise. How’s things?’ Caroline said.

‘Very well, thanks. Nice to have you back. We’ve managed to keep things going, haven’t we, Peter?’

He nodded in reply. Louise asked after her parents and then Caroline excused herself and went to attend to the children.

‘Now let’s get down to work.’ Peter smiled his devastating smile and Louise’s insides flipped. Oh God, he was gorgeous. She felt a powerful jealousy of Caroline and her intimacy with him.

‘The magazine is nearly ready for putting together. Just needs my letter for the inside page and then you can finish laying it out. After that there’ll be the photocopying and the collating and stapling. From then on I can’t take advantage of you any longer. You must have time to concentrate on getting a new position.’

‘Are you saying you don’t want me to come any more?’

‘Not that, no. I’m merely being considerate to you. No one can manage nowadays without a regular income, and I’m trying to give you the time to attend to that.’

‘But I
want
to help. I can go for interviews any time. Who’ll do the weekly
Parish News
? Who’ll collect the material for the magazine? Who’ll type all the parish correspondence? You can’t, you’ve enough to do.’

‘Somehow or other I’ll manage. There must be lots of people who would be glad to assist. Your help has been invaluable, but my conscience won’t allow me to let you do it any longer.’

‘Don’t let your conscience worry you.’ Louise turned swiftly in her chair and staring straight at him with an angry face said, ‘Is this because of Sylvia? Has she said something?’

‘No. Certainly not. I make my own decisions.’ Louise was tempted to ask if it was Caroline who had queered her pitch, but quickly changed her mind. That would alienate him and she couldn’t face that. The sun was coming in through the study window, catching the red-gold glints in
his hair, making, as she saw it, a halo around his head. He looked so handsome, so … charismatic. She could feel his strong vibes reaching her from across the room. Perhaps one day she would be stroking that wonderful head of hair and … Then she remembered someone saying that Peter had looked so penetratingly at them, they genuinely believed he’d read their thoughts. What if he was reading hers right now?

Swamped by her emotions and quite unable to control her feelings for Peter, Louise burst into tears and fled from the study. Startled by her reaction Peter called for Caroline.

She appeared at the study door, her arms full of clean laundry. ‘Yes?’

‘It’s Louise, have you seen her just now?’

‘No.’

BOOK: The Village Show (Tales from Turnham Malpas)
12.44Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
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