Village Fortunes (Turnham Malpas 17) (17 page)

‘Mum. I’ve never had an operation before. I don’t want everyone to know. Mum, don’t tell anyone, please. No one must know.’

‘They won’t if I’ve anything to do with it. Don’t worry, darling. We’ll be back before you know it. Bye, bye, see you tomorrow. Oh no, it’s today
now
, so it’s not that far away, is it? Anyway, goodnight, sweetheart. You try to sleep for a while.’

Jimbo and Harriet left the hospital and arrived home about three in the morning, both of them feeling worried almost beyond endurance. They didn’t sleep at all. Jimbo kept muttering loud oaths concerning Chris Templeton’s integrity and what he would do to him when they met, while Harriet couldn’t stop weeping at the thought of the pain of losing a child, and how distressing it was going to be for Fran. Damn that Chris. Damn him! It didn’t seem to have occurred to Fran at the moment that it was a child she was losing, but it would, Harriet knew.

News travels fast especially when you don’t want it to and it was the same with Fran being in hospital. It couldn’t be expected that a hospital so close to home as Culworth wouldn’t have someone working there who knew someone who lived in one of the three villages, who knew exactly who Fran was and because of being on night duty had spotted her emergency operation on the schedule. So by eleven o’clock that morning a woman who lived in Penny Fawcett burst into the store full of the news.

‘My neighbour works there, you see, she told me, I’m so sorry.’ She leaned confidentially towards Bel. ‘Did she take something to get rid of it then?’

‘I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re talking about. I only work here.’

‘You must know, Bel, of course you must. I mean where’s Jimbo this morning? You must have had an explanation about him not being here. Where’s Fran? Where’s Harriet? Where’s Tom? He’ll know, being manager. Well?’ The woman leaned her elbow on the till counter and waited for an explanation.

‘Tom’s making coffee for him and me, and we know nothing about anything. Are you shopping or just here to spread rumours?’

‘It’s the truth. Her name was down for whatever it’s called when you’ve had a miscarriage, D and B, or something. No, that’s not it. D and C, I think that’s it. Must be that Chris’s. They’ll have given her something to get rid of it, I bet, them with their money and connections in high places. Is he here at the moment or back where he belongs?’

Bel pressed the emergency bell under the till and also shouted at the top of her voice. ‘Tom! There’s an emergency. Can you come please. Now!’

Tom arrived almost before Bel had finished speaking. Due to his years in the police force before he came to live in the village he was secretly held in awe by many of the people who lived in Penny Fawcett because on more than one occasion, as he frequented the pub in Penny Fawcett rather than the Royal Oak, he’d assisted the publican to tackle punters who were requiring instant removal, assistance he gave with steely efficiency.

He didn’t inquire why, but simply said, ‘I’m afraid I shall have to ask you to leave. Thank you for calling.’ With a dramatic gesture he pulled the outside door wide open. ‘Now, if you please.’

The woman debated if Tom had any legal right to be evicting her, but the harsh chilling stare he gave her from his usually warm, friendly eyes put an end to her deliberations.

‘I shall tell everyone I’ve been turned out for speaking the truth. That’s all I did. Speak the truth. On the list it was. In black and white.’ With an angry flick of her head she stormed out, determined not to darken their door again, until she remembered she couldn’t be going all the way to Culworth for every little thing she needed, not with the cost of petrol nowadays.

Tom went back into the kitchen to collect their mugs of coffee and he also brought back a biscuit or two each for their mutual comfort.

‘We might have known this would happen. Honestly, I’d nothing I could say except we didn’t know anything as we only worked here. It’s going to be like this all morning.’ Bel’s eyes filled with tears. ‘Poor Fran, I love her like a daughter, I really do, and she doesn’t deserve this.’

‘On the practical side, losing the baby has done her a good turn. Got rid of an almighty problem, let’s be honest.’

‘Yes, I expect you’re right in one way. Is the baby the reason he’s come back here, do you think?’

Tom pounced on Bel’s explanation immediately. ‘Of course that’ll be it. But now it’s all too late. Intending to make an honest woman of her, that’ll be why.’

‘I don’t think that counts for anything now. It doesn’t matter, you know, like it did. Maybe, though, he’s brought the stuff she’s taken to get rid of it.’

‘No, no, Bel, that’s not Fran at all, she wouldn’t do a thing like that, now would she?’

A customer came in needing stamps and so Tom went into the post office cage and served him. The man didn’t ask any questions about Fran at all. After he’d paid for the stamps he then decided to take a Mars Bar to keep him going until his lunch, and then he left without another word. Tom and Bel sighed with relief.

‘Look, Tom,’ said Bel, ‘we’d better get our stories straight. What shall we say, do you think?’

‘We know nothing. Absolutely blinking nothing. Not a word. It nearly killed Jimbo having to tell us, I felt so sorry for him. The most sorry I’ve ever felt in my life for him. We’re in the front line of defence for them, you know, Bel, so it’s up to us. We need a solid immovable wall around us so it can never be said we let the cat out of the bag.’

‘Oh, you’re so right, so right. As for Harriet, she looked terrible. They’d been up for most of the night from what they said. So mum’s the word.’

The next three customers enjoyed shopping as everyone did who came into the store and they left without any awkward questioning, so Tom and Bel began to relax a little as they realised not everybody knew about Fran.

Bel was busy shelf-filling and Tom was doing his bookkeeping for the post office when the doorbell rang hysterically, and in walked the man of the moment. Chris appeared to have had a good night’s sleep because he was smiling and apparently very happy indeed with the world.

‘Good morning. Isn’t it a wonderful day?’ he said.

Bel was surprised by his jollity. Did he know? He must, she presumed, but didn’t it matter to him? Wasn’t he concerned? She hoped to avoid any difficult questions by endeavouring to match Chris Templeton’s enthusiastic mood, and so she said with vigour, ‘It most certainly is. Couldn’t be better.’

‘I’ve come in for one of my big shopping events for delivery on Friday. Here’s my list. What do you think?’

Bel checked his shopping list and agreed they’d have everything in by Friday. ‘The caviar might not come in time but we’ll do our very best. How is everyone up at the Big House. Babies doing well?’

‘Yes, they are. Ralph appears to be settling down, with not so much wind as he used to have, so that’s a bonus. And Charles is very active and rushing about the house at great speed. Yes, they’re all doing very nicely. Thanks.’ Chris beamed at them both and then asked if Fran was in as he needed a word.

‘Sorry, we’re in today, just the two of us. Quiet day, you see.’

‘Not like Jimbo, Fran and Harriet to be all off together.’

‘They don’t do it often but today they are,’ Bel answered, pretending to be busy clearing an excess of small change from the till. She knew he was watching her and she knew it wouldn’t take her long to sort out the change, so she braced herself.

‘Do we have any idea when they’ll be back?’

‘No,’ said Tom.

‘I might drop back before closing time to see if they’ve got home.’

Bel shrugged. ‘Just as you like. We close at seven but Tom and I will have gone by five o’clock. It’s the casuals after that. They won’t know anything either.’ She immediately wished she hadn’t said that. The solid wall Tom had spoken of had suddenly felt to be crumbling and she knew Chris was astute enough to have picked up on that. Blast, thought Bel.

‘I see. A conspiracy of silence then.’ Chris looked from one to the other of them, turned away and left, but in a second he was back as though expecting to learn something more when he caught them unawares. But they’d not spoken at all. ‘I’ll have some jelly babies for Charles please, got to have something to tempt him into submission with.’ He paid and then finally left, giving them a long penetrating look before he closed the door.

As it turned out, Jimbo had arrived at the Big House to see Chris, and Chris was in so he never got to the store when it was only the casuals in charge.

Both Johnny and Alice were in too. Alice told him that Chris was in his room reading, but Jimbo guessed maybe that was a cover and in reality Chris was more likely sleeping.

‘Well, I need to see him rather urgently. Shall we disturb him or shall I sit here and wait?’

‘It sounds serious, Jimbo.’ Johnny got to his feet, aware Jimbo appeared to have something unpleasant to impart to Chris.

‘Oh, it’s serious, yes.’

‘I’ll go get him then. Would you like to use my study?’

‘Yes, I would. Thanks.’ Seated in Craddock Fitch’s old study brought back lots of memories for Jimbo, and he allowed himself a wry smile as he remembered the challenges he and Craddock had often faced in here. But this challenge was the biggest ever.

He heard footsteps and then in came Chris. He went straight round to what was now Johnny’s chair, seated himself comfortably, and said, ‘Am I to be told the secret of the entire Charter-Plackett family avoiding me this last couple of days? I hope so, as it’s all getting very mysterious.’

‘There’s no mystery at all. We’ve been otherwise occupied.’

‘Right. It’s still mysterious.’ Chris lit a cigarette while he waited for Jimbo’s explanation.

If ever there was a man in charge of himself, utterly confident that nothing he could be told would faze him, it was Christopher Templeton at this moment, and Jimbo felt an element of repugnance when he looked at Chris. Jimbo knew that if Chris was the last man on earth he would not allow him to marry his daughter, not even for the survival of the whole human race. ‘Remember Frances?’

Chris smiled. ‘Of course. How could I forget her? She’s a lovely, fun-loving, exciting, charming, wonderful person, and you should be proud to have her as a daughter.’

Jimbo agreed. ‘We are very proud of her. After what she’s gone through this last twenty-four hours we know she’s a strong, wonderful person.’

Not a flicker of curiosity crossed Chris’s face.

‘You see, Chris, she’s suffered,’ Jimbo paused to take a deep breath, ‘a miscarriage. She’s home now, from hospital, in bed resting. It’s been a terrible shock for us and for her.’ Jimbo waited for a reply.

Chris knocked some ash from his cigarette into his cupped hand. ‘And?’

‘And?’ Jimbo leapt to his feet, placed his hands on the desk, leaned forwards and through gritted teeth, said, ‘It’s your baby, I thought you might be interested to know what’s happened. We are deeply grieved for the loss of the baby and for what Fran has gone through.’ Jimbo raised his voice to make sure Chris understood how he felt. ‘Have you no conscience, man? She believed in you. What are you?
Twelve
years older than she is, an experienced man of the world and you have no conscience when you knew she was a virgin, knew she was all those years younger than you, when you swept her off her feet with the glamour of your position, your wealth, your charm, your good looks. You knew all of that, and still you didn’t take enough care to make sure she didn’t get pregnant?’

Chris stood up, stubbed out his cigarette, put his lighter back in his pocket, faced Jimbo with a face utterly under control, and said, ‘She knows what makes the world tick and believe me she was willing. Very willing.’

Jimbo blanched.

Chris almost began to smile and in that split second Jimbo sensed this wasn’t the first time Chris had faced an irate father.

‘
C’est la vie
, Jimbo.
C’est la vie
!’ Chris said

Perhaps if he hadn’t said it in French, Jimbo might not have hit him quite so hard. But the fact that he dismissed the idea of Fran’s vulnerability in French somehow made Fran appear cheap, and Jimbo wasn’t having that.

He punched Chris on the chin with an almighty blow that much to Jimbo’s surprise knocked Chris out cold. He fell between the desk chair and the fireplace, catching the side of his head on one of the brass spikes of the ornate Victorian fireguard as he collapsed.

‘My God! I’ve killed him!’ Jimbo prodded a toe at Chris’s leg and Chris responded with a slight squirm. So he wasn’t dead, just stunned. Wouldn’t matter if he was, it was what he deserved, Jimbo felt.

Breathing heavily, Jimbo marched into the sitting room to tell Johnny what had happened. With a dead straight face he said slowly and deliberately, ‘I’ve just knocked your brother unconscious. He may need hospital treatment. Sorry and all that. Why? You may well ask. He’s made our daughter Frances pregnant, but last night she had a miscarriage, and he’s not the slightest bit repentant in any way at all, and so I punched him. He’s still breathing though. Good day to you both.’

Jimbo didn’t start the car until he’d got his emotions under control. When he did he roared down the drive, swung right into Church Lane and then down Jacks Lane, Stocks Row, and home. Harriet found him sitting on a kitchen chair helpless with mirth. She asked him what had happened up at the Big House and he couldn’t tell her for laughing.

Harriet was angry with him. ‘I’ve been worried sick about what might have happened to you. It is neither the time nor the place for roaring with laughter. Nothing, absolutely
nothing
, that has happened since last night is funny, you know. Fran’s asleep, that’s
if
you’re interested.’

Jimbo wiped his eyes, and said, ‘I’ve locked the front door so no one can get in. If the doorbell goes, I’ll answer it.’

Making no sense of what he said because she was so angry she ignored him, asking instead if he’d like to share her pot of tea.

‘Yes, please. I knocked him out.’

Harriet sat down rather more heavily than she’d intended. ‘What? Not Chris?’