Whispers of Love (24 page)

As she cleared the debris from the dining table after their Christmas dinner, Christabel wished she could turn the clock back so that she and Kay and Lewis could have celebrated Christmas on their own as they'd done in the previous few years she had been living with them.

Whether it had been the wine, or the excitement of having so many visitors, Christabel didn't know, but the only thing that had seemed to go right was the cooking. Even Alex couldn't find anything to complain about with the dishes she'd served. The turkey had been succulent and the accompaniments were cooked to perfection. The wine was at the correct temperature, and even the Christmas pudding dished up the right lucky charms to everyone. She had even remembered to buy some Christmas crackers.

Looking back, it might have been better to have missed them out, since they'd caused so much trouble when they'd been pulled. Lilian had insisted on everyone wearing their paper hats, and had acted like a spoilt child when hers had been torn accidentally. She'd refused to accept the one Alex offered her, but had insisted on trying to repair her own.

Conversation was erratic, and futile; trying to talk above Lilian's tirade was impossible. Alex grew more and more argumentative and that only made matters worse.

Kay and eleven-year-old Marlene spent most of the time sending eye signals to each other
and long before the meal was over they were both giggling over anything and everything.

The moment she could do so, Christabel had persuaded everyone to move from the dining room to comfortable armchairs in the sitting room. She handed Kay and Marlene a small box of chocolates and suggested they took them up to Kay's room. She then served coffee, mince pies and brandies for those who wanted them, and breathed a sigh of relief when, in next to no time, Alex had fallen asleep, and Lilian had picked up a magazine to read.

Quietly she had slipped away into the kitchen where even the debris from Christmas dinner seemed like a haven of peace. Stacking dishes had a calming effect on her nerves. By the time she tied an apron round her waist, filled the sink with hot, sudsy water, and plunged the first batch of dishes into it, she was feeling quite sanguine. Leastwise, she was until the kitchen door opened and Lilian appeared.

‘I thought I'd come and give you a hand,' she whispered in a conspiratorial tone.

‘There's no need! I'm quite happy.'

‘You wash and I'll wipe, like in the old days when we were growing up,' Lilian said brightly.

‘It's all right, Lilian. Go and sit down with Alex and talk to Lewis!'

Lilian pulled a face. ‘They're both asleep. Alex drank far too much wine. Still, I suppose he felt he had to, it was the only way to keep sane over dinner, wasn't it?'

Christabel didn't answer. Giving vent to her feelings she picked up a pile of plates and plunged them into the water, splashing soapsuds everywhere.

‘Steady on, Christabel!'

‘I did warn you. It's no place to be when you're dressed up to the nines. You'll ruin your dress, and I haven't another apron.'

‘Don't worry! I'll tie a towel round my waist if you're going to splash like that.'

Christabel didn't answer, but concentrated on what she was doing.

‘I thought this would be a good opportunity for us to have a nice little chat,' Lilian said brightly.

Christabel stiffened. ‘What about?'

‘Marlene has asked Kay to come back with us to London. It will be so nice for her to mix with younger people and go to some parties and have some fun.'

‘Really! You'll have talk to Lewis about it.'

‘I've already suggested it to him and he doesn't mind,' Lilian said quickly. ‘We'll be leaving first thing Saturday morning because we have to get back for a New Year's Eve party in London. Alex has all sorts of things lined up to do with business as well as social commitments. You don't mind Kay coming back with us, do you?'

‘I would much prefer her to stay here and study.'

‘Oh, Chrissy! You sound as old as you look!
Let the girl have some fun; she'll have such a wonderful time with Marlene, they get on so well together,' Lilian said airily.

Christabel decided that it was futile to argue since Lilian had already persuaded Lewis that it was a good idea and she was quite sure Kay wanted to go. Instead, she made Kay promise that she would come home immediately after New Year's Day so that she could do some revision before the new term started.

‘Very well,' Kay agreed reluctantly, ‘that's if Uncle Alex can spare the time to bring me back.'

‘There's no need to trouble him,' Christabel told her quickly, ‘you can come home by train on the Friday.'

‘All on my own?'

‘I don't see why not. Find out which train you'll be coming on, and phone and let me know. Ask Aunt Lilian to take you to the station and I'll meet you at Lime Street, OK?'

‘Yes, Aunt Chrissy. Gosh! I can't take it all in.'

‘Don't forget to let me know the time of your train as soon as you can,' Christabel reminded her as she waved them off.

Kay phoned on New Year's Day, babbling on excitedly about what a wonderful time they'd had the night before.

‘So what time is your train on Friday?' Christabel asked.

‘I haven't had a chance to find out. I'll phone you again tomorrow,' Kay promised.

When she phoned the next day it was to say
she'd been invited to a party on the Friday and also one on the Saturday night, and to ask if she could come home on the following Tuesday instead.

‘I'll have to see what your dad says about that,' Christabel told her.

Lewis was as worried about it as Christabel was and decided to speak to Kay himself.

‘It seems she's been invited to all these parties with Marlene and tomorrow Alex is taking her and Marlene to the studios where he's making a new film. And the day after that Lilian has promised—'

‘Hold on, Lewis. Are you trying to tell me that she has so much to do in London that you have agreed to her staying on longer?' Christabel asked.

‘Yes, I suppose I am,' he sighed. ‘They've got so much planned for the next few days and there are so many other exciting things going on that she doesn't want to miss out on any of them. If she comes home any sooner it will spoil everything for Marlene as well as for her.'

Christabel was crestfallen. She knew Kay had talked Lewis round and was disappointed in her brother.

‘You promised to come home, and do some studying,' Christabel reminded Kay when she phoned her again later in the day. ‘Also, you need some clean clothes because you didn't take very many with you.'

‘Aunt Chrissy, don't fuss. Aunt Lilian has
bought me a couple of new outfits. They're so much more fashionable than any of mine.'

‘She's done what?'

‘Don't sound so cross. We went shopping, and she bought Marlene some new dresses and said I could have the same.' She giggled. ‘Aunt Lilian said it was to celebrate the start of 1930.'

Christabel felt flummoxed. She didn't know what to do for the best. The thought of Kay socialising with Marlene worried her. Although Marlene was a few years younger than Kay, she was very sophisticated and she didn't want Kay growing up too quickly when she still had so much studying to do.

A further point was that she didn't like the idea of Kay being spoilt by Lilian's generosity. Although Kay had never been kept short, she'd always been expected to do some chores in return for her pocket money. As she'd grown older, while they'd always bought her school clothes, when it came to anything special she wanted, she was encouraged to save up to help pay for them herself.

Alex had always been a big earner, and a big spender. He liked parties and entertaining on a grand scale. If Kay developed a taste for their lifestyle it would make it more difficult for her to settle down to a quiet life again like she would have to do. More important still, there had already been far too many interruptions in her routine and, over the next few months, she
would have to concentrate on her school work really hard if she was going to pass her exams.

‘Please say I can stay here,' Kay pleaded. ‘Aunt Lilian won't mind. She said at breakfast time that I was no trouble at all and that Marlene loves having me here.'

‘Kay, that's enough. Put your aunt on the line, and leave me to talk to her.'

‘Don't you worry about Kay,' Lilian gushed. ‘She and Marlene get on famously. Marlene adores her and Kay's enjoying herself.'

‘Yes, I'm sure she is! Remind her, though, that she will have to buckle down to some serious studying if she's going to pass her exams.'

Lilian laughed good naturedly. ‘You really are quite a slave driver, Chrissy.'

‘Not at all. I'm simply thinking about Kay's future. Lewis isn't able to pull strings whenever she needs a favour.'

‘Really, Chrissy, you make it sound as if Alex is some sort of wheeler-dealer!'

‘Well, isn't he? Come on, admit it. Going behind people's backs and arranging deals makes him feel he's cleverer than the rest of the human race.'

‘He's not in your good books these days, is he?' Lilian commented with a smug laugh.

‘No, not really, and judging by the mood he was in over Christmas I don't think I'm in his, either.'

‘I'd love to stay talking, Chrissy, if only I had the time,' Lilian assured her. She gave an affected
sigh. ‘When Alex is planning anything he needs as much looking after as a child. I have to make sure his clothes are laid out for him, his meal waiting, at whatever time he is ready to eat it, and, usually, I have to listen to him pour out all his problems before he can unwind from the stresses he's encountered during the day.'

‘How terribly worrying that must be for you!'

‘Not being married, you wouldn't understand,' Lilian observed. ‘Knowing that Marlene has Kay to keep her company and doesn't need me to be with her all the time is quite a relief.'

Lilian was as devious as Alex these days, Christabel thought cynically as, with a gushing farewell, Lilian put down the receiver at her end without waiting for her to say goodbye.

She really must have a serious talk to Lewis about Kay spending so much time with them, she thought worriedly as she went back into the kitchen.

 

Tragedy struck before Christabel could have her discussion with Lewis. Two days later, while Kay was still in London, Lewis was knocked down on his way to work.

He was rushed to the Liverpool Royal Infirmary and Christabel, as his next of kin, was informed that he was seriously injured and she should come right away.

The weather was appalling. Thick fog shrouded the Mersey in grey, damp mist. It meant that the ferry boat was slow in crossing
so the journey took much longer than Christabel had anticipated. The ear-shattering noise of foghorns and hooters from other boats on the river made her head throb and heightened her feeling of apprehension.

When she arrived at the hospital and the ward sister took her into a side room and offered her a cup of tea, Christabel feared the worst.

‘I'm so sorry, Miss Montgomery, the doctors did everything they could, but despite all their efforts Mr Montgomery died,' the sister told her. ‘Would you like to have a word with one of the doctors?'

Christabel nodded. She knew it was pointless but she found it so hard to believe that he had walked out of the house so fit and well that morning and now was gone for ever. The thought of having to break the sad news to Kay filled her with anguish.

As she waited for the doctor she even began to wonder if perhaps they'd made a mistake and that it wasn't Lewis who'd been knocked down after all. She wished she'd thought to telephone the office to make sure he wasn't at his desk.

Her first words when the doctor came into the room were ‘Can I see him?' ‘Yes, of course you can see your husband if you wish to do so, Mrs Montgomery. We did all we could; I'm so sorry that it wasn't any good.'

‘He's my brother, not my husband,' she corrected him.

There was a moment's silence before the doctor spoke then he exclaimed in an astonished voice, ‘Christabel? Christabel Montgomery! Good heavens, we were at Hilbury together. I was a very junior doctor in those days and you were a trainee nurse. You've probably forgotten me by now.'

For a moment Christabel stared blankly at the tall, wide-shouldered man in front of her. He was in his early fifties with thick fair hair, a lean, good-looking face, and deep, intelligent brown eyes. He was wearing a flawlessly cut charcoal-grey suit, a crisp white shirt, and a tie with dark-blue, grey and white stripes.

‘Mark Murray? Yes, of course I remember you.'

After she'd viewed the body and identified that it was that of her brother, Christabel felt daunted by the enormity of the task in front of her. As Mark Murray pulled the dark green sheet back over the inert figure she looked at him blankly. She couldn't think what to do for the best. She knew she had to break the news to Kay but she wasn't sure how to do it.

‘What am I expected to do next?' she asked in a slightly bewildered voice.

‘Are there any other relatives that you have to inform?' Mark asked.

She looked at him and nodded. ‘Lewis's daughter, Kay. She's almost fifteen and at the moment she's staying in London with my sister Lilian.'

She stopped abruptly. ‘Why ever am I telling you all this? I'm sure you don't need to know,' she added with a deprecating shrug.

‘Perhaps you would like me to phone and tell them?' he suggested.

‘No,' she shook her head firmly, ‘thank you, it's something I must do myself. And I don't think it would be a good idea to tell Kay over the phone because it will be a terrible shock for
her and it's only about four years since she lost her mother.'