by Rosie Clarke
‘Oh, poor Able,’ Sheila said. ‘He had to drive us down and then take a very pregnant Janet back and that can’t have been easy. She could hardly sit still when she was here. I wondered if she might give birth on the way home.’
‘I think Able was slightly worried she might,’ Peggy laughed. ‘Thank goodness she hung on – although she had quite a hard time of it, but she is fine now.’
‘Good. It’s always a worry when giving birth, Peggy. You had to help me and now Janet – you must be exhausted.’
‘No, I’m not,’ Peggy replied. ‘I feel rejuvenated with all these babies about. Rose’s new baby is thriving and Tom Barton is over the moon with his young son.’
‘Children bring their own love with them, don’t they?’ Sheila said. ‘They let me take Meg in to visit Pip just for a few minutes and I’m sure that’s when he started to improve.’
‘I shouldn’t be at all surprised,’ Peggy replied. ‘I’m sure that Pip wanted another baby as much as you did, love. He was just frightened for you – and then you did it all on your own and without the hospital…’
‘I had you and Maureen,’ Sheila said. ‘With you cheering me on, how could I go wrong?’
‘Well, give my love to Pip and tell him I’m sorry I couldn’t get down, but I’ll visit as soon as I can.’
‘Yes, of course I will.’ Sheila’s voice faded and then she laughed. ‘A certain young lady is anxious for a feed, so I’d better go – I’ll see you soon.’
‘Yes – and don’t worry about anything. It is all under control.’
‘Bye then, see you soon.’ Sheila rang off in a hurry to the accompaniment of screams.
Peggy smiled and went through to the kitchen, where she discovered that Pearl was already cutting grapefruit ready for the dining room. She looked up enquiringly and Peggy told her the wonderful news.
‘That’s wonderful, Peggy,’ she said. ‘It was such a shock for everyone, so it’s good that he is making such a speedy recovery.’
‘I was very frightened for a while, I can tell you,’ Peggy said with a little shiver. ‘I’m glad Sheila rang, because Pip has been on my mind for quite a time. I know he’s an adult not a child, but I couldn’t bear to think of him perhaps dying alone in that bed…’
‘Janet will be pleased he’ll soon be back in London.’
‘Yes,’ Peggy smiled. ‘I think I’ll make some coffee; she likes that more than tea and I can take it up to her.’ She walked away and glanced back at Pearl as she expertly changed over the toast. ‘I don’t suppose I could steal a couple of slices of that buttered toast, could I?’
‘Of course, you can,’ Pearl said and obligingly handed over a plate of hot buttered toast.
Peggy placed it on her tray with a pot of fragrant coffee, the early newspaper and left the others to gossip. The headlines shrieked that British troops had disembarked in South Korea and a little shiver went down her spine. War again! Couldn’t their poor soldiers ever be at peace? She sighed over the news and then carried the tray up to Janet and the two of them settled down to a good gossip over toast with Peggy’s lemon and lime marmalade and hot coffee.
Janet was of course delighted that Pip would be back in London soon. She said that Ryan was staying down in London for the next two weeks, after which they would return to Scotland by train.
‘We’ll visit Pip again before we go home,’ she told Peggy. ‘Maggie is missing school, but Ryan will help her catch up when we get home.’
‘So, you think of Scotland as your home now then?’
‘Yes, for the time being,’ Janet said with a contented smile. ‘Ryan loves his job and we like having more time together, so we shall probably stay there for at least five years, or until Maggie finishes school.’
‘How is she doing now?’
‘Very well – she gets good marks all the time and seems very happy. Ryan often helps her with her maths and she’s good at history and spelling – says she wants to be a secretary or an explorer…’
‘That’s a strange contrast,’ Peggy said, smiling. Maggie was turning out to be a child with a mind of her own and a good imagination.
Leaving Janet to rest with a book, Peggy went back down to the kitchen to discover Alice and Pearl looking a bit guilty. ‘One of the guests said his egg and bacon wasn’t cooked to his satisfaction this morning and—’
‘I said it was lovely, the same as always,’ Alice told her. ‘He replied that he was a better judge than I and he wanted to see you.’
‘Was he rude to you, Alice?’ Peggy asked, feeling a flutter of annoyance.
‘No, not rude, just harsh,’ Alice said. ‘Pearl says I should’ve apologised and brought his plate back and she would’ve cooked him another breakfast.’
‘Well, it’s what I would have done,’ Peggy explained, ‘but you said what you thought was right, Alice love, and I’ll go and sort it out.’
When she arrived at the dining room, Peggy knew at once which customer was the disgruntled one, even though Alice hadn’t named him. There was something unpleasant about his look and his manner, though he was well dressed in a dark suit, white shirt and tie. She knew his name was Alf Garner, though she hadn’t booked him in herself. His stay was for one night and he was staring at his plate of toast and marmalade with a sour face.
‘Is something wrong, sir?’ Peggy asked politely.
‘Yes, there damned well is,’ he replied in a deep voice. ‘First the bacon was burned and the egg was hard – and now this toast is soggy.’
‘I’m very sorry,’ Peggy replied. ‘Since the food wasn’t up to standard, there will be no charge for breakfast and I apologise that we’ve let you down.’
‘I was recommended to stay here,’ he grumbled, ‘but I certainly shan’t be back.’
‘No, sir, you won’t,’ Peggy said. ‘If the breakfast was not right, then you’re entitled to complain and to a reduction in the charge – but rudeness to my staff is something I shall never tolerate. Please vacate your room by ten o’clock. Thank you and goodbye…’
She turned to leave and then heard the harsh laugh behind her and a thick-fingered hand reached out to grab hold of her arm. His grip pinched and hurt her, but she managed not to flinch.
‘Take your hand from my arm, sir, or you will be sorry.’ Peggy’s eyes flashed. ‘I have some good friends, both in the lanes and the police and—’
He leaned forward and she could smell something strong on his breath, as if he’d been drinking whisky half the night. ‘Oh, I know all about your police friends. Mr Want sent me to give you a little warning. He will ruin your business unless you retract your statement about him – and he’ll hurt your family…’
Peggy drew a deep breath, holding her nerve as she looked into his crafty eyes. ‘I don’t know who you are or who sent you,’ she said coldly. ‘But I don’t take threats from anyone. I’m asking you to leave my house now – and if you utter one more word about my family, I shall summon the police.’
He leaned into her so that his face was inches from hers. ‘I’d heard that you were a cocky little bitch, but Mr Olly Want doesn’t let anyone get away with blackening his name. I’ve warned you once. I shan’t do it again…’ He shoved her back into one of the tables and walked off.
Peggy rubbed at her upper arm where his fingers had dug into her and breathed deeply to steady herself. She was going to have to telephone the police, though she guessed that the name he’d given the previous night would turn out to be false.
Able came in from the back yard as she entered the kitchen. He took one look at her face and came to her at once. ‘What is it, hon?’
‘I’ve just been threatened by one of the guests,’ she said. ‘He complained about breakfast and then, when I went to apologise, he turned nasty. He says that unless I retract my statement concerning Gillian, he will harm my family…’
‘What was his name?’ Able started towards the door, a grim look on his face. ‘I’ll teach that devil to threaten my wife—’
‘He will be long gone,’ Peggy told him. ‘Leave it to the police, Able. You should tell Sergeant Poole. I think he must have questioned Mr Want and somehow or other he knows that I gave his name to the police.’
‘You didn’t,’ Able reminded her. ‘It was Sergeant Poole who made up his mind that it was Mr Olly Want that girl was trying to name.’
‘Don’t call her that,’ Peggy said, still feeling sad over the girl’s death. ‘Gillian was more abused than bad. I don’t understand why she wanted to harm us when all we did was help her – but I can only think that, as you’ve suggested in the past, that her mind had somehow twisted, so that perhaps she saw me as someone else – a woman who had hurt her…’
‘Why do you say “a woman”?’ Able asked, looking at her curiously.
‘I suppose it is just an instinct,’ Peggy replied. ‘A feeling that she had been hurt by a woman and that is why she took against me when I was cross with her.’
‘Why should she harm you? You were nothing but kind to her.’
‘Yes, I know – but then I told her that if she put salt in Pearl’s cake again, I would send her away.’ Peggy nodded as something cleared in her mind; her reprimand was what had set Gillian against Peggy. ‘I am sure that is what triggered the theft from us and then her running away.’
Able nodded. ‘Yes, I think that too – but why did she come back and try to kill you?’
‘She must have gone into hiding… unless, she went to someone – a woman maybe – she must have hoped she would help her and perhaps that person turned her away. After that, she must have been attacked by someone – perhaps the man she stabbed. Who knows who did it? Any drunk might have given her a hiding if she fought him when he tried to grab her. We may never know what happened while she was gone, but something bad did, Able. It might have all festered in her mind and built up until the hatred became like a boiling pot inside her and suddenly boiled over. When she attacked me, it wasn’t me she was attacking – just all the people who had hurt her.’
‘Yes, I see what you mean,’ Able nodded and frowned. ‘If it was all suddenly too much for her – something in her mind just broke.’
‘She was just a young girl, alone and friendless,’ Peggy said and tears glistened in her eyes. ‘If only she hadn’t been so jealous of the people I love and care for – we might have kept her here and looked after her.’
‘Yes,’ Able said and leaned forward to kiss her softly on the lips. ‘You’re a beautiful woman, Peggy Ronoscki, and I’m glad I met you.’
‘Thank you,’ she said and smiled. ‘I love you and feel I’m lucky to have you and my family. When I see someone in trouble, I just want to help – to share some of my good fortune.’
‘And that is how I want you to be,’ Able replied. ‘It wasn’t your fault that Gillian was so badly damaged. I’m going down to the police station to speak to Sergeant Poole. He needs to place a watch over Mr Want and his friends – and I’ll give Tom Barton the nod as well. We’ve got a lot of friends here, Peggy, and they’ll keep a watchful eye out for us.’
‘Yes, I know.’ Peggy gave a little shiver. ‘It isn’t the first time I’ve been threatened by a criminal, Able. It happened during the war when Tom’s brother found a valuable diamond necklace in the ruins of a jeweller’s shop that had been bombed. A rogue got wind of it and tried to bully Tom into giving it to him – but together we set him up and he would have gone to prison, but he hurt a man’s wife and met a sticky end. We’ve never known for sure, but we suspect it was a professional killing – the police seemed to think so and Ellie’s husband murdered Mrs Tandy when she ran off. It was a case of rogues killing rogues… not Mrs Tandy, of course. She was lovely and ran the wool shop that is now part of Gordon’s business.’
Able nodded, because he’d heard bits and pieces of the story before. ‘You just be careful, love. I’ll set things in motion, but men like that are capable of anything – and we take in strangers and that means we could have a murderer in our home without knowing it.’
He looked so anxious that Peggy felt chilled. Able was right, of course. This Mr Olly Want would not send the same person, because she would refuse him and send for the police, but she could not be certain they wouldn’t try the same trick again with a different rogue. She was only glad that the twins had been round at Sheila’s house with Chris, Maureen and Dot. Peggy was more concerned for her children and grandchildren than herself. She was strong and she’d been an East End landlady for years, so she knew how to stand up to drunks and bullies – but a knife in the night was something no one could completely guard against. She’d had locks fitted to all bedroom doors when the boarding house was done up by Tom Barton and she would remind the children to lock them at night. It was something they’d never done, but she must find a way of making sure they did it without terrifying them.
Frowning, Peggy got on with her work. She wanted to make some plum jam and some orange marmalade. Her small pots for the customers to take home were running low, so she needed to stock up on them again.
26
‘What did you say to Mr Want?’ Able asked the sergeant, who was that morning on the desk at the local station. ‘He sent someone to threaten my wife! She stood up to the bully and told him to get out, but he may come back, so what is the situation?’
‘We sent one of our officers to interview him in relation to the beating that young girl took,’ Sergeant Poole said and frowned. ‘I don’t know what my constable said, but if he mentioned the name of our witness, I’ll have him on a charge…’
‘I’ll do more than that if my wife is harmed,’ Able said and gave him a hard look. ‘She is the innocent party here and I want her protected – unless you mean to pick this rogue up now.’
‘I’ll speak to my superior,’ Sergeant Poole replied. ‘I apologise for what happened and I’ll get to the bottom of this, I give you my word.’ He frowned. ‘I’m working on several leads. Nate Parker has been seen in town – that’s the chap, Jilly or Gillian, as you call her – stabbed. He may have seen her and taken his chance for vengeance, but there are others – drunks and rough types – and she did say his name was Olly something.’
‘Peggy thinks that Gillian may have been mistreated by a woman and that’s why she got muddled in her mind and went for her – supposing she was trying to say something other than Olly Want?’
‘Your wife said it sounded like “Olivant”—’ Sergeant Poole said, looking at his notes on the case, ‘—I immediately thought Want because we know that she was abused and that man has been high on our wanted list for a long time.’
‘Could it not be someone else?’ Able said. ‘A woman named Olive for instance?’
Sergeant Poole’s gaze narrowed and he looked at his notes once more. ‘It says here that her father has a sister. I’ve no idea what her name is, but I’ll look into it.’ He shook his head. ‘I know it isn’t satisfactory, Mr Ronoscki, but for the moment I can’t offer any more.’
‘Why didn’t you arrest Mr Want?’
‘Because he’s been in a Birmingham prison for the last six months,’ Sergeant Poole said. ‘I didn’t realise that, but I was asked to check his alibi and it is the truth. So, it is highly likely that he was in prison when Jilly disappeared. For a while at least, but I will get to the truth, I give you my word.’
‘Thank you – and in the meantime, can you have one of your constables patrol the lanes to keep a watch out for Olly Want’s men?’
‘I’ll do better than that, I’ll tell him that he has been cleared and we know he wasn’t responsible for harming the girl. I’ll speak to Mr Carr and discover the name of his sister – or if he knows of any woman Gillian might have gone to when she ran away from you.’
‘Then I shall hope Peggy is safe,’ Able replied, ‘but I’d still feel better if a constable walked past now and then…’
‘I’ll see to that for you – but they won’t give me a man to stand outside your home unless something violent happens. A threat isn’t enou
gh to put so many resources on to it.’
Able nodded and left before he said something rude. He could only hope that their friends in the lanes would rally round. He still owned an American Army pistol that he hadn’t used for years, but he would clean it and have it ready just in case.
‘What did he say?’ Peggy asked when Able returned. ‘Does he still think that man is the one that hurt Gillian?’
‘He was going to do some checking, but he may have changed his mind on that,’ Able replied and frowned. ‘I’ve told him I want a constable patrolling the lanes at night – and I added that you thought it might have been a woman that abused Gillian…’
‘Well, it just seems that it might have been,’ Peggy said thoughtfully. ‘We know she was abused by a man the first time – but I seem to recall that his name was Barker, but of course she changed it to confuse us and it was really Nate Parker, according to the police. It is strange that she should have taken against me when there was no reason for it. Unless, she had become so muddled in her mind that she just didn’t know what she was doing…’ Peggy couldn’t stop going over it, because she didn’t understand what had turned the girl she’d tried to help.
‘She would have to have been badly beaten and bullied for that to happen,’ Able said with a frown. ‘I suppose it is possible, Peggy – but it doesn’t look as if it could have been Olly Want, because he has been in prison for six months. It’s no wonder he was angry at being accused of doing something he couldn’t possibly have done.’
‘I didn’t accuse him,’ Peggy said, ‘but he thought I had – so he must know something about me or Gillian.’
‘It is a mystery,’ Able said. ‘But we shall all be on the lookout for unsavoury characters from now on, hon. If you’re threatened again, call me and I’ll put a fright up him – shoot him if need be.’
