The Price of Love

by Rosie Harris

  Before she even turned into Water Street she saw a placard outside one of the newsagent’s in Scotland Road and as she read the headline her heart began to thud faster:

  MARCHING TRAGEDY – YOUNG MAN SERIOUSLY INJURED.

  Instinctively, Lucy knew it was Sam. It wasn’t the police station she needed to go to but the hospital.

  A thousand and one thoughts about what might have happened to Sam went through her mind as she hurried there. If only he had listened to her and had stayed at home today as she’d asked him to do, but it was too late to think about that. All she could hope for now was that he wasn’t too badly hurt.

  When she enquired at the hospital reception desk they informed her that they had no record of anyone by the name of Sam Collins being admitted.

  As she turned away Lucy felt a wave of relief sweep over her. She’d been silly to panic; of course it wasn’t Sam who’d been involved. By now Sam was safe at home and wondering where on earth she was at this time of night.

  She was almost at the door when the receptionist called out, asking her to wait a moment.

  ‘That chap you were asking about; how old was he?’

  ‘Why do you ask?’

  ‘Well, there was a young man brought in late this afternoon; he’d been involved in a scuffle of some sort with the marchers. The melee made headline news in the Echo tonight. He’s still unconscious and we don’t know his name, so I was just wondering …’

  The woman stopped speaking as she saw the colour drain from Lucy’s face. ‘Oh, heavens, you’re not going to faint, are you?’ she gasped as she came round from her side of the reception counter and grabbed hold of Lucy’s arm.

  Lucy shook her head and took a deep breath. ‘I’m all right. I think it might be my brother. Can I see him?’

  ‘Sit down on a chair for a minute while I let the ward sister know what you’ve just told me,’ the receptionist said as she went back to her desk.

  Lucy tried to control her impatience as she sat waiting for what seemed to be an interminable time. When the receptionist finally came over and said she would take her along to the ward, Lucy found she was shaking so much that she could hardly stand up.

  She tried to keep her wits about her as the sister asked questions about her brother’s age, the colour of his hair and whether or not he was likely to have been in the Water Street area that afternoon.

  ‘If you let me see him, then I can tell you right away if it is my brother Sam,’ Lucy told her.

  The sister frowned uncertainly. She scrutinised Lucy for a moment before agreeing that she could do so.

  ‘He’s still unconscious,’ she warned as she led Lucy towards a screened-off bed in one corner of the ward.

  ‘Are his injuries very serious?’ Lucy asked, her dark eyes anxious.

  ‘I’m afraid you will have to wait until you have verified whether or not it is your brother before we begin to discuss his case,’ the sister told her crisply.

  As she drew back one of the curtains and indicated to Lucy that she was to approach the bedside, Lucy let out a gasp of distress. There was no mistaking that it was Sam’s broad, stocky build beneath the covering sheet and even though his face was badly lacerated and there was a green shield over one of his eyes, she recognised him immediately.

  ‘Oh, Sam, whatever has happened to you this time?’ Lucy whispered, reaching out to take his hand even though the arm lying above the bedclothes was heavily bandaged.

  ‘Careful, careful. Please don’t touch him,’ the sister warned, pulling her away.

  ‘He is still alive, though, isn’t he?’ Lucy gasped in a trembling voice.

  ‘Yes. Of course he is.’

  ‘Then why doesn’t he wake up and speak to me?’ Lucy questioned when Sam had made no response whatsoever when she said his name.

  ‘He has been unconscious ever since he was brought in. We are not quite certain about the extent of his injuries. There is a possibility that as well as severe bruising he may have sustained several broken ribs because he is having considerable difficulty in breathing.’

  ‘Can’t you do anything for him? Surely there must be some way you can help him?’

  ‘He is under constant supervision. There is no point in you staying. I suggest you go home and try and get some rest and come back again tomorrow afternoon.’

  Lucy nodded; she was unable to speak because she was too choked by tears.

  She knew it was useless to argue or ask for any more information. It was the same pattern as it had been after her parents had been involved in the car accident all over again. That time, though, she’d had Robert to support her; this time she was completely on her own.

  Chapter Eighteen

  As she left the hospital Lucy found a gaggle of reporters waiting outside and the moment they spotted her they surged forward, all of them eager for her story.

  As she tried to walk past them they barricaded her path bombarding her with so many questions that she stood there dazed and trembling and shaking her head in bewilderment because many of their questions didn’t even make sense.

  ‘Was Sam Collins your husband or your brother?’

  ‘Was he the shoeshine chap who had a stand in Water Street?’

  ‘Where do you live, Miss Collins?’

  ‘Are you one of them cat’licks?’

  ‘Why did Sam Collins step out in front of the marchers?’

  ‘Was he trying to stop the Orange Day parade?’

  ‘Are you Irish or a Liverpudlian?’

  Lucy clamped her hands over her ears to shut out their probing voices. When one of them moved closer and grabbed hold of her arm, she cried out in fright.

  ‘Leave the young lady alone.’ The voice was angry yet somehow familiar and Lucy looked around, startled, as a tall, broad-shouldered man dressed in grey flannels, a white shirt and a lightweight sports jacket rushed to her side and freed her from the reporter’s grip.

  As Lucy looked up to thank him she stopped in surprise. ‘Robert!’ she gasped.

  For a moment they stared at each other, oblivious of the crowd. Then Robert took her by the arm and led her away down the road, looking back angrily when one of the reporters began to follow them.

  ‘Come on, let’s go somewhere quiet. You need a cup of tea or a coffee to settle your nerves,’ he told her.

  Lucy felt as if she was in a dream as Robert steered her towards a nearby milk bar. She said nothing until a steaming cup of coffee was in front of her and when she took her first sip it was as if her senses returned.

  She stared across the table at Robert, wondering how on earth he had been there and what she would have done if he hadn’t rescued her from the persistent reporters.

  ‘Are you feeling better now?’ he asked as he sipped his own coffee.

  ‘Yes, much better.’ She gave a wry smile. ‘Thank you for rescuing me, I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t stepped in.’

  He shrugged his broad shoulders. ‘Glad to be able to help. It’s a long time since I’ve seen you. In fact, I wasn’t sure it was you until I heard some of the questions they were asking you. When they called you Miss Collins, it suddenly dawned on me that it must have been Sam who was involved in that accident because one of them mentioned that the chap injured was slightly crippled.’

  Lucy flinched at the word cripple; it was one she hated hearing applied to Sam.

  ‘So where are you and Sam living now and what are you doing these days?’ Robert went on.

  Lucy picked up her coffee cup. She felt uncomfortable about telling him that she was reduced to cleaning offices and doing washing up in a hotel kitchen.

  ‘What about you? Are you still working at Carter’s Cars?’ she asked, trying to divert his interest from her.

  ‘Yes, I’m still there. It seems a lifetime ago that you were working there as well,’ he added with a grimace.

  ‘Yes, and now you are a married man with a young child,’ Lucy murmured trying to keep the sadness from her voice but she
felt a lump in her throat as she said it.

  ‘I married Patsy,’ Robert said quickly, ‘but she died in childbirth,’ he added sadly.

  ‘Oh, I didn’t know,’ Lucy said awkwardly. ‘What about the baby, did it survive? Is it a girl or a boy?’

  ‘A little girl called Anna. She was born on the thirtieth of July; she’s almost a year old now.’

  ‘Oh!’ Lucy stared at him blankly. ‘I never knew anything about that. I’m so sorry to hear that Patsy died,’ she added in a low voice. ‘How awful for you.’

  ‘Patsy’s mother was terribly cut up about it and she refused to have anything to do with the baby,’ Robert went on in a matter-of-fact voice. ‘She and Patsy’s father moved up north to a village outside Edinburgh about six months ago.’

  ‘So you are still living with your mother and she’s bringing up the baby,’ Lucy commented.

  Robert shook his head. ‘You obviously haven’t heard about my mam either.’ His face tightened. ‘She died before Christmas from consumption.’

  ‘Oh Robert! That’s terrible news. I didn’t even know that your mother was ill.’

  ‘None of us did. It was very sudden. She was only really ill for a few weeks. Dad took it very badly. He couldn’t bear to stay in the house any longer after the funeral, so he’s gone to live with his sister up near Manchester.’

  ‘So who is looking after the baby now?’

  ‘That’s the problem. I asked the woman who moved into your old house next door if she would look after her and she seemed to be quite keen but it’s not working out. She has two children of her own and twice since little Anna has been in her care there’s been an accident due to their pranks and Anna has ended up in hospital.’

  ‘Oh Robert, that’s terrible; the poor little mite.’

  ‘That’s how I came to be here at the hospital today. I brought her in last night with a broken leg. They’re going to keep her in for a few days to give me time to find someone else to care for her.’ He hesitated, looking directly at her hopefully. ‘Would you consider doing it, Lucy?’

  ‘Me!’ she gasped in astonishment. ‘I can’t believe that I’m hearing this, Robert. You’re asking me if I would look after Patsy’s baby after all that happened.’

  ‘No, I’m sorry, I’m so desperate that I’m not thinking straight. I suppose it is out of the question; you will probably have Sam laid up for weeks to come. I haven’t even asked you how he is,’ he added contritely.

  ‘Sam is still critically ill. He has a broken arm but they also think that he has some ribs broken and that has affected his breathing.’

  ‘It sounds pretty serious. Do you know how long he will be in hospital?’

  ‘No, I haven’t any idea. They said a lot depended on whether his lungs have been damaged in any way by his broken ribs. They haven’t X-rayed him yet, but will be doing so either later tonight or first thing tomorrow morning. The nurse said she hoped to be able to tell me more when I visit tomorrow.’

  ‘So will you be here again around this time tomorrow evening? I will be coming to see little Anna, so if you’re visiting Sam, then perhaps we could meet up again afterwards for a cup of coffee?’

  Lucy hesitated. It had been a shock bumping into Robert and it had stirred up so many emotions that she wasn’t sure if she wanted to see him again. She’d missed him so deeply when they’d first parted and meeting him again was far more distressing than she had ever imagined it would be.

  ‘Don’t worry, I won’t try to cajole you into looking after little Anna,’ he said grimly. ‘I’m sorry about that, it was thoughtless; I should never have mentioned it in the first place.’

  ‘I’m not too sure what time I will be coming tomorrow night,’ Lucy said evasively.

  ‘No, I understand.’ He pushed back his chair and stood up. ‘Do you want me to walk you home?’ he asked as she preceded him out of the milk bar.

  Lucy shook her head. ‘No. Thanks for the coffee. It was just what I needed but now I’d like time to think over what’s happened to Sam,’ she said, attempting a smile.

  ‘I hope you find he’s much better when you visit him tomorrow,’ Robert said as they stood for a moment outside on the pavement. Then, with a brief nod of his head, he turned and walked off.

  Lucy remained standing there, feeling desolate as she watched his tall, broad-shouldered figure disappear into the distance. She wanted to call out to him to stop but felt that it would be foolish to do so because it would be opening up the old wound all over again.

  Lucy couldn’t put Robert out of her mind as she walked home; she kept thinking about Patsy’s baby, Anna, and wondering how on earth Robert was going to manage to take care of her. Even though she felt sorry for the little mite, the thought of looking after the child sent shudders through her.

  She didn’t think she could bear recognising features and perhaps even mannerisms that could be attributed to either Patsy or Robert as the little girl grew up. It would be like a knife turning constantly in her heart.

  She had loved Robert so much that when she found out that, unknown to either her or Sam, he’d been carrying on with Patsy, she’d felt betrayed and bitterly hurt. She knew that Sam felt much the same about Patsy’s behaviour.

  He’d always known Patsy liked to flirt, but he’d always laughed about it and said that he knew it was never serious because she always claimed she only did it for fun. Sam had always believed her because he loved her and trusted her. He’d even accepted her explanation that she had only been visiting Percy Carter after the bonfire incident because it meant getting time off from work.

  What made it even more despicable was that Sam had been so worried at the time because he knew that it might be quite a long time before he could complete his apprenticeship because of the state of his hands.

  Her doubts about looking after Anna didn’t have anything to do with all this, Lucy reminded herself. That was all in the past and until she had bumped into Robert today she had managed to banish it to the back of her mind most of the time.

  The reason she was so unsure about helping him was that a child needed love and she didn’t feel she could give that to Patsy’s baby, even though Robert was the father. Perhaps it was because Robert was the father, she mused unhappily.

  She’d had such high hopes and plans about the family she and Robert would have, and the sort of home they would live in. There would be a boy for him and a girl for her. She sighed. She’d never make plans again.

  It sometimes seemed to her that dreams weren’t meant to come true; in fact, that it was the opposite. She’d never thought that one day she’d have to go out cleaning offices and trying to make every penny she earned do the work of two.

  At least she had her full health and strength to do that, she reflected as she reached Horatio Street. Poor Sam didn’t even have that, not since the car accident, and now this second accident was bound to make his life more difficult than ever.

  That was another reason why she was feeling so guilty about turning down Robert’s request. If they moved back to Priory Terrace it would give Sam a far better life although she was worried about how some of the old neighbours might treat them seeing that they had left under a cloud.

  Ever since Joe Black had moved in to Horatio Street, they’d been planning to move as soon as they could afford to do so, but now that Sam would probably not be able to work again for several weeks at least, they’d have to forget all about doing that, Lucy reflected as she let herself into the house.

  Before she could reach the stairs to go up to her rooms, Joe Black came out of the kitchen. He was wearing only a singlet and although a cigarette was dangling from his lips he looked as though he was about to go to bed.

  ‘Aah, the wanderer returns,’ he quipped. ‘The rozzers have been here twice this evening looking for you,’ he leered, coming closer and breathing beer fumes and tobacco smoke into her face. ‘So what sort of trouble are you in now?’

  ‘They probably wanted to speak to my brother, not me,
about the accident he was involved in with the marchers, but I’m afraid he’s in hospital.’

  ‘So that means you’re going to be here all on your own, does it?’ Joe Black smirked. ‘Well, if you should get lonely and find you can’t sleep, then you know where to find me. Perhaps you’d like me to come upstairs with you now and keep you company,’ he said suggestively, trying to put an arm round her.

  Lucy pulled back quickly. ‘I’d like to go up to my room, so will you please stand aside and let me pass,’ she said stiffly.

  ‘Oh come on,’ he held on to her arm so tightly that she couldn’t free herself. ‘There’s no hurry; no one is up there waiting for you.’

  Lucy jerked her arm free and scuttled up the stairs as fast as she could. Once inside her room she shut the door and stood with her back against it. She felt so afraid that she wished she had let Robert come back with her.

  It was too late to think like that, she told herself as she pushed one of the chairs up against the door to try and stop anyone coming into the room. Robert didn’t even know where she lived.

  Perhaps, if they happened to meet the following evening, she ought to let him walk her home; if Joe Black saw them together then maybe he would leave her alone in future.

  Chapter Nineteen

  The following weeks had a nightmare quality about them for Lucy. Each time she visited Sam she hoped to bump into Robert, but she was never fortunate enough to do so. She even began to wonder if she had imagined their meeting.

  Finally, in desperation, she asked one of the nurses if she knew whether a small child called Anna Tanner had been a patient there.

  The nurse promised to make some enquiries and eventually told Lucy that there had been a little girl of that name but she’d now gone home.

  Sam was making very slow progress. Each time she visited him Lucy hoped that they would say he could come home. She hated living at Horatio Street without him because of Joe Black.