The Secret Orphan

by Glynis Peters

  Elenor looked to Jackson who gave a nod.

  The evening livened up and soon Elenor found herself free to enjoy a dance with Jackson.

  ‘How have you been?’ he asked.

  ‘Nervous, tetchy. Grumpy. You?’

  ‘Busy. Fritz will give us no bother. I had him removed.’

  Elenor stopped dancing and stared at him.

  ‘I heard he went in the night. It was you?’

  Moving her around the floor again, Jackson gave her a gentle smile.

  ‘Not me personally.’

  ‘Where is he, can I ask?’

  ‘You can ask but I can’t tell. No matter what that man says about you, Rose or anyone in this country, no one will believe him. Let’s just say he’s fond of the drink.’

  Elenor clasped her hand over her mouth. She stood statue still and stared at him. A ripple of voices around them faded into the distance and the room spun.

  ‘You look as if you could do with a drink, sweet girl.’

  ‘I’m fine. Really. You gave me a shock. He’s a drunk?’ she said and handed him back the glass.

  ‘We plied him with so much alcohol he can’t remember his own name.’

  ‘We?’ Elenor said. ‘You involved others? Ron, the POW guard?’

  Jackson led her to the dance floor again, and they moved to the slow music.

  ‘I told them he’d made a threat to you and Rose, and spoke of escape plans, that’s all. That was all I needed to say. They’ve put him in solitary and he’s on his way to an isolation camp. I did it to help you. He needs to be kept quiet.’

  ‘You’ve helped get a man drunk but when he’s sober what will happen? You can’t keep him locked away forever. Oh Jackson, have you made things worse for yourself?’

  ‘I’ll be fine. Ron will be fine. Fritz will find himself in trouble on more than one occasion, and his stories will be ignored. Rumours will follow him around. We have our ways. He’ll be unharmed, but no longer a danger to you,’ he said and tapped the side of his nose.

  Unconvinced, Elenor tried to enjoy the rest of the evening but couldn’t relax. Even Jackson’s gentle lovemaking didn’t sooth her nerves.

  Jackson’s attempt to hush Fritz against talking about Rose was not as tight as she’d hoped. The German still had power over her no matter what Jackson said to reassure her.

  Dottie arrived home with Rose the following morning, and a bedraggled Titch followed an hour later.

  ‘Them Canadian guys are fun,’ Titch said as she made her way to the bathroom. ‘Jackson gone?

  ‘Yes, his leave is up. I hope you didn’t wear them all out, Titch.’

  Dottie gave a laugh and bustled her way around the kitchen.

  ‘Rose was a good girl. Tom said if we ever have a girl he’d like one just like her.’

  ‘Really? You two are serious then?’ Elenor said.

  A flush-faced Dottie looked back at her.

  ‘He proposed last night, and I’ve said yes.’

  ‘About bleedin’ time,’ Titch yelled from the doorway.

  ‘Titch!’ Elenor said. ‘Congratulations. I couldn’t have wished for happier news. Susie will be thrilled. She loves wedding talk. When are you thinking?’

  ‘Soon. No point in leaving it too late,’ Dottie said. ‘Where is Susie? It’s unusual for her to be late back from her mother’s, even with Ron to distract her.’

  ‘Dottie said I can be her bridesmaid,’ Rose said with excitement.

  ‘Ah, that’s wonderful. How lovely. I hate to say it though, even brides and bridesmaids have work to do. We need to get a wiggle on.’

  By the end of the day Elenor had found Titch asleep twice and Rose practising walking down the aisle. Susie had not returned to the farm and Elenor accepted she was having a rare Sunday at home with her family. She’d worked hard enough the previous day. By Tuesday, Susie had still not arrived back to Tre Lodhen, and Elenor walked Rose to school with the intention of dropping by to find out why.

  Walking away from the school she spotted Ron and Susie talking at the end of the lane leading back to White Cross. Elenor hesitated beside a hedge. She watched them link arms and walk her way. Stepping out further into the lane, Elenor called out to them.

  ‘Morning stranger,’ she teased Susie.

  Susie looked to Ron and then to the floor, but both continued walking towards her.

  ‘Are you all right, Susie? I was a little worried,’ Elenor said.

  Susie shook her head then burst into tears. Ron’s protective arm went around her shoulders.

  ‘I can’t do nuthin’ with her, Elenor. She’s refusin’ to come back to you on the farm, and she don’t want to speak to her ma.’ Ron looked to Elenor with grave concern.

  ‘So where have you been, Susie? Come home, I’ll look after you. Are you ill?’

  And a thought hit home after Elenor said the words.

  ‘Are you in the family way?’ she asked with gentle encouragement.

  Ron’s head looked to both women with a rapid movement. His face paled, and he pulled Susie around to face him.

  ‘Are you?’ he asked. ‘Are you pregnant?’ His words were barely a whisper.

  A scared Susie looked back at them and burst into tears.

  ‘Oh my god,’ Ron said.

  ‘Ron. Go back to work. I’ll look after her. When you’ve finished, come and see us. It will be all right if you do the honourable thing. Understand?’

  ‘I mean, I um, I …’ Ron stammered out his words, his neck flushed with embarrassment.

  ‘Ron. Do as I say. I’ll deal with this. Just as you and Jackson have helped me out,’ Elenor said and hinted she knew his involvement with Fritz.

  Ron pulled Susie to his side.

  ‘I’ll come back. I’ll stand by you. I promise.’

  Susie gave him a smile and Elenor guided her back to the farm.

  ‘It will be fine, Susie. I’m here for you, and Ron is a good man. He’ll be true to his word. We’ll speak with your parents together. Don’t be afraid.’

  ‘I wanted to keep it a secret, but I can’t do it alone,’ Susie whispered.

  ‘Secrets make heavy burdens, Susie. We’ll let this one out. You can stay living here if you want.’

  Elenor’s head was spinning with the events of the past three weeks. A wedding and a baby might be just the distraction she needed. One thing she was sure of, life was never boring at Tre Lodhen.

  Chapter 48

  ‘A double wedding?’ What a wonderful idea,’ Elenor said.

  Dottie and Susie stood holding hands in front of her and both looked radiant. Tom and Ron stood to one side discussing an unexploded bomb on one of the beaches.

  Telling Susie’s parents about the baby wasn’t as hard as Ron and Susie had first thought, and after a few tears and a ticking off for Ron, another engagement was announced.

  Although she was excited by the happy news from both couples, Elenor still felt vulnerable. A paranoia had set in and no matter which way she turned she couldn’t shake it off, and every day she wondered if it was the end for her and Rose. Susie behaved oddly around her since she and Ron announced their marriage, and she wondered if Ron had found out something about Fritz and told her.

  Subtle questions posed to Rose gave no clue that anything had changed for her. According to Rose school was a happy place, and all children treated her well – except for Freddie. Freddie poked his tongue out at her for being a girl, but he did it to all the girls.

  Elenor went to the calendar and realised it was 20th October, her mother’s birthday. She wrote ‘Dottie and Susie wedding’ in the box marked the 30th. She stood a moment and watched rain drizzle down the windowpane. The bad weather had set in for the day. She saw the cows trudge their way into the barn followed by farmhands encouraging them to walk faster as the weather worsened. The sky darkened as if it was evening.

  Looking to the top of the fields Elenor saw a movement followed by the flare of a match. She continued to watch the figure from the kitchen
window when a crash of thunder made her jump.

  ‘Thanks for that, as if my nerves aren’t bad enough,’ she yelled as she stumbled against the scraps pail and dropped her scissors.

  When she returned to the window, the figure had gone. Another crash of thunder was followed by a fine fork of lightning and Elenor noticed one or two sheep wandering towards the vegetable plots.

  ‘Now what?’ she muttered as she pulled on her wellington boots and raincoat.

  Squelching her way through the muddy path Elenor shouted to the workers in the barn to check for more wandering sheep.

  ‘Where the heck is Tom?’ she asked Titch who’d wandered out from behind the tithe barn.

  ‘Kissin’ the donkey no doubt,’ Titch called back.

  ‘Don’t be cruel, Titch. Help with the sheep.’

  Voices echoed across the fields, all calling for Tom above the wind. Bess hunkered down in one corner and Elenor guided her to round up the sheep.

  ‘Head them into the small pen beside the cottage, we’ll gather them up and count heads after we’ve tracked down Tom,’ she called to Titch and three others.

  Another movement in the trees caught her attention, and she pointed to them.

  ‘Anyone know who that is? They were there earlier on.’

  ‘I can’t see anyone,’ said Titch.

  Elenor moved closer to the wooded area, but the figure disappeared before her arm was at her side.

  ‘I’m seeing things. Anyone seen Tom yet?’

  ‘Here, Elenor. I’m here.’

  Breathless, Tom called down from the right-hand side of the farm, moving five sheep forward.

  ‘Sorry, the boundary fence is broken. Can’t think how but it is a right mess. Did you get the others? These wandered into the woods.’

  ‘Yes, in the pen, you’d best go count them and I’ll see to the fencing. Send Titch up with equipment to repair the damage.’

  After four hours of repair work the fencing was stronger than before. Dottie decided a bull must have trampled through, while Titch reckoned it was an enemy tank. Torrential rain pelted them halfway through the repairs but only Titch complained. One of the mothers offered to collect Rose from school and would walk her back to the farm once the worst of the weather had blown over.

  Once home Elenor noticed a small brown envelope sitting on the worktop. There was no name on the front and the only way she was to find out the owner was to open it. She pulled out a scruffy piece of paper with the word LONDON in wonky capital letters scrawled in pencil. She put it to one side in case it belonged to Rose.

  Tom gave his three-rap knock on the door and stepped inside.

  ‘All present and correct, Elenor. I take it the fence is ready?’

  ‘It is and thank goodness the sheep are unharmed,’ said Elenor.

  ‘Bloody rabbit hunters, I bet they took a shortcut and climbed the fence. I’ve had to repair after them once before,’ said Tom.

  ‘Thanks Tom. Oh, and keep an eye on the top woods, I’ve a feeling I’ve got a veggie thief on the prowl.’

  By five o’clock the rain had eased to a drizzle and when Elenor had finished mucking out the cattle shed, she decided to fetch Rose for herself. After a few yards of avoiding potholes and large puddles, Elenor saw Susie walking hand in hand with Rose.

  ‘Hello, you two.’

  ‘Susie came to fetch me,’ Rose called back, and dropped her hand from Susie’s, splashing and skipping to Elenor for a cuddle. The child smelled of fresh air and home baking, and Elenor took a moment to register the smell for the future. She shook off the thought ‘just in case.’

  ‘You missed the excitement. We had escaped sheep and had to fetch them home through the mud, then fix the fence. It’s been a messy day. You feeling better, Susie?’

  Morning sickness weakened Susie, and Elenor did the best she could to cover for her. Dottie knew about the baby, but they dared not mention anything to Titch. She’d a reputation as a village gossip.

  ‘I’m coping,’ Susie said.

  Rose jumped and skipped ahead, unable to resist puddles, and Elenor blessed the creator of wellington boots.

  As they ventured near the door of the farmhouse, Elenor turned to them both.

  ‘Keep a watch from your windows when you can, we have someone after the vegetables,’ Elenor said and kicked off her boots, then she noticed their faces frown with concern. ‘Nothing to worry about, just shout if you see someone you don’t know helping themselves.’

  Once inside Susie suggested Rose played ‘Here Comes the Bride’ on the piano.

  ‘Are you moving back home, Susie?’ Elenor asked seeing Susie’s bags packed in the corner.

  ‘I think of this as home, but I can’t stay,’ Susie said and slumped onto the sofa.

  ‘Why? Are you unhappy here?’

  Elenor busied herself at the table through the silence of Susie, dreading her reply.

  ‘If you want to go back to your true home, please go. Don’t live here if you are homesick, Susie. Gracious, you are only young, we forget that at times.’

  ‘I love this place. I love you both.’

  ‘I feel a but coming on, Susie. Please tell me.’ Elenor’s heart pounded in her chest.

  ‘It’s Jackson,’ she said.

  Elenor stared at her. This was it, the truth was about to come out.

  ‘What do you mean?’ asked Elenor, dreading the rest of the conversation.

  ‘He’ll have you, Rose, and the farm in his life forever. When the war is over, you will start your own lives here. I’ve seen the way he looks at you, there’s no way that man is going back to Canada,’ she said, and Elenor’s heart went out to her. She could see by Susie’s face that this was the full cause of her anxieties and upset. It had nothing to do with Rose being a German, and she let out a loud sigh of relief.

  ‘Ah, Susie. As I’ve said, I am in no hurry to marry anyone because of the commitment to the farm. Even if we did marry, you, Ron and the baby would live here with us.’

  Susie looked up at her and gave a shy smile.

  ‘No more talk of leaving. Tomorrow I’m going to my mother’s grave, would you mind watching over Rose for me, please? Or if it’s too much with the sickness wearing you down, I’ll wait. Only it will be too muddy for her to work the plots. Plus, I’ve a feeling she’s going to be clinging to your pinny now she’s to be your bridesmaid as well as Dottie’s.’

  Rising to her feet, Susie went to Elenor and kissed her cheek.

  ‘Thank you. You go, I’ll be all right. I feel so much better now we’ve talked.’

  Neither of them saw the shadow of Titch on the stairs.

  Chapter 49

  The night had been a quiet one with the weather standing firm against the enemy. All the residents of Tre Lodhen got plenty of sleep and woke in good spirits.

  Elenor entered the cemetery and bypassed her father’s grave to attend her mother’s, clearing her previous offerings.

  ‘Sorry I didn’t make it yesterday, Mum. The rains fell heavy. Things are ticking along on the farm, but this war makes life difficult. I have to account for every slice of bacon, and each pint of milk. I’ve met a man, Mum. You’d like him. He’s from Canada, thousands of miles away,’ Elenor said and sighed. ‘But the war is not in our favour. I’ve a little girl now, well, not my own, but I’m going to adopt her. She’s the dearest little …’

  Standing and stretching her legs, Elenor looked to the corner of the cemetery wall where she’d spotted a shadow flicker and move behind a tree. Elenor had the feeling she was being watched. She turned back to the grave.

  ‘I have to go now, Mum. I miss you.’ Elenor kissed the tips of her fingers and placed her hand onto the headstone, then turned to leave. As she did so, the shadow remained on show. It was a tall male. A spiral of smoke from a cigarette wafted her way, and she upped her pace as she walked the path out of the cemetery. When she reached the exit Elenor kept one eye on the shadow beside a tree on the boundary wall, but it still made no attem
pt to move.

  As she left the entrance, which was formed of two large brick walls, she gave a swift glance along the street and to her surprise, could see nobody there.

  ‘You’re seeing things, Elenor Cardew. This has to stop,’ she muttered to herself and headed back to the farm. Walking past the green on the edge of the lane she was taken by surprise by a pair of hands which gripped her by the shoulders. With no force her attacker spun her around, but before Elenor had time to scream a pair soft lips smothered any sounds she tried to make. Jackson had come home to her, he was the lurking shadow.

  Breathless, she pushed him away.

  ‘You scared me half to death you fool. Have you followed me from the cemetery? I saw someone lingering. I never guessed it was you, it was a creepy shadow,’ she said and laughed.

  Jackson put his hands in his pocket and bowed his head. He pulled a sorrowful, yet playful face.

  ‘Susie told me you were there. I wanted to surprise you.’

  ‘Come here, you big oaf.’

  The walk back to the farm was filled with chatter about the escaped sheep, and Jackson’s friend who’d managed to break his arm by sliding from the side of his plane when adding his new wife’s initials for good luck. Once inside the gates, Elenor knew Susie must have kept an eye out for them to arrive when they were greeted by an overexcited Rose.

  ‘Jackson!’ she yelled and raced into his arms, with Seth yapping around his ankles.

  Elenor and Susie watched on with amusement.

  ‘Now that’s a fine greeting for a hero,’ he said and swung her high.

  ‘You said you weren’t a hero,’ Rose said.

  Jackson put her down on the ground and pulled out a chocolate bar.

  ‘Will this make me one?’ he said and gave her a wink.

  ‘Yes. Yes. Can I have a piece now, Elenor? Can I, please?’ Rose begged with her hands as if in prayer.

  ‘Make it last more than a day and give Susie a piece,’ Elenor said.

  ‘No need,’ said Jackson. ‘I’ve brought you all one, even Tom.’

  ‘That’s so kind of you, Jackson, thank you,’ Susie said, and gave him a kiss on the cheek.