by Kitty Neale
‘Thanks, I’d like that,’ Carol said, her composure wavering as she blinked back tears.
‘Is there anything I can do to help?’ Amy asked.
‘I don’t think so, but it’s good of you to offer,’ Carol croaked.
As the conversation died out, Amy felt awkward, and inadequate. She didn’t know what to say, how to offer any words of comfort. They had just lost their father and must be inconsolable. Paul flopped onto the sofa, put an arm around Carol and she leaned against him.
Amy felt that her presence was intrusive and said softly, ‘I’d better go or I’ll be late for work.’
Carol nodded, and telling them not to get up, Amy let herself out, her heart heavy with sadness.
Celia carried a tray up to Thomas and placed it across his lap. ‘Jeremy has gone to the unit again. He left half an hour ago.’
‘I’ve told him there’s no need.’
‘Darling, he’s just keeping an eye on things for you … making sure the men don’t slack while you’re away.’
‘Len Upwood is a good foreman and if needed, which I doubt, he’s perfectly capable of keeping them in line.’
‘I know, but I think Jeremy is getting restless and it gives him something to do.’
‘Well, as long as he doesn’t get in the way, I suppose it’s all right,’ Thomas said. ‘Anyway, I feel a lot better today so I think I’ll get up.’
Celia decided that it was time to start acting on Jeremy’s plan and said, ‘The living room has barely warmed up yet so eat your breakfast and stay there for a while. It’ll be nice for Amy to see that you’re up when she calls in, and Jeremy won’t have to be a chaperon any more. Not that he minds, he’d do anything for you, and Amy must like him as she seems to hang on to his every word. I think Jeremy finds it a little embarrassing, but it’s been lovely
of him to keep Amy company for you while you’ve been so ill.’
With that, Celia left the room, telling Thomas that she’d be back for his tray in a little while. She’d made her opening shot – and from the frown she’d seen on Thomas’s face, it had hit the target.
‘I’m sorry, Rose. It’ll just be me and Stan on Christmas day,’ Phyllis told her cousin when as usual, before starting the housework, they were sharing a cup of tea. ‘Celia Frost has invited Amy to her place for dinner.’
‘You don’t look too happy about it.’
‘I’m not. We always spend Christmas together and Amy should’ve refused.’
‘I doubt it was an easy choice for her. Celia Frost is going to be her mother-in-law, and knowing the woman, no doubt Amy wants to keep on her good side.’
‘Huh, I doubt she’s got one. But changing the subject, we had a policeman knocking on our door last night.’
With eyes rounding, Rose asked, ‘What did he want?’
‘Well, it was a bit odd really. As you know, Frank Cole has got two sons and the copper wanted their address. We thought they might be in trouble, so we kept shtum at first, but then he said it wasn’t a criminal matter,’ Phyllis said, pausing to drink her tea.
‘What was it then?’ Rose asked.
‘The copper wouldn’t go into details, but we got the gist that it was something to do with Frank … that he might have had an accident or something.’
‘Oh no, I hope it isn’t anything too serious,’ Rose said.
‘Stan seems to think it must be. He said if Frank was capable, he’d have got in touch with the boys himself and there’d be no reason for the police to be involved.’
‘Yeah, I think he’s right,’ Rose said. ‘What a shame though. It seems to be one disaster after another for that family and it makes you count your blessings.’
‘Yes it does,’ Phyllis agreed, thinking that Rose had turned out to be one of hers. Rose had been so good to her and life was so much easier now that she was earning more money.
One of the best things was yet to come, and Phyllis thanked her lucky stars that Rose had come back into her life.
Paul and Dave left the morgue, both sickened by what they saw. Their father had once been strong, and handsome, but the life he’d been living had taken its toll and in death he looked like a withered old man.
They were now waiting to pick up his belongings, Dave moaning because he still thought it was a waste of time, and when they were handed the package, at first Paul had to agree. He didn’t now though, and after reading the letter that had been found in his father’s pocket, his grief was replaced by fury. They chucked the foul clothing in the nearest bin, while Paul spat out, ‘I could kill him.’
‘It’s a bit late. He’s already dead.’
‘He should have told us, Dave.’
‘You read the letter. She asked him not to and let’s face it, you can understand why.’
‘All this time, and this is the last thing I expected,’ Paul said. ‘Wait a minute, according to that date Dad got this letter in June.’
‘Yeah, so?’
‘Don’t you realise what this means? She’s still in there and we can visit her.’
‘She might not agree to see us.’
‘We could give it a try.’
‘How do you think Carol’s going to take it when we tell her?’ Dave asked.
‘Let’s go home and we’ll soon find out,’ Paul said, thinking that it was a daft question. Carol was going to he shocked – as deeply as they were.
Jeremy returned from the unit at midday. Len Upwood had continued to be surly, and as it had been impossible to assert his authority, Jeremy had gone into the small office where he’d flicked through the papers and orders. When the telephone rang he’d answered it, writing swift notes, and then seeing Len in the doorway, he’d taken great satisfaction in telling the man to get back to work, the call none of his business.
He’d taken the notes and driven home, surprised to find Tom up. Jeremy felt pleased with himself as he told his brother about the possible contract, but got an unexpected reaction.
‘Did you talk to Len? It’s a big development and he’ll know we need to get working on a quote.’
‘He was busy, but don’t worry, I can give you a hand.’
‘Jeremy, do you know anything about glazing and the costs involved?’
‘Well, no, but it can’t be that hard.’
‘There are a lot of factors to be taken into account; frames, glass supplies, manpower costs, and that’s just a start. Show me those notes.’
Jeremy handed them over, and after a brief look at them, Tom said, ‘These are useless. I told you that Len knows what he’s doing and if he’d taken the call he’d have asked the right questions.’
‘I was only trying to help.’
‘This is just a hindrance, and in future stay out of things you know nothing about,’ Tom snapped as he stood up. ‘I’ll have to ring Len and tell him to call the developer for more information.’
Jeremy was left inwardly fuming. Tom had been a stick-thin boy with asthma who was being bullied at school when Jeremy left home, and he hadn’t looked much better on his return. He was still thin with a weak chest, but now Jeremy was seeing a different side to his brother, one he hadn’t expected. He’d thought Tom would be easy to manipulate, that getting an equal share in the business would be a doddle – now though, he wasn’t so sure.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Tommy was still working on the quote on Thursday morning. It was a larger development than the last one, and he really wanted to gain the contract. When he’d started the calculations, it soon became obvious that it would be impossible to keep to schedule with his current workforce. He’d have to employ another couple of installers, but as he was unlikely to hear if he’d won the contract or not until after the Christmas period, there was no immediate urgency. For now he just had to get the quote in, along with the recommendations he had from the last developer he’d worked with.
‘Thomas, you’ve been working on that all morning. It’s twelve thirty and I think you should take a break now,’ Celia said as
she put a cup of coffee and a sandwich beside him.
‘It’s nearly finished,’ he said, stretching his upper body, feeling the release of tense muscles across his shoulders and lower back. Other than that he didn’t feel too bad as this bout of bronchitis hadn’t kept him in bed for as long as usual. ‘Have you made up the men’s pay-packets?’
‘Of course I have, and I drew out the extra cash you asked for when I went to the bank. I’m not happy about it though, and still don’t feel it’s necessary to give the men a Christmas bonus.’
‘They’ve earned it and I’ll give it to them tomorrow when I go to the unit.’
‘Jeremy can do that. You’re not well enough to go out yet.’
‘Yes I am, and talking of Jeremy, where is he? I hope he hasn’t gone to the unit again. Len didn’t say a lot, but reading between the lines, I think Jeremy has ruffled his feathers.’
‘Jeremy has a way with people, so I doubt that. I’m not sure where he is, but he didn’t mention the unit when he left, just saying something about going for a drive and that he’d be home by about two.’
‘He took the van?’
‘Well yes, I said he could use it until you need it again. Surely you don’t mind?’
‘No, that’s fine,’ Tommy said, biting into his sandwich.
‘I’m worried, Thomas. Unless Jeremy finds something fulfilling to do, such as working with you, I fear he’ll leave again.’
‘Mum, I’d like to give him a job, but he knows nothing about glazing.’
‘He could learn, and it would be a huge incentive for him to stay if you offer Jeremy a share in the business.’
‘No, I don’t think I can do that. At the moment Jeremy would just be a dead weight, adding nothing to the business, yet taking a share of the profits.’
Tommy saw his mother’s face suffuse with colour and expected an outburst, but instead she took a deep breath and said with unexpected calm, ‘That might be true now, but given time I’m sure that Jeremy would become an asset. For instance, he has charm, charisma and would make an excellent salesman. He’d be able to bring business in, but until then you could make it a condition that he doesn’t receive any unearned profits.’
‘I suppose that could work, but I still need to give it a lot of thought.’
‘Very well, I’ll leave you to it, but I’m sure you’ll come to the right decision,’ Celia said. ‘In the meantime, I’d rather we kept this conversation to ourselves. Jeremy doesn’t know anything about this and I wouldn’t want to raise his hopes, only to have them dashed.’
When his mother left the room, Tommy mulled it over. He liked having his brother around and regretted his outburst yesterday. He’d apologised, but still felt a bit rotten about it. He knew that Jeremy was only trying to look out for him, something he’d always done when they were kids, but with no experience, he really didn’t know what he was doing. His mother was right though, Jeremy could learn, and he’d offer him a job, though he’d be little more that an apprentice to start with.
When it came to a stake in the business, Tommy was unwilling to be rushed into such an important decision. A job first, and then if it looked like Jeremy had an aptitude for the business, he’d consider giving him a share.
For now though he had this quote to finish, and when it was completed Tommy put it into an envelope, ready to be sent off. Moments later the door opened and Jeremy came in with a flourish. Tommy was surprised to see that he had Amy with him, his brother smiling as he said, ‘It was Amy’s half day so when I saw her walking home I gave her a lift.’
Seeing them together, Tommy saw that Amy looked pink-cheeked, and she seemed to be avoiding his eyes, almost as though she felt guilty about something. His mother had said that Amy hung on to Jeremy’s every word, but looking at his tall, strong, good-looking brother, Tommy couldn’t help wondering if there was more to it than that. He didn’t like the feeling, yet Tommy was unable to stem the surge of jealousy that made his stomach churn.
Amy walked over to him now, saying softly, ‘You look even better today.’
‘I am,’ he told her, relieved when Amy kissed him on the lips and at last met his eyes.
‘That’s wonderful,’ she said, smiling, and then whispered close in his ear, ‘I love you, Tommy Frost.’
‘I love you too,’ he hissed back, feeling the tension drain from his body while giving himself a mental ticking off for doubting Amy. He knew why of course. He was skinny and weak, and had allowed his own inadequacies to rule his feelings. It wouldn’t happen again, he’d see to that, and as Amy continued to hold his hand, he hardly noticed that they weren’t the only people in the room.
For Amy it was different. She had wanted to see Tommy, but longed to be away from Jeremy and was aware of him every second that he was in the room. He’d insisted on giving her a lift, but now Amy wished she’d found an excuse, any excuse to refuse. It was getting worse, the intimate way he looked at her, the smile on his handsome face so inviting that she was becoming frightened of her own responses.
How could she feel like this when she loved Tommy, really loved him? What Jeremy aroused in her wasn’t love, it was something else – something almost primitive that both repelled and attracted her.
‘I’m going back to work tomorrow,’ Tommy said, breaking into Amy’s thoughts.
‘Are you sure you’re up to it?’ she asked.
‘You sound as bad as my mother,’ he said, although smiling.
‘We’re only trying to make sure you don’t rush things,’ Celia said. ‘Isn’t that right, Amy?’
‘Yes, it is,’ she replied, still unused to Celia’s kindly attitude towards her.
‘Well you can both rest assured that I’m fine,’ Tommy said.
‘Did you get that quote sorted out?’ Jeremy asked.
‘Yes, I’ve just finished it.’
‘Would you like me to pop it in the post for you, or I’d be happy to deliver it by hand. After that muck-up it’s the least I can do.’
‘Don’t worry about it. You were only trying to help and as I said last night, I’m sorry for overreacting.’
‘One apology is enough,’ Jeremy said, grinning. ‘You don’t have to grovel.’
‘Right, I won’t and yes, you can take it to the post office.’
Amy couldn’t make sense of this conversation, only relief that Jeremy was going out. He smiled at her and she looked away, determined that from now on she was going to stay as far away from him as possible.
Jeremy took the envelope and went into the hall, his mother saying as she followed him, ‘I have a couple of last minute Christmas cards that need posting too. Come upstairs and I’ll give them to you.’
He didn’t know why she just couldn’t bring them down, but the explanation became obvious when they stood in her bedroom and she said, ‘I’ve had a word with Thomas about giving you a share in the business.’
‘You shouldn’t have done that. I’ve only been home for a short time and it’s far too early to raise the subject.’
‘I don’t think it is. There’s no guarantee that we can get rid of Amy, so we need to make sure you’ve got a stake in the business before Thomas marries her.’
‘My plan is already working. I know Amy’s attracted to me, and didn’t you see Tom’s face when I came in with her? It was obvious that he was jealous.’
‘Yes, but I also saw that it could go badly wrong. Instead of turning on Amy, Thomas might blame you.’
‘He won’t be able to do that, not when he sees the evidence with his own eyes.’
‘It could still turn Thomas against you and I think it’s too risky. The safest option would be to go for a share in the business, sooner rather than later.’
Though Jeremy hated to admit it, he thought his mother was right. It was the business or the girl, but what he really wanted was both. He’d go along with his mother for now – concentrate on getting a stake in the business, but once that was achieved, Amy would be his for the picking.
&n
bsp; Chapter Thirty-Three
Christmas came, and for the first time since her marriage, Phyllis wasn’t in her own home; though with Rose’s kitchen now just as familiar to her, she was happily helping her cousin to prepare the finishing touches to the meal.
They had exchanged presents with Amy before leaving home, and now she said to Rose, ‘Amy loved her new cardigan, and she gave me a nice handbag.’
‘What did you get from Stan?’ Rose asked.
Phyllis chuckled, ‘As usual, I got something for the kitchen. This time it’s a new frying pan.’
‘Flaming hell, I hope you hit him over the head with it.’
‘I felt like it, but Stan has never had a clue when it comes to presents. It doesn’t occur to him that I’d like something for myself, and to be honest he looked so pleased with himself when he gave it to me, saying that he’d noticed my old one is a bit worn out, that I didn’t have the heart to do anything other than smile.’
‘I certainly smiled when Samuel gave me this bracelet,’ Rose said.
Phyllis would have too, but she still didn’t envy Rose. Stan might be a bit thoughtless at times, but in other ways he was a good husband. They might not be rich but Stan always had the power to make her laugh, and that was something Phyllis thought more precious than gold.
She couldn’t imagine life without Stan, yet during the past year two marriages in the street had fallen apart. Phyllis still couldn’t believe the events were linked – that George Frost and Daphne Cole had run off together. It was Mabel’s theory, and another nasty rumour she’d set in motion since Frank Cole’s death. It sickened Phyllis. Poor Carol had been through enough, and she had now become distant with Amy, as though wanting nothing more to do with anyone who lived on Lark Rise.
Mabel had seen everyone leaving next door, Phyllis and Stan walking off in one direction and Amy in the other. She’d worked it out of course. Phyllis was going to spend Christmas day with Rose, while Amy went to Celia Frost’s.
She could guess how Phyllis would feel about that, her precious daughter preferring to spend the day with her future mother-in-law instead of her, and Mabel smiled with grim satisfaction. She was still fuming that Phyllis had turned on her again when she’d told her about Carol’s abortion. It wasn’t as though she’d made it up, she was only speaking the truth, but Phyllis had gone on her high horse, ranting and raving about malicious gossip.
