Friends and Secrets

by Grace Thompson

  Christian hadn’t gone back to see Mrs Morris. He felt ashamed of his long absence even though it had been at Ken’s request. How could he explain to Ken’s mother what had happened?

  ‘Why don’t we both go and see his mother again? If he hasn’t answered any letters, and they haven’t been returned, she must be sending them on. She’ll tell you where he is, won’t she?’ Cynthia sugested.

  ‘You’ll come with me?’ Christian asked.

  ‘Of course.’

  ‘We’ll have to avoid being too specific when we explain why we have lost touch. Somehow, though, I have the feeling she’s guessed, from the little I said before I understood, and I don’t think she’ll ask.’

  He had told Cynthia something of Mrs Morris’s situation but she was not prepared for the state of the place where she was living. He parked the car and allowed her time to take in the depressing state of the house, far worse than its neighbours.

  ‘Why has Ken been living like this? He was a partner and had the same income as us,’ she whispered.

  ‘Ready to go inside?’ he asked, giving her a hug. ‘Try not to show your dismay, love. She’s proud, and refuses to believe that her son has failed her so badly.’

  ‘What does she think we’ve done to him? He must have blamed us.’

  ‘No, she thinks he made some bad investments, a bit close to the truth really, he invested in horses and gambling clubs, didn’t he?’

  Cynthia tried not to look around her as a delighted Mrs Morris invited them in. She kept her eyes on the smiling face of Ken’s mother and marvelled at her air of contentment.

  ‘Don’t look at the place, darling girl,’ the elderly lady smiled as she went into the kitchen to prepare tea. ‘My Ken is so full of ideas but he’s so busy. But he’ll be starting on the work here very soon.’

  ‘Let me know how I can help,’ Christian said. ‘Where is he by the way? I have some papers he needs to look at. You do know he and I have dissolved our partnership, don’t you?’

  ‘Fool that he is,’ Mrs Morris sighed, placing a tray of tea and cakes on the table. ‘He told me he needs a rest and didn’t want to leave you without help, so he decided to leave the firm and allow you to find someone else to share your worries. Said he’s had enough of running a business.’ She stared at Christian, her blue eyes sharp and intelligent and wanting an answer as she asked, ‘What’s the real story, Christian? What sort of trouble is he in? He is in trouble, isn’t he?’

  ‘No, of course not.’ Cynthia added her voice to Christian’s and the chorus, so prompt, sounded as false as the denial was untrue.

  ‘I see. You aren’t going to tell me. But I know something isn’t right. The police have been here twice asking for his address. I don’t know where he is, but I do know something is wrong.’

  ‘Nonsense. It’s probably to do with a parking fine or something.’ Christian looked at Cynthia and said, ‘The reason we’re here is because he left some money for you. A new kitchen he said.’

  ‘Thank you, Christian love, but don’t try to lie to me. I know you too well, even though you are grown up and living in a posh house. Remember when you broke that vase and you told me the cat had knocked it off?’

  ‘Too high for the cat, wasn’t it?’ Christian grinned.

  ‘Not too high for a catapult! So no fairy stories about Ken leaving money for me, right?’

  ‘I would like to fit a kitchen for you though. You’re so fond of cooking it seems a shame you don’t have a modern place to work. I often get one cheap, so is it all right if I send a couple of lads down to fix it for you?’

  ‘Say it’s for past debts, including that vase!’ Cynthia laughed.

  ‘It is hard to say no to a proper kitchen…’ Mrs Morris smiled, her eyes shining, as though she were imagining the transformation.

  * * *

  Shortly after, Mrs Morris had more unexpected visitors, including a policeman whom she had seen before. This time it wasn’t to question her son Ken; he asked for permission to look in her house and garden.

  ‘What for?’ she asked, reaching automatically for the kettle.

  ‘I can’t really say, Mrs Morris, it’s just that we’d like to question your son, Kenneth Morris and he’s nowhere to be found. You haven’t spoken to him since we last met?’

  ‘Not a word. I told you, he was very tired and needed a rest. He’s probably gone to an hotel for a break. Nothing sinister I’m sure, he just needed a rest. As soon as he gets in touch I’ll get him to ring you.’

  ‘And you don’t mind us looking in his room?’

  ‘Come in and welcome,’ she said. ‘Cup of tea? Coffee? How many of you today?’

  ‘There are three of us and coffee would be very welcome, thank you.’

  She showed them her son’s room, then, while the kettle boiled, she watched through the kitchen window as one of the men, using a stick, lifted nettles and other weeds and looked underneath them. She saw him pick up a spade and place it into a plastic sack.

  ‘What are you taking my spade for?’ she laughed. ‘I’m not suspected of burying treasure, am I?’

  The man walked towards her and asked, ‘Is this yours, Mrs Morris?’ He opened the sack for her to look inside.

  She shook her head, frowning. ‘No, that isn’t mine, it’s too big. I use a border fork and spade, small and easy for me to manage they are, a matching pair. You’ll find them both in the shed if you look. I couldn’t use one that size,’ she laughed. ‘I wonder where it came from?’

  Christian came later that day with a kitchen fitter, to measure up for the units they would need and to discuss ideas with Mrs Morris.

  ‘The police were here earlier,’ she told Christian. ‘Funny thing, they took away a spade they found among the nettles. It wasn’t mine. Why would they want a spade, d’you think?’

  ‘Mrs Morris, is there any way that I can reach Ken? Or leave a message for him? Do you know of any place where he sometimes goes for a night or two? Someone he visits maybe? Please,’ he said as he saw her hesitate. ‘It is important.’

  ‘Well, I’m not certain, Christian love, but I suspect he’s got a woman friend somewhere on Gower. I’ve overheard a couple of phone calls that ended sudden like, and there was a letter once that he snatched away off the table as if afraid I’d see it. Not that he’s normally shy about telling me of his conquests mind,’ she smiled.

  ‘And you don’t know where she lives?’

  ‘No, but I think I know where they meet. I found an address once when I took his jacket to the cleaners. It was a receipt for a couple of nights in an hotel, called Sea Haven.’

  Leaving his men to discuss plans for her kitchen, Christian drove down the coast and knocked on the door of the small hotel called Sea Haven.

  * * *

  Cath had grown tired of wandering. She had settled for a while in a small town near Tenby, and had found work as a cleaner, work she hated but which was anonymous and brought sufficient money for her simple needs. Now, with the darkest days of winter upon her, she missed Meriel and the strange comfort she had found on the periphery of the group at Churchill’s Garden.

  She gathered the coins she would need and dialled Meriel’s number. She was surprised when a man answered and at first she thought it must be Evan, but the man who asked, ‘Do you want Meriel?’ was her brother, Mike. She was about to replace the receiver when the man added, ‘I’ll call her, what name is it?’

  ‘A friend,’ she replied, ‘If she’s busy…’ She waited until Meriel announced herself then said, ‘What’s Mike doing there, Meriel?’

  ‘Cath! How marvellous to hear from you,’ Meriel said and Cath could hear the smile in her friend’s voice. ‘Where are you? When can I see you? Oh, it’s such a relief to know you’re all right.’ She laughed then and said more slowly. ‘Sorry, I’m not giving you a chance to speak, am I?’

  ‘I want to come back to Abertrochi. But I don’t know whether I’m ready to meet Mike.’

  Mike had been listening, his
head touching Meriel’s and he now spoke into the phone. ‘It’s all right, Cathy. I promise I’ll stay away until you and Meriel have talked. No one wants to rush you.’

  ‘Where can we meet?’ Meriel asked. ‘Will you come here?’

  ‘I’ll drive up tonight. I have a few ends to tie up first,’ Cath said. ‘I’ll be late, will it matter?’

  ‘I’ll be here, looking forward to seeing you. Oh, what a relief, I’ve missed you so much, Cath.’

  ‘We all have,’ Mike added, as the call was cut off by Cath, to hide the sound of her tears.

  * * *

  It had been a very wet summer and autumn and now, as winter was here, the weather worsened. There had already been several severe storms, uprooting trees, one had even blocked the road near the Sewells’ house. The night Christian decided to go looking for Ken there was a ‘Serious Weather’ warning, and people were advised to stay in their homes. The tide was expected to be high but Christian was determined to go. There were several hotels called Sea Haven, but Christian’s guess regarding the whereabouts of Ken Morris was correct.

  He was staying at the first hotel he tried. Ken was out when he arrived so he sat in the small bar, drinking coffee and wondering how long he dare wait. The weather was worsening, and he didn’t want to be on the roads once darkness fell.

  He telephoned Cynthia to make sure the three boys were safely inside.

  ‘They wanted to go over to see Jeremy and Justin but I advised them to stay put,’ Cynthia said. ‘I want us all to be safely locked indoors tonight. Hurry, darling. Leave what you’re doing and come home.’

  Christian decided to leave a message for Ken and go home. Ken was in danger, but he could warn him just as easily by note and phone as by sitting here listening to the storm increase in fury. If he waited much longer, he might have to stay overnight. It was really hazardous to drive along tree-lined lanes through this, he thought, looking out at the swaying trees in the hotel garden, and imagining how much worse it would be on the coast beyond the town.

  Ken and his companion came in as he was writing the note, laughing companionably, both windblown and dressed in outdoor clothes that suggested long country walks. Corduroys and heavy walking boots and good quality jackets with hoods.

  ‘I’ll go to my room, Ken,’ the woman said. ‘Come up when you’ve finished and we’ll decide where we’ll eat tonight.’

  Christian had the impression they were good friends and nothing more. He felt a fleeting embarrassment for spoiling their evening but once the woman had closed the door behind her, his anger returned.

  ‘Did you use that spade to pull down some of the soil in that tunnel?’ he demanded after telling Ken about the police taking a spade away from his mother’s house. When Ken hesitated, he said irritably, ‘Come on, Ken. This isn’t a time to be evasive. If you did, then I hope you cleaned it of your fingerprints!’

  ‘Yes, I used it, but I didn’t clean off my fingerprints. It was one I use occasionally, it would be odd not to have my fingerprints on it.’

  ‘Of course it wouldn’t! If someone borrowed it that’s what they would have done!’

  ‘I did clean off all the soil that came from the tunnel though.’

  ‘Fat chance of that! They only need the faintest smear and they’ve got you!’

  ‘What shall I do?’

  ‘Face it and plead ignorance. They can’t prove it was you who used the spade in the tunnel, can they?’

  ‘I can’t face it. I’ll disappear for a while, see how things go. After all, it isn’t a hanging offence. What could they charge me with, malicious waste of police time? An attempt to make a hole in a field I half own?’

  ‘You’ll never get a job after this, but staying and denying everything is the only way to deal with it.’

  ‘I’m leaving.’

  ‘What about your mother? What do I tell her?’

  ‘Tell her what you like!’

  ‘You’re a fool!’

  ‘I can’t deny that.’

  Not wanting to waste any more time, Christian left. Why had he come? Only a distorted sense of loyalty. Now he no longer cared what decision Ken made, he had warned him and that, after what he had tried to do, was where their friendship ended.

  * * *

  Meriel was on her own. Mike had gone, leaving her to welcome Cath when she arrived. As she looked out of the window at the dark night, and listened to the horrifying sounds of the storm, Meriel wished he had stayed. There was something she wanted to tell him and the interruption of Cath’s phone call had prevented it. She glanced at the phone. Perhaps she could tell him now. But then, she wouldn’t see his face, and know his true reaction.

  She hesitated a while longer, sitting alone, listening to the howling wind and the occasional clatter as something was dislodged by its fury. Then she dialled his number and said at once, ‘Mike, I think I’m pregnant.’

  ‘But, Meriel,’ there was that tell-tale hesitation before he went on, ‘That’s wonderful.’

  ‘Is it? You really think so?’ Her heart raced as she waited for his reply.

  ‘Darling Meriel. I couldn’t be more thrilled. Honestly.’

  There was a draught as the back door opened and she thought it was Cath, as she had left the door unlocked so she could walk straight in. ‘I think it’s due some time next July. I don’t know whether I’m pleased or scared. My having a baby, it’s unbelievable. You are pleased, Mike?’

  ‘Darling girl, I’m breathless! Can I come back so we can celebrate?’

  ‘Get off that phone!’ Meriel turned her head to see Evan standing there, white-faced, water dripping from his clothes, fury greater than that of the storm gleaming in his eyes.

  ‘I’ll talk to you later, when Cath is here,’ she told Mike, sounding calm, but with her heart beating furiously within her. She listened for a moment then said, ‘It’s all right, it’s only my ex. Come to see if the house is safe I expect. Bye, darling. Yes, see you very soon.’

  ‘You bitch!’

  ‘Please go. This is nothing to do with you. I am nothing to do with you. I’m selling the house and then I’ll be out of your life for good.’

  ‘Who is he, this Mike? A casual pick-up is he? First there’s Tom, where you go and pretend you’re working in his garden, and now Mike. How many more?’

  ‘I’ve lost count,’ she said flippantly.

  She walked towards the back door that faced the cliffs and the sea, and as she opened it to tell him to leave, it was snatched from her hand by the gust of wind and banged against the wall. Glass shattered and Evan ran to pull her away from the danger.

  ‘I’ll get something from the shed to make a temporary repair,’ he said. Ducking down to dive through the storm, he quickly disappeared, swallowed up in the wild blackness. Meriel collected a dustpan and brush and began to collect the shards of glass from the floor. He reappeared carrying a piece of hardboard, which he intended to tack over the hole.

  ‘It won’t fit properly, but it should hold until the morning,’ he said.

  She helped, first by holding the board in place, then by passing him nails, and all the time the wind threatened to burst through the house and out on the other side. They were both breathless when they finally closed the door.

  ‘You’d better get back to Sophie,‘ Meriel said, aware that he was staring at her and waiting for the outburst that was hovering around the tight lips and angry eyes. Also aware that, in spite of carrying another man’s child, she still loved him. But was it love? Or was it the need to win against the voluptuous Sophie Hopkins? Remembering Mike’s voice, knowing he was waiting for her call before hurrying back to her, she felt the disappointment and pain of Evan’s rejection of her fly away on the howling wind. She knew that, at last, she was free.

  ‘I came to see if you were all right,’ he said. ‘But I needn’t have bothered, you have plenty of men to look after you.’

  ‘Plenty,’ she said. ‘Thank you for fixing the door, but please go.’

 
‘How did we get like this, Meriel? We had such dreams, a beautiful house, a couple of children and “happy ever after”.’

  ‘Sophie happened,’ she said harshly. ‘You left me for her, remember?’

  She turned away so didn’t see him leave. He held on to the door as he opened and closed it, the noise of the storm was too loud for her to hear his footsteps walking away. And besides, she wasn’t listening.

  Thirteen

  Cath was driving through the storm becoming more and more frightened. Trees were swaying threateningly and on two occasions she thought her way was going to be blocked as a branch dropped touching the side of the car. The sound of the engine obliterated much of the noise but when she opened her window to check her route the moaning of the wind filled her ears and made her wish she hadn’t started on her journey.

  Taking her mind off the dangers she faced being on the road in such weather she turned her mind to Meriel. Was she too late to become Meriel’s partner in the business they discussed? She hadn’t shown herself to be reliable, running away as she had, leaving Meriel to find a way of getting the goods home when the fair ended.

  Meriel was very kind and they were obviously friends, but would she resist her pleas for understanding after this? She accepted the reality of it and knew that if Meriel had doubts she could hardly complain. It had been her own fault, her own inability to cope.