The Foyles Bookshop Girls

by Elaine Roberts

  *

  There was a light knock on the sitting room door, before it slowly opened. Alice winced as the familiar squeak became more pronounced. ‘We must put something on those hinges; I'm sure they’re getting worse.’

  Sarah nodded as Mrs Headley walked through the doorway.

  ‘I'm sorry to disturb you, but I was wondering about dinner, ma'am.’ The housekeeper stood with her hands clasped in front of her. ‘Did you want to delay the evening meal until Mr Taylor comes home, or would you like me to bring the food to the table?’

  Sarah glanced at the clock on the mantelpiece. With a sharp intake of breath, she frowned, before looking back at Mrs Headley. ‘Thank you for the reminder. I hadn't realised time had run away so; I think we should eat now.’

  ‘Very well, ma'am.’ Mrs Headley nodded. ‘If you’d like to make your way to the dining room, I shall bring in the dishes.’ She turned and vacated the room.

  Alice also stared at the clock, momentarily mesmerised by the pendulum swinging back and forth. She clenched her hands on her lap, before looking over at her mother. ‘Where do you suppose he is?’ Alice looked back at the clock. ‘He should’ve been home long before now.’

  ‘Stop worrying.’ Lily stood up and straightened her skirt. ‘He’s probably had dinner at the club.’

  Alice shook her head. ‘I don't think he ever eats there.’ She glanced across at her mother. ‘Does he?’

  Sarah shrugged her shoulders. ‘Not to my knowledge, but there's a first time for everything.’ She stood up, the soft folds of her skirt dropping effortlessly to her calves. ‘Well, wherever he is, we still have to eat.’ Sarah took a couple of steps to the door before turning to Alice. ‘Do you want to check on Arthur before we eat? Although I’m sure he’s sound asleep.’

  ‘I'll do it.’ Lily beamed. ‘Any excuse to gaze at my handsome nephew.’ She sped out of the door, before a response could be formulated.

  Alice shook her head, but couldn't resist smiling after her. As she entered the dining room, she glanced over at her mother and noticed her face was quite pale. Her knuckles were white and her hands gripped each other. Alice reached out and rested her hand on her mother's arm. ‘Are you worried about Father?’

  Sarah briefly looked at Alice, before lowering her eyes and licking her lips. ‘I’m sure he’s fine; stop worrying.’

  Alice's hands dropped to her sides and she stared down at her feet. ‘I’m sorry I’ve caused this worry. As if we haven't got enough going on.’ She squeezed her eyes shut and let out a heavy sigh.

  ‘Don't blame yourself, Alice.’ Sarah smiled as she shook her head and walked stiffly over to the table. ‘Your father is used to being the voice of authority, so for you, of all people, not to show respect probably hit home a little.’ Sarah gave a hollow laugh. ‘If it had been Lily on the other hand, he probably wouldn't have batted an eyelid, although he still wouldn't have liked it.’

  Alice nodded. ‘I’m so sorry; I didn't mean for this to happen.’

  Lily grinned. Her eyes twinkled with mischief as she walked in. ‘That boy of yours is wonderful; so cute. I could sit and watch him all day.’ She giggled as she pulled out a dining chair from the table. ‘Right, what are we having for dinner?’

  A deep golden-brown pie was sitting on a plate, in the centre of the table. Sarah picked up the sharp knife next to it and cut into the pastry. Crumbs fell onto the white tablecloth. ‘It looks like cheese and potato pie, and we’ve carrots to go with it.’ She pulled out a small wedge and steam escaped, as she balanced it on the knife, before placing it on her own plate.

  ‘Excellent, I'm starving. It smells delicious.’ Lily passed her plate over to her mother. ‘If it's all right, can I have a bigger piece than you?’ She laughed. ‘That little bit wouldn't keep the mouse in the larder going for very long.’

  Alice and her mother shook their heads in unison.

  ‘You get worse instead of better.’ Sarah glared at Lily. ‘Don't talk about mice in the larder; I hate anything like that.’

  Lily raised her eyebrows and gave Alice a knowing look, before glancing back to her mother. ‘You know I was only joking.’ She grinned. ‘I haven't been in the larder to know whether there’s a mouse in there or not.’

  Sarah's eyes widened. She opened her mouth, but closed it again. She shook her head and continued to cut the pie, placing slices onto the plates.

  The women ate in silence. Sarah pushed her food around, eating very little. Alice watched her, with a heavy feeling of responsibility.

  Lily put her knife and fork down on the side of her plate. ‘Come on, Mother, stop playing with your food. You’ve got to eat.’

  Alice glared at Lily, who proceeded to pull a face back. Alice tilted her head and rested her hand on her mother's arm. ‘You’re worried about him, aren't you?’

  Lily squinted at her mother. ‘Shall I see if I can get someone from the police station to go to the club, to see if he's there?’

  Sarah's head snapped up. ‘No, no that definitely won't do. Your father would be so embarrassed, and then we’d all be in trouble.’

  ‘I don't know what we can do.’ Alice paused. ‘We could cycle to all the hospitals, to see if he's been in an accident.’

  Sarah gasped. ‘I hadn't thought of the hospitals. I just thought—’

  ‘Perhaps you upset him so much, he has caught a train to Sandringham,’ Lily threw in, as she picked up her cutlery.

  ‘He wouldn't have gone there; he didn't take anything with him.’ Sarah shook her head. ‘He was too angry when he left here, to plan where he was going.’

  ‘What’s at Sandringham?’ Lily arched her brows. ‘Why haven't we ever been there, and more importantly, why haven't you ever been there?’

  Sarah shrugged her shoulders. ‘He has family up there.’

  Lily leant in towards her mother. ‘Have you met them? Did they come to your wedding? How do you know he doesn't have a second—’

  Alice glared at her sister. ‘Stop interrogating her.’

  ‘Sorry, I got carried away.’ Lily stared at her mother for a moment. ‘I’m intrigued why he has kept us all separate though.’

  ‘He hasn't kept us separate.’ Sarah took a deep breath. ‘He just thinks they’ll have nothing in common with us. I think he’s a little ashamed.’

  Alice tightened her lips. ‘If that's true, it's terrible.’

  Lily sighed. ‘Well, I don't suppose we’ll ever know, but whatever you said to him clearly hit home.’

  Sarah pushed her chair away and stood up. She gripped the side of the table and closed her eyes, before taking some deep breaths.

  Alice stood up, knocking her chair over. ‘Are you all right? Do you feel dizzy?’

  Sarah fell like a stone, hitting her head on the table on her way down.

  Chapter 22

  Alice and Lily paced up and down the corridor of St Thomas' Hospital. Neither spoke. The clatter of trolleys rattled in the distance. Doctors yelling orders and people mumbling back rattled their nerves. Alice took a deep breath and the hospital stench caught in the back of her throat. Nurses walked briskly by, but no one spoke to them. Alice bit her lip as she slumped down on an old wooden chair. Blood seeped onto her tongue, leaving a metallic taste in her mouth.

  Lily flopped down on the chair next to her. Her hands were clenched in her lap. ‘She’s going to be all right, isn't she?’

  Alice nodded; the colour had long since drained from her face. ‘It's a good hospital.’ She stood up again, not knowing what to do with herself. Arthur had been asleep when they left and she hoped he had stayed that way for Mrs Headley.

  Lily bit down on the side of her fingernail. ‘Should we let Grandpa know?’

  ‘No.’ Alice sat down, fidgeting on the chair. ‘We’ve both pushed things too far today.’ She slumped forward and rested her head in her hands.

  Lily nodded. She watched a lady being supported by an elderly man, as they walked past them. He whispered comforting words, while she sobbed i
n his arms. ‘I know. I didn't mean for this to happen. I just can't understand why we’ve never met the so-called family living in Sandringham, that's all.’

  ‘Just leave it, Lily; you don't always have to know everything,’ Alice snapped. ‘At this precise moment, I don't care about Sandringham. We don't know what’s wrong with Mother, or where Father is. God only knows where Charles and Freddie are, and Robert hasn't been in touch since he left, so in my book, that’s more than enough to worry about.’

  Lily nodded. She lowered her head and squeezed her eyes shut. Her throat felt restricted as a lump formed and tears pricked her eyelids, pushing to be released.

  Alice put her arm around her sister. ‘I'm sorry, I shouldn't have ranted at you.’

  Lily's head leaned in on Alice's shoulder and she sobbed.

  ‘I shouldn't have taken my worries out on you,’ Alice whispered.

  ‘No, you were right.’ Lily pulled herself upright and reached for the handkerchief in her coat pocket. ‘I’ve been selfish by only considering what's happening in front of me. You and Mother have much bigger worries. It's probably my fault she collapsed.’

  ‘Don't punish yourself,’ Alice whispered as she looked down at her hands, gripped in her lap. ‘I expect it's everything all rolled into one sorry mess. I'm sure things will work themselves out.’

  Lily sighed, dabbing her handkerchief on her cheeks and under her dark-rimmed eyes. ‘It must be more than a faint because she’s been here for some time now.’

  Alice nodded. ‘I was thinking the same thing, but I know from driving the ambulance that it does also depend on how many urgent cases come in.’

  Lily frowned. ‘Shall we try and find her, because if she’s feeling all right now, we could take her home.’

  ‘No, Lily, we have to let the doctors do their stuff. If we took her home and something happened, that would be awful.’

  They sat in silence, each immersed in their own thoughts, watching the scenes unfold in front of them.

  Lily gave her sister a sideways glance. ‘About Charles and Freddie.’ She took a deep breath. ‘The thing is, I keep telling myself everyone will come back safe and Charles will just turn up.’ Her words began tripping over each other to be heard. She gave Alice a watery smile. ‘I haven't said anything before, but I’ve been looking for him and Freddie as well.’

  Alice reached out and covered Lily's hand with her own. ‘It's all a mess.’ She shook her head. ‘Thank goodness for Arthur.’

  Lily smiled at her sister. ‘He’s certainly a wonderful distraction from everything else at the moment.’

  The clip-clop of heels on the tiled flooring made Alice swivel in her chair. Molly and Victoria were rushing towards them. She jumped up and tears trickled down her cheeks. Victoria was the first to wrap her arms around Alice, quickly followed by Molly. She found comfort when their soft cheeks lay against hers. Molly let her arms drop and stepped towards Lily, enveloping her in a hug.

  Victoria kept hold of Alice's hand as she also swung an arm around Lily. After a moment, she stepped back from the sisters. ‘So, do you know what's happening?’

  The two of them shook their heads.

  ‘But you’ve been here hours, and where's your father?’ Molly fidgeted from one foot to the other, as she looked along the corridor.

  Alice lifted her hand to roughly wipe away the tears from her cheeks. ‘That's a long story, but the upshot is that we don't know.’ She gasped as she looked from one of her friends to the other. ‘How did you know we were here?’

  ‘We knocked to see if everything was all right, because you didn't come into work’ Victoria tried to smile but failed. ‘I know it was late, but we both had a few errands to do first. Anyway, when we got there, Mrs Headley was going out of her mind with worry, because you had been gone for so long, and told us what had happened.’

  ‘Do you know whether Arthur was all right?’ Alice scanned their faces.

  ‘Don't worry. Mrs Headley is going to stay with him all night, if need be.’ Molly repeated the housekeeper's words, while unbuttoning her black winter coat.

  ‘Where would we be without Mrs Headley?’ Alice mumbled as she sat down again.

  Molly stepped back a little and took a deep breath. ‘Look, let me go and find a doctor and see if there’s any news.’

  Alice shook her head. ‘They are so busy; it would be wrong to chase them.’

  Molly turned away from the group and started walking down the corridor. ‘But if they’ve forgotten about you, we could be sitting here all night.’

  Victoria patted Alice and Lily's arms. ‘I hate to say this, but she’s right.’

  They watched Molly stride away, turning her head one way, then the other, stopping to speak to a nurse, who pointed further away from them. Alice wondered if she’d find her way back. Did everyone who came here get lost? She shook her head as Molly finally disappeared from view.

  *

  Luke walked purposefully through the hospital; all thoughts of tiredness had disappeared. It had been a long night, but he felt more alive than he had in years.

  When he had first entered St Thomas' Hospital, the overpowering smell of antiseptic caught in his throat. The number of men waiting to be seen shocked him, as did the blood-soaked bandages covering the soldiers' injuries. The patients' screams of agony had him reeling with helplessness. He would have been forgiven for thinking a massacre had taken place and this bloodbath was the result. Nurses and doctors were working at speed, calling out instructions to each other, while trying to make the patients as comfortable as possible. He had read the newspapers every day and seen the Pathé newsreels, but nothing had prepared him for what he saw. He had stood rooted to the spot. He had wanted to run, but something kept him there. Thoughts of his wife and daughters seeing this every day made him nauseous. The reality of the pain and suffering they must have witnessed at Victoria Station, in the ambulance and at the hospital, would be ingrained in their memories forever. Alice had tried to tell him, but he either hadn't listened, or hadn’t wanted to hear it. Whichever it was, the outcome had not been good.

  He could see Alice and Lily with Victoria, further along the hallway, but they hadn't noticed him. His daughters' shoulders were slumped and their faces were etched in agony. Was this his fault? He took a deep breath and quickened his pace.

  Alice looked up. Her eyes widened as she took in his pace and urgency. She stepped forward. ‘Where the hell have you been?’

  Lily spun round. ‘We’ve been going out of our minds with worry here. We didn't know where you were, or whether Mother is going to be all right.’

  Colour rose up Alice's neck and flooded her cheeks. ‘I know you don't care about any of us and we are just trophies you can brag about at your club, but have you for just one minute considered anybody else, except yourself.’ She turned away from him, as her eyes filled up again. ‘I hope Freddie makes a better father than you.’

  Luke lowered his head and stared hard at the tiled flooring. He looked up at his daughters with new-found respect. Their faces were etched in pain; he had caused that. ‘So do I,’ he whispered.

  They both stepped back and stared, wide-eyed at him, neither knowing what to say. Alice's jaw dropped. Was this an admission?

  ‘Molly is trying to find out about Mrs Taylor,’ Victoria offered, trying to fill the cavernous silence that stood between the girls and their father.

  Luke nodded. ‘I, um, I passed her in the corridor and she told me you were all up here.’

  Alice glared at him. ‘I can't believe this. Mother was worrying about where you were, when she collapsed…’ She paused. ‘… Amongst other things.’ Her hands clenched at her side as her jaw tightened. ‘You left the house angrily and without a word to her about where you were going, or when you’d be back.’ She wrapped her arms around her midriff. ‘Your argument was with me, not her. If you want to take it out on someone, punish me, because she’s done nothing wrong.’ Alice looked past Luke and saw Molly walking towards th
em.

  Lily followed her sister's eye-line and swerved past her father to get to Molly. ‘Have you found out anything?’

  Alice pulled back her shoulders and straightened her lips, before taking a deep breath. ‘Is she all right?’

  Molly nodded towards Luke. ‘Yes, they think it was her blood pressure, but it seems to be fine now, so I believe she can go home.’

  Lily and Alice grabbed each other in a bear hug, their tears rolling freely, as they laughed and cried at the same time. Victoria wrapped her arms around the pair of them and hugged them tight.

  ‘So you found them all right, Mr Taylor?’ Molly watched him standing outside the circle of relief.

  ‘Yes,’ he whispered.

  Molly turned sideways from the girls and lowered her voice. ‘Do they know where you’ve been all night?’

  Luke shook his head.

  ‘Don't you think you should tell them?’

  Luke looked at Molly as if he was seeing her for the first time.

  Molly raised her eyebrows. ‘Yes, I know I'm just a slip of a girl, but this war has made us all grow up quickly.’ She looked over her shoulder at the three girls huddled together. ‘Although it has to be said, Victoria was way ahead of all of us there.’

  Luke sighed. ‘I hate to admit it, but you are right. However, now is not the time or the place.’

  Molly watched the fear and anxiety run across his face; he was no longer wearing the tough facade he had portrayed for years. ‘Sorry, Mr Taylor, I’ve always been a bit of a straight talker and yes, it has got me into trouble at times, but in my humble opinion, now’s as good a time as any.’

  Alice turned to face her father. ‘As good a time as any for what?’ She frowned at him. Did he have some news that was going to tear this family apart?

  Luke cleared his throat. ‘To go and get your mother and take her home.’

  Lily laughed. ‘For once, Father, we’re in agreement and it's not every day we can say that. In fact, I don't think we’ve ever been able to say it.’ She threaded her arm through Alice's. ‘Come on, let's go and find Mother; she'll be wondering where we are.’