The Guest Who Stayed

by Roger Penfound

  Alice gasped. It seemed a huge amount of money. She and Jed had borrowed less than that to build Hope Cottage.

  “Perhaps you’d let me take you out in her, Alice, and your husband too, of course. We could go for a drive tomorrow – to the sea.”

  “I don’t think Jed would like to do that. He’s planning to work tomorrow.”

  “Well, I can’t blame a man for having to work. I’ve been doing that myself for too long.” Then he added rather tentatively, “Perhaps Jed would still allow me to take you for a drive?”

  “I don’t think Jed would think that was very proper.”

  “How about if you brought a friend? Can you think of anyone who would like to go for a drive in my beautiful car?”

  “Well, there is Flora, of course. She’s my best friend. She could do with a day out,” said Alice, beginning to warm to the idea. “I can’t say for certain just now but I’ll talk to my Jed tonight and see if I can persuade him. I would love to go for a drive. Thank you so much for asking.”

  “It would be my pleasure,” he said, rising from the table and taking hold of his driving cap. “I’m going to keep my fingers crossed that Jed says yes. If I don’t see you this evening when I get back, I’ll see you tomorrow for breakfast. Thanks for the tea, Alice.”

  With that he grinned broadly, turned and let himself out. Alice remained at the parlour table, listening as the front door closed. Then she heard the throaty roar of the Austin starting up and pulling away from the house.

  She sat in silence for a while, trying to analyse what she felt. A sense of impending excitement was gnawing away at her. Even though it was nonsense, she suddenly felt a little bit more alive, a little bit more on edge than she had before Jack’s arrival. She caught herself smiling for no apparent reason and forced herself to stop. This was crazy. He was only staying a few nights and would then be gone. He came from another world and would be returning there soon. Alice got up from the table and started to prepare Jed’s meal.

  That evening when Jed returned home, he was exhausted from repairing a barn roof in the searing thirty degree heat. His face was burned red and his hands were blistered.

  “Jed, I got a surprise for you.”

  “What sort of surprise?”

  “Well, you know Mrs. Burns, the one you’re not partial to?”

  “The old snob who runs the WI?”

  “That’s her. Well, she came round this afternoon asking if we’d take in a paying guest. Apparently all the accommodation in Cromer is full and there’s people looking for rooms over the bank holiday.”

  “Well, I hope you told her no.”

  “No, I told her yes.”

  “You told her what?”

  “Look, Jed, it pays us twelve shillings a night. He’s staying two nights. That’s twenty four shillings. We can’t afford to lose that, Jed.”

  “Who’s paying twenty four shillings?” spluttered Jed. “Where is he? Get him out of here immediately.”

  Over a meal of steak and ale pie which Alice had prepared in anticipation of Jed’s objections, Jed slowly calmed down as the implications of earning twenty four shillings began to dawn but he resolutely refused to endorse the idea.

  “So he’s a rich bugger is he, this guest of yours. Probably looks down his nose at the likes of us then,” Jed grumbled as he wiped his plate clean.

  “No, he doesn’t, not at all. He was ever so complimentary about you building the house. Said he was looking forward to meeting you.”

  “Well, I ain’t looking forward to meeting him. So you make sure we stay apart, Alice, ‘cos I ain’t going to sit and make idle conversation with ‘im.”

  “Oh, but I thought you might meet over breakfast tomorrow, Jed, before you go out.”

  “I’m not eating my breakfast with him in the parlour. You serve mister high and mighty in the sitting room. I’m telling you, Alice, I want no part in this. It’s all your doing.”

  They ate in silence for the next few minutes whilst Alice pondered the problem of the next day’s outing.

  “Jed, I forgot to say but Mr Malikov – Jack – asked if we’d like to go for a ride in his car tomorrow. I told him I thought you’d be working.”

  “Too right, I’m working. No time for gallivanting round the country in some posh car. Someone’s got to earn the money.”

  “He asked if I could go – to show him the sights.”

  “Of course, you can’t go. What would people round here say if you, a married woman, went off with a single man for the day. Have sense, Alice.”

  “I said if Flora could go too, you would probably say yes,” ventured Alice, trying to disguise a ‘wobble’ in her voice.

  “Oh, Alice, how could you do that? I don’t like the idea of another man in my house and I think you should be respecting my wishes, not going off with your fancy man whilst I work all hours to keep up payments on this place. I’ll just have to leave it up to you. You do what you think’s right.”

  It was gone ten when Alice heard the growl of the Austin as it coasted to a halt outside the cottage. She heard the sound of a key being turned and the front door opening. Footsteps, light as if someone was trying to tiptoe, made their way up the stairs and into the guest room. She tried to imagine him again, tall, imposing, his mysterious accent, his easy smile.

  She heard him using the toilet but strangely it didn’t bother her. She waited for the flush and then heard him retrace his footsteps into the bedroom. There was a squeak of old springs as he fell into bed and then silence.

  Alice lay in the dark – Jed asleep beside her. Her body tingled in anticipation of the day ahead.

  Jed lay with his eyes closed feigning sleep. He wanted to put his arms round Alice and hold her but something was preventing him. He was uneasy. Deep inside a pain had begun to take hold.

  The Guest Who Stayed: Chapter 10 – August Bank Holiday 1921

  The next day Alice was up at six preparing the breakfast. The sun was streaming in through the parlour windows and the promised fine bank holiday looked set to unfold. Jed wandered into the parlour still rubbing his eyes and sniffed at the smell of sizzling sausage and bacon.

  “It’s going to be another hot one, Alice. I expect I’ll get burnt up same as yesterday.”

  “Not if you cover up properly. I’ve packed you plenty of water so make sure you drink that.”

  “You didn’t mean what you said last night about going out with this Jack, did you?” asked Jed as he wiped the last remnants of bacon from his plate with a piece of bread.

  “I dunno. Let’s just see what happens.”

  “It don’t seem right to me, you going off with some strange bloke and I’m out working.”

  “Flora will be with me, I told you,” replied Alice, more tetchily than she had anticipated.

  “Hello, I smelt breakfast cooking.”

  Alice and Jed turned to see Jack standing in the doorway. He carried a small bag over his shoulder as if he was already prepared to go out.

  “Oh, Mr. Malikov – I mean Jack. You’re early. I didn’t expect you just yet,” muttered Alice in a state of confusion. “This is my husband, Jed. Jed, this is Mr. Jack Malikov, our guest.”

  Jack leant forward and held out his hand to Jed, who responded by wiping his hands on his trousers.

  “Got fat on my hands.”

  “Oh right,” replied Jack, withdrawing his hand quickly. “Anyway, it’s nice to meet you and I want to thank you for letting me stay these few days.”

  Alice watched aghast as Jed poured tea into his saucer and slurped the liquid into his mouth. It was an old farming practice and one that Alice had banned.

  “Jed, please don’t do that, my love – not in front of our guest.”

  “I’m in a hurry. Can’t drink hot tea.”

  “I had hoped you could join us for a drive in the car today,” ventured Jack. “But I understand you’re busy with your work. I quite understand that. I was telling Alice yesterday that this is my first break for three
years.”

  “I don’t take breaks,” replied Jed reproachfully. “And I don’t ‘ave a posh car either. I have a barrow. Still, it’s good enough for me. I best be going now. Goodbye, Alice, my love.”

  “Wait, Jed. You need your lunch and your drink.” Alice rushed forward with Jed’s lunch bag and placed it firmly over his shoulder. “You take good care now and I’ll see you later.”

  Jed gave Alice a fleeting glance, his eyes betraying a hidden anxiety. Then he turned and set off for work.

  “Jed’s not quite himself. He’s working hard and to be honest he’s not convinced about us having a paying guest. But the truth is, Jack, we needs the extra money, so I’m really glad you’re here. And now I’m going to get your breakfast ready.”

  It was gone nine o’clock before breakfast had been cleared away and they were ready to leave. Shortly before that, Flora arrived and was introduced to Jack. His affable manner made her laugh and all three were soon relaxed in each other’s company.

  Jack seemed well prepared for the day. He wore white flannel trousers and a light navy jacket. Alice and Flora had no previous experience of day trips to the coast and so they had to improvise from their limited wardrobes. Flora had put on a blue cotton dress secured around the waist with a white sash. The dress had probably fitted when she was in her early teens but now it was tight around the bust and showed off her figure to good effect. Alice wore a white cotton skirt which reached down to her calves and a pink jacket buttoned up to her neck. But having seen how Jack’s eyes were drawn to Flora, Alice surreptitiously undid her top buttons to reveal more of her white chest.

  Sitting in the Austin Twenty was an intoxicating experience for Alice and Flora. The seats were made from brown leather and the dashboard was veneered in dark oak. When Jack turned the starter handle, the engine roared into life and enveloped them in a throaty, mechanical ambience.

  Jack had guided Alice to sit by him on the front bench seat and Flora sat on the back bench seat. As the car navigated Duck Lane and then headed out of Frampton, the wind caught Alice and Flora’s hair and whipped it into a frenzy of twisted strands, rendering their meticulous preparation hopelessly redundant.

  Once the car was on the A140 to Cromer, they made good time but as they reached the outskirts, traffic began to build up with many other day trippers also on the road. Open top charabancs carrying boisterous groups of people on a day’s outing from the towns jostled for position on the narrow road into Cromer.

  As they got close to the sea front, they were diverted into a field which had been designated for temporary parking. When the engine was turned off, Jack produced a silver flask from the car’s glove compartment.

  “Just to get us in the mood, ladies.”

  “What is it?” asked Alice, viewing the flask suspiciously.

  “It’s whisky – Glenmorangie – one of the finest single malts. Try some.”

  “After you. You have some first,” Alice replied with scepticism. She had a deep aversion to liquor having seen the effect on her father over the years, yet didn’t want to appear prudish. She watched as Jack unscrewed the small silver cap and sipped from the flask. He closed his eyes and threw his head back, allowing the single malt to slide slowly down his throat. It was clearly a treat he had enjoyed before and one that delivered to him a few moments of personal ecstasy. Alice felt uneasy but tried to brush the feeling away.

  “Now you and Flora.”

  Alice sniffed at the flask and recoiled quickly. She was overpowered by the fumes.

  Jack laughed. “Try it again.”

  This time Alice approached the flask slowly, knowing what to expect. She lifted the flask to her lips and let a small amount of whisky slide into her mouth. Her first reaction was to wince in horror but then, as she let the liquid roll around her mouth and slide slowly down her throat, she began to enjoy the experience and the feeling of mild elation she was left with.

  Flora’s attempts to drink from the flask were less decorous and, having swigged a large amount of whisky, she sprayed most of it over the front seat as she involuntarily choked.

  The whisky had the effect of relaxing them even more and with the car properly secured they began to make their way into Cromer. As they left the car park, they soon came upon the sea for the first time, glistening under the intense light of the morning sun. For Flora, it was her first ever sight of the ocean and she was transfixed by its seeming infinity.

  “You mean it just goes on and on. It must end somewhere?” she asked incredulously.

  They followed the crowds along the coast path towards the resort centre. As they turned a corner, they suddenly caught sight of the pier stretching majestically out into the sparkling waters of the North Sea.

  “That’s Cromer Pier,” announced Jack. “I particularly wanted to see that. It’s one of the finest in the country. It was built in 1901.”

  “What’s it for?” asked Flora, not quite understanding why it didn’t appear to go anywhere.

  “Well, it’s for walking along and enjoying the sea air. And it’s got lots of amusements and a pavilion where they put on shows and it’s even got a restaurant. Let’s go and see it.”

  They followed the crowds along the headland and down to the pier front. The scene was one of noisy, good humoured chaos. Flags flew from the pier head gates and people jostled at the ticket office to get in. Posters above the entrance advertised entertainments and amusements – dancing to the romantic Blue Viennese Band in the pavilion, traditional Punch and Judy show at the end of the pier, rowing boats for hire from the lower level.

  All around, street vendors and entertainers competed for attention. The crowd roared approval as a young man on a unicycle juggled flaming torches. A man selling balloons pressed his wares on Flora and Alice but Jack intervened firmly and guided them away.

  “Let’s go on the pier,” he said. “It’ll be less crowded.”

  “That’s a very nice idea,” said Flora, turning suddenly bright red and casting her eyes downwards, “but truth is I haven’t got much money, Jack, so you and Alice go ahead. I’ll just wait here for you.”

  “That’s nonsense, Flora,” he replied, leaning forward to touch her lightly on the arm. “Today’s on me. You’ll pay for nothing. It’s my way of saying thank you to both of you.”

  At Hall Farm, Jed struggled up the ladder with another basket of tiles to where Dan was sitting astride a rafter on the exposed roof. Jed placed the basket on a makeshift platform and wiped beads of sweat from his brow.

  “I wonder if she’s gone then. She said she hadn’t made up her mind. I don’t mind telling you, it’s playing on my mind.”

  “I ‘spect it’s nothing,” replied Dan without lifting his eyes from the cement he was mixing. “I mean, she’s just showing the fellow around and she’s got Flora with her. And don’t forget it’s the Women’s Institute what arranged it and there ain’t no more moral and saintly group of people in Frampton than the WI. Anyway, what would you have her do? A young girl don’t want to be by herself all day on a sunny bank holiday.”

  “That’s not quite the point is it? I’ve got to be up on this bleeding roof with you on a sunny bank holiday and it don’t seem right that my wife’s off with another man havin’ the time of her life.”

  Once through the turnstile, they linked arms again and stepped out along the wooden pier. Devoid now of shelter, they felt the wind from the sea whip around their legs and tug at their clothes. Jack was experiencing a heady mix of elation and contentment. Compared with yesterday when he had been merely an observer, today he felt as if he was at the centre of events. He couldn’t help noticing admiring glances in his direction from passers–by, no doubt wondering about the two good looking young women who clung to his arms. Further along the pier they arrived at a cluster of stalls selling snacks and cold drinks. They were drawn to one stall where the vendor was apparently spinning a web made from some sort of fibre in a rotating drum.

  “What is that Jack? I never seen t
he likes of that before,” asked Flora, peering into the spinning container.

  “I think it’s called candy floss,” replied Jack. “To tell you the truth, I’ve never tried it so I can’t tell you what it’s like.”

  “Why don’t we try some?” suggested Alice, her face animated by the prospect of something new.

  Jack ordered three candy floss sticks and they watched as the vendor skilfully built a ball of spun candy on each stick then handed one to each of them. They soon discovered that there was no polite way to eat candy floss. As Alice tried to insert her tongue into the pink ball, her nose seemed to arrive there first and then strands of her hair stuck to the sticky sugary fibres. Jack fared little better and his face was soon covered in specks of pink. They dissolved into laughter at the sight of each other and had to hold onto railings to steady themselves. When the laughter subsided, Jack took a clean handkerchief from his top pocket and offered to wipe the sticky substance from the girls’ faces. Holding Alice’s shoulder, he wiped slowly around her mouth with a clean edge of the hanky. Alice found herself staring into his blue eyes and trembling slightly at his close physical proximity. But he held her gaze and smiled at her as he worked slowly around the edge of her mouth removing traces of the pink sugar.

  Jed handed Dan another tile and waited while it was secured with a nail.

  “Don’t seem to ‘ave made so much progress today. Reckon we’ve got a full day here an’ then another one tomorrow too. I trust you will be ‘ere tomorrow, Dan?”

  Dan didn’t reply immediately, focusing instead on his preparation for the next tile. Once he had secured this he looked Jed squarely in the eyes.

  “I been thinking about saying this to you for a while now, Jed.”

  “Saying what?”

  “You got to lighten up, lad. You seem to be takin’ the cares of the world on your shoulders and it don’t make you an easy person to be with.”