by Pam Weaver
Sarah nodded. ‘I understand.’ Her throat was as tight as a drum and she could feel her whole body trembling inside. Kaye, oh Kaye …
As they hurried through the entrance, Sarah caught a whiff of disinfectant and floor polish. The soles of their shoes squeaked on the highly polished linoleum floor and as they passed the children’s ward she could hear a child crying for her mother. The sister in charge of the ward was sympathetic. Sarah’s heart sank as she told them about Kaye’s condition. ‘Her pelvis is broken and she has internal bleeding,’ she said. ‘I’m afraid she’s far too unstable for anything more than bed rest at the moment. We are doing the best we can, but quite frankly, the cancer is so advanced, there seems little point in trying to prolong her life.’
‘Cancer?’ Sarah gasped.
‘Didn’t you know?’ said the sister, her face reddening. ‘Even before the accident, your friend had only weeks to live at best.’
Sarah staggered and she was aware that Bear had put his hand against her back to support her. Everything seemed so unreal she didn’t know how to react. Yesterday everything was perfectly normal, but now she was being told Kaye already knew she was going to die. It seemed grossly unfair. It couldn’t be true. She had no idea Kaye was so ill. She recalled that coughing fit a couple of months ago and she knew that sometimes Kaye was breathless, but cancer … Kaye must have gone to the doctor, but she’d never said a word. Could that have been why she was up in London?
‘Mrs Royal, Mrs Royal?’ The sister had touched Sarah’s arm. ‘Are you ready for me to take you to her now?’
Sarah nodded dully and turning to Bear, she said, ‘Will you come with me?’
Kaye was in a room on her own. She looked as white as the sheet which covered her and they were giving her a blood transfusion. A policewoman rose from the chair next to the bed and picked up her cap from the locker as they walked in.
‘Anything?’ Bear whispered as she brushed passed them both. The policewoman shook her head and moved out of the way so that Sarah could get near. Sarah went to the bed and, sitting in the chair, she slipped off her coat and picked up Kaye’s limp hand.
‘Kaye,’ she said gently, ‘Kaye, it’s Sarah.’ Kaye’s eyelids moved slightly as if she was struggling to wake up. ‘I’m here now. It’s Sarah.’
It seemed daft repeating the same thing over and over again, but Sarah had no real idea if that movement meant anything or if Kaye could hear her or even if she was aware of her presence. She saw her lips move but there was hardly a sound. She stood up and leaned over putting her ear close to Kaye’s mouth. ‘I didn’t hear what you said. Tell me again.’
‘My baby was born … and he killed her …’
Sarah frowned. She was rambling. She didn’t know what she was saying. Kaye didn’t have any children.
‘What are you talking about, darling?’ Sarah had never used such a familiar term before but it slipped out easily. The lump in her throat was a mile wide. ‘Your baby died, Kaye. That’s what you told us.’
Kaye’s eyes opened wide but she seemed to have difficulty in focusing. ‘Henry …’ It was an effort to get the words out. ‘She was alive. A pillow …’
Sarah frowned. ‘I’m sorry. I don’t understand.’
‘He told me …’ Kaye gasped. ‘He killed Bunny Warren’s baby.’
Sarah glanced up at Bear. His expression was set in stone. Kaye suddenly looked at Sarah as if seeing her for the first time. Her otherwise limp hand seemed to find a strength of its own as she grabbed hold of Sarah’s cardigan. Her eyes were wide with panic. ‘Keep him away,’ she rasped painfully, ‘from Edward.’
Kaye fell back to the pillow and closed her eyes. She was still breathing, but Sarah looked up helplessly at Bear. He met her gaze then opened the door and shouted, ‘Can we have some help in here please?’
*
‘She will be all right, won’t she?’
Lottie and Annie were back in the kitchen where Annie was making them both a cup of cocoa. Lottie had spent most of the evening quietly crying.
Annie put her arms around her shoulders. ‘Of course. She’ll be fine. You know Kaye. She’s as tough as old boots.’ Lottie gave her a wan smile.
Annie had never been in such close proximity to Lottie for so long before, but they were united in their overwhelming concern for Kaye. For the first time, it occurred to Annie how much they all owed her. If she hadn’t thrown open her doors, where would they all be? Speaking for herself, she would most likely have been forced to give Edward up. She certainly wouldn’t have a nice little job and her mother wouldn’t have the grandson she adored. Lottie might still be in that terrible institution. From what Kaye had told them, the place where she was living was meant for people who were mentally ill. Annie couldn’t imagine how dreadful it would be to be locked up all day with no hope of release … and Lottie had been there for years and years. No wonder she had seemed a little odd at first. And as for Sarah, she had actually been homeless. Kaye had found her sleeping in a shelter overlooking the sea. Annie felt ashamed that she had turned her nose up at Sarah for that very reason. She shouldn’t have done it. It wasn’t Sarah’s fault, and there but for the grace of God … The more Annie thought of it, the more she realised her debt of gratitude. She decided that in the morning she would buy Kaye a big bunch of flowers. She would write her a note as well, thanking her for everything, and when she got out of hospital, she would go out of her way to be helpful.
The milk boiled and Lottie blew her nose. Annie poured the milk over the cocoa powder and stirred vigorously, but when Lottie reached out to take her cup, Annie screamed and dropped it. It smashed on the flagstone floor, but neither woman paid it much attention. The man staring into the window had scared them half to death. They were both too busy running from the room in terror.
Thirty
Lottie and Annie huddled beside the radio in the sitting room early the next morning. After seeing the face at the window, even though they’d telephoned the police and the local bobby had come and checked the garden, neither of them had slept well and they were exhausted.
Last night, when he’d come with the awful news about Kaye’s accident, Bear had told them that he’d arranged for an SOS message to go out on the Home Service of the BBC.
‘And here is a message for Henry Royale of Horsham. Will Henry Royale, last known to be living in Horsham in Sussex, please go to Horsham Cottage Hospital where his wife Kaye Royale, also known as Kaye Hambledon, the well-known writer, is dangerously ill.’
By the time the pips began to herald the news bulletin, Annie had switched the wireless off.
‘I don’t understand why Sarah hasn’t telephoned us,’ said Annie. ‘She must have known we would worry.’
‘Poor Kaye,’ said Lottie. ‘I do hope she’s going to be all right.’
‘I’d better get a move on,’ said Annie, glancing up at the clock. ‘Are you sure you’ll be all right looking after the girls on your own?’
‘I’ll be fine,’ said Lottie.
Annie hurried from the room, calling over her shoulder as she went. ‘You will let me know if you have any more news?’
‘I’ll ring the hospital at nine and then send a message with your mother,’ Lottie called after her.
Lottie didn’t get to the telephone until after she’d taken Jenny to school. By the time she got back to Copper Beeches with Edward in the pram and Lu-Lu walking beside it, Mrs Mitchell had arrived.
‘In view of what’s happened,’ she said, after Lottie had briefed her, ‘would you like me to take Lu-Lu with me? It’s not warm enough to go into the sea, but she might enjoy a paddle and there are other children playing nearby.’
‘Are you sure?’ said Lottie, secretly relieved. She not only wanted to contact the hospital but she also wanted to ring the police and ask them if anyone else had reported seeing the man they’d seen peering into the kitchen window after Bear and Sarah had gone. ‘What about her lunch? Will you be bringing her back?’
�
��I could do,’ said Judith, ‘but I could easily stretch my own lunch for her.’
‘Or I can stop by with a sandwich,’ Lottie offered.
‘Yes, why don’t you,’ said Judith.
With Lu-Lu ‘helping’ Judith get Edward into the pram, Lottie rang the hospital. ‘Detective Truman and Sarah are on their way back home,’ she said as she put the receiver back on its rest.
‘I’ll pop in on the way and tell Annie,’ said Judith. Lu-Lu was quite happy to go with Mrs Mitchell, but they put on her walking reins, ‘just in case’. There was a lot of waving and blowing of kisses but the three of them were soon on their way. They were so taken up with playing a game of peek-a-boo that Mrs Mitchell didn’t notice the solitary black Bentley following her at a distance.
*
The journey back to Worthing had been difficult. Bear longed to comfort Sarah, but under the circumstances he could do little more than squeeze her hand. He knew the moment he touched her romantically he would never be able to hold himself in check. She sat next to him, dry-eyed. It’s the shock, he thought to himself. There were still questions to be asked. Kaye hadn’t told them anything about the accident: why she was with Henry or how the car came to crash. The Horsham police had ascertained that the car was brand spanking new. It had been frustrating that she had lost consciousness after she had spoken to Sarah. She hadn’t been able to tell him anything of significance. The sister had explained it was because she was so weak. The accident itself, her underlying illness and the fact that she had lost so much blood; everything conspired against her. Kaye never stood a chance. In the early hours of the morning, she had died.
As they neared Worthing, although she was visibly upset, Sarah began asking questions. ‘I still can’t believe what she said about her daughter.’
‘Did you know she had a child?’
‘No … well, yes,’ said Sarah. ‘We were having a heart to heart once and she told me she’d had a baby.’
‘Henry’s?’
‘As a matter of fact, no,’ said Sarah. ‘She told me she was already pregnant when she married Henry, but she told us that the baby was stillborn.’
‘But Henry told her that the baby hadn’t died,’ said Bear.
‘He must have done,’ Sarah frowned. ‘She once told me that she’d almost died herself, but surely they would have told her if the baby had lived?’
‘She could have been confused,’ said Bear.
‘She didn’t seem confused to me,’ said Sarah. ‘Desperate yes, but not confused.’ She glanced across at him. ‘Didn’t you think she sounded very scared when she told us to keep Henry away from Edward?’
‘As a matter of fact, I did,’ said Bear.
‘I still don’t understand what happened all those years ago,’ said Sarah. ‘Kaye told me that she’d had a Caesarean birth and was out of it for a few days. If she was right about Henry, he must have done it because he didn’t want the baby.’
‘In that case, he’s a very dangerous man.’
They fell silent. Bear was more anxious than ever to get Henry into custody. He was a man out of control. Who knew what he’d do next? Sarah was remembering the man she had married and comparing it to his behaviour towards Jenny that night when they’d gone to Annie’s place in Horsham. Then there was what he’d done to Jenny’s plait. Dear God … it was like something out of a horror movie. It was like he was two different people.
‘I’ve got Kaye’s suitcase in the back,’ said Bear. ‘I’m going to have to go through it. The local bobbies said she had some paperwork with her.’
Sarah nodded. After a little while she said, ‘Kaye and Henry married in 1930. The baby was born a few months later. Is it possible to find out if what she said was true … that the baby lived? I know where her marriage certificate is kept. There may be other personal papers.’
‘It’s possible,’ said Bear. ‘Leave it with me and I’ll see what I can do.’
Sarah nodded, satisfied.
‘Sarah,’ said Bear cautiously, ‘you do realise that with Henry missing and Kaye dead, we’re going to have to treat this accident as suspicious. The police will want to search the house.’
Sarah was silent for a while and then she said, ‘I have no right to object anyway. I’m only a lodger and now that this has happened, when it’s all over, we’ll all be homeless again, I guess.’
‘Don’t do anything until the Will is read,’ said Bear. ‘Sit tight for as long as you can.’
‘Whatever happens,’ said Sarah quietly, ‘would I be allowed to arrange her funeral?’
‘That’s up to the next of kin,’ said Bear.
‘As far as we know, Henry and Lottie are her only living relatives,’ said Sarah.
*
The shop was crowded when Judith arrived. The queue was out of the door. Judith could see Annie busy serving customers with sweets. Today was the day sweet rationing officially ended. At this rate, the shopkeepers would be hard put to keep up with the demand. She put the pram brake on and left Edward with Lu-Lu tied to the pram handle by her walking reins outside while she pushed her way into the shop.
‘’Ere,’ a fat woman complained. ‘Get back in the queue and wait yer turn.’
‘I’m not buying,’ said Judith irritably. ‘I just want to give someone a message.’
But the crowd didn’t like it, probably because they didn’t believe her. ‘Oi, stop her, will you,’ someone cried and people began to push and shove.
Judith protested and fought back until a man grabbed at her coat and pulled her back towards the door. ‘Unhand me at once,’ she cried. ‘How dare you!’
‘Then get to the back of the queue.’
‘I’m not here to buy sweets. I need to talk to someone.’
‘Well, you can wait yer turn like everybody else,’ said the man indignantly.
‘I have to give my daughter a very important message.’
The noise inside and out of the shop was escalating. Children were being trampled on as adults pushed and shoved each other in the crush by the doorway.
‘Now, now, there’s no need to push.’ Mr Richardson came from behind the tobacco counter with his hands in the air. ‘Calm down everybody please. You’ll all get your …’ He was cut off in mid-sentence when somebody accidentally smacked him on the nose and knocked off his glasses.
Annie was trapped behind her counter and could do nothing about it, except shout up the stairs for Mrs Richardson to come and help them.
‘’Ere, I was before you.’
‘Ow! That was my foot you trod on.’
Her employer’s wife seldom came into the shop but she was an able-bodied woman with a commanding voice. ‘Form an orderly queue or we’re shutting the shop,’ she bellowed. It did little to help.
‘Get your elbow out of my ear.’
‘Quarter of pear drops, please.’
‘Watch what you’re doing with that umbrella, mate.’
Judith managed to get far enough inside to catch her daughter’s eye. ‘Annie.’
‘Mum!’
‘It’s all right, darling. Sarah and the policeman are on their way back,’ Judith cried as she was propelled back through the door again.
The angry crowd continued to berate her as Judith walked to the pram. Lu-Lu was standing there, frightened and crying. Judith knelt down to comfort her and wiped her tear-stained cheeks with her own handkerchief. Once the child was calm again, she got to her feet and looked inside the pram. Her heart almost stopped. The pram was empty. Edward was gone.
*
Mrs Goodall put the finishing touches of lipstick on her mouth and rubbed her lips together. She patted her hair and slipped her feet into her best court shoes. It didn’t take long to go from her house to the door of Copper Beeches, and almost as soon as she rang the bell, Lottie snatched open the door.
‘Oh,’ she said as soon as she saw her neighbour. ‘Sorry, but we were expecting someone else.’
‘My dear,’ gushed Mrs Goodall. ‘As soon a
s I heard the SOS on the radio, I just had to come over to say how sorry I am that dear Kaye is in hospital.’
Lottie blinked in surprise. Mrs Goodall being nice? This was a turn-up for the books.
‘How is she?’ Mrs Goodall went on. ‘Can I come in for a minute?’ There was little point in Lottie telling her it wasn’t convenient. Mrs Goodall had already pushed her way into the hallway. She gave Lottie a polite nod and patted her hair again. ‘When did she go into hospital? I had no idea she was ill.’
The silence hung between them until Lottie said, ‘Actually, she was in a motor car accident.’
‘Oh my dear!’ said Mrs Goodall, putting her hand to her cheek. ‘How terrible. Poor girl.’
Lottie frowned crossly. Something wasn’t quite right. Mrs Goodall had nothing but complaints about them, and now here she was, behaving as if she was Kaye’s best friend.
‘I had no idea Mrs Royale’s husband was around,’ Mrs Goodall went on. ‘I rather assumed he’d been killed in the war. Well, you live and learn, don’t you? I was shocked when I heard it on the radio …’
‘Mrs Goodall …’ said Lottie, taking a deep breath.
‘Now you mustn’t be upset, my dear,’ Mrs Goodall butted in. ‘These things happen. You know I had no idea she’s really Kaye Hambledon, the famous writer. I have admired her plays on the radio for some time.’
They heard the key go in the door, and when it opened, Sarah and Bear came in. They both looked tired, but Sarah looked awful. Her eyes were red and puffy and her face was pale.
‘Detective Truman,’ said Mrs Goodall. ‘I was just saying to Lottie that I was so upset to hear about Mrs Royale that I had to come straight over. Have you any more news?’
‘Mrs Goodall, could you come back later? It’s not very convenient right now,’ said Sarah stiffly.
‘Oh, don’t mind me,’ said Mrs Goodall. ‘I’ll be as quiet as a mouse.’
Lottie put her hand to her mouth. Bear sensed the problem at once. Now was not the time to cope with a nosy neighbour. ‘I think it best if you go, madam, if you don’t mind,’ he said politely. ‘I’m afraid I shall be here for some time.’
