by June Tate
‘Very well, Mr Bentley, you have a deal,’ and he picked up his pen.
The two men left the room, leaving Arthur to write out his statement. Once outside, Bentley spoke. ‘Cunning bugger, but in all honesty, I don’t blame him. He’s no threat to the public, unlike his brother. It will be my great pleasure to see him go down and now we’ve got him!’
Chapter Twenty-One
Later that day, Ben was called into Bentley’s office and told the good news. ‘Arthur Stanley has made a statement, giving us the facts and naming his brother as the murderer of Frank Clarke and describing how they disposed of the body in the cemetery.’
‘What about Miss Collins? Will she have to appear at the trial as a witness?’
‘I’m afraid so. After all, she was the only one who actually saw Stanley kill Clarke. Her evidence is vital. You’d better prepare her.’
‘I’ll go and see her now.’
As Ben left the station, he realised that at last he could tell Phoebe the truth about who he was and why he’d been in the market. Finally, he could be himself without any further subterfuge and that was a great relief. He only hoped she’d understand. However, he couldn’t tell her at her stall, they needed privacy for such a conversation.
While Ben had been at the meeting, in Kingsland Market, Marj had been talking to Phoebe.
‘Where’s your boyfriend been these past couple of days, then? Ever since the two brothers have been arrested, ’e too has disappeared. What’s going on?’
Phoebe looked perplexed. ‘I’ve no idea. I’ve not heard from Ben at all. I hope he isn’t poorly. I don’t know where he lives or I’d call and see if he was all right.’
Glancing over Phoebe’s shoulder, Marj said, ‘No need, ’ere ’e comes now.’
Turning, Phoebe saw Ben approaching and wondered why he looked so serious.
‘Ben! I was worried about you. Are you all right?’
He placed an arm around her and kissed her cheek. ‘I’m fine. I’m sorry I’ve not been in touch, but can we meet this evening? I can explain.’
‘Yes, of course. Come round after seven, by then I’ll have got Tim settled and we’ll be on our own.’
‘Excellent! I’ll see you then. You all right, Marj?’ he called.
‘All the better for seeing you, young Ben! We missed you.’
‘I missed you too.’ He turned to Phoebe. ‘See you tonight.’
Marj wandered over to her. ‘That boy’s got something on ’is mind. I wonder what it is?’
‘He’s coming round tonight to tell me why he hasn’t been in touch.’
‘Mm. Be prepared to be surprised,’ Marj warned.
‘What do you mean?’
‘I don’t really know but I’ve a feeling in my water that ’e ’as a tale to tell, which you’re not going to expect.’ She walked away, leaving Phoebe feeling puzzled. Marj wasn’t usually wrong about things. It was as if she had a sixth sense. She said it was coming from Gypsy stock that had given her such an insight.
Tim, dressed in his pyjamas, opened the door to Ben that evening. He was delighted to see him and gave him a hug.
‘All ready for bed I see,’ said Ben as he stepped inside. ‘I’ve brought these for you, but you had better wait until tomorrow to eat them or Phoebe will be angry with me.’ He handed over a small bag of sweets. The boy was delighted.
‘I’ll take them to school with me.’
‘Come along, Tim,’ said Phoebe. ‘Time for bed. You can read for a bit. I’ll come up and put your light out in a little while. Cup of tea?’ she asked Ben.
‘Not just now, maybe later. Come and sit beside me on the sofa,’ he said. ‘I have some explaining to do.’ He took her hand in his. ‘I’ve not been able to be strictly truthful with you from the day we met.’
‘Whatever do you mean?’
‘I’m not a market trader, as you well know – I am a policeman, a detective, and I was in the market to keep an eye on the Stanley brothers.’
This information floored Phoebe and she was speechless.
‘I was undercover, so unable to tell anyone. I am sorry, but I had no choice. Then, when you told me you had seen Percy murder that man − I’m sorry, darling, but I had to report it to my superiors.’
Her eyes widened. ‘You what?’
‘I had to, Phoebe. As an officer of the law I couldn’t possibly keep it quiet. You had vital information that would convict a killer, a man who was a menace to society. The very fact we now had you as a witness allowed us to arrest Percy for the crime and coerce Arthur into writing a statement, naming his brother as the murderer and hiding the body in the cemetery. Without you, we couldn’t have done that. Do you see how important it was?’
She looked horrified. ‘Now I’ll have to go to court and tell everything in public. Oh Ben, how could you betray my confidence like that? I trusted you!’
‘I am sorry, Phoebe. But you were witness to the actual stabbing.’
‘You knew how frightened I was, how worried by it all, yet you still told your superior.’
‘I’m a policeman, I had no choice, can’t you see that? I couldn’t possibly withhold this information, it was too important. And what’s more: it was knowing there was a witness that made Arthur confess and name his brother, so Percy will never be free again to do any further harm. No longer will he be around to scare you by his presence. You’ll be able to carry on without out any worries about him.’
‘That’s easy for you to say! Sometimes I have nightmares, when I see it all happening again. I’ll never be free of him!’ She pushed his hand away and, getting to her feet, walked over to the stove, picked up the kettle and made a pot of tea.
Ben was wracking his brains trying to find a way to make her realise his position in all this. ‘I know it’s hard for you to understand and I’m sorry you’re still haunted by what you saw that night, but you don’t have to handle all of this alone. I told you, I intend to be around for a long time. I’ll help you through it.’
She cast a hostile glance at him. ‘Really? I’m not sure that’s a good idea. How can I ever trust you now?’
He looked shattered by her words. ‘You can’t mean that, Phoebe. I had such plans for the future – for you and Tim, for us to be together. I love you, you must know that by now?’
She looked at him with tears brimming. ‘Yet you threw me to the wolves!’
Ben rose from the sofa and went to walk towards her, but Phoebe held up her hand to stop him. ‘I think it’s best we leave things as they are for the moment, Ben. I think you should go.’
‘Phoebe!’
‘Please, Ben, don’t say any more. Just leave … please.’
As he shut the door behind him, she collapsed onto the sofa in tears.
As he walked down the street, Ben was desolate. He couldn’t believe that Phoebe hadn’t been able to understand why he’d had to inform his superiors that she’d witnessed the murder. He’d been so happy that now he could tell her the truth about his job, that he was now free to plan their future together – all three of them. He’d had to wait, to pretend, and he’d hated that. She needed time to take it all in, he told himself. Well, he’d give her a couple of days and then he’d talk to her again.
During a lull in the market the following morning, Marj wandered over to Phoebe.
‘Well, by the look on your face, I was right about young Ben! But I didn’t expect you to look so bloody miserable about it. What’s up, love? It’s best you get it off your chest.’
Phoebe told her the whole story. As she got to the part about the murder, Marj let out a cry of horror. ‘You saw it? Oh girl, come ’ere.’ She took her into her arms. ‘No one should ’ave to see such a terrible thing.’
When Phoebe had recovered enough, she told her the rest of the tale.
‘But that’s great! It was because you told Ben what you saw that eventually that bastard was brought to justice.’ Then she saw the anguish on the face of her friend. ‘So what’s the problem? Is th
at the end of your beautiful friendship? Does ’e now want to walk away. Is that it?’
‘No, quite the opposite, but somehow I feel he betrayed me. I told him about the murder in confidence; he said it would remain between us. But he reported it!’
Marj looked at her in amazement. ‘Phoebe Collins! I’ve known you from a young child, ’elping your dad on the stall; I’ve seen you take over as the breadwinner and bury your dear mother, God rest ’er soul – but I’ve never ever thought you were stupid … until now!’
Phoebe was taken aback by the anger in her friend’s voice.
‘You ’ad just given Ben the means of solving a murder, to put away a man who is a danger to the public – and you are affronted by this? I can hardly believe it! Just think. If ’e hadn’t reported it and it came out eventually, ’e probably would ’ave lost his job for withholding vital evidence and Percy Stanley would still be strutting about the place. You would see him every day, knowing what ’e’d done. You’d end up a basket case and leave that bugger free to top someone else who upset him! Why can’t you see this? I don’t understand.’
She could see that Phoebe wasn’t convinced by her argument. ‘And … what if Percy eventually realised that you’d seen ’im? You were always on pins when ’e was about. In time ’e might ’ave caught on. What then? ’E might have topped you too, then where would poor Tim ’ave been, answer me that!’
Phoebe burst into tears. ‘I can’t think any more!’
Putting an arm round the girl, Marj tried to comfort her. ‘I’m not surprised, love, after what you’ve been through, but at least you won’t ’ave to see the brothers no more. In time, you’ll feel better, especially with Ben by your side. That man loves your bones and those of Tim too. The boy needs a father and you need someone to look after you for a change. Don’t throw it all away or you’ll regret it for the rest of your life.’ She walked away, leaving Phoebe to think about her advice.
The headlines in the early edition of the local paper had everyone talking.
MAN CHARGED WITH MURDER.
Beside it, a picture of Percy Stanley. It went on to tell of his criminal record, about his previous term in prison, the fact that he was already charged with burglary.
The traders in the market couldn’t stop talking about it. It was only then that Phoebe realised she would be implicated in all this mayhem. She bought a paper and took it home to read. It didn’t mention anything about a witness, only that Arthur Stanley was also being held in custody. So far, only the police knew she was involved.
Two days had passed, and Phoebe hadn’t heard from Ben. It seemed strange in the market without the brothers’ stall, but it was the empty spot where Ben had been that saddened her. She missed his cheery smile first thing in the morning. His very presence pleased her when she would look over to him. Now there was an empty space and she hated it. She’d had time to consider his position and realised that, as he’d said, as a policeman there was no way he could have kept the information she’d given him to himself. She only hoped he’d call to see her so she could apologise.
Marj could tell she was missing Ben and had now come to terms with everything.
‘Don’t you worry none, love. Ben will come back. ’E’s just giving some breathing space, that’s all. Mark my words.’
Phoebe just hoped she was right.
Tim too was missing Ben. On the next Saturday he said as much as he helped his sister. ‘Where’s Ben, Phoebe? He isn’t here and he hasn’t been to see us. Has he gone away?’
She didn’t think she had the right to explain Ben’s real position, so she made up some excuse.
It was to his chum Laura the boy gave vent to his real feelings when she asked him why he was looking so glum.
‘It’s because of Ben. He isn’t here and he hasn’t called at the house. I wonder if he and Phoebe have fallen out.’
‘Would that matter if they had?’
He nodded. ‘I really like Ben and I thought he liked Phoebe. I hoped he’d ask her to marry him, then I’d have a dad like all my friends. Ben took me to watch the cricket not long ago. It was great, just me and him. He’s kind and he’d take care of Phoebe too.’
‘You can share my dad, if you like, Tim.’
He smiled at her. ‘Thanks, Laura, but I want one of my own, if you know what I mean.’
She smiled sympathetically. ‘Here, have one of my chips.’
It was Sunday morning and Phoebe was cleaning the house when there was a knock on the door. She opened it to see Ben standing there.
‘Hello, Phoebe. May I come in?’
She stepped back. ‘Of course you can.’
Tim had just finished his breakfast and he ran to Ben and flung his arms round him. ‘Ben! Where have you been? You weren’t in the market yesterday and you haven’t been round here, either.’
Ben looked at Phoebe, who just raised her eyebrows at him as if to say, ‘It’s up to you.’
Sitting down at the table, Ben pulled up another chair for the boy. ‘Well, you see, Tim, I was there doing another job, really, apart from selling stuff from the stall.’ He then proceeded to tell Tim his story.
Tim was thrilled at the tale. He thought it sounded exciting. ‘A detective! The brothers are in jail and that Percy killed a man! Did you know that?’
‘Not at first, but he was a suspect.’
Tim looked at his sister. ‘Did you know all this, Phoebe?’
‘No, as a matter of fact, I didn’t.’
Ben was pleased to hear that the remark wasn’t said with any malice.
‘I couldn’t tell anyone, Tim. But now the case is closed, and I can go back on duty. No more standing in the cold.’
Tim looked disappointed. ‘I won’t be able to buy your fish and chips for you. I’ll miss you, Ben.’
‘Well, I’m keeping my fingers crossed that your sister is going to allow me to call on her again.’ The two of them looked expectantly at her.
With a slow smile she said, ‘I don’t see why not.’
‘Have you any plans for today?’ Ben asked.
Shaking her head, Phoebe said, ‘I’ve not yet given today a thought. Why?’
‘How about we all go to the pier, get some fresh air, play on the slot machines, look at the stalls, have some lunch and later we can go to the cinema?’
Tim jumped up and down with joy. ‘Oh, Phoebe, let’s do that, please?’
‘How could I possibly refuse,’ she said.
Chapter Twenty-Two
It was a lovely morning, with the June sun shining on the water as they arrived at the pier. The warm weather had brought others out to enjoy themselves. Ben brought a supply of pennies and he and Tim played the slot machines and put money in one with a grab mechanism, hoping it would pick up one of the treasures inside the glass case, without any luck. They put a penny in another and the clown looking back at them laughed loudly. His body bounced up and down with glee, making them laugh. They bought ice cream and sat in deckchairs, eventually wandering along the pier to a cafe to have some lunch.
While Tim was tucking into his meal, Ben looked at Phoebe. ‘Am I forgiven, then?’
She looked embarrassed. ‘Yes, of course. I now realise you didn’t have a choice and that I was being less than understanding.’ She pulled a face. ‘Marj gave me a good talking to!’
‘You told her everything?’ He looked surprised.
‘Yes, I know she’ll not say a word to anyone. I’ve known her for years and she’s like a second mother to me.’ Laughing she added, ‘I felt like a naughty child when she’d finished telling me how stupid I’d been.’
‘I knew I loved that woman for a reason! But let’s put all this behind us now and move on with our lives. We’ll plan for the future soon, I promise.’
They finished their day out at the pictures and when Ben eventually left, he took Phoebe into his arms and kissed her. ‘I love you, Phoebe – and Tim. Just remember that.’
A little later, as Tim got ready for bed, he
looked at his sister. ‘We had a lovely day today, didn’t we?’
‘We did indeed.’
‘Are you friends again with Ben?’
She saw the worried expression on his face. ‘Yes, why do you ask?’
‘I want him to be my dad, that’s why.’ He turned and went upstairs to his bedroom.
Phoebe sat with a cup of tea and thought about the longing in the voice of her young brother. Of course he needed a father. He could hardly remember his own and she knew he felt the loss of a father figure when he saw his friends with theirs. Ben loved Tim, hadn’t he told her so? You only had to see them together to know how they had already bonded. That had been apparent at the loss of her mother and at the funeral. She loved Ben, he was the man with whom she wanted to spend the rest of her life, but what would she do about the stall? Would they move from the house? Could Ben afford to marry her and look after Tim as well?
Her head was spinning. So much had happened over the past weeks that she was unable to think. So many thoughts raced through her mind. Phoebe rose to her feet. She needed to sleep. Today had been so good, she’d go to bed and think of that and try to put her worries aside.
While Phoebe was trying to understand how her life might change, Arthur Stanley was in Winchester Prison living his. He was awaiting his trial and was learning what life in a small cell without any freedom was like.
On admission, he’d been stripped and searched, deloused and bathed. He was given a set of prison clothes, one change of underwear, a pillow and a blanket and then led to his cell. Gates were unlocked and ahead was a huge space with cells either side of a broad, empty alleyway. On the way he’d passed other prisoners who looked at him through the grille in their doors. Some yelled disparaging remarks; others just stared at the new arrival. The warder led him up an iron staircase to the upper floor. Their footsteps echoing, the warder’s keys rattling. But what was the most frightening was the air of menace. This was not a happy place.
