Moving On

by Rosie Harris

  All she could do was repeat his name softly, over and over again before the nurse came and asked her to leave.

  Thirty-Three

  Jenny didn’t tell Karen and Bill about the fire or what had happened to Tom until they arrived on the Friday, the day before the wedding was to take place.

  ‘You should have telephoned and I would have come right away,’ Karen told Jenny as she hugged her and sympathized with her. ‘How dreadful that it should happen and that Tom is so badly hurt. I should have been here to help you deal with it. I feel terrible that you did it all on your own, Gran.’

  ‘We’re here now, so what can we do?’ Bill cut in briskly. ‘Can we go and visit Tom?’

  ‘No, there’s no point at the moment because they won’t let you see him. He’s still in intensive care. They only let me in for a few minutes and he wasn’t awake while I was there. He’s in terrible pain so they’ve sedated him.’

  Bill nodded his head. ‘I understand, but is there anything else we can do for you?’

  ‘What you can do is help me decide what we are going to do about the party we planned to have here tomorrow night,’ Jenny told him.

  ‘You’ll have to call the wedding off, won’t you?’ Karen mused.

  ‘Oh yes, I know that. I phoned the registrar right away and let them know that our arrangement at the town hall had to be called off. They were most understanding and said to let them know when he was better and then we could fix a new date.’

  ‘Well, that’s one problem dealt with,’ Karen said brightly. ‘What’s next?’

  ‘I don’t know whether to call off the party we’d planned to hold here or not,’ Jenny said worriedly.

  ‘If you do then there’s going to be an awful lot of people disappointed,’ Bill said thoughtfully.

  ‘That’s what I thought, but I don’t really feel like the idea of partying at the moment, not with Tom lying so ill in hospital,’ Jenny said with a deep sigh.

  ‘It might help to take your mind off how badly hurt poor Tom is,’ Karen told her. ‘Come on, let’s go ahead with it. We’ll do all we can to help, Gran. That’s right, isn’t it, Bill?’

  ‘Yes, of course we will, but I do understand what you mean, Jenny, about not feeling you want to do it.’

  ‘Why not sleep on it and see how you feel in the morning,’ Karen suggested.

  ‘I know that’s a good idea but it’s not really fair on the residents here,’ Jenny said thoughtfully. ‘If we are not going ahead with the party then we should let everyone know so that they can make alternative arrangements if they wish.’

  The three of them were silent for a few minutes, then Jenny squared her shoulders and stated firmly, ‘We’ll go ahead with it. I’m sure that’s what Tom would want us to do.’

  Karen said nothing but jumped up and hugged Jenny. Bill’s handsome face broadened in a warm smile as he nodded his head in agreement.

  ‘First thing tomorrow morning we’ll go over all the details and I’ll take over any of the jobs you were relying on Tom to do. We’ll manage between the three of us. You’re in charge, Jenny, so remember to delegate as much as you wish.’

  The evening was a great success. The only person who made any deprecating comments was Jane Phillips.

  ‘You and your family certainly seem to know how to draw attention to yourselves,’ she commented in a sneering voice as she came into the community room and stared around at the decorations and lavish display of food and wine.

  One or two other people expressed mild surprise that the party was still being held but Jenny noticed that like Jane they ate and drank their fill along with everybody else.

  The room buzzed with chatter and laughter. Bill excelled at making sure that glasses were topped up and Karen did her share by handing around plates of food.

  People seemed to welcome the opportunity to relate their own experiences of what happened on the night of the fire. One and all they were high in their praise of Tom’s courage and bravery in rescuing old Mrs Parsons.

  ‘She’s not been badly burned because Tom shielded her with his body and he got her out so quickly. Even so, her family have decided that the time has come for her to have constant care of some kind,’ Lorna Hill told them.

  ‘I was told that one of her daughters was taking her to live with them until after Christmas to help her get over the shock of what happened. Then in the new year they would be making arrangements for her to go into a residential nursing home,’ Mavis Grey added.

  ‘She certainly won’t be coming back to Merseyside Mansions,’ Lorna Hill confirmed.

  The evening ended shortly before midnight with Bill asking them all to drink a toast to Tom and send him best wishes for his speedy recovery.

  Jenny felt exhausted but strangely happy at having kept their promise of giving a party and knowing that all those who attended had enjoyed the occasion.

  Christmas celebrations a few days later were rather muted for Jenny, Karen and Bill. Tom was improving and was now allowed visitors, which meant they could see him each day. By Boxing Day he was so much better and obviously making such good progress that they asked him if he knew when he would be allowed home.

  ‘They are going to do some plastic surgery on my arms before they let me come home,’ he told them. ‘I’ll probably always have scars but other than that they will be as good as ever.’

  Bill and Karen stayed on with Jenny until New Year’s Eve, then they went back to their own home in Wiltshire. They wanted Jenny to go with them for a few days but were understanding when she refused because it would mean leaving Tom.

  ‘Promise you’ll phone if you need any help with nursing Tom when he comes home,’ Karen insisted.

  ‘I’m sure I’ll be able to cope.’ Jenny smiled. ‘Thank you both so much for coming and for all your support. Thank you also for helping to make such a wonderful success of the party. I could never have managed it all on my own. I’ll telephone and let you know the moment Tom comes out of hospital.’

  It was the first week in January before Tom was allowed to come home. He looked thinner and he was rather pale, but he was in good spirits.

  It was a bitterly cold day with a grey overcast sky and a threat of snow in the air. Jenny rushed him indoors and into his flat because she was fearful that after the warmth in the hospital he might catch a chill if he stood around talking to people.

  The journey home had exhausted him and for the next couple of days Tom was content to be waited on and fussed over. He had looked thin so Jenny was determined to build him up with good nourishing meals.

  Jenny telephoned Karen and Bill and assured them that she was managing quite well and that Tom was fine apart from the fact that he had lost so much weight that his clothes hung on him.

  ‘I’m feeding him up so he’ll soon put the weight back on,’ she told Karen.

  When she invited them to come for the weekend they declined saying that they’d had some heavy falls of snow and the roads nearby were so bad that unless they were really needed they would rather leave it for the moment and asked if Jenny and Tom would come to them at half term instead.

  Jenny agreed that this would be best for all of them. Although Tom was making good progress he had not fully regained his strength. He tired easily and most days took a nap after his midday meal.

  Later in the week when Tom suggested going out for a walk Jenny vetoed the idea. She was adamant that it was far too cold.

  ‘You’ve only to look at the river and you can see that there’s a gale blowing. If you tried to walk along the promenade you’d probably get blown away,’ she told him.

  ‘We don’t have to go along the prom, we could walk up Victoria Road to the shops,’ he suggested.

  ‘Why? What do you need to buy? Tell me what it is and I’ll get it for you.’

  ‘Nothing except to get some flowers for you,’ he told her mildly. ‘It would be nice to have a walk and get some fresh air. I haven’t been for a walk for weeks and I feel I need to stretch my le
gs.’

  ‘You probably do, but not today,’ she told him firmly. ‘If you go out and catch a cold you’ll be right back where you were when you came out of hospital.’

  When they went to the coffee morning the following Wednesday Tom was welcomed back warmly by everybody there.

  They were loud in their praise for what he had done in rescuing old Mrs Parsons and confirmed that she had now been moved permanently into a residential home where she could be looked after right around the clock.

  They also expressed commiserations that all Jenny and Tom’s plans for their wedding had had to be postponed.

  ‘Yes, I’m afraid we will have to fix a new date for our wedding,’ Tom said with a smile.

  ‘We’ll probably leave it until Easter now,’ Jenny confirmed. ‘Easter is very late this year, not until the middle of April, so it will be warmer by then,’ she added.

  ‘Perhaps you should take the fire as a warning,’ Jane Phillips mused cryptically. ‘We don’t want to have another disaster at Merseyside Mansions and things do seem to go wrong for you and your family,’ she added, her mouth pursing up into a tight grimace.

  ‘Yes, Jenny, you are quite right. Easter is not until the twentieth April so you should get some sunshine by then,’ Lorna Hill agreed quickly as if hoping no one would take any notice of Jane Phillips’s rather pointed comment.

  ‘So we can expect to have another party?’ Jane commented in a rather acid tone.

  ‘Party? What party?’ Tom said, winking at Jenny and pretending to be surprised.

  ‘Oh, didn’t she tell you that while you were in hospital she went ahead and held the party you had planned for your wedding celebrations,’ Jane said triumphantly.

  ‘You did! You mean you partied without me!’ Tom exclaimed in mock horror.

  ‘That will teach you that you can’t trust her; you never know what she will get up to,’ said Jane with a disapproving sniff.

  Several people jumped in to support Jenny’s decision to hold the party and to say how well it had all been organized.

  ‘Did you all have a good time?’ Tom asked.

  ‘That’s all that matters then,’ he said with a big smile when they all assured him that they had enjoyed it immensely.

  ‘So does that mean we’ll have another party then in April?’ Clare Green’s voice boomed.

  ‘We’ll certainly think about it,’ Tom agreed. ‘Let’s fix a new date for our wedding first and then we’ll go into the other details more thoroughly. A party here will be top priority I can assure you.’

  Thirty-Four

  Although they were planning on having an Easter wedding Tom and Jenny decided not to make any firm arrangements until they’d had a chance to talk to Karen and Bill. They wanted them to be witnesses so it was important that they found out first of all if they had already made plans for Easter.

  Jenny thought they might be thinking of going away during the Easter holidays for a break and she didn’t want to upset any of their arrangements.

  ‘We’ll talk it over with them when we go to see them at half term,’ she told Tom.

  ‘Good idea,’ he agreed. ‘We’ll say no more about it until then and just hope people here drop the subject for the moment.’

  The following Wednesday the residents present at coffee morning were agog with speculation about who was coming into old Mrs Parsons’s flat. It had been newly decorated and snapped up the moment it went on the market.

  Some people said it was a man, others stated it was a couple, but Jane, who always managed to know the very latest news, said that it was a woman.

  ‘She’s in her sixties and I understand she’s an artist,’ she pronounced.

  ‘A woman! Hope she’s a good-looking filly,’ Major Mitchell boomed. ‘I doubt if she’ll be as handsome as your granddaughter, Jenny, but as long as she’s young and fit she’ll do!’

  ‘You mean she’ll be an asset and brighten the place up,’ Tom commented.

  ‘I’m hoping for more than that,’ the Major chortled. ‘I wouldn’t have minded being in old Lionel’s shoes last year. I mean, of course, when he got married not when he fell off his perch.’

  ‘I didn’t know you were looking for a bride,’ Jane Phillips said archly. ‘Bit long in the tooth for that though, aren’t you?’ she added waspishly.

  ‘Never too old to be cared for and mollycoddled, always providing it’s by the right person. If she’s an artist and she’s in her sixties she should have an interesting personality,’ he added, removing his monocle and polishing it with the silk handkerchief he always sported in his breast pocket.

  ‘Well, she’s moving in this coming weekend so you will be able to judge for yourself,’ Jane told him. ‘I’ll make sure she comes to our next coffee morning.’

  The following Wednesday there was an exceptionally good attendance at the coffee morning. News of Major Mitchell’s interest in the newcomer had spread and the residents were all eager to see his reaction when he met her for the first time.

  ‘At least it’s diverted attention from us and our future plans,’ Tom said quietly to Jenny.

  ‘Perhaps we’ll be able to make it a double event,’ she retorted with a low laugh.

  Jane was as good as her word, bringing the newcomer to join them.

  As they entered the room, Jane paused in the doorway until she knew she had everybody’s attention, and in the expectant silence that followed introduced the new arrival as Isabel Harding.

  There were murmured greetings from those present as they took stock of their newest resident.

  She was of medium height, her grey hair cut into a straight sharp style that suited her bold features. She had bright turquoise blue eyes that were vivid and piercing as if they could see through to your innermost thoughts.

  She was dressed in a striking purple two-piece wool suit and with it a double row of pale pink beads filling the low cut neck of the top. Her earrings were also pink; a cluster of pale pink beads that matched her necklace.

  ‘By Jove, now there’s an interesting filly,’ the Major murmured. He removed his monocle, polished it and put it back in as if to see her even more clearly.

  ‘Brings a spot of colour to the place and no mistake,’ he chortled. ‘A bird of paradise amongst a flock of sparrows.’

  Rising to his feet, he squared his shoulders and strode across the room. ‘Major John Mitchell, retired,’ he boomed as he held out his hand to the newcomer.

  There were some titters and amused looks as Jane took it upon herself to introduce him again.

  With a smile Isabel stretched out her hand towards the Major who bowed over it and then gallantly raised it to his lips. He then took her elbow and guided her across the room to his chair and pulled up another alongside her for himself.

  ‘Now, if you will tell me how you like your coffee I’ll fetch you a cup,’ he told her.

  ‘No, you stay and talk to Isabel and I’ll fetch the coffee,’ Jane told him.

  Although general conversation resumed everyone was straining to hear what the Major and Isabel Harding were saying to each other.

  The Major wasted no time.

  ‘I hear you are an artist,’ he said. ‘I regret I’m not familiar with your work.’

  Isabel laughed, a deep rich sound. ‘You wouldn’t be,’ she told him. ‘I’m an artiste, not an artist.’

  The Major looked slightly taken aback. ‘An artiste?’ he repeated, frowning questioningly.

  ‘That’s right. A circus artiste,’ she explained, her blue eyes mesmerizing him.

  ‘You mean you’re a lion tamer,’ John Mitchell chortled, amused by his own joke.

  ‘Exactly. How very clever of you to know.’

  ‘Good heavens!’ The Major’s eyebrows shot up. ‘Are you serious? I was jesting, dear lady.’

  Isabel looked amused. ‘Well, you guessed correctly. I am retired now, of course,’ she added with a deep sigh. ‘I have appeared all over Great Britain and throughout Europe and my performances were ev
en attended by Royalty.’ Her eyes shone with pride. ‘I can show you pictures and photographs that will make you gasp with surprise.’

  ‘Indeed, dear lady. I shall very much enjoy seeing them,’ the Major told her enthusiastically.

  ‘I am still passionate about the circus world; it’s in my blood. One of the joys of living here in New Brighton is that I will be able to visit the circus in the Tower grounds whenever I wish to do so.’

  There were smiles on several faces as they overheard Isabel regaling the Major with details of her accomplishments, and it was noticed that the Major seemed to be completely overawed and, at times, he even appeared to be completely at a loss for words.

  Tom and Jenny looked at each other. ‘I don’t think the Major is going to be the one who makes a conquest there,’ Tom said quietly.

  ‘No, I think that this time he’s met his match,’ Jenny agreed.

  ‘Yes, it would be an interesting partnership.’

  ‘So, do you think it will be a double event at Easter then?’ Jenny queried as they exchanged smiles.

  ‘Hard to say,’ Tom prevaricated. ‘We’ll all have to wait and see.’

  Confident that they could go ahead with their plans, they looked forward to asking Karen and Bill when they went to stay at half term if the dates suited them. But before they could do so, Karen had her own news to tell them.

  ‘We’re expecting a baby. Well, I am,’ she confided with a giggle as she reached out and took Bill’s hand. ‘It’s due at the end of May, isn’t that wonderful?’

  Tom and Jenny exchanged warning glances with each other as they both congratulated Karen.

  ‘Where does that leave us over our wedding plans?’ Tom asked as soon as they were on their own.

  ‘I honestly don’t know,’ Jenny said in a bewildered voice. ‘I did so much want it to be at Easter and I also wanted to make sure that Karen and Bill were there.’

  ‘Karen won’t really be up to all the travelling involved if it is at Easter, will she?’ Tom frowned.