MB02 - Last Tram To Lime Street

by Joan Jonker

  Ellen was surprised when she walked in to see her two daughters sitting at the table playing ludo with Jill and Steve. ‘Eh, what are you two doin’ up? Yer should ’ave been in bed ages ago.’

  ‘We did try, Mrs Clarke,’ Jill said apologetically, ‘but they wouldn’t budge until they’d seen Uncle Corker.’

  ‘What’s all this then?’ There was a wide grin on Corker’s face as he threw his cap on to the couch. ‘Old Nick will be after you.’

  The two girls rushed to stand in front of him. ‘Yer goin’ away tomorrow, Sinbad, an’ we wanted to see yer before yer went,’ Phoebe said, hanging on to his arm. ‘D’yer ’ave to go?’

  Dorothy didn’t give him a chance to answer. Grabbing his other arm, she gazed up at the giant who was idolised by the four Clarke children. He’d made such a difference to their lives, shown them a warmth and kindness they’d never known before. Always patient, he would sit and talk to them, make them laugh and have them wide-eyed at his feet as he told them of his adventures on the high seas. And although they were too young to realise it, he had taught them that not all men were violent bullies like the father they’d been terrified of.

  ‘It’s not fair,’ Dorothy cried. ‘We haven’t seen nothin’ of yer.’

  ‘Well now.’ Corker put a hand on each of their heads and ruffled their hair. ‘When I go aboard, I’ll tell the Captain that yer said he’s got to let me stay home longer next time. How about that, eh?’

  ‘Ooh, er, will yer really tell the Captain that?’ Phoebe was impressed.

  ‘I most certainly will! An’ I won’t pull me punches, either.’ Looking down from his great height, Corker smiled. ‘Now, how about givin’ me a big kiss before yer go to bed?’

  ‘Yer’ll have to bend down,’ Dorothy giggled, ‘we can’t reach.’

  Ellen’s heart was heavy as she watched. This was the sort of affection the children had lacked all their young lives. And it was all her fault. She’d been swept off her feet by Nobby Clarke, thought she was in for a lifetime of happiness. And when she’d found out, too late, what he was really like, she hadn’t had the courage to stand up to him.

  ‘Come on now, girls, yer’ll never get up for school in the morning.’ She steered them to the narrow staircase. ‘Say good night and thank you to Jill an’ Steve.’

  When they’d left the room, Corker turned his attention to the young couple. ‘The big day won’t be long now, eh?’

  ‘Just a couple of months,’ Steve said proudly, his arm across Jill’s shoulders. ‘It’ll soon pass.’

  ‘I suppose yer know how lucky yer are?’ Corker lowered his huge frame into a chair. ‘She’s the prettiest girl in the neighbourhood, is my princess, an’ if I’d been twenty years younger I’d have given yer a run for yer money.’

  Jill, blushing at the compliment, turned her bright eyes to Steve. ‘I think I’m getting the best of the bargain.’

  ‘You were made for each other, an’ I hope I’m home for the engagement party to join in the toast.’ Corker’s head swivelled as Ellen entered the room. ‘Are they settled?’

  ‘They’re nattering away to each other, but they’ll probably drop off soon.’ Ellen rubbed her arms briskly. ‘It’s cold up there. I’ll put the kettle on.’

  ‘Not for us, thanks, Mrs Clarke.’ Steve pushed his chair back. He hadn’t been alone with Jill all night and was longing to hold her in his arms and kiss her. ‘We’ll be on our way.’

  ‘Are yer sure?’

  ‘Yes, it’s getting late.’ Jill lifted her coat from the back of a chair. ‘I hope you’re back soon, Uncle Corker.’

  ‘So do I, princess, so do I.’ Corker raised his brows at Steve. ‘Am I allowed a kiss?’

  ‘You don’t have to ask him.’ Jill grinned as she leaned towards him. ‘You’re my uncle, aren’t you?’

  ‘I’ll see you to the door,’ Ellen said.

  ‘No, I’ll do it.’ Corker stood up. ‘You put the kettle on, love.’

  Ellen was in the kitchen when she heard Corker come back. ‘I won’t be a minute, the kettle’s just on the boil.’

  ‘They make a smashing couple, don’t they?’ Corker’s frame filled the doorway. ‘Their marriage shouldn’t have any problems.’

  Ellen poured the boiling water into the pot. ‘They’ve got everythin’ going for them. Good looks and nice natures.’ She smiled. ‘They won’t have any problems … Molly an’ Nellie will see to that.’

  While Ellen poured the tea, Corker placed a couple of pieces of coal on the fire. ‘Warm you up before yer go to bed.’

  They sat in silence for a while, both thoughtful. Then Corker asked, ‘I don’t suppose yer’ve been in to see Nobby?’

  Ellen felt a shiver run through her body at the mention of her husband’s name. ‘No, I can’t bring meself to go.’ She curled her hands around her cup for warmth. ‘It costs a couple of bob to get there, which I can ill afford … and for what? He doesn’t even know who I am. An’ he frightens the life out of me the way he just sits and stares, never saying one word. I keep expectin’ him to jump up and belt me one.’

  ‘I’ll come with yer next time I’m home.’ Corker pulled his chair nearer. ‘It’s best to keep in touch to see if there’s any change.’

  ‘He won’t change.’ Ellen stared at the flames that were licking around the coals Corker had put on the fire. ‘They told me last time I was there that there was no chance of him improving. He’s mentally insane and will stay that way until he dies.’

  ‘You could get a divorce, yer know.’

  ‘What?’ Ellen lowered the cup so quickly the tea spilled over into her lap. ‘I couldn’t get a divorce!’

  ‘Why not? You’ve got grounds enough.’

  ‘Oh, I couldn’t do that, Corker. I couldn’t divorce him.’

  Corker combed his fingers through his bushy beard. ‘D’yer want to stay married to him?’

  Again Ellen felt a cold shiver run through her body. Even though her husband was miles away, locked up behind bars, he still had the power to fill her with fear. ‘Of course I don’t want to stay married to ’im. But yer know I’m a Catholic, and the Church doesn’t believe in divorce.’

  Corker snorted. ‘Not even the Church would expect yer to stay married to a madman.’ He put his cup on the table and leaned forward. ‘What about us, Ellen?’

  ‘What d’yer mean, what about us?’

  Corker put a hand under her chin and turned her face towards him. ‘Come off it, love. We’re not kids any more, we don’t have to pretend. Yer must know how I feel about you.’

  Nervous and agitated, Ellen jerked her head free. ‘We shouldn’t be talkin’ like this, Corker, it’s not proper.’

  ‘We’ve got to talk about it, love. We can’t go on as we are, an’ you know it.’ He took the cup from her hand and put it on the table. ‘Look at me, Ellen.’

  When he saw the tears glistening in her eyes, Corker slid from the chair and knelt in front of her. Taking her hand, he said softly, ‘Don’t cry, love, please. It’s got to come to a head sometime, so it might as well be now. Let’s be sensible and bring it all out in the open. When we’ve had our say, if yer don’t want me in yer life, then I’ll just walk away with no hard feelings.’

  Ellen felt her heart miss a beat. What would she do without Corker? Not only her, but the children? He’d come into their lives when they most needed someone and now she couldn’t imagine a life without him. He’d given her back her self-respect, made her feel like a woman again. She missed him when he was away and was always excited when his ship was due in. But divorce … She’d been brought up to believe that when you got married, you stayed married. Otherwise you were committing a sin in the eyes of God.

  She heard Corker groan as he lifted one of his knees to rub. ‘Get up, Corker, yer’ll have sore knees.’

  ‘It is bloody uncomfortable.’ Corker struggled to his feet and held out his hand. ‘Come an’ sit next to me on the couch.’

  Still holding hands, they sat close o
n the old horsehair couch. ‘Now, I’ll have my say first, eh?’ Corker could feel her hand shaking and squeezed it gently. ‘There’s no need to get upset, love, it’s not the end of the world. As I said, if yer want to, yer can show me the door. But not until I get what I’ve got to say off me chest. Okay?’ He waited for Ellen’s nod, then continued. ‘I’ve always had a soft spot for yer, even when we were young and lived in the same neighbourhood. I thought yer were my girl, ’cos I used to take yer to the flicks an’ the local hops. But we know what happened … I started goin’ away to sea an’ before I got down to askin’ yer to marry me, yer’d upped and wed Nobby Clarke. We won’t go into the years you were married to him, or the life he led yer, that’s all in the past. But we’ve been given another chance, an’ I for one would like to grab it with both hands. My feelings for yer are very strong, and for the kids. But I don’t just want yer friendship, Ellen, I want more than that.’

  The tears were now flowing freely down Ellen’s face. For the first time she allowed the truth to enter her mind and stay. She loved this gentle giant and wasn’t going to pretend otherwise. He’d been honest with her, he deserved no less in return. Her voice shaking, she asked, ‘What can we do about it, Corker?’

  ‘We can start by you telling me if yer feel the same about me as I do about you.’

  Ellen wasn’t going to let her shyness stop her this time. There was too much at stake. ‘You must know that I do. Otherwise I wouldn’t be seen out with yer … giving the wagging tongues a field day.’

  Corker pulled her to him. ‘That’s all I want to know. To hell with the waggin’ tongues … they don’t pay the rent for yer.’

  ‘I’m being unkind about the neighbours, they’ve all been marvellous to me since … er … since Nobby’s accident. Especially Molly, Nellie and a few others.’ Daring to do something she’d long desired, Ellen put a hand to his cheek. ‘What are we goin’ to do, Corker?’

  ‘Right now yer goin’ to give me me first kiss.’ Corker’s massive arms held her tight as he pressed his lips to hers. It was a long kiss, but gentle. And with that, Corker was satisfied. He’d waited a long time, a little longer wouldn’t hurt. For her peace of mind he wanted to do things right. ‘When I come home again we’ll go to Winwick to see Nobby, and I’ll have a word with one of the doctors. But I don’t want yer worrying while I’m away. Whatever happens, I promise that one day we’ll be together. You, me and the children.’

  In the shelter of his arms, Ellen had never felt so safe and contented. If he was right, and they could find a way of being together, life would be heaven. Not only for her, but for the children as well. He’d make a marvellous husband and a loving, caring father.

  Ellen sighed with contentment. They’d be a close, happy family, like the Bennetts and the McDonoughs. Like their neighbours, their home would be warm and filled with laughter.

  A cloud of doubt threatened to spoil Ellen’s happiness, but she brushed it aside. She’d put her hopes and trust in Corker … he wouldn’t let her down.

  Chapter Sixteen

  ‘I’m not sittin’ down until I’ve got the washing out.’ Molly jerked her head at Nellie. ‘Come an’ give us a hand … yer can hold the pegs.’

  ‘I suppose yer’d like me to hold them in me mouth to keep me quiet.’ Nellie held her apron out while Molly threw the pegs in. ‘It’s a good drying day, isn’t it, kid? Nice and mild, with a little breeze.’

  ‘That’s why I want to get it out now, before the weather changes.’ Molly shook a nightdress out without thinking and sent a spray of water over Nellie. ‘Sorry about that, sunshine, but it’ll save yer washing yer ugly mug.’

  ‘We can’t all be glamorous,’ Nellie said, handing over two pegs. ‘Everyone is gifted in different ways. I might ’ave been behind the door when looks were given out, but as yer ma would say, sure, didn’t the good Lord bless me with a voice like an angel?’

  ‘Nellie, yer’ve got a voice like a hooter on one of the tug boats on the Mersey! Yer want to listen to yerself sometime.’

  ‘Jealousy gets yer nowhere, girl.’ Undaunted, Nellie threw her head back and began to sing, ‘“Wait till the sun shines, Nellie, and the clouds go drifting by.”’

  Molly clapped a hand over her friend’s mouth. ‘In the name of God, Nellie, yer’ll have the neighbours out! Yer sound like someone in agony.’

  As Nellie doubled up with laughter pegs fell from the side of her apron and scattered in all directions. ‘Look what yer’ve made me do now.’ Snorting noisily, she dropped the corners of her apron and the remaining pegs. ‘It’s your fault, so you can pick them up. I can’t bend down, yer see, girl, not with my complaint.’

  Molly rescued two pegs and hung a shirt of Jack’s on the line before facing her friend. ‘And what, pray, is this complaint that stops yer from bending down?’

  Her face creased in a smile, Nellie patted her enormous tummy. ‘This is what stops me from bending down.’ She moved back to lean against the yard wall. ‘D’yer want to know somethin’, girl? I haven’t seen me feet for nearly twenty years. Wouldn’t know I had any, except for the corns on me little toes givin’ me gyp.’

  ‘Nellie McDonough, yer past the post, you really are.’ But there was affection in Molly’s eyes as she gazed at her friend. She was nearly as wide as she was tall, but Molly loved every ounce of her. ‘Anyway, what are yer doin’ down here this time of the mornin’? Why aren’t yer gettin’ yer washing on the line, like me?’

  ‘I don’t hang about, girl, me clothes were on the line hours ago.’ Nellie waddled after Molly into the kitchen. ‘I woke about five o’clock an’ was frightened to drop off again in case we overslept, so I decided to get up an’ start on me washin’. And while me hands were busy, so was me brain.’ She folded her arms and hitched up her mountainous bosom. ‘How about you an’ me gettin’ the tram down to Westminster Road an’ see if we can find this scrapyard of the Bradleys?’

  Molly looked puzzled. ‘What good would that do us?’

  ‘How the hell do I know? But it’s worth a try, isn’t it?’

  ‘Uh, uh, Nellie … you can get me into enough trouble without goin’ looking for it. And anyway, they’ve been keepin’ their noses clean lately.’

  ‘That’s what you think.’ Nellie’s expression was as effective as sticking her tongue out. ‘I went down for the paper early on, an’ I met that woman who lives next door but two to Corker. The milk’s been pinched off her doorstep for three mornings on the trot. Her husband’s ’ad to have conny-onny in his tea, an’ he’s none too pleased. An’ she said she’s not the only one it’s happened to.’

  ‘Go ’way!’ Molly was really interested now. ‘Well I never! The thieving buggers!’

  ‘So they’re still at it, yer see, girl! And they’ll keep at it unless someone stops them.’

  ‘Aye, yer right there,’ Molly agreed, ‘once a thief, always a thief.’

  ‘So, are yer comin’ with me to spy out the lay of the land?’ Nellie asked, her eyes narrowed to slits. ‘Yer never know, girl, we might just come up with somethin’.’

  ‘But we don’t even know where it is!’

  ‘Oh, for cryin’ out loud, girl, have yer got any more excuses? We’ve got tongues in our flamin’ heads, haven’t we?’ Nellie was getting impatient. ‘If I sit on one side of the tram, an’ you on the other, we can’t miss it, can we?’

  Molly was thoughtful for a while. ‘Yer wouldn’t do anythin’ to get us into trouble, would yer?’

  ‘Now would I do that to you?’

  ‘Yes, yer ruddy well would! I’ve lost count of the times yer’ve landed me in it.’

  Knowing this to be true, Nellie wisely didn’t argue. ‘Look, if I promise not to open me mouth, or take a step without askin’ yer first, will yer come?’

  ‘Oh, all right.’ Molly gave in. ‘But I want to peel the spuds before I go out, ’cos it’s my turn to pick Ruthie an’ Bella up from school. So give me half an hour.’

  Careful not to smile in case
her friend thought she was gloating, Nellie swayed towards the door. ‘Yer on, girl. Tara.’

  Nellie had the seat on the tram to herself. There were people standing in the aisles, but no one was prepared to perch on the mere six inches not covered by her backside. When the tram trundled past the scrapyard, she shuffled to the edge of the seat, calling to Molly, ‘Come on, girl, this is where we get off.’

  They stood on the pavement until the tram moved on, then Molly asked, ‘Where is it?’

  ‘On the corner, about two streets back. It looks a right dump from what I could see of it.’ Nellie raised her arm and pointed. ‘Look, yer can see it from here.’

  ‘For God’s sake, Nellie, stop pointing!’ Molly raised her eyes to the sky. ‘I don’t know why I let yer talk me into this, it’s crazy. What do we do now … stand her like two flamin’ lemons?’

  ‘I don’t think it would be wise, girl, not under the circumstances. Don’t turn around, but the queer feller is comin’ towards us, pushing a handcart.’

  ‘Oh, dear God in heaven.’ Molly grabbed her friend’s arm and dragged her into the doorway of the nearest shop. ‘You’ll get me hung one of these days, Nellie McDonough.’

  Totally unconcerned, Nellie popped her head out of the doorway. ‘He’s nearly on top of us, we’d better get in the shop.’

  Before being unceremoniously pushed through the doorway, Molly had time to note that it was a sweet shop. She thanked her lucky stars it wasn’t a butcher’s … she could just about afford a penny for sweets for Ruthie, but anything dearer would have been out of the question.

  ‘I won’t keep you a minute.’ A middle-aged woman was bending down in front of a little girl who was sobbing her heart out. ‘Don’t cry, love, there’s a good girl. Your mam will come for you soon.’

  ‘Is she lost?’ Molly asked, her own fears forgotten as she gazed on the tear-stained face.

  The woman straightened up. ‘Her older brother brought her in for some sweets, but he ran off and left her.’ She lowered her voice. ‘Taking the sweets with him, of course. He’s a cute little blighter and I’m surprised Mrs Birchall trusts her with him … she’s only two.’