by Joan Jonker
She walked into the bedroom and came to an abrupt halt. ‘What are you doin’ up here?’
Doreen moved quickly away from the window, guilt written on her flushed face. She’d built her hopes on Phil coming to the party with Miss Clegg and had been filled with disappointment when the old lady walked in on her own. It would have been an ideal time to make it up with him without having her pride dented. And she wanted more than anything in the world to make it up with him. Suddenly she had no heart for a party and had come upstairs to try and get a glimpse of him. It would have been a comfort to know he was at home and not out enjoying himself with another girl. ‘I, er, I was in our bedroom an’ I thought I heard a knock on the door. I came in here to look out of the window, see if I could see anyone. But I must have been hearing things ’cos there’s no one there.’
Molly opened her mouth, then closed it again. In a flash she knew what Doreen was doing looking out of the window … she was watching the house opposite, hoping to catch a glimpse of Phil. Stupid girl, Molly thought. All she has to do is give him a smile and he’ll be over like a shot. ‘Yer imagining it … I didn’t hear no knock. Now get downstairs and entertain yer friends.’
Doreen passed her without a word, and for a while Molly stood looking at the spot where her daughter had stood. Then, with a sigh, she pulled open a drawer in the dressing table and took out a hankie. ‘She’s a silly article. Her pride will be her downfall.’
Phil stepped away from the window and flattened himself against the wall. He’d nearly got caught out there! He’d been watching the Bennetts’ house, wondering how the party was going and wishing he was there. He wasn’t worried about being seen, thought they’d all be too busy enjoying themselves to look out of the window. But he’d got the fright of his life when he saw the net on the bedroom window move and the shape of someone standing behind it.
‘Serves me right if they saw me,’ he muttered as he fell into the chair and picked up the evening paper. ‘It’s a pity I’ve got nothing better to do.’
He was engrossed in the latest news from Europe when there was a knock on the door. Lowering the paper, he sat for a while, a puzzled expression on his face. The only visitors Aunt Vicky ever had were Molly, Nellie or Mary, and it wouldn’t be them, not tonight. And it certainly wouldn’t be for him.
When the knock came again, Phil laid the paper aside. He’d better open the door in case it was his adopted aunt … she hadn’t taken a key with her because she said she wouldn’t be staying long.
The breath caught in Phil’s throat when he saw who was standing on the bottom step. ‘What the hell are you doin’ here?’
‘Hello, son.’ Tom Bradley was chewing on a matchstick, a sly grin on his sallow face. ‘Just thought I’d call an’ see how yer are.’
‘Don’t you ever call me “son”. I never have been your son, never want to be and never will be.’ Phil was beside himself with rage. How had this man found out where he was! And why had he travelled all the way from Huyton to see him? ‘You’re not welcome here, so just clear off.’
Tom took the matchstick from his mouth and began picking his teeth with it. He eyed Phil up and down, his lip curled. ‘Landed on yer bleedin’ feet here, haven’t yer? The old lady got money, has she?’
Phil made a fist of his hand. Oh, how he’d like to smash the sneering face in. Get his own back for all those years of suffering and humiliation. But he wasn’t about to bring trouble to the home of the woman who had been good to him. ‘Are yer going to leave while yer all in one piece, or do I have to make yer?’
‘Now, there’s no need to take that attitude.’ Tom Bradley’s smile would never be anything but a sneer. He wasn’t capable of genuine warmth or sincerity. ‘Yer ma was worried about yer, so I said I’d come an’ put her mind at rest.’
‘Now you know I’m all right yer can clear off. And don’t bother comin’ back again.’ Phil picked his words carefully. It was obvious his mother hadn’t told Bradley that she’d been down to his works to see him, and he didn’t want to get her in trouble. In any case, she couldn’t have told where he lived because she didn’t know! ‘Just out of curiosity, how did yer know I was here?’
‘Didn’t think we’d find out, did yer?’ Bradley bared his yellow teeth in a snarl. ‘It was easy, really, our Brian followed yer home from work.’
‘They say small things amuse small minds, and minds don’t come any smaller than Brian’s.’ Phil put his hand on the latch, ready to close the door. ‘Now get on yer bike and don’t ever come back again. In fact, I’m surprised yer’ve got the nerve to show yer face around here, seeing as how yer were run out by the neighbours for stealing. But I promise yer this … if I catch yer within a mile of this street, so help me, I’ll flay the livin’ daylights out of yer.’
‘Now don’t be so hasty.’ Tom put his foot on the top step so Phil couldn’t close the door. ‘There’s no need for talk like that. Yer don’t want to upset yer ma, do yer?’
‘Leave me mam out of it.’
‘But yer ma’s the reason I came! Yer see, she misses yer few bob every week an’ I think it’s only right and proper that yer should turn somethin’ up. Just a few bob a week to help out, that’s all I’m askin’ for. After all, she is yer mother.’
Phil couldn’t believe the man’s bare-faced cheek. ‘An’ although you’re a pathetic excuse for one, you’re her husband! It’s your responsibility to look after her.’ He gave a bitter laugh. ‘What’s wrong, can’t yer take care of yer own family? Not enough easy pickings from the people of Huyton, is that it?’
‘Yer’ve no bleedin’ right to talk to me like that! After all the years I gave yer a roof over yer head? Ungrateful soddin’ bastard, that’s what yer are. All we’re askin’ for is a few measly bob. Yer’ve hopped in lucky here … I bet yer don’t have to hand over a penny.’
‘Whether I do or not is none of your business. Nothing in my life has anythin’ to do with you now, thank God. So push off before I kick yer the full length of this street. An’ don’t think I won’t, because nothin’ would give me greater pleasure.’ He moved forward and Bradley stepped back, a look of fear on his face. ‘Get going, now!’
Tom Bradley backed a few steps, out of harm’s way. ‘I’ll go, but yer haven’t seen or heard the last of me. There’s more than one way of skinning a cat, as yer’ll find out to yer sorrow.’ He didn’t wait to see the reaction his words brought, but took to his heels and fled down the street. He made a comical figure as he covered the ground, but Phil knew there was nothing remotely amusing about Tom Bradley. He was cunning, evil and dangerous. He didn’t care who he hurt and he was capable of causing untold harm.
As he picked the paper up and sat down, Phil’s anger turned to worry. Not for himself, but for the woman who’d given him shelter, made him feel as though he was part of a family. She was the grandmother he’d never had, and her friends, Nellie and Molly from over the road had taken him to their hearts and treated him as though he was one of them. Even the neighbours had a smile and a greeting for him.
Phil gave a deep sigh as he scanned the front page of the paper. He saw the printed words but couldn’t concentrate on their meaning. His mind was full of what Tom Bradley had in store for him. Not for one moment did he doubt the man’s threat. One way or another he’d get his own back. And in his quest for revenge he’d wreck the life Phil had made for himself and ruin his chance of happiness.
He closed his eyes as thoughts whirled around in his head. What would happen if Bradley came one day when he was at work? It was the sort of thing the devious devil would do. He wouldn’t harm the old lady, he was too crafty for that, but he could put the fear of God into her.
‘There’s nothin’ else for it, I’ll have to warn her.’ Phil spoke to the empty room. ‘It wouldn’t be fair not to, after she’s been so good to me.’ His eyes on the ceiling, he wondered how he could tell her without alarming her. I could tell Molly and Nellie … ask them to keep an eye open. They’d spread the word to
the other neighbours and if Bradley showed his face he’d soon be sent packing.
But was it right to expect other people to get involved in his problems? Phil sighed. The best thing he could do to spare the old lady any trouble was to get out of her life. The thought saddened him, because he’d grown to love the frail, gentle woman, but what else could he do? He’d be out of his mind every day at work, wondering when Bradley would strike … and how.
This time the sigh came from deep within him. Just when he was beginning to value the warmth of happiness and real friendship, it was to be snatched from him. The day his mother had married Tom Bradley, she’d put a jinx on her son, and it seemed he was going to suffer from it all his life.
Phil idly turned the page of the newspaper and found himself looking into a man’s face. It caught his attention because it was a full-page photograph of a moustached soldier whose finger seemed to be pointing directly at him. Across the top of the page, in big letters, were the words YOUR COUNTRY NEEDS YOU.
Chapter Twenty-Three
‘I’m sorry I wasn’t here for yer party, princess, but I’m afraid it couldn’t be helped. Yer know I’d have been here if it had been humanly possible.’ Corker’s huge frame seemed to fill the small room. He’d come straight from the ship, his canvas bag slung over his shoulder and a huge grin on his weatherbeaten face. ‘Me favourite girl an’ I have to go and miss her big day.’ He lowered his bag and stood it next to the sideboard, making sure it was safe and couldn’t topple over. Then he held his massive arms wide. ‘Come an’ give yer Uncle Corker a big kiss.’
Jill stood on tiptoe to fling her arms around his neck. ‘We were hoping you’d make it, Uncle Corker, but I understand.’ She gave him a kiss on the cheek, her nose wrinkling as the coarse hairs of his beard tickled her skin. ‘We missed you, didn’t we, Mam?’
‘We sure did … we could have done with yer here to play yer concertina. It was a really good do, though, even if I do say it meself.’ Molly looked on, happy to see the man she counted as one of her best friends. ‘It was a party an’ a half, an’ that’s a fact. We made so much noise it’s a wonder the neighbours didn’t complain.’ She chuckled. ‘Mind you, Mrs Connelly next door is as deaf as a doorpost, she probably didn’t hear a sound. And with Ellen being in here I didn’t have to worry about the neighbours the other side.’
‘I’ve still got a hangover from it,’ Jack chuckled. ‘It was three o’clock before we managed to get rid of everyone … they were havin’ such a good time we literally had to throw them out.’
‘And four o’clock before we got to bed.’ A smile hugged the corners of Molly’s mouth. ‘I made them all stay up until the mess was cleared away. Yer should have seen the place, it looked as though a bomb had hit it. I didn’t fancy the idea of comin’ down to face it, so I made them all get stuck in an’ tidy up.’
‘We’ll have another little celebration before I go back, eh, princess? Just a few drinks down at the pub so I won’t feel left out.’ Corker bent to loosen the ties on his sailor’s bag. ‘I’ve brought a little present for you and Steve … somethin’ for yer bottom drawer.’ Using both hands he brought out a large, bulky parcel which he placed carefully on the table in front of Jill.
‘Don’t open it now, wait until I’ve gone. And be careful when yer unwrapping it, there’s breakables inside.’
‘Ah, can’t I open it now?’ Jill’s face was aglow with happiness and excitement. ‘Please?’
‘I’ll be gone in a minute an’ yer can open it then.’ Corker ruffled her blonde hair as he gazed down into the vivid blue eyes. ‘It comes with love and my best wishes.’ Turning his head slightly, he winked at Molly. ‘And yer can tell Steve he’s the luckiest lad alive to have landed you! If I’d been twenty years younger I’d have given him a run for his money.’
‘Oh, Uncle Corker, I can’t tell him that!’ Jill’s long, slender fingers were running over the parcel, trying to guess by the shape what was inside. ‘I can’t wait to see what it is.’
Corker’s massive hand covered hers. ‘That looks a very pretty ring, let’s have a gander.’
Jill slipped her hand from his and held it aloft, her fingers wiggling for greater effect. ‘It is pretty, isn’t it?’
‘It certainly is! But it’s not as pretty as the girl wearing it.’ Corker pulled the draw cords on his bag and tied them before swinging it over his shoulder. ‘I better be on my way an’ see how me ma is.’
‘She’s fine, Corker,’ Molly told him. ‘Me an’ Nellie went up to see her yesterday. She said she was expectin’ yer home any day.’
‘It was a load off me mind when Ellen wrote that the Bradleys had done a flit.’ Corker’s laugh ricocheted off the walls. ‘They’ve saved me a job!’
‘Aye, it was good riddance to bad rubbish,’ Jack said. ‘They were a bad lot.’
Molly’s head jerked up and down in agreement. ‘Yer can say that again! How young Phil turned out to be such a good lad, livin’ with that family, is a mystery. Yer know he’s still with Victoria, don’t yer?’
Corker nodded. ‘Aye, Ellen’s kept me up to date with the news. She said Miss Clegg’s over the moon with him. And it doesn’t surprise me one bit. I’m a pretty good judge of character, and I’d have bet me bottom dollar on him being a good ’un.’
‘We’ve got loads to tell yer, Corker, but I know yer on pins to get home so we’ll leave it until yer’ve got more time.’
‘Like twenty-four hours.’ Jack stood up and thrust his hands in his trouser pockets. ‘Yer’ll need that long when Molly and Nellie start gabbing … they’ll talk the ears off yer.’
‘Hey, just watch it, me laddo!’ Molly put both hands on his chest and pushed him back in the chair. ‘I’ll see Corker out.’
The big man planted a kiss on Jill’s head. ‘Congratulations, an’ I hope yer like the present.’
Preceding him down the hall, Molly asked over her shoulder, ‘Does Ellen know yer home?’
‘Not yet. I’ll give a knock now when I’m passing, but I won’t go in. I’ll go home first and see me ma, have somethin’ to eat, get washed and changed, then come back.’
‘She’s a different woman these days, Corker, thanks to you. She didn’t half enjoy the party an’ really let herself go.’ Standing on the top step, her eyes level with his, Molly said, ‘An’ the kids have never stopped talkin’ about their party, they had the time of their lives. It was a pleasure just looking at the sheer enjoyment on their faces. I don’t think they’d ever had a party before.’
‘They hadn’t!’ Corker’s sigh came straight from his heart. ‘But the bad days are behind them now, an’ I’ll make sure they never come back.’
‘Good for you!’ Molly said, giving him a broad wink. ‘I think yer a crackin’ man, Jimmy Corkhill, an’ Ellen’s a lucky woman.’ She watched as he walked the few steps to the house next door. ‘Ta-ra, Corker, see yer tomorrow.’
In her eagerness to see Jill’s present, Molly banged the door without thinking. Too late she remembered that Ruthie was asleep upstairs, ‘Oh, yer stupid article,’ she scolded herself, ‘yer’ll have gone an’ woken her up now!’ With a hand covering her mouth, she stood for a few seconds at the foot of the stairs, dreading the shout that would tell her she’d woken the child. But there wasn’t a sound and she breathed a sigh of relief. ‘Thank God for that!’
‘Mam, look what Uncle Corker’s brought us.’ Jill was staring wide-eyed at the array of china and cloths spread out on the table. Picking up a cup, she handed it to her mother. ‘Me dad said it’s real china.’
‘I can see it is, sunshine!’ Molly pulled out a chair and sat down. ‘It’s beautiful!’
‘There’s six of everything, Mam! A full tea service and dinner plates to match. And look at these.’ Jill spread the cloths out for her mother’s inspection. ‘A sideboard runner, a tablecloth and matching serviettes … all hand-embroidered!’
‘Corker doesn’t do things by halves, does he?’ Jack was standing behind Molly’s c
hair, a hand on her shoulder. ‘Those cups and saucers are fit for a king.’
‘Oh, I won’t use them for every day, they’ll go away for special occasions.’ In Jill’s mind was the vision of a glass display cabinet she’d seen in George Henry Lees. Just the thing for showing off the beautiful china spread out before her. ‘Mo bought me a teaset, that can be for everyday use.’ She glanced at the clock on the mantelpiece. ‘Steve will be here soon … I can’t wait to see his face when he sees this lot!’
Molly turned her head and looked up into Jack’s face. ‘Times have changed, haven’t they, love? We didn’t get anythin’ like this when we got engaged, did we?’
Jack smiled down at her, his eyes soft and tender. ‘If my memory serves me right, we got towels, towels, and more towels! I can even remember you saying we’d got enough to open a stall at Paddy’s market.’
Molly gurgled with laughter. ‘Yeah, an’ I can remember you saying that they probably came from Paddy’s market in the first place!’
Jack cupped her face in his hands. ‘We didn’t have much in those days, but it never stopped us from having a wonderful life together, did it? We had each other and that was enough.’
Her presents forgotten for the moment, Jill rested her arms on the table and watched the show of affection. They were never soppy, her mam and dad, at least not in front of the children. But they showed their love for each other in so many ways. Like now, you could almost touch the emotion that was flowing between the two of them. And that’s how it was going to be with her and Steve. They’d be just as much in love after twenty years of marriage as her mam and dad were.
When Corker stepped off the tram the next night, he happened to glance at the row of shops facing him and glimpsed a figure lurking in one of the doorways. He wouldn’t normally have thought anything of it, but it seemed to him that whoever was there had sought the safety of the doorway when they’d seen him get off the tram. He hesitated for a few seconds, telling himself he was imagining things. It was probably just some lad waiting for his girlfriend. But curiosity got the better of him and he walked slowly towards the shop. He was a couple of strides from it when a figure darted out and started to run in the opposite direction. ‘It’s the Bradley boy,’ Corker muttered, quickening his step. ‘What the hell is he doin’ around here?’
