For a moment Rita didn’t move, then she looked at him, a rueful expression on her face. ‘Sorry,’ she said in a small voice and she leaned over and kissed him on the ear. ‘Come on, David,’ she chided, ‘let’s get going, or we’ll be late.’
When they drew up at the house, David lifted Donny, still fast asleep in his carrycot, out of the car. Rita grabbed the change bag and together they walked to the door. Norah opened it before they could ring the bell. She must have been standing at the window waiting for us, Rita thought, a little of her earlier anger creeping back. We aren’t late, well, not much, and here she is on the doorstep.
‘Come on in,’ Norah said, smiling. ‘We’re in the lounge.’
David stood back to let Rita precede him into the room, and the first person she saw was Delia.
‘Deeley,’ she cried in delight, ‘I didn’t know you were going to be here! Why didn’t you say, we could have given you a lift.’ As she went to hug her mother, Rita was suddenly aware of other people in the room and paused to look round. There was an elderly lady sitting in a chair by the fire, and a young lad perched on the window seat.
‘Oh,’ said Rita, ‘sorry, I didn’t realize there were other guests.’
‘Rita.’ It was the old lady in the chair who, very softly, spoke her name.
Rita froze and a waiting silence enveloped the room. She stared at the old woman, who was now struggling out of her chair.
‘Gran,’ she whispered. ‘Gran? Is it really you?’
‘It’s Gran all right,’ said a voice from the window seat, ‘and I’m Rick.’
Rita spun round. ‘Rick? My brother, Rick?’ She looked wildly round the room and found they were all smiling at her. David, his mother and father, Deeley, and miraculously her gran and Rick, her brother.
‘Gran,’ she croaked, ‘oh Gran, I don’t believe it,’ and finally she moved towards the grandmother she hadn’t seen for more than sixteen years, gathering her into her arms, clinging to her, weeping on her shoulder as if she were a little girl once more.
Lily sat down again, and Rita sat at her feet on the floor, still clutching her hand. Having greeted her with an awkward kiss on the cheek and then a bear-like hug, Rick sat beside her. There was so much to say that they didn’t say anything. There were so many years missing, they didn’t know where to begin.
Rita remembered David’s words from earlier in the day, Dad’s got a special present for Donny. He’s gone to a lot of trouble to get it for him. He’ll be most disappointed if we don’t go. She looked up at Andrew, who was standing by the door smiling broadly, and getting to her feet, she went over and put her arms round his neck.
‘You did this for me, Mr Harris,’ she whispered. ‘I don’t know how to begin to thank you.’
Andrew hugged her. ‘I think you could start by calling me Andrew, or if you can’t manage that, how about Grandad, like young Donny?’
Rita reached up, and kissed him on the cheek. ‘Thank you, Andrew,’ she whispered, tears shining in her eyes, ‘thank you so very much.’
There was an excited buzz of conversation in the room as everyone began to talk at once. Andrew produced another bottle of champagne, and when everyone had a glass, he said, ‘I’d like to propose a toast. To young Donald Andrew and all his family, from both sides of the world.’
‘Donald Andrew,’ they chorused, and raised their glasses.
~
We hope you enjoyed this book.
For more information, click one of the links below:
About Diney Costeloe
An invitation from the publisher
About The Throwaway Children
Gritty, heartrending and unputdownable – the story of two sisters sent first to an English, then an Australian orphanage in the aftermath of World War 2.
Rita and Rosie Stevens are only nine and five years old when their widowed mother marries a violent bully called Jimmy Randall and has a baby boy by him. Under pressure from her new husband, she is persuaded to send the girls to an orphanage – not knowing that the papers she has signed will entitle them to do what they like with the children.
And it is not long before the powers that be decide to send a consignment of orphans to their sister institution in Australia. Among them – without their family’s consent or knowledge – are Rita and Rosie, the throwaway children.
About Diney Costeloe
DINEY COSTELOE published several successful sagas in the 1980s, before family life intervened. She lives in Somerset.
Visit her website: dineycosteloe.co.uk
Or follow her on Twitter: @Dineycost
A Letter from the Publisher
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HeadofZeusBooks
The story starts here.
First published in the UK in 2015 by Head of Zeus Ltd
Copyright © Diney Costeloe, 2015
Jacket design: KS Agency
Jacket image: © John Chillingworth/Getty Images
Author photo: © ITV / REX
The moral right of Diney Costeloe to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act of 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
This is a work of fiction. All characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
9 7 5 3 1 2 4 6 8
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN (HB) 9781784970017
ISBN (TPB) 9781784970024
ISBN (E) 9781784970000
Head of Zeus Ltd
Clerkenwell House
45-47 Clerkenwell Green
London EC1R 0HT
www.headofzeus.com
Contents
Cover
Welcome Page
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
About The Throwaway Children
About Diney Costeloe
An Invitation from the Publishers
Copyright
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The Throwaway Children Page 51
