Where Memories Are Made

by Lynda Page

  Ginger’s face lit up. ‘It’s not for the general office, Jackie. It’s addressed to both of us.’

  ‘Me and you! Who’d be sending us anything?’

  ‘I suppose we could open it and find out.’

  Jackie eyed her knowingly. ‘I’m surprised you haven’t already, knowing how little patience you have.’ She scooped up a pair of scissors and held them out to Ginger. ‘Go on then, you do the honours.’

  She opened the box to find it lined with tissue. After she’d peeled this back they both gasped in shock to see two folded dresses side by side. One was of red wool with a thick white leather double-buckled belt, the other in canary yellow satin and chiffon. They both knew instantly who had sent them. Both far too overwhelmed by the gifts to speak, Ginger took out the red dress and held it against her, Jackie doing the same with the yellow one. Out of nosiness Olive, who today had dressed in a shapeless baggy brown calf-length pinafore dress with a thick hand-knitted petrol blue jumper underneath and clumpy red shoes on her feet, plodded over to take a look, pulled a face, then returned to her desk, saying, ‘Not my style.’ Jackie and Ginger shot quick glances at each other in bemusement, knowing her fashion sense.

  Jackie then noticed a folded piece of paper lying in the box. She took it out and quickly read the message it contained. ‘Oh, Ginger, Al’s been taken on as a trainee designer with a fashion house in London! These dresses are his thanks to us for our help towards him landing the job. He didn’t forget us then. He says he’s sharing a flat with four other employees of the firm in a place called Soho … Anyway, he hopes we’re both okay and he’ll write soon. He’s included his address so we can both write to him.’

  Ginger was delighted to hear this but not as much as she was to receive her beautiful dress. ‘Wait until Paul sees me in this … well, if he isn’t in love with me now, he will be then – ’cos I’ll be knocking his socks off!’

  The door to the stairs opened and Ginger’s boss poked her head into the room. ‘Have you forgotten where you work?’ she called. ‘Come on, we’ve a queue of people waiting for our help and you’re due to do the radio announcement in five minutes. Get your skates on!’

  Ginger chuckled. ‘That’s me in trouble again. I’d best get back. Oh, take care of this for me,’ she said, handing Jackie her dress. ‘Make sure you pack it up carefully. Oh, and …’

  ‘Ginger, go back to work,’ Jackie ordered her.

  Not long after that Jackie’s head jerked back up as she heard muted sounds coming from downstairs in reception. ‘Sounds like there’s a bit of a rumpus going on,’ she said to Olive.

  The girl didn’t seem to hear, lost in her own little world as she folded letters and put them into envelopes ready to go in the evening post.

  Jackie had just resumed work when the door opened and two men strode in, dressed in suits and overcoats and both carrying briefcases. They had an official air about them and Jackie wondered just what business had brought them here. She smiled over at them. ‘Good morning. How may I help you?’

  There was no answering smile or trace of warmth in the man who responded, ‘We’re from Her Majesty’s Tax Inspectorate. We want to see your boss.’

  All Jackie’s instincts warned her that this was serious. She politely responded, ‘I’ll let Mr Rose know you’re here.’

  She picked up the receiver of her telephone and spoke briefly into it.

  A moment later Harold appeared, looking quizzical. He first asked to see the men’s identification and, when satisfied they were who they said they were, introduced himself. ‘I’m Harold Rose, Company Accountant. I’m temporarily in charge while the owner, Mrs Drina Jolly, is otherwise engaged. I wasn’t expecting a visit from your office. What can I do for you?’

  The man who had spoken to Jackie was the one who responded. His tone of voice was brusque. ‘We’re here to do an audit. We’ve reason to believe that major fraud is being committed. Leave everything where it is, and you and your staff …’

  Harold looked completely shocked. ‘Major fraud! May I ask on what grounds …’

  The visitor sternly interjected, ‘Mr Rose, round up all the staff in these offices and join the others from downstairs in the ballroom next door. We’ll send for you if we need you.’

  A worried Harold turned to Jackie. ‘Would you please go and ask the staff in accounts to join us, Miss Sims? Tell them to leave everything on their desks just as it is.’

  Jackie went off, returning a couple of minutes later with Maureen Watson and Sally Moulds in tow, both of them looking deeply concerned.

  Then she went across to Olive. ‘Can you put the switchboard on night service? We need to go.’

  The young girl looked back at her in amazement. She had obviously been so lost in her own thoughts she had not been aware of what was going on until now. ‘But I’ve not long got here, Miss Sims. Are you sacking me?’

  Jackie snapped impatiently, ‘Olive, just do as I asked and then come with us.’

  As soon as she had, led by Harold, they all trooped out, leaving the two tax inspectors behind.

  A short while later they had joined the reception staff and were all seated together in a corner of the quiet lounge in the Paradise building.

  It was the head receptionist who spoke first. ‘For government employees they had no manners, had they? Ordered everyone out of reception, including us, like we were a herd of cows, with not even the courtesy of an explanation. I can’t imagine what the campers there at the time will be thinking.’ She looked at Harold. ‘Are you going to tell us what’s going on, Mr Rose?’

  He wasn’t listening. Instead he said to Jackie, ‘Mrs Jolly needs to be informed of what’s going on. That’s the first thing I should have done when those men turned up. I was so shocked by what they told me, I wasn’t thinking straight. I can’t recall her home telephone number, can you?’

  Jackie shook her head. ‘I’ve got it written down in the office but I’ve not had any cause to telephone her there for the last few months so I don’t remember it off-hand. Oh, but isn’t she coming over anyway, to collect the accounts to take with her to her business meeting? That’s why you were behind closed doors this morning giving them a check over to make sure everything was present and correct.’

  ‘Oh, yes, of course.’ Harold looked at his watch. ‘She’ll be on her way now. Her meeting is at eleven in Lincoln, I understand. Oh, dear, I don’t know whether this means she will have to postpone it. The inspectors won’t let her take the books anywhere until they’ve given us the all clear. I’d best go and wait outside for her to arrive, and tell her what is going on.’

  He made to get up but was stopped by the sight of Drina herself hurrying across the lounge towards them, looking very smart in a blue woollen two-piece and matching coat, low-heeled black court shoes on her feet and a matching handbag over her arm. She was looking extremely puzzled. Harold shot out of his chair and went to greet her.

  ‘What is going on, Mr Rose? I’ve just tried to get into reception and it’s locked. Why is that, and what are you all doing in here?’

  As he explained, her face fell. ‘Major fraud! What on earth makes the tax inspectors suspect us of that?’

  Harold gulped. The accounts were purely his domain so to him this situation was his worst nightmare. It was resurrecting old insecurities he had worked hard to conquer. ‘I’ve … I’ve no idea, Mrs Jolly. Someone has obviously given them a tip off that they have taken seriously enough to do an audit.’ He began to wring his hands nervously. ‘But, Mrs Jolly, please let me assure you …’

  Drina cut in with conviction, ‘You have no need to assure me of anything, Mr Rose. I know they won’t find a penny out of place. Someone is obviously playing a mean-minded joke on us. What they hope to gain by this I can’t work out, except for wasting all our time.’ She then fumed, ‘Oh, damn and blast. I shall have no choice but to postpone my meeting as without the accounts there’s no point in having it.’

  A thought struck Harold then. ‘Mrs
Jolly, it couldn’t be that someone doesn’t want your plans to go ahead, could it?’

  She thought about this for a moment before she responded, ‘No one else is privy to my plans except Rhonnie, Artie and my bank manager. The other parties involved wouldn’t want to stop this going ahead as they would stand to lose valuable commission.’ She noticed Harold was still looking bothered about something. ‘What’s on your mind?’

  ‘Oh! It’s just that I found it odd the inspectors didn’t want me near at hand to answer any queries that might arise, that’s all.’

  ‘Mmm, yes, I would have expected that too.’

  ‘And I’m surprised they didn’t ask me to dig out the Fiscal Reports for last year before they sent us off. I would have thought they’d need those to aid their investigation and I keep a set locked in the safe.’

  Before Drina could make any comment she heard her name being called and turned around to see Rhonnie heading over to them pushing a pram. On joining Drina and Harold, she said with a bemused frown on her face, ‘I thought you would have collected the books by now and be on your way to your meeting in Lincoln. What’s going on? After you left this morning, I was going to take Danny for a walk down the lane but then I thought why not come over here, pop in to see Jackie and accompany her on her walk around the camp today? The door to reception is locked though so I couldn’t get in and it was the driver of your taxi who told me the same thing had happened to you and he’d seen you heading off into here.’

  She looked extremely concerned when Drina enlightened her. ‘It’s got to be some disgruntled camper behind this whose holiday didn’t match up to expectations and they’ve stirred up the Revenue to get their own back. They won’t find anything.’

  This explanation seemed to hold weight with Drina. ‘Yes, of course, it’s got to be.’

  Harold sighed in relief.

  Drina said, ‘Well, all we can do is wait until the inspectors have finished their audit and are on their way. I’ll just go and make a call to cancel my appointment, then I’d better wait here with you all just in case the Revenue have any questions for me as the owner.’ She asked Harold, ‘Would you be kind enough to go and tell the driver I won’t be needing him today after all?’

  Rhonnie suggested Jackie order tea and coffee for them all. Drina returned, having made her telephone call, and sat down next to Rhonnie.

  Harold returned looking very preoccupied. Drina asked why.

  ‘Oh, it’s maybe nothing, Mrs Jolly, but I was just heading back here after giving the taxi driver your message when I saw a Rolls-Royce coming through the gates. It drove down to reception and then a chauffeur got out to open the passenger door.’

  Frowning quizzically, Drina asked, ‘Did you see who got out?’

  Harold shook his head. ‘No, a crowd of campers were walking past on their way into the Paradise and blocked my view.’

  Sitting next to Drina, rocking her sleeping son in her arms, Rhonnie piped up, ‘Who would be visiting Jolly’s in a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce?’

  Jackie, who was sitting next to her, had a think and said to Drina, ‘Mr Butlin has a Rolls-Royce, doesn’t he? Maybe he’s heard you’re back and has brought Mrs Butlin over to congratulate you on the arrival of Danny. He’s very thoughtful like that, isn’t he?’

  Drina smiled. ‘Yes, he is. I’m sorry to have missed him. They will have gone off by now, finding reception locked … can’t imagine what he’ll be thinking about that … but I’ll telephone Billy later and ask them both over for dinner the next time they’re up visiting their camp in Skegness.’

  Ginger, who had already had one reprimand that morning so really didn’t want to risk getting another so soon, had until then managed to keep quiet. By now mortally fed up with sitting around doing nothing, however, she didn’t realise she was speaking her thoughts aloud.

  ‘Them inspectors are taking their time, aren’t they? How long does it take to look through a set of accounts anyway? I know they’ve locked us out but I’ve a good mind to climb up the fire escape and let myself in through the door on the second floor, ask them how much longer they’re going to be.’

  Harold shot her a stony glance. ‘You’ll do no such thing! I know from working for the tax office before I came to Jolly’s that we could be in serious trouble for interrupting an audit by Her Majesty’s Government Inspectors, for any reason. Now sit there and keep quiet until we’re given the all clear to get back to work.’

  Shamefaced, Ginger sat back in her chair, folded her arms and pressed her lips tightly together.

  Drina hid a smile. Ginger had only voiced what she would like to do herself.

  For the next hour the gathering kept themselves entertained by talking amongst themselves. Except for Olive and Harold. She took a set of knitting needles and some vivid lime green wool out of her capacious handbag and used the time to add some more rows to what could have been a scarf … a sleeve … it was hard to tell. Harold sat quietly with his own thoughts. He knew the tax inspectors wouldn’t find anything suspicious in his meticulously kept books, but that didn’t stop anxiety from gnawing away in the pit of his stomach.

  It was approaching twelve o’clock and the inspectors had been carrying out their audit for almost two hours when a barman came hurrying over to speak to Drina. ‘Excuse me, Mrs Jolly, but we’ve just had a telephone call. You’ve all been asked to go up to the office.’

  She smiled at him. ‘Thank you, Robin.’ As he returned to the bar, looking relieved, she said to Harold, ‘This must mean the inspectors have done enough of an audit to satisfy themselves that any information they’ve received is a hoax and this has all been an utter waste of everyone’s time. Hopefully it’s not too late for me still to have my meeting today.’ She clapped her hands to gain everyone’s attention and announced, ‘You’ll all be pleased to hear we can return to work.’

  Rhonnie said to Jackie, ‘Danny is due a feed so I’ll come back to the office, give him his bottle and change his nappy, if that’s all right?’

  Jackie looked aghast that Rhonnie was asking her permission. ‘Yes of course it is. And you’ll still come with me on the walk around afterwards?’

  ‘I’d love to.’ Then it became apparent that Rhonnie’s terrible bereavement and new motherhood had not diminished her abilities to sense when something was up with the young girl she had befriended and helped to transform into a sophisticated young woman. ‘I’ve a feeling you’ve had some suffering of your own to deal with while I’ve been away. When we’re walking about, if you want to talk about it and I can help you in any way, then please feel free.’

  Jackie smiled at her by way of acceptance.

  As they all trooped out no one noticed Olive was still sitting knitting, oblivious to what was going on around her.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  They found the door into reception had been unlocked already in readiness for their arrival and several bewildered campers were already standing at the counter wondering where the staff were. Ginger and the other receptionists immediately went to deal with them, while Drina, Harold, Rhonnie and her son, and Jackie all went upstairs.

  Drina entered the general office first, expecting the two inspectors to be waiting for them, and was surprised to find just one man perched on the edge of Jackie’s desk. He was tall and slim, dressed in a smart grey striped suit, expensive shoes on his feet. His dark hair was fashionably long, touching the collar of a white shirt. A heavy beard obscured the lower half of his face, and his eyes were hidden behind black-framed spectacles.

  Standing beside Drina, Harold looked at him quizzically. This wasn’t one of the inspectors he had encountered before. Jackie too was eyeing the man with bemusement.

  Unaware of this, Drina held out her hand to him, announcing, ‘I’m Mrs Jolly, the owner of the camp.’

  Expecting him to respond politely, she was stunned when he didn’t attempt to take her hand but instead replied in a sardonic tone. ‘I know very well who you are. We need no introduction.’ He
then took off his glasses and the eyes staring fixedly at her held malicious amusement.

  She stared at the man for a moment. She was sure she had never met him before … but somehow he was familiar to her. Then it hit her and she issued a shocked, ‘Michael!’

  At this announcement, Jackie clamped a hand to her mouth, Harold’s eyes filled with alarm, and Rhonnie, who was holding her son in her arms while concentrating on getting ready what she needed to feed and change him, stopped what she was doing and walked across to join the others. The four of them were well aware that Michael’s unannounced visit was not a social one.

  He smirked nastily at Drina. ‘So you do recognise your son after all, Mother? I don’t know why you’re looking so shocked to see me. After all, I did warn you the last time I saw you that I would some day get what was due me. I was in a position to bring my plan to its conclusion a while ago, but what fun would that have been in your absence? No, I wanted to see your faces … especially yours, Mother … when you discovered what I’ve done. You might even, for once, be proud of me.’

  Rhonnie demanded, ‘And just what have you done, Michael?’

  He turned his attention to her, shooting her the same nasty smirk as he had his mother. ‘Oh, the Merry Widow. I can’t offer you my condolences for your loss because my father’s bastard son meant nothing to me.’

  Jackie then spoke up. ‘Those men weren’t tax inspectors, were they?’

  He settled his malicious eyes on her then. ‘Oh, the little girl speaks.’ He then shot a derogatory glance at Harold, standing mutely by the side of her. ‘Cat still got your tongue, I see. Still jump a mile if anyone sneaks up on you? Oh, how many laughs I had doing that to you when I had the misfortune to work under Mr Green in the accounts office and you were just his clerk, you pathetic creature.’