The Golden Anklet

by Beverly Hansford

  Pausing in her eating and drinking and lifting her hand as if to silence them, Anna suddenly asked, ‘Do you know what I think?’

  Jane and Gerald waited, both interested to hear her view of the situation.

  Anna continued. ‘I think this Mrs Marshall could be your mother. Perhaps you were an illegitimate child.’ She waited to learn how her idea grabbed the other two.

  It was Gerald who responded first. ‘It’s not impossible,’ he observed.

  Jane was now even more puzzled. ‘But in that case why reject me and yet at the same time have me close to her?’ she asked. Anna’s suggestion had added yet another dimension to her concerns.

  ‘Perhaps she just wanted to keep an eye on you,’ said Anna.

  Gerald put his mug of coffee aside. He took hold of his paperwork again and scrutinised it for a few seconds. When he spoke, he addressed his remarks to Jane. ‘It’s an odd situation, I have to agree, but I do think there’s an answer somewhere. We just have to keep plodding away at the problem. I’m almost convinced that the clue lies somewhere with the Carroll family.’ He studied Jane’s face for a reaction as he finished speaking.

  His comments, while comforting, raised another worry in Jane’s mind.

  ‘But I feel that I’m leaning an awful lot on you,’ she said. ‘I’ve barely glanced at the computer program you helped me with. You’re doing so much for me. It all seems a bit unfair.’

  Gerald just laughed. ‘Don’t worry about that,’ he assured her with a chuckle. ‘I’m in my element with family history. It gives me something to do in my old age.’ He finished up laughing.

  ‘It gets him out of my way,’ piped up Anna.

  Jane smiled at them both. Gerald’s remark had comforted her a good deal and allayed her concerns. It did prompt another question from her, however. ‘So what do you think is the next step?’ she asked, really addressing Gerald.

  Gerald’s response was immediate. ‘I assume you haven’t heard from the friend you bumped into on Saturday – the one from the orphanage,’ he said.

  Jane shook her head. ‘Lucy? No. Not yet. I’ve been hoping she might ring me this evening, so I don’t want to be away from the phone for too long.’ She glanced at her watch.

  ‘Let’s see if anything comes up there first and then if not, we’ll try to delve deeper into the Carroll family,’ proposed Gerald, putting his paperwork down.

  Jane nodded. There wasn’t much more either she or Gerald could do for now. She voiced one concern that was nagging her, though she smiled as she spoke. ‘The trouble is that whenever I use anything with my name on now, I get a horrible feeling that I’m doing something illegal.’

  ‘I shouldn’t worry too much at this stage,’ Gerald responded. ‘Who knows? It might be your correct name.’

  His calm, methodical approach to things helped to calm Jane’s fears once again. The three of them chatted for another ten minutes or so and then Jane, conscious that she might have a phone call from Lucy, extricated herself from her hosts. Thanking each in turn, she made her way back to her own apartment. Once there, she immediately checked the answering machine for any messages. There was nothing.

  She shrugged off her disappointment. It was quite possible that Lucy hadn’t found the time to do any searching. After all, she had a husband and a daughter to look after, as well as her job at the orphanage. Jane was still confident that Lucy would eventually phone her.

  She pottered about for a while and then at ten called it a day and retreated to bed with a book. As soon as she started reading, tiredness caught up with her, and she was abruptly woken up by the noise of the book dropping onto the floor. She had fallen asleep over the pages. She turned out the bedside light and settled down to sleep again.

  *

  She awoke to a wet morning. It felt quite unusual to walk to her train under an umbrella. Once at the station she was dismayed to learn that her train had been cancelled. It meant a fifteen-minute wait for the next one. Inevitably this was already packed when it arrived. She managed to squeeze in, but any chance of a seat was completely impossible. By the time she got to the office she was a good twenty minutes late. On top of that, despite the umbrella, rain had seeped into her shoes and her feet were cold and wet. She was glad to change into the spare pair of high-heeled shoes she kept in the bottom drawer of her desk for occasions such as this.

  She had hardly completed the task before Amy appeared carrying a mug of tea for her.

  ‘Good morning, Amy,’ Jane greeted her. And then, eyeing the mug of tea, she added. ‘Oh, marvellous! Just what I need. My train was late.’

  ‘I thought that might have happened,’ said Amy. It was unusual for Jane to be late.

  ‘And the next one that came was packed to suffocation,’ commented Jane, clasping her hands around the mug of tea.

  ‘I know the feeling,’ replied Amy, making a face.

  Jane remembered that Amy frequently grumbled about her train always being crowded or cancelled.

  Then Amy piped up, ‘Queen Bee has phoned. She’s not coming in this morning.’ There was almost glee in her voice.

  Jane laughed. ‘Well, that will at least allow us to get on with some work,’ she replied.

  Amy muttered something and then retreated to her own desk.

  Jane smiled to herself. Amy was one of those people who were never at their best first thing in the morning. When she encountered people like that, she felt glad that she was always quite perky when she woke up.

  With the thought of no interruptions from the editor-in-chief, Jane took the opportunity to work her way steadily through quite a lot of work during the morning. When Annette did eventually make an appearance, she appeared to be tied up with several meetings with various visitors, and her contact with Jane was brief. As a result Jane even found the time to do a little groundwork on the forthcoming book review feature. At the end of the day she was pleased with what she had achieved.

  When it was time to finish and go home, she was relieved to discover that the rain, which had persisted all day, had now cleared away and it was now a rather pleasant sunny evening. Even her wet shoes, which had been lodged under her desk for the day, were now dry enough to wear.

  As she let herself into her apartment, the thought uppermost in her mind was whether during the evening she would receive the expected phone call from Lucy. After a quick shower to freshen up, she busied herself preparing a meal, at the same time listening out for the telephone. By half past seven she had eaten her meal and washed up. She wandered back into the lounge and picked up her laptop, intending to check her emails and then play with the family history program. All the time her attention was half on the telephone, waiting for its shrill notes to pierce the quiet of her apartment. But it remained silent.

  The next day – Wednesday – followed a similar pattern, even to the shower of rain Jane had to walk through to get to the station. Fortunately, the train was on time, and she arrived at work before most of the other staff. It was an uneventful day. Annette only wanted her briefly on one occasion, and on the whole the day went well. Only the evening was less positive. There was still no call from Lucy.

  Jane was disappointed, but logic told her that she could not expect Lucy to put all her other chores aside just to help her with her family history; after all, she reasoned, only two days had passed when Lucy might have had time to look into her affairs.

  When Thursday came and there was still no contact from Lucy, Jane was becoming just a little bit more concerned, particularly when during the evening Gerald contacted her to enquire whether she had received any news. She wondered whether she should telephone Lucy, but thought that might appear too pushy. In the circumstances it would be better to wait a few more days.

  Friday was not such a good day at work. Annette was in the office most of the day and seemed intent on causing as much disruption as possible to other people’s work. First thing, she announced that she wanted to see Jane and Amy to discuss a feature that was due for the next iss
ue of Discerning Woman. Amy had done some work on this and Annette found fault with it, much to Amy’s dismay and indignation. It was left to Jane to comfort her after the meeting and pour oil on troubled waters. On top of that, Annette announced that she had contacted someone who could do the book reviews for the magazine and had invited her for a meeting that afternoon. As Jane had only just started to look into various possibilities, she felt she was being put under a bit of pressure unnecessarily. Fortunately, when the arranged meeting took place, Bobby, the prospective reviewer, was quite easy to get on with, and a bonus for Jane was that she announced that she could not do anything for the magazine for at least another couple of months. That took the wind out of Annette’s sails, and she was forced to concede that the project could not be rushed. That did not stop her wanting another meeting with Jane after Bobby had left, to consider whether they should try to find somebody else. Jane did her best to try and eliminate that suggestion, but it was hard work. By the time half past five came she was more than ready to call it a day. She left the office with a grumpy and grizzling Amy.

  Back home in her apartment she felt quite exhausted. Even preparing some sort of meal seemed for once to be a bit of a trial. Now she was on her own in the apartment, her thoughts turned again to the possibility of a call from Lucy. As each day passed and there was no contact from her, Jane became more despondent. She was trying to relax with a mug of tea after her meal, stretched out on the sofa, when the phone rang.

  She jumped up, spilling some of her tea on the table in the process. She dashed to the phone and picked it up. ‘Hello.’

  A strange foreign voice answered. ‘Am I speaking to Mrs Carroll?’

  ‘Miss Carroll,’ Jane corrected.

  The voice continued. ‘I’m Ralph Santos from Billgrave Marketing. We’re doing some research in your area and wonder if you would help us by answering a few questions. It won’t take up much of your time, and you will be entered into our competition to win a holiday.’

  Jane had felt sure that the call was from Lucy. She felt miserable as she answered the caller. ‘I’m sorry, but I don’t want to,’ she responded curtly.

  ‘But it will only take a few minutes, Miss Carroll, and you could win a wonderful trip to Venice.’

  ‘I’m sorry, but I don’t want to take part. Thank you for your call. Goodbye.’

  She put the phone down before the caller could reply. Bitterly disappointed, she wandered back into the lounge and sat down on the settee again. She didn’t feel like doing anything. She noticed the tea she had spilt on the table and jumped up and went into the kitchen to fetch a cloth to mop it up.

  As she returned she was alerted to another noise. It was the unmistakeable, distinctive ring of her mobile phone. That could only mean one thing: it was somebody she knew. She only gave the number to selected people. For a split second she wondered where her mobile was, but the sound directed her. She had left it on the settee. Two strides, and she snatched it up, clicked the button and held it to her ear. ‘Hello.’

  A familiar voice answered. ‘Hi, Jane. It’s me – Bob.’

  Jane was surprised and delighted. Bob didn’t usually call her mobile.

  ‘Bob, what a nice surprise! It’s lovely to hear you.’

  ‘I just had to give you a ring. I’m still at the studio. How are you? Any news from Lucy?’

  Jane snuggled back into the cushioned settee, pressing her bare feet into the opposite end. She was overjoyed to be able to talk to Bob. ‘Oh, I’m fine. Just a bit tired. It’s been one of those days at work.’

  There was a laugh at the other end of the telephone. ‘I know the feeling,’ contributed Bob. ‘But what news from Lucy?’

  His question almost returned Jane to her worried state. ‘Not a word. I really thought I’d have heard from her by now. I’m a bit gutted.’

  There was a slight pause before Bob replied. ‘Hmm. She could be busy, or perhaps she’s not had the opportunity to have a look for anything.’

  Inwardly, Jane had to agree. ‘Yes, I know. I guess I’ll just have to wait.’

  ‘You could give her a ring,’ suggested Bob.

  ‘I did try today, but I don’t want to appear too cheeky. I thought I should give it a few more days before contacting her.’

  ‘That might be a good idea. It sounds as if this Laura Brompton is a bit difficult to work with.’

  Jane took up his suggestion. ‘Yes, of course you’re right. Lucy may not have had a chance to look yet.’

  Jane felt that Bob’s thinking reinforced her own ideas on the subject. She would just have to be patient a little longer.

  A sudden thought prompted her to change the subject. ‘But you’re still at work!’ she exclaimed. ‘It’s turned eight o’clock.’

  Bob sounded a bit more serious as he answered her question. ‘That’s one of the reasons I wanted to talk to you.’

  ‘Tell me more.’

  Bob clearly hesitated before replying. ‘It’s just that this big opportunity at the studio has come up. Jeff and I have taken over an assignment at the last minute from another company that let down the client. It means we’ll have to slog all weekend to get it done.’

  ‘But that’s wonderful for you.’ Jane tried her best to be positive and not let her disappointment show. It was pretty clear that she would not be spending any time with Bob this weekend.

  Bob confirmed her worst fears. ‘Poppet, it means I won’t be able to see you.’

  Jane was determined not to let her disappointment filter through. ‘But of course you must do it. And we’ll make up for it another time.’ She made her reply as cheerful as possible. There was also another angle to the weekend that had been concerning her, but now there seemed to be a get-out. She thought carefully before adding to her comment. She decided to plunge in. After all she knew Bob well enough by now to broach such matters.

  ‘Bob, don’t feel too bad about it. It works out quite well, really. It’s the wrong time of the month for me.’

  Bob answered quickly. ‘Point taken.’ Then he asked, ‘What will you do with yourself?’

  Jane gave a little laugh. ‘Miss you terribly and perhaps catch up on one or two drudge jobs – you know, cleaning, washing…’

  There was another pause from Bob. Clearly, he was thinking about the situation. When he did reply he spoke without conviction. ‘I might be able to see you on Sunday, but I’m not sure about it.’

  Jane was quick to quash the idea. ‘No. Don’t worry about it. Concentrate on the weekend’s work. We’ll make up for it perhaps next week.’ She was trying her best to sound upbeat and cheerful for his sake.

  ‘We’ll have to plan a more exciting weekend soon.’ He sounded quite buoyant again.

  ‘Anything in mind?’ Jane was enthusiastic.

  ‘I’ll think of something. Something different,’ he added quickly. Then his thoughts obviously turned to more mundane matters. His next comment was less enthusiastic.

  ‘Well, I guess I’ll have to wander my weary way home.’

  ‘How long have you been there?’ asked Jane.

  She could hear a bit of a laugh from Bob. ‘Since ten this morning,’

  ‘Gosh. That’s a long day. You must go home now and get some rest.’ Jane’s caring side took over.

  ‘I will. I’ll say goodnight now and give you a ring over the weekend.’ Bob did sound tired.

  ‘Look forward to it. Missing you. Bye for now,’ Jane chipped in.

  ‘The same. Bye.’

  The phone went dead at the other end and Jane clicked off her own mobile. She settled back into the settee. The phone call from Bob had made her evening. Now, if only she heard from Lucy, things would be even better. She waited until the hands of the clock reached ten, but no call came.

  Chapter 16

  For some reason Jane woke up early on the Saturday morning. Perhaps the reason for this was that on the previous two Saturday mornings she had had to get up early and drive up to Bob’s house. This time it was different, and
she awoke to the realisation that there was no rush to get up.

  Her first action was to glance at the bedside clock. It was just coming up to six. She waited for a few minutes and then, throwing back the duvet, she thrust her feet out of the bed and stood up. She went over to the window and peeped out through the curtains. A bleak grey sky greeted her. She looked down into the parking area and spied her car standing there. She watched one of her neighbours walk to his car, which was parked next to hers, reverse out of the space and drive away.

  She closed the curtains and wandered into the bathroom and then the kitchen and made herself a mug of tea. There seemed to be a slight chill in the air and her bed tempted her once again. Snuggling into its warmth, she sat up and pulled the duvet around her, her hands clasped around the mug of tea.

  She went over the events of the last few days. The last week had fully cemented into place her relationship with Bob. Somehow it seemed they got on together and were an admirable support for each other. She guessed that under his calm façade he could perhaps be quite adventurous, yet at the same time remain fully grounded. She liked that in a man; it was what had attracted her to Graham. Last week Bob had shown that he was immensely fond of her. Things were moving in the right direction. She glanced towards her dressing table, where the photograph he had taken of her the previous weekend was propped up. In a way it said everything.

  She finished her tea and lay back in bed. This was a rare luxury, and it had been a hard week. On the one hand the extra effort she had had to make at work, and on the other the waiting for a phone call from Lucy. Prior to Bob’s advice she had rung the orphanage the previous day – and had immediately received a rebuff. It had been clear from the start that the person answering was the manager she and Bob had met the previous weekend.

  ‘Good morning. Is it possible to speak to Lucy Whitney?’ Jane had asked.

  Immediately the voice at the other end of the phone had changed. ‘She’s not here at present. Is this a personal call?’

  ‘Yes, it is.’

  Jane had been ready to identify herself and explain the reason for her call, but the opportunity was denied her. ‘Staff have been instructed not to make or receive private telephone calls here. Please don’t do it again.’