‘It’s raining here as well.’ Jane gave a glance towards the window, where the rain was running down the windowpane.
‘You wanted me?’ asked Lucy.
‘Well, if I could ask for your help again…’ began Jane. She explained why she wanted to contact the former matron of the orphanage. She ended up by saying, ‘Bob thinks she may have some information about the change of names.’
‘She retired before I went to work there. I’m not sure if there’s anything about her around…’ Lucy seemed to be slowly speaking aloud her thoughts. Then she responded quite positively. ‘But I’ll have a look and see what there is.’
‘It would be marvellous if you could. I’d really appreciate that. Just so that I can contact her.’
‘Leave it with me. I’ll see what I can do.’ Lucy sounded quite upbeat about everything.
Jane was about to thank her, but Lucy interrupted. ‘Jane, I must go now. Patty wants me. But leave everything with me and I’ll contact you again.’
‘Super. You’re an angel in disguise,’ said Jane.
There was a chuckle at the other end of the phone. ‘I wish Laura Brompton thought so. Must go. Bye for now. Talk to you soon.’
‘Bye,’ Jane called out into the phone. But Lucy was gone.
Jane put the phone down and hurried back into the warmth of the bathroom. Standing only for a few minutes talking to Lucy, but practically naked and sopping wet into the bargain, had made her feel chilly.
It was coming up to six when once again Jane made her way to Gerald and Anna’s apartment. She had hardly rung the bell before Anna opened the door.
‘Now come right in, Jane. Dinner’s nearly ready. Gerald’s in the lounge.’
Jane stepped into the hallway with a smile and a brief, ‘Hello again.’ At the same time Anna called out, ‘Gerald, Jane’s here.’
As they moved towards the lounge, Anna suddenly turned and looked at Jane admiringly. ‘You look very pretty,’ she said. ‘That dress really suits you. Look what Bob is missing.’ She laughed.
Jane almost blushed at Anna’s comment. Instead she smiled cheerfully and said, ‘Thank you.’ Her dress, a pretty floral one with an open neck and short sleeves, was an old favourite that had been in her clothes collection for a long time. For comfort and to match the dress she had decided to wear her soft white pumps. She also knew that if Bob had been around she would have taken more time and care in choosing what she wore. Still it was nice to receive compliments about her appearance.
It was at that moment that Gerald appeared in the lounge door, newspaper in hand. He grinned at Jane and greeted her. ‘Hello, Jane. Welcome.’
‘Gerald, get a drink for Jane while I finish off the dinner.’ Anna appeared to be in her element organising her husband.
Jane found herself in the lounge sitting opposite Gerald, a sherry in her hand. She began to relate to him the contents of her telephone conversation with Lucy. It was a lengthy process, with much repetition, because Anna kept popping in and out from the kitchen, so that Jane often had to repeat something to include her in the update.
When she had finished, Jane waited for Gerald’s opinion. Gerald was quiet for a few seconds, and then he stroked his goatee beard thoughtfully. Jane had noticed before that he often did this when he was pondering a situation.
She suddenly thought of something she hadn’t mentioned. ‘I spoke to Bob earlier and he seemed to think that the best solution was to try and contact Mrs Marshall, the matron of the orphanage at the time I was placed there.’
Gerald was almost thinking aloud. ‘There are several options we could try,’ he replied. ‘We could check out other families in the area with the name Carroll, but that could take some time. I think the best and immediate thing to do would be to try and contact this Mrs Marshall, as Bob suggested.’
‘I phoned Lucy to see if she can find a contact address for her,’ added Jane.
‘That’s good. She should know something,’ replied Gerald with a smile.
It was at this moment that Anna returned to the room. ‘Now, Jane,’ she said. ‘Come and sit down at the table. Dinner is all ready.’ She turned to Gerald. ‘Gerald, wine!’ Anna was enjoying herself. Gerald grinned at Jane, disappeared for an instant and returned carrying a bottle of wine.
Jane obediently sat herself down where Anna directed her. This was the first time she had been invited by the couple for dinner. Her previous contact with them had been simply as nearby neighbours. It had been her recent involvement in family history and the role Gerald had taken on in helping her that had placed the relationship on a friendlier basis. She had grown to appreciate Gerald’s advice and help with her research, but there were times when she had to admit to herself that she found Anna’s fussiness a bit over the top. This was quite evident tonight.
‘Jane! You’ve hardly got any food on your plate. Do help yourself to more potatoes and vegetables.’ Anna pointed to the dishes piled with food.
Jane smiled and nodded. Out of politeness she said, ‘Perhaps later. Let me get through this first.’
Even that was not enough for Anna. ‘Bob won’t like you if you’re thin,’ she joked. ‘Most men like their women to have a bit of meat on their bones. It makes them more cuddly in bed.’ She ended with a laugh.
Jane was about to say that she didn’t consider herself too thin and that all the men in her life so far had liked her just as she was, but she realised that it was best to just let the incident pass. There was no point in having a disagreement with Anna. Instead she changed the subject. Turning to Gerald, she asked a question that had been bothering her ever since her conversation with Lucy.
‘Gerald, what do you think about the name Ruth Ashington, which had been erased from the orphanage records?’
When it came to family history, Gerald was immediately alert. ‘Ah, now that is extremely interesting. Not only from your point of view, Jane, but also the name itself. I seem to think I’ve encountered that name before somewhere. I must look into that.’
Suddenly Anna piped up, ‘Gerald, what about Eric? He would know.’
Gerald’s face lit up. ‘Yes, of course. Eric would most likely know something. I’ll contact him next week.’
He turned to Jane and explained. ‘I have this friend I’ve known for many years. Eric Alcott. He’s a real family history enthusiast and has delved deep into family names.’ He laughed. ‘You can’t ask him the wrong question,’ he added.
‘Perhaps you’re descended from aristocracy,’ suggested Anna, addressing Jane.
Jane made a face. ‘I’m not sure about that,’ she replied, laughing.
‘Well, you never know,’ insisted Anna.
The evening continued in quite a light-hearted fashion. In the end Jane quite enjoyed Gerald and Anna’s company. It was nearly ten o’clock when she finally took her leave, after her offer to help with the clearing and washing up was firmly refused by Anna.
Letting herself into her apartment, the first thing she did was to check the answering machine. There were no messages. The most likely people to have called were Lucy and Bob. She knew Lucy would not be contacting her until the coming week, and Bob was obviously tired out.
She considered getting her laptop out and playing with the family history programme, which so far had received little attention from her. However, she changed her mind almost as soon as the idea cropped up. That was something she could do tomorrow. Ten minutes late she was tucked up in bed.
Chapter 18
It was on the Monday evening that Jane heard from Lucy again. She had returned from work and was busy preparing a meal when the phone rang. She rushed to answer it.
‘Hello.’
‘Jane, it’s Lucy.’
‘Lucy, how marvellous!’
‘I thought I’d give you a ring before I put Patty to bed. Raymond is amusing her at the moment.’
‘No more sign of the problem you had with her last week?’ asked Jane.
‘No, thank goodness.’
Before Jane could reply, Lucy burst out with, ‘Anyway, I’ve got some news for you!’
‘That sounds really interesting!’ Jane could hardly contain her excitement.
Even Lucy sounded quite exhilarated as she continued. ‘Well, I managed to find some details about Mrs Marshall. I found an old letter file and in it was a letter written after she’d retired, thanking all the staff for her retirement present. The letter has an address on it.’
‘Gosh, that’s fantastic!’ exclaimed Jane. ‘What’s the address?’
‘Hang on. I’ve got it here somewhere.’ Lucy paused for a second. ‘Ah, here it is. It’s number 10 Tipton Street.’
Jane was busy writing. ‘Is that near you?’ she asked.
Lucy chipped in immediately. ‘No. This is the good bit. It’s in your direction. South-east London. Postcode is—’
‘Just a minute!’ Jane wailed. ‘My pen’s run out.’
It took a minute for her to find another pen from her work bag and continue taking down the details. When she had finished she was full of praise for Lucy’s efforts.
‘Lucy, that really is fantastic. I can’t thank you enough for finding this for me.’
‘All part of Goodmanton Orphanage’s service,’ laughed Lucy. She became more serious. ‘I hope it turns out to be of some help,’ she said.
‘So do I,’ replied Jane. ‘Mrs Marshall should know something. After all, she was in charge of the orphanage when I darkened its doors.’
‘Well, I should hope so.’ Jane heard Lucy give a little sigh. ‘Now I’d better get some supper for that husband of mine.’
Jane immediately took the hint. ‘Yes, you must. Don’t let me keep you.’
‘Oh, it’s OK,’ said Lucy casually.
Jane could feel that Lucy wanted to end the call. She took matters into her own hands. ‘Well, once again, thank you for your efforts. I’ll say good bye for now.’
Lucy took the offer up. ‘No problem. Let me know how you get on.’
‘I will. Bye for now.’
‘Bye,’ Lucy called, and then the line went dead.
Jane returned to the kitchen and her evening meal. She was well pleased with Lucy’s efforts. Tomorrow she would try phoning the address to see if she could talk to Mrs Marshall, or better still, meet her again. She wondered if the former matron would remember her. She thought perhaps not. Suddenly a thought occurred to her. She had no phone number for her. Perhaps she could get it from Directory Enquiries. She hadn’t used that for years. But didn’t you need the name of the telephone account holder? She wasn’t sure. An idea came to her. She would ask Gerald. He would be sure to know.
She was still thinking about everything as she finished preparing and eating her meal. As soon as she had washed up her few dishes, she headed downstairs to Gerald and Anna’s apartment. It was Gerald who answered the door. It seemed that they had been watching television, because Anna called to Jane from the lounge to come in.
Jane stepped into the hallway, but she was conscious that she had perhaps interrupted Gerald and Anna’s entertainment, so she decided to make her visit short. She gave Gerald brief details of Lucy’s phone call, and explained her concern about obtaining a phone number.
Gerald was his usual helpful self. He wrote down the address and said with a smile, ‘Leave it with me. There are ways and means of doing it.’
At that point Anna appeared in the lounge doorway and scolded him for keeping Jane in the hallway. Then she wanted to make Jane a coffee.
Jane declined politely, explaining that she had just eaten and was rather tired that evening, which was quite true, as it had been a hard day at work. She said goodbye and left. She was growing more and more aware that she was leaning heavily on Gerald for help with sorting out her past, but he always insisted that he enjoyed doing it and it gave him something to amuse himself with, as he termed it.
Back in her own apartment, she fiddled with her laptop for a while. While she was playing with her family history programme Bob phoned. He had called her every day over the weekend. She still had a lot to tell him. First was the telephone call from Lucy, and then all the gossip from her day at work. Then Bob told her he had fixed everything for the dinner dance. That reminded her that she would have to take a few hours off work to sort out a dress for the occasion. Bob was on the phone for over half an hour, and by the time they had finished Jane decided to call it a day. By half past ten she was in bed.
*
It was a busy week for Jane at work. Not only were there the regular features on the magazine to handle, but there were several new ones planned, including the book review section, which had meant extra work for both Jane and Amy. Fortunately, Annette was out of the office quite a lot, and this enabled them to get on with some work, although they still had to endure Annette’s early-morning meetings when she was around.
When Jane returned home on the Tuesday evening, she discovered that a note had been pushed through her letter box. It simply said:
Here is the telephone number you need. Let me know the outcome.
Gerald
Jane was thrilled. Good old Gerald, she thought. He comes up trumps every time. Now she held the key to the next stage of her research. Dumping her bag on the floor, she glanced at her watch. It was only just after six. Why not now? The next instant she was dialling the number. She had not planned what to say, but she would let that take its course. The phone at the other end of the line started to ring. It rang and rang. Jane hung on, hoping against hope that it would be picked up, but clearly nobody was there to answer it. Slightly disappointed, she replaced her phone and went into the kitchen.
She tried again later that evening and then next day at work, but it was always the same – no answer. Each time she tried and failed, she grew more frustrated. Sometimes it seemed as though she were just hitting a brick wall trying to establish exactly who she was. Now every time she saw her name somewhere, a pang of anxiety clouded over her. Was she really that person? And if not, who was she? What was her real identity?
A highlight of the week was when she took an extended lunch break one day and went shopping for a new dress for her evening out with Bob. She was let down with the first shop she went to. She had been sure she would find something there, but she was disappointed. Luck was with her at the next shop she tried. They had exactly what she had in mind. As soon as she tried the dress on, she knew it was the right one. It was long, in a pleasing shade of blue, with a plunging neckline. She hadn’t worn anything like that since her marriage, but on this occasion she was determined to surprise and please Bob. On top of that she knew the dress suited her and she had the figure to wear it. The sales assistant packed the dress up into a box and Jane paid the bill. She felt the price was a bit more than she had expected to pay, but she compensated that with the thought that she didn’t go to a dance every week. Of course, when she returned to work, before she could hide the box away under her desk the other members of staff spied it and started to ask questions.
The first was Margaret. ‘And who’s been out shopping for clothes?’ she piped up.
Jane laughed. ‘It’s a new dress for a dinner dance I’m going to next week.’
‘Let’s see it.’ Both Margaret and Amy, who had joined her, uttered the same request.
Jane obediently unfastened the box and revealed the dress.
‘Oh, it’s lovely!’ exclaimed Margaret.
The response from Amy was a bit more subdued. ‘I wish I could wear something like that,’ she remarked glumly. She was rather overweight.
Jane was surprised at what Margaret said next.
‘The problem is that we women spend a fortune on a dress like that and the only thing men can think about is getting it off us in the fastest possible way.’
Jane laughed. ‘It’s not always like that, surely.’
Margaret sniffed. ‘I don’t know about that.’
Jane thought that was a bit odd, coming from Margaret. She knew Margaret was married and the rem
ark made her wonder if Margaret’s relationship with her husband was all that good. Margaret rarely talked about her private life, unlike Amy, who constantly moaned about her partner. The party was broken up by the appearance of Annette returning from a late lunch. Jane was glad to get the box with its dress safely stowed away under her desk.
She had just reached home that evening when her doorbell rang. Immediately she guessed it was Gerald.
She opened the door and flung it wide open. She was correct. Gerald stood there beaming at her.
‘Ah, Jane. I wasn’t sure if you were home yet.’
‘Just got back. Do come in, Gerald,’ she invited.
Gerald stepped into the hall. ‘I don’t want to delay you. You need to make yourself a meal, but I just thought I’d give you a bit of information I’ve discovered.’
Jane was immediately intrigued and curious. Gerald usually came up with something interesting. ‘Will you come and sit down?’ she asked, nodding towards the lounge door.
Gerald shook his head. ‘No, Jane. I won’t hinder you, but I just wanted to let you know a couple of things.’
He hesitated and looked at her. She smiled encouragingly.
Gerald continued. ‘I’ve been looking into this name you discovered in the orphanage records – Ashington. It appears to be quite an old and prosperous family. They hail from the Bristol area, which all fits in. They were originally ship owners and later owned sugar plantations in the West Indies.’
‘Gosh, that’s interesting!’ exclaimed Jane.
‘I’ve also had a word with Eric – Eric Alcott, my friend I told you about. I told him what you said about the unexplained change to the orphanage admissions book and that you were wondering whether you might be Ruth Ashington, and he is going to delve a bit deeper into the family history.’
Jane felt a bit embarrassed. ‘You’re all working so hard on my behalf, and so far I feel I’ve not done very much research on my own.’
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