‘Mrs Jessup has turned out to be a real gem,’ Adam readily admitted. ‘She comes in every day from nine to five and I never have to worry about clean shirts, unmade beds or dirty dishes in the sink. Her only fault is trying to fill me with meat puddings and piping hot stews in the height of summer.’
Ned laughed at that. ‘She wouldn’t be looking for a husband, would she?’ he teased. Then he remembered Martha, and the smile fell from his face.
Adam was quick to notice how Ned’s mood had changed. ‘You take these two dishes,’ he pointed to the peas and green beans, ‘and I’ll take the rest.’
In the dining-room, the table was set for Adam. It took only a minute to lay another place opposite. When Ned was seated, Adam brought the jug of ice-cold water from the fridge. Placing another tumbler on the table, he said, ‘If water isn’t to your taste, there’s beer… or I could make you some strong black coffee?’
Ned waved away his suggestion. ‘Water’s fine, son. Anything else would only spoil Mrs Jessup’s beautiful food.’
Aware that Ned was hungry, not just for food but for news of the trial, Adam told him. ‘The verdict was manslaughter. Doug was sentenced to five years.’ He spread the napkin across his knee and sat, still and upright, looking at Ned and feeling great sympathy for this man who sadly appeared to have lost his way in life.
Sighing, Ned closed his eyes, slowly shook his head and spread his hands over his face. For what seemed an age he remained like that, with his head drooped on his chest and his thick fingers hiding his eyes. Then he raised his face and his hands fell away to his knees. ‘For what he did, five years ain’t so bad.’ He smiled faintly. ‘And how did he take it?’
‘He appeared to take it very well. Certainly he seemed in high spirits when they led him away.’ He was remembering how Doug had called out Rosie’s name, and how he had asked her to: ‘Wait for me, my lovely.’ The words were imprinted on his brain. ‘He and Rosie appear to have been happy together, Ned,’ he said now. ‘Being separated this way will be hard for them both.’
For a moment Ned was tempted to tell Adam everything, to reveal how there was very little love between Doug and Rosie, and that for some long time she had led a bitter life with him. But, even now, he felt it was not for him to expose these things. He reasoned that if Rosie wanted Adam to know, she would tell him. ‘And how was Rosie?’ If he was mortally ashamed, it was because he had abandoned her and the boy, not because he had any lingering feelings for either Martha or Doug. They were two of a kind, and had made their own beds.
‘Rosie’s made of strong stuff,’ Adam replied softly. Almost to himself, he added, ‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen her looking more beautiful.’
‘Did you speak to her?’
Adam frowned as he recalled the man who had left with Rosie. ‘I spoke to her only briefly. But she was fine, don’t worry.’
‘And the boy… my grandson. Did you get to see him?’
‘No, I’m sorry.’
‘Still, I know he’s all right. Rosie would never let any harm come to Danny.’ He swallowed hard. ‘Was it all as they said in the papers? Martha threatened to kill the boy? She really did that?’ At times he’d wondered whether there was any end to that woman’s wickedness. But it was ended now, wasn’t it? And who could have imagined it would take Doug to put an end to it? Yet, in spite of that, he couldn’t feel any compassion for his son, no forgiveness or affection, no sympathy or sense of family feeling. Instead, he felt only the repugnance that Doug had felt for him.
‘Everything was exactly as the papers reported it,’ Adam confirmed. ‘It’s done now, Ned, and there’s nothing you can do to turn the tide.’ He had never seen the big man so devastated, and it touched him deeply. ‘Why don’t you eat?’ he asked. ‘Happen later, in a few days or weeks when the dust settles, you can visit Doug… go and see Rosie and Danny. Heal the rift, Ned. You can do that.’ He would have given anything to enjoy that same freedom. But, for reasons known only to herself, Rosie had shut him out.
Seeming to consider what Adam had said, Ned heaped the vegetables on to his plate and cut himself a slice of that succulent salmon. He took a bite and moaned with satisfaction, then put down his fork and told Adam in a thoughtful voice, ‘It’s too late for that. What I did was unforgivable, and I can’t ever go back.’
Adam didn’t argue. A man had to come to terms with his own failings; just as he himself was trying to do.
At half-past nine, after the meal was ended and the two men had relaxed awhile in the big armchairs, Ned stretched his legs and stood up. ‘I’d best be off,’ he said, looking down on Adam. ‘Or I’ll be shut out of me lodgings.’
‘You could always stay here, Ned. You know that.’ Adam stood before him, and his words were sincere.
‘Naw.’ Ned shook his head. ‘It wouldn’t work, and you know it.’
‘Happen you’re right,’ Adam conceded. ‘But while I’ve a roof over my head, so have you. Remember that.’
‘I will,’ Ned promised. ‘But you’ve done enough, son. No man could do more for a friend. You’ve given me a job, so I can hold my head up among my own kind, and you pay me more than I deserve… especially when I left you in the lurch after you were good enough to buy me out. If it hadn’t been for you, I’d have slid deeper in debt and happen be in prison myself now.’ When he’d turned up some weeks back, ill from sleeping rough and full of remorse at having left Martha, Adam had taken him under his wing and made him whole again.
‘I thought we’d agreed never to talk about that matter again. Besides, there was nothing lost. It’s now a flourishing business and, like I’ve told you, Ned, you can be part of it any time you want. To my mind, you’re still the best coal-merchant there ever was. It isn’t your fault you came on hard times.’
Ned put his great hand on Adam’s shoulder. ‘Happen not,’ he said gratefully. ‘But I’ve done my share of worrying about contracts and coal-rounds, and how to balance the books. Shovelling coal and doing odd-jobs suits me just fine. Besides, there are far sharper men than me out there now, son, and you know it.’ He grinned. ‘Look at yourself,’ he pointed out. ‘Young and ambitious enough to make it all come right. What’s more, the buggers don’t come much sharper than you, and that’s a fact.’
‘I’ve had some lucky breaks, that’s all.’
‘And you’ve made the most of ’em, son. That’s what sorts the men from the boys.’ He reached out to shake Adam by the hand. ‘Goodnight, son, and thanks again. I’m a different man from the one you saw a few hours back. And you needn’t worry, I’ll be in the yard sharp on seven tomorrow morning.’ He looked embarrassed. ‘I don’t know what got into me yesterday. I’m not sorry I stayed away from the trial. It’s just that, well, everything got on top of me, and I couldn’t think straight.’
‘Enough said, eh? Get off home to your bed.’ Ned was special to him, a lovely man Adam was always delighted to help.
He watched Ned amble down the street, and was glad to have been there for him. As Ned rounded the corner and Adam turned to go back inside, his attention was caught by two more figures hurrying towards the house; one was a man, the other a small girl. She was crying bitterly. The man was dragging her along, viciously tugging at her arm when she resisted. Adam recognised them at once. They were Connie’s husband and daughter April. ‘What the devil do you think you’re doing?’ he demanded, running down the street towards them. By this time the girl was in a dreadful state and the man was red-faced with fury. ‘What kind of man are you?’ Adam snapped, straddling his legs and blocking the path so there was no way past. ‘You’ll break her arm, pulling her along like that.’ It was all he could do not to lash out with his fist. But the child was upset enough, and he thought the best thing now was to contain the situation.
‘She’s gone.’ The little fellow spoke in a sob, snatching at his face with the tips of his fingers as though some insect was plaguing him. Adam recalled how Connie laughed when she told him: ‘Sometimes I upset him just t
o watch how he grabs at his face until it’s red raw.’
‘She’s gone, I tell you!’
‘Who’s gone? Connie!’ The child had stopped crying and was staring up at Adam with red eyes. He wanted to snatch her up, but he hadn’t the right.
‘Who else?’ the other man snapped. Suddenly he produced a note from his pocket. ‘Read this, you bastard!’ he snarled, thrusting the note into Adam’s hand. When the child whimpered, he tugged at her again. But he stopped when Adam glared a warning at him.
In the lamplight, Adam read the note. It was short and cruel:
I’ve stuck it as long as I can. Don’t look for me this time, because I’m never coming back.
I’ve taken only what’s mine, apart from the girl. But you don’t need to be lumbered with her, because she was never yours. She belongs to Adam.
Goodbye and good riddance,
Connie
Adam was shocked to the roots. ‘Good God above!’ He put out a hand and leaned his whole weight against the wall. Could it be true? In his frantic mind he tried to calculate when it was he had made love to Connie. The child had passed her third birthday some months back, so when was it he and Connie made love? When? For God’s sake, he couldn’t even think straight. No! The girl couldn’t be his. But could she? Happen it wasn’t altogether out of the question.
Before Adam could answer, the other man thrust the child at him. ‘Take the brat! And to Hell with the lot of you! I must have been mad to get mixed up with the slut in the first place.’ With that he swung away and almost ran down the street, leaving the sobbing child clinging to Adam’s trouser leg, and looking up at him with big sad eyes that tore him in two.
‘Well now. It looks like you’ll be staying with your Uncle Adam for a while.’ The child smiled through her tears when he told her, ‘I’ve got apple pie and cream. Want some, do you?’
Blinking away the tears, she nodded eagerly.
‘But you needn’t think you’re getting it all, gutsy.’ She giggled at that, and he hoisted her on to his shoulders. As they went down the street, he muttered through his teeth, ‘You bugger, Connie. You’ve really dropped me in it this time!’ What the authorities would say about it all, he really didn’t know. ‘And whatever will Mrs Jessup have to say when she finds out?’ That made him laugh. And the sound of her Uncle Adam laughing aloud was such a tonic that the child began laughing too.
‘Laugh today, tears tomorrow!’ Adam muttered. He couldn’t get it out of his mind that Connie had said he was the girl’s father. What he felt was hard to describe. But it was a mingling of sheer frustration, dark anger at Connie for having done such a cowardly thing as this, and a sense of bewildered pride that such a beautiful and lovely-natured girl as April might really belong to him.
Chapter Sixteen
‘You surely can’t be so heartless as to turn me away on Christmas Day?’ Robert Fellows stood at Rosie’s front door, a great bunch of flowers in one hand, and under his arm a pile of boxes all wrapped in pretty festive paper. ‘Ask me in, and I promise you won’t be sorry,’ he pleaded in his most charming manner.
It was obvious he had made an extra effort on Rosie’s behalf. He looked attractive in a long dark overcoat and white scarf. His shoes were highly polished as usual, and his hair carefully smoothed down from a side parting, making him look older. Snow was just beginning to fall. It settled on his shoulders like a sprinkling of flour, and the breeze which had chilled the air all morning gathered momentum. He visibly shivered, asking through numbed lips, ‘Or would you rather I froze to death on your doorstep?’
‘Whatever are you doing here?’ she asked incredulously, her brown eyes widening with astonishment. ‘It’s Christmas Day, for goodness’ sake. Have you no home to go to?’ When the knock came on the door, Rosie was just taking the mince pies out of the oven. After that, she and Danny would be ready to take the presents along to Peggy’s house; there was a new scarf for Peggy’s mam, a pair of pearl-drop ear-rings for Peggy, and a selection of inexpensive games and trinkets for the younger ones.
Convinced the visitor must be Peggy, she was taken aback when she opened the door to Robert Fellows.
‘No home, no woman, and no one to share the festivities with,’ he replied. He looked like a lost soul, and Rosie couldn’t help but smile.
‘In that case, you’d better come in.’ Stepping aside, she waited for him to pass her, then shut the door on the weather and shuddered. ‘Brr! You’ve brought the cold in with you. Give me your coat. I don’t want snow all over my new front room carpet.’ It wasn’t entirely new; in fact it was showroom soiled, but she had got it for two-thirds of its value. Best quality, with a dark red background and big cream roses all over, it gave the room a cosy feeling. Next, Rosie wanted two new fireside chairs and perhaps a dining table… a round oak one, and four tall-backed chairs with pretty seat cushions. But money was still short and her savings didn’t mount up as fast as she would have liked, so a new table and chairs would have to wait. Meanwhile, she enjoyed window shopping in the big stores in Manchester and Blackburn. On top of that she comforted herself with the knowledge that she was keeping up with the rent and when it was cold outside, there was always a cheery fire in the grate, Danny had a new coat, and the larder was full to bursting. Life was ticking along without too much upset, and that was enough to be thankful for.
These days, since Martha and Doug were gone from it, the house had taken on a new lease of life. Thinking of her husband made her blood run cold. Two days ago she had received a letter from him. It was the letter of a madman.
‘You really don’t mind my calling round like this, then?’ Robert’s voice shook her out of her reverie.
‘You’re here now,’ she said absently, her thoughts lingering on Doug and the letter. As for Robert Fellows, she did resent his arriving unannounced, even if it was only because this was hers and Danny’s day. Coming up to Christmas, the store was busier than usual and everyone, including Rosie, had been called on to work extra hours. Though she loved the job and knew that Danny was content with Peggy’s mam, Rosie had been eager for Christmas Day when she and her son could make up for lost time. For that very reason, she had even turned down Peggy’s invitation for her and Danny to spend all Christmas Day at their house. Now, Robert Fellows’ arrival was an intrusion, and though Rosie hated herself for thinking of it in that way, she still didn’t know whether to be angry or pleased that he was here.
He seemed to know what she was thinking. ‘I wouldn’t have intruded like this, Rosie,’ he claimed. ‘Only, it is Christmas, and there I was, all alone in that miserable flat, and I couldn’t stop thinking of you.’
She didn’t answer straightaway. Instead, she shook the snowflakes from his coat and hung it on a peg, and placed the scarf over it. Now she was regarding him with friendly brown eyes that sent a thrill through him. ‘I suppose it must be lonely all on your own. And after all, it is Christmas… goodwill to men and all that.’ Even when he smiled, or perhaps only when he smiled, there was something about him that disturbed her. Yet, at the same time, she was grateful for the friendship that had developed between them these last few weeks. Certainly he had helped her get over the trauma of the trial, and how could she deny that his interest in her as a woman was very flattering?
He seemed peeved. ‘I hope it isn’t only because it’s Christmas that you’ve asked me in?’ he said softly. ‘I’d much rather it was because you want me with you?’
‘Look, Robert, I really am sorry to sound inhospitable.’ It was strange how these days his first name sprang easily to her lips. In the office it was always ‘Mr Fellows’, but outside working hours they had seen more and more of each other. So much, in fact, that Rosie believed it was time for her to keep her distance. ‘It was just that I didn’t expect you to turn up here today,’ she told him. ‘Still, now you’re here, you’re very welcome.’ A genuine smile appeared despite herself. ‘Go on through. I know Danny will be pleased to see you.’
Regarding her
with flat hard eyes, he said softly, ‘Danny might be pleased to see me, but you’re not, are you, Rosie?’ It was more of a statement than a question.
‘If you must know, Robert, I’m thinking of the neighbours. I’m also thinking how I’ve been seeing a lot of you lately, and I think we’re getting too involved… taking Danny to the Saturday afternoon matinee… walking arm in arm through Corporation Park… eating hot chestnuts from the barrow in the boulevard. The three of us acting like a family, when we’re no such thing. It’s wrong, that’s all I’m saying. And it’s not fair on Danny.’
‘How can it be unfair on Danny?’ he demanded. ‘We take him everywhere we go, except for that one time when I finally managed to have you to myself. And don’t say you didn’t enjoy it, because I know you did… a day in London, dinner and dancing at the most expensive night club.’ His meaningful smile spoke volumes. ‘It was only spoiled when you refused to come back home with me.’
‘I’m not denying I enjoyed it,’ Rosie assured him. In fact, it was one of the most memorable events of her entire life. ‘It’s just that I can’t afford to make mistakes. Whether I like it or not, I do have a husband. I also have a son I dearly love, and people’s tongues can be wicked.’
More Than Riches Page 29