Adele had noticed a difference in her mother too. No longer able to go to the bingo, due to a shortage of money, Shirley was becoming bored and frustrated. This meant she was often retaliating when Tommy criticised her. However, a rise in his tone or an aggressive stance could still silence her, as could the sight of Tommy tumbling home worse for wear after a session down the pub.
When Adele came downstairs that lunchtime she could hear the drone of the television set. She peeped inside the living room and spotted her father sipping from a can of lager while his attention was fixed on the television screen. She walked through to the kitchen where Shirley was slouched at the kitchen table with a cup of tea in front of her. She was fidgeting nervously with an empty tablet bottle.
‘Oh, Adele love, I’m glad you’re here. I was just gonna shout up to you,’ she said.
Adele could feel the onset of disappointment, knowing that she was about to be roped into yet another job, which would ruin her plans for the rest of the day.
‘What d’you want?’ she replied, her tone sharp.
‘Aah, don’t be like that, love. You wouldn’t go and pick up my prescription for me, would you? Please? I’ve run out of my pills and I need them.’
‘I’m a bit busy, Mam. Haven’t you got time to go?’
‘Please, love. I’m not so good,’ she said, grabbing hold of Adele’s hand. ‘I can’t be going out today. I get all panicky when I’ve not had my tablets.’
Adele sighed deeply. ‘Go on then, give me the prescription.’
Shirley rose swiftly from her chair and went over to the kitchen cabinet where she found her prescription and handed it to Adele. ‘Thanks, love. I really appreciate it,’ she said, grabbing hold of Adele’s hand.
Adele noticed the unshed tears in her mother’s eyes and she quickly grabbed the prescription form and backed away, irritated. She was still too young to have much understanding of her mother’s mental illness. Instead, she saw her as weak and pathetic.
She wasn’t in the mood for yet another emotional scene so, before her mother could say anything more, Adele dashed from the house and made her way to the chemists. She might not have voiced her feelings to her mother but they didn’t go away. Suppressed deep inside her were confusion, anger and a festering resentment at the life she was forced to live.
Chapter 17
The abandoned factory had been beckoning to Peter for a while and, although Alan was against the idea of going there, Peter insisted. According to Alan there were more lucrative ways to make money, but Peter was more interested in the thrill of it. He was backed up by David who would do anything for a dare. Once they were there Alan wanted to break in and see if there was anything inside worth taking. But Peter had persuaded him to go up onto the rooftop so they could collect some lead and bag it up to sell.
As soon as Peter stepped over the ledge and stood on top of the roof, he felt a surge of adrenalin. He straightened up and looked around him, surveying the surrounding streets with amazement. They had taken on a new perspective from this position, and he stared in wonder at the twinkling lights that ran in sequence down the darkened streets, bathing the buildings with a luminous glow.
‘Wow! This is fuckin’ brilliant,’ he said to his friends who had followed him onto the roof.
Peter walked across the rooftop, his arms outstretched, enjoying the sensation of the wind caressing his body and ruffling his hair. He felt powerful, almighty; his senses heightened by the thrill of the forbidden. It was a sharp contrast to how he felt at home where he was always on his guard because of his father’s temper.
‘Come on, let’s get the lead,’ said Alan. ‘That’s what we’ve come for.’
‘What’s the rush?’ said David who was now copying Peter’s actions. ‘Nobody’s gonna see us up here.’
‘We’ll get the lead first then you two can dick about as much as you like while I check if there’s a way in. I wouldn’t mind seeing if there’s owt inside worth nicking.’
Alan took out a roll of plastic bin bags from the pocket of his parka and handed Peter and David one each. For a few minutes they remained on one side of the rooftop collecting the lead that was in abundance.
It wasn’t long before David became bored though and he put down his bag, stood up then ran along the rooftop, his arms outstretched once more. Peter laughed and, after several seconds, decided to join him. He strained in the dark to see where David had got to and spotted his outline further along the lengthy roof. Peter was running towards him when he heard the sound of smashing glass. Then David disappeared.
‘What the fuck?’ he said.
‘Where’s Dave?’ asked Alan, straightening up.
‘He was over there,’ said Peter. ‘Come on, we’d better see what’s happened.’
‘Hang on! Don’t rush. There’s skylights on this roof.’
Peter’s excitement turned to fear as they walked across the rooftop, desperate to find out what had happened to their friend. Then they spotted something. About two thirds of the way along the roof, and in the approximate area where they had last seen David, they noticed a skylight that was broken.
Peter approached cautiously, aware of what must have happened but not wanting to acknowledge it. He crept to the edge of the skylight and peered inside the gloomy, deserted factory. In the dark it was just about possible to spot the still form of David sprawled out on the floor below.
‘Fuck! He’s had it,’ he said.
‘Hang on, let me have a look,’ said Alan. He joined Peter at the edge of the skylight and gazed downwards. ‘David! David, are you OK?’ he shouted but there was no answer.
‘Shit! What are we gonna do?’ said Peter. ‘He might have snuffed it.’
‘Shut up. He might not. We’ll have to check.’
Peter stared inquisitively at Alan, ‘How we gonna do that? We’ll never get down there. We haven’t got any rope or anything.’
‘We’ll have to get in through a window, like I wanted to do in the first fuckin’ place! It was you that told us to go onto the roof to get some lead.’
Peter kept silent. He knew Alan was right. They shouldn’t have gone up onto the roof, then this wouldn’t have happened. He followed Alan back across the rooftop until they found a drainpipe and made their way down the factory wall.
Alan led the way until they came nearer to the area where David had fallen. He smashed a pane of glass and Peter followed him as he climbed through the broken window and made his way inside the factory. They landed in a room on the outer periphery of the building.
Looking around the deserted room, Peter had an eerie sensation and he shivered involuntarily. In the gloom he could see used documents scattered across the floor; the only signs of former occupancy. The musty smell of abandonment met him.
Alan marched to the door and pulled it open, kicking the discarded paperwork aside. He had now speeded up in his quest to locate David. When he stopped dead, Peter knew he had found him, and he could feel his heart beating erratically. He sidled up beside Alan, his breathing now ragged and his hands clenched tightly.
Peter watched Alan kneel down beside David and call his name. His voice echoed in the cavernous interior of the factory. There was blood. Loads of it! Most of it sprang from the back of David’s head. And his limbs were twisted as though he’d broken several bones on impact with the ground. David didn’t respond. He just lay there, motionless and damaged.
Peter gasped as Alan lifted one of David’s hands and felt his wrist for a pulse.
‘He’s alive,’ he said, and Peter let out a sigh of relief.
‘How we gonna get him out?’
Alan didn’t reply for several seconds. Instead he gazed around him. ‘We’re not,’ he said. ‘It’s too risky. He’s too badly injured.’
‘But we can’t leave him like that.’
‘No, we won’t. We’ll make a run for it then call an ambulance.’
‘But what if it doesn’t get here?’
‘It will. We can keep
watch to make sure.’
Peter gazed at him open-mouthed.
‘It’s the best way,’ said Alan. ‘We can’t risk getting caught, and they’ll know what to do with him.’
‘But what if the police ask who he was with? He might tell them.’
‘Don’t worry; he won’t.’
Peter couldn’t think of a better option so they left the factory and found a phone box nearby. Then they had a tense wait, seeking cover behind a parked van while they watched first the ambulance, then the police, arrive. It seemed to take forever until the ambulance men finally lifted David from the building. Once they were satisfied that they had done all they could, Peter and Alan made their way home.
They’d had a fruitless night and the bags of lead lay abandoned on the rooftop. With all the worry about David, even Alan had forgotten to collect them.
*
Adele was in her room trying to study while her parents were having yet another of their endless rows. She tried to tune it out but it was impossible, and she felt her heartbeat speed up as her father’s voice took on an increasingly aggressive tone.
She gazed at the bedside clock, toying with the idea of going to the library. Twenty to nine; it was too late. She was relieved in a way because her trips to the library were still filled with trepidation following the previous visit when David and his friends had attacked and intimidated her on her way home.
After several more minutes she gave up on study and attempted to read. Even that was difficult, especially when she heard a door slam and her father’s voice at the bottom of the stairs complaining about Peter’s whereabouts.
Then she heard him shout, ‘That lad’s bleedin’ useless and you know it! And she’s not much better. She should be out at fuckin’ work, not scrounging off us to do bleedin’ A levels. What’s she need them for anyway?’
Adele didn’t hear her mother’s response. She tensed, expecting him to mount the stairs and confront her, but then it went silent. Still, it took a while before her erratic heartbeat returned to normal. As well as being fearful, she was angry. Why did he begrudge her an education? Her friends’ parents didn’t have a problem with them staying on at school.
Then a thought occurred to her, which brought a brief smile to her face; her father was still out of work and yet he was calling her a scrounger. The irony of the situation was completely lost on him.
After reading for over an hour she drifted off to sleep, but her sleep was fitful and she woke up with a start at ten past one in the morning following a bad dream. As she glanced at the clock she wondered whether Peter was home yet and decided to check his room. He wasn’t there and the bed was cold.
She returned to bed, dreading the following day when her father was bound to tackle Peter about where he had been. Her father had been so moody since he had been out of work and the last thing she needed was for Peter to annoy him. She knew too well that with her father in his current frame of mind anything could happen.
Chapter 18
The following day was Sunday and, as Adele had anticipated, her father interrogated Peter as soon as he was out of bed.
‘What time did you get in last night?’
Peter shrugged his shoulders, ‘Dunno, late.’
‘I know it was late; I asked you what bleedin’ time it was!’
‘Not sure, about eleven, I think.’
Tommy took a swipe at Peter, knocking his head sideways. ‘Oh no it fuckin’ wasn’t, you lying little get!’ he said. ‘I was awake at twelve and you weren’t in then.’
On feeling his father’s heavy hand, Peter jumped back and stood glaring at him but he didn’t dare hit him back. ‘About twelve then. I dunno!’ he said. ‘I didn’t check the clock.’
‘Well it’s about bleedin’ time you did! You know you’re supposed to be in by eleven; you’re only fuckin’ sixteen,’ he said, landing another blow to the side of Peter’s head.
‘Ouch,’ yelled Peter. ‘That hurt!’
‘It was supposed to fuckin’ hurt! I want you home by eleven in future or you’ll get more than that. And you can stay in for the rest of today… What the fuck were you up to anyway?’
‘Nowt. Just hangin’ around with my mates.’
‘I don’t fuckin’ believe you! Anyway, you can stay in tonight so I know where you are.’ Tommy then looked at Peter suspiciously before walking away.
Adele was glad when it was over; at least her father hadn’t found out the real time that Peter arrived home. She noticed that while her dad had been challenging Peter, she had been subconsciously holding her breath, hoping that Peter wouldn’t try to retaliate. She tried to relax, allowing her tense muscles to ease.
Later that morning Adele chose a moment when her father wasn’t around to ask Peter what time he had got in. He confirmed that it was sometime after two o’clock.
‘Jesus, Peter! You’re pushing your luck, aren’t you? I won’t ask what you were up to; I’d rather not know. But if he finds out, you’ll be for it,’ she said.
‘He won’t find out though, will he? Not unless somebody tells him,’ he said, scornfully.
Adele was a bit put out that he should think she’d tell on him. ‘You know I wouldn’t do that, Peter,’ she replied. ‘Just be careful, that’s all.’
It was sometime soon afterwards when the police arrived at the house. The family were all still at home.
‘Does Peter Robinson live here?’ asked the officer when Shirley answered the door.
‘Yes, why? What’s he done?’
‘I think it would be best if we came inside to explain,’ said the officer.
Shirley led them into the living room; two PCs, both male and aged somewhere in their thirties. Adele could see by the expression on her mother’s face that she was about to go into panic mode. Her father, on the other hand, had adopted a stern expression as he surveyed the officers’ arrival.
‘Perhaps you’d like to switch off the TV while we discuss matters,’ suggested the first officer.
Tommy stormed over to the TV screen, pressed the button forcefully and slammed back down into his chair.
‘Is Peter here?’ asked the officer.
‘Go and get him, Adele!’ her father ordered.
Adele shouted up the stairs. Her heart was beating fitfully and there was a heavy sensation in the pit of her stomach. When Peter appeared at the top of the stairs, she gestured for him to come down. Before Peter could enter the living room she whispered into his ear to forewarn him about the police presence but he didn’t seem too fazed.
The atmosphere inside the room was solemn and the formal scene looked out of place in Adele’s home. She noticed that her mother was in tears already and was clutching a stained and soggy cotton handkerchief.
Peter sat down on the sofa. By this time he appeared contrite.
Before Adele could join him, her father said, ‘There’s no place for you here, Adele. Go up to your room till the police have gone!’
Adele did as she was told but she was annoyed. Why was her father taking his anger out on her? She realised that it was his way of maintaining a level of control and displaying his authority to the police officers.
While Adele was upstairs, she tried to listen to what was happening but it was no use, so she crept downstairs, hoping her father wouldn’t hear her as she put her ear to the living room door and listened to what was being said.
‘It’s been confirmed that you were on the factory roof with Alan Palmer and David Scott when David fell through the skylight,’ said one of the officers.
‘I wasn’t,’ said Peter.
‘We’ve had it confirmed by David Palmer who is currently in hospital suffering from injuries following his fall.’
Adele inhaled sharply. So that’s what Peter had been up to last night! No wonder he had been looking so shifty.
‘Don’t tell bleedin’ lies!’ shouted her father. She assumed his comments were directed at Peter.
The officer chipped in. ‘Peter Robinson, I’m af
raid we’ll have to take you to the station for further questioning.’
Then Adele heard movement and her heartbeat quickened. She dashed away from the door and up the stairs as quietly as she could. She was almost at the top when she heard someone opening the living room door. After a few seconds of steadying her breathing she turned and made her way back downstairs as though she had been in her room all along.
Peter was already in the hallway with the two policemen, and her parents were discussing who should accompany him to the police station.
‘I’m not bleedin’ going!’ her father hissed, out of earshot of the officers. ‘You brought him up so now you can go and fuckin’ sort things out.’
Shirley stared back at him, aghast, and Adele noticed the tramlines running down her face, which were evidence of her earlier tears. Adele knew her mother wouldn’t dare go against Tommy’s decision.
Shirley wavered momentarily near the living room door before turning back and grabbing her bottle of pills. She then pushed them inside her handbag, put on her shoes and coat, and went to join her son who was now inside the police car.
As the car sped up the street, Adele could feel her heart thudding inside her chest in anticipation of her father’s reaction. She stood in the hallway, waiting.
After a few moments he announced, ‘I’m going for a fuckin’ pint!’ and pushed past Adele as he stomped out of the house.
It was a nervous time for Adele as she waited for her family to return home. She switched on the old black and white TV. The screen flickered, so she picked up the indoor aerial and moved it around the room until the picture steadied. Then she watched a film; a musical that didn’t require much concentration and would help to take her mind off things.
Her father was the first to return. He was early; lunchtime opening hadn’t quite finished. She guessed that his early return was either due to lack of money or because he wanted to be there when Peter got home. She hoped it wasn’t the latter and a feeling of dread clutched her insides.
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