The Loner

by Josephine Cox

  Before rushing away, the workman assured her it would be done.

  ‘You’re a bully!’ Frank loved every minute of it. ‘Look at him run, poor devil.’

  Maggie tossed him a withering glance. ‘If you don’t want me to organise the party, it’s still not too late for you to take over,’ she snapped. ‘There’s still a few days left. See if you can do any better, why don’t you?’

  ‘Hey!’ Frank apologised. ‘Don’t be so damned touchy, woman.’

  ‘Am I in charge or am I not?’

  ‘Do you want to be in charge?’

  ‘That’s a silly question,’ she retorted. ‘Haven’t I done it every year so far, and don’t you know that very well, you old fox!’

  ‘Whatever you say.’ Frank assumed that he was forgiven. ‘By the way, Dave and I have been out to the far reaches.’

  She melted with a smile. ‘Oh, Dave … did you see Blueberry Farm, love?’

  ‘Yes, I did,’ Dave acknowledged. ‘I think it’s such a shame that it ever got so neglected.’

  ‘That’s the master’s fault.’ Another mock-scathing glance at Frank, who by now was used to it. ‘But to give him his due, he has had his work cut out in building this place up to what it is.’ She went all dreamy again. ‘Oh, but isn’t Blueberry Farm the prettiest thing you’ve ever seen, and don’t you think it’s in the most magical spot?’

  ‘I do, yes.’

  ‘By the way, you’d best show your faces.’ She had a habit of changing the subject at the drop of a hat. ‘Lucy’s in charge of lunch today, and she’s been looking for the pair of you.’ With that, she bade them cheerio. ‘Got to go. Unlike you two, I’ve got work to do.’ As she walked away, Frank exchanged a knowing smile with her. She knew what he was thinking, for hadn’t they already discussed it earlier?

  Dave had seen the discreet exchange between them, and chuckled to himself. It was never too late for love, he thought – and yet again his own thoughts were torn between Judy and Lucy.

  But it was Lucy who came running to meet him. And it was Lucy who locked her arm in his as they walked on. It was a good feeling, but was it love?

  Time would tell.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  THAT AFTERNOON, THERE was work still to be done in the stableyard, with animals to be fed and bedded down for the night, water troughs to fill, and the yard itself to be left clean and tidy underfoot.

  It was dark when Dave and Lucy started back towards the house. The air had become chilly.‘I’m not ready to go indoors,’ Lucy said. ‘Let’s sit in the summerhouse for a while, shall we?’

  ‘OK, but I can’t stay too long,’ Dave warned her. ‘I need a bath and a change of clothes.’ He grimaced. ‘Your dad’s taken me through woods and wilds today, and I’ve just forked over a huge muck heap. I’m sorry, Lucy, I must smell to high heaven.’

  Lucy playfully sniffed the air. ‘I can’t smell anything, only the faint smell of roses.’

  Dave laughed. ‘Little liar!’

  ‘All right then, we both stink. But there’s time enough to sit and talk for a few minutes, isn’t there?’

  ‘If you like.’ He was happy with that. ‘I don’t suppose half an hour would hurt.’

  ‘And what then?’

  ‘What d’you mean?’

  ‘After half an hour – what then?’

  ‘Well …’ Like any man, he could never understand a woman’s meaning. ‘Then I’ll walk you home, and I’ll go back to my room over the stables.’

  ‘And is that what you want?’

  ‘Not in the long term, no. But just now it’s all I’ve got. And like you say, there’s no rush to get back.’

  ‘So you’re happy to stay here in the garden, with me?’ She looked up at him, her eyes shining. With every passing day she loved him more. But she could never tell if he loved her the same.

  ‘Lucy, I’m more than happy to sit herewith you,’ he answered. ‘I love your company – you know that.’

  ‘So, would you be “more than happy” to put your arm round me?’

  ‘Now, why would I want to do that?’ He loved to tease her.

  ‘Because I want you to.’

  ‘That’s not a good enough reason.’

  ‘All right then, I’m shivering. And I need you to keep me warm.’

  Without a word he slid his arm round her shoulders and drew her close. ‘Is that better?’

  When she didn’t answer he gazed down on her face. ‘You’re not falling asleep on me, are you?’ he asked softly.

  ‘No.’

  For a moment he was silenced by the dark uplifted eyes that gazed back at him. Then she whispered: ‘Dave?’

  ‘Yes?’

  Giving no reply, she kissed him full on the mouth – a long, lingering kiss that woke too many emotions inside him, emotions that both frightened and excited him. Within them was guilt and passion. Guilt for this betrayal of Judy, and the passion of a youth wanting and needing to become a man.

  They touched and fondled, and when the touching became a frantic need, they made love right thereon the floor of the summerhouse.

  Both virgins, they followed age-old instincts to give and receive pleasure that was in turns wild and tender. And when it was over, they lay in each other’s arms, still breathless, softly kissing, elated by what had just happened.

  ‘Do you love me, Dave?’ Lucy asked, and he answered that yes, he did love her.

  The floor of the summerhouse was cold, and he helped Lucy to her feet. He was feeling a double guilt now, shame burning in his blood. What had he done. The rush of guilt was replaced by a deep-down need to make amends. ‘Of course I love you, Lucy,’ he repeated. There could be no other answer. Not now.

  Adjusting their clothes, they strolled on, hand-in-hand. ‘Are we engaged?’ The girl asked innocently.

  Affectionately, he stroked her face and smiling down on her, he asked, ‘Is that what you want, my darling?’

  Lucy nodded her head. ‘More than anything else in the world,’ she whispered.

  He laughed softly. ‘Then yes, we’re engaged.’

  ‘Can I tell Father?’

  Caution set in. ‘Let’s keep it to ourselves for a while, eh?’ he suggested. ‘We need to get used to the idea, and besides, you’ll want to choose a ring and all that.’ He blew out a sigh. ‘I hope you realise, it’s a big thing … getting engaged.’ Manlike, he dreaded all the fuss.

  ‘You’re not regretting it already, are you?’

  He squeezed her hand. ‘No.’

  ‘I do love you so,’ she assured him. ‘I’ll make you happy, I promise.’

  He sensed her panic and the guilt was tenfold. But why? he asked himself. Judy was long lost to him. She was in his past, and Lucy was in his present – and his future. So why did he feel like crying – as though he should have lost his virginity to Judy, not Lucy? He was being foolish, he knew. He must pull himself together; thank his lucky stars for this girl’s love.

  ‘I know you will,’ he answered. ‘I’ll do my best to make you happy too.’ Lucy was a wonderful young woman who loved him without reservation, and there was more than a measure of love in his heart for her. People had been happy on less and besides, he had given his word, and he would keep it.

  Dave wondered if this strange apprehension he was feeling had anything to do with his parents. They had loved each other with insane passion, yet even that was not enough to prevent the tragedy that followed. Yes, perhaps he was afraid of love. So maybe what he and Lucy had would prove to be stronger in other ways. And so much easier to control.

  Shivering, he hurried bride-to-be towards home, a welcome fire, and a long, hot bath!

  As good as her word, Lucy kept the news to herself; though there wasn’t a minute when she didn’t want to shout it from the rooftops.

  ‘When can we choose my engagement ring?’ she asked Dave on the day of the annual barn-dance.‘Let’s get the do tonight out of the way,’ he said, ‘then on Monday morning we’ll go into Bedford and start l
ooking for your ring. After that, you can tell the world. Does that suit you?’

  Lucy was more than suited, and for the rest of the day she walked around on cloud nine.

  Down in the farmhouse kitchen Maggie was hard at work.

  ‘I want all hands on deck!’ She was drawing together all the last-minute details. ‘In two hours folk will start arriving and there’s still balloons to be blown up, straw bales to be laid out for the seating, and where’s the banners? We always have banners!’Summoning three of the stable lads, she set them to work. ‘I’ve things to be doing myself,’ she said. ‘There’s all the food to be seen to yet. And think on,’ she warned. ‘I’ll be back in an hour, by which time I expect it all to be done and ready.’ With that she marched off, chuckling to herself as she recalled how the three of them had been hiding in the stables. ‘Lazy little hounds,’ she told herself. ‘Did they really think I didn’t know where to look for them?’

  Her kitchen at The Willows was a hive of industry; there was Lucy shifting the freshly baked bread rolls onto a cooling tray; little Peggy Henderson from the village flitting in and out of the larder like a headless chicken, and the cat waiting at the door for any stray titbits.

  As always, Peggy was fussing, talking to herself in frantic clucks as she darted to and fro. ‘Where’s the ham shank? It was here just now when I got out the cream jug … Oh dearie me, dearie me!’

  ‘Stop panicking!’ Maggie came in the door and straight off she saw how little Peggy had already put one ham shank on the butcher’s block ready for slicing. ‘Look behind you, hinny,’ she urged. ‘In a minute, it will bite you on the backside!’

  Peggy began giggling uncontrollably. ‘Silly me,’ she chirped. ‘I must have taken it out earlier. There’s so much to do …you can’t think, can you?’

  Maggie had an idea. ‘We’ve all been working our fingers to the bone, and we’re tired. I say we should stop for a few minutes and have one o’ my delicious scones, with a cup of tea – then we’ll get on with the sandwiches. What d’you say, eh?’

  The girls were all for it. Lucy put the kettle on, while Maggie and Peggy got out the scones and cream, with a dish of straw berry jam made last summer.

  No sooner was the table set for three, than the kettle was whistling and the tea was made, and they all sat down with a sigh of relief.

  ‘What’s tickling you, young lady?’ Maggie had already noticed how Lucy kept smiling to herself, and when she wasn’t smiling she was singing, and when she wasn’t singing, she was looking out the window. ‘As I recall, there’s only one thing that makes a young woman as happy as you seem to be, and that’s a young man.’ And the only young man she could match with Lucy, was Dave.

  Lucy’s face grew pink. ‘I’m saying nothing,’ she remarked coyly. ‘You’ll know soon enough.’ And beyond that she would not be drawn.

  By 7 p.m. lanterns and fairy-lights had been switched on to light the way to the barn. There was plenty of space in an adjoining field for cars. About seventy people were expected, and the trestle tables, covered in white sheets, were groaning under the weight of party food for the evening’s festivities, alongside barrels of beer, and cider, bottles of wine and pop for the teetotallers. To eat, there were platters of sliced boiled ham or roast ham shanks and fat beef sandwiches and pork pies enough to feed an army, plump chicken breasts and grilled sausages, and bowl after bowl of boiled potatoes, sprinkled with mint and herbs. One table alone held all the sweet things – trifles and tarts, and cakes to suit all tastes: chocolate, and fruit, and ginger, and plates of fancies.

  ‘Good God above, Maggie!’ Frank had come to inspect the barn. ‘There’s enough grub here to feed the whole of Bedfordshire.’‘Nobody ever goes hungry at my parties, that’s for sure,’ she announced proudly.

  By the time people started arriving, the balloons were up, the banners were hung, and the trio of musicians – violin, squeezebox and flute, played the partygoers in.

  Lucy was kept busy meeting and greeting, helping people with their coats and settling them in, while Dave remained by the door, watching out for one particular partygoer, and hoping against hope that he would turn up.

  By nine-thirty the party was well underway, with the guests redfaced and merry, performing the old traditional country dances while the caller, a local farmer named Ned Kirby, nagged, cajoled and teased them through the steps.

  Amid the gales of laughter, Dave went up to Lucy and said, ‘There’s still no sign of him. I don’t suppose he got my letter. Or if he did, maybe he wasn’t able to come all this way.’

  Lucy was trying to console him, when suddenly Dave caught sight of a familiar figure coming through the crowds. ‘Eli!’ Small and wick, with a smile on his wrinkled old face, the old man had not changed.

  Dave ran to meet him. ‘Oh, Eli, it’s so good to see you! I really thought you weren’t able to make it.’

  Eli gave him a big hug. ‘Then you don’t know me as well as you think ye do,’ he said, his face wreathed in a delighted grin. ‘It would have taken wild horses to keep me away. Mind, me car wasn’t too keen on the journey from Blackpool, but it’s having a good long rest in yon field.’

  Lucy came up beside them. ‘So, this is your friend?’ If it hadn’t been for the old fella, Lucy knew that Dave would never have found his way here, to her, and the good life he now enjoyed.

  Eli looked at her with wide eyes. ‘By, but she’s pretty! This must be the young woman you told me about in your letter … Lucy, isn’t it?’

  He held out his hand in greeting, but Lucy threw her arms round his neck, thanking him for the help he had given to Dave. ‘If it wasn’t for you, we might never have met,’ she said thankfully. Dave had told her all about his life on the run, and she knew that Eli had been a major force for good, helping to bring that way of life to an end.

  Eli nodded. ‘Brian Moult got what he deserved,’ he told Dave, accepting a glass of beer and a plate of food from a stable girl acting as a waitress for the evening. Lucy left the men and went to help her.

  ‘Not long after you took off, the truth got out about his wrongdoings. He was put away for some years – him and the other fella, and good shuts to the pair of ’em, is what I say!’

  Dave was relieved, but curious. ‘How did they get caught out?’

  Eli winked knowingly. ‘I expect somebody snitched on ’em, eh?’ He chuckled wickedly. ‘I mean, they must have made a lot of enemies, wouldn’t ye say?’

  Dave understood. ‘You’re an old rascal, but you’re worth your weight in gold.’ He would never forget what Eli had done for him.

  Drawing closer to the lad, Eli had some more news for him. ‘There’s something you need to know,’ he said. ‘This is going to blow your socks off. By, you’ll really be celebrating when you get a load of this.’ He took a long swallow of his beer while Dave waited patiently.

  ‘Your Mr Babraham …’ he said unexpectedly, and when Dave went white, he leaned forward and grasped his arm. ‘He didn’t die,’ Eli said in his ear. ‘He lived – and was able to identify his attackers. It was in the local paper last week. The police had been looking for them ever since he recovered from the incident. They found them when they committed a big burglary in Sheffield, and connected them with that other job. You’re in the clear, lad. The police aren’t looking for anyone else. I reckon he told them how you helped him, eh? Come on, now.’ He looked kindly at the stricken young man. ‘You need a drink. You can fill my glass up an’ all while you’re at it. There’s a fair bit o’ dust in me throat from the journey, so it’s medicinal, mind.’

  The old and young man went over to replenish their glasses, and then Dave, feeling light-headed with this wonderful piece of news, led Eli over to where Frank was chatting to Maggie. He introduced Eli as ‘the man who saved my hide, more than once’.

  ‘Well, Eli my man,’ Frank shook him by the hand, ‘you did us all a favour, and any time you’re passing through these parts, you’ll always be made welcome here. I hope you will be
our guest tonight, and for the rest of your stay.’

  Maggie reached forward and embraced the little man fondly. Her Ted and Eli had been best buddies for years, closer than any brothers, and she knew he had mourned with her when Ted had died. She herself had supported Eli, writing to him often when his missus had become ill and passed away, two years ago now. There was nothing she wouldn’t do for him; he had a heart of gold.

  ‘Come and sit down and have your food now,’ she tutted. ‘You must be worn out with that long drive down. Where did you stay overnight?’

  ‘Oh, I stopped off in Coventry to take a look at the new Cathedral,’ he told them all. ‘My goodness, it’s a corker.’ Truth be told, the old chap had enjoyed his drive down, had found so much to look at and admire. He’d been too long in Blackpool, that was for sure. And Billy Joe’s Fairground had long since lost its attraction for him.

  ‘What are your plans, Eli?’ Frank asked, eyeing the visitor shrewdly.

  ‘Watch him, Eli,’ Maggie warned light-heartedly. ‘Next thing you know, he’ll be setting you to work on the stud.’

  ‘Not me,’ Eli announced. ‘I’m past all that. I’ve rolled up my overalls, and now I mean to see some of the world, before it’s too late. I’ve got a few bob in the Post Office, an’ me feet are itchy.’ He glanced out at the star-studded sky. ‘It’s a big old world out there, an’ I’m getting no younger. The sooner I get going, the more I’ll see of the Master’s creation, before He calls me home.’