Silver Linings

by Rachel Ennis

  That would be Jimmy. Smiling, she opened the door. ‘You timed that –’ Surprise took her breath as her heart leapt into her throat. ‘Tom!’

  He was still in his yard clothes, a navy jumper over a plaid shirt, and worn jeans tucked into calf-high sand-coloured working boots. He lifted two paper-wrapped packages.

  ‘I saw Jimmy in the chip shop. He told me about Frances Chiddock. Sounds like you’ve had some day of it. Look, if you want me to go, I will. But first can I just say – the other night in The Chain Locker – me and Natasha – it wasn’t – I didn’t –’

  ‘I know.’ Moving back, Jess opened the door wider. ‘Come in.’

  He stepped inside, wiping his feet, then taking off his boots as she closed the door behind him. ‘What do you mean, you know?’

  ‘Natasha came to see me.’

  ‘She did?’ His brows rose.

  ‘She told me she wasn’t available for a relationship so she wasn’t too upset being out with a man who spent the entire evening talking about another woman.’ She compressed her lips in a smile as colour flooded his face and his gaze slid away.

  ‘Yes, well –’

  ‘Is that your tea as well as mine?’ She pointed to the two packages.

  He nodded. ‘I wondered – I was hoping – See, what it is –’

  ‘Tom, I haven’t eaten since breakfast and I’m starving. You can stay and have yours here – if you want.’

  ‘I can?’ The relief on his face told her how nervous he’d been about arriving unannounced. ‘Proper job.’

  He followed her to the kitchen and set the packages on the worktop. As she reached for a second plate then poured boiling water on both, he opened the drawer, took out another place mat and cutlery and put them on the table. Catching her eye he hesitated. ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean – only they’ll be going cold.’

  She turned away to hide her grin, glad he had come, happy to see him. Though their row had left her hurt, angry, resentful and frustrated, she had missed him. Seeing him here in her kitchen, helping rather than expecting her to wait on him, made her realise how much.

  ‘Do you want salt and vinegar?’ She tipped water off a warmed plate, dried and passed it to him then wiped the second.

  ‘Already on.’ He unwrapped the paper, opened the polystyrene boxes and tipped the still-hot contents onto each plate.

  Jess leaned over and inhaled. ‘I’ve been dreaming of this.’ She pulled out a chair and sat down.

  Sitting opposite, Tom held her gaze. ‘So’ve I,’ he said softly. ‘And I don’t mean the chips. I’ve missed you awful, Jess. You don’t have to tell me it was my own fault. I know that. Thanks for letting me stay.’

  ‘You brought my tea.’

  ‘I’m no fool.’

  She smiled and they started eating. The ice had been broken, the rest could wait.

  ‘So what’s on with Frances, then? All Jimmy said was that Viv had come home wore out, and brought bags of Frances’s washing to do. I didn’t think any of you liked the woman.’

  ‘We don’t. But, Tom, if you had seen the state she was in ... Did Jimmy tell you she’s been taken into hospital?’

  He nodded. ‘Viv said Annie saw right off that Frances was ill. And before you say you should’ve known, you aren’t a nurse.’

  Though they had only been apart a few weeks, this was what she had missed. He knew her, knew the way she thought.

  Between mouthfuls, Jess described the events of the day. She was still talking when he got up, gently pressing her shoulder as he passed to keep her in her seat. He made a pot of tea and brought two filled mugs back to the table.

  ‘She’s got a nice little bungalow with a kitchen diner, sitting room and two bedrooms. The small bedroom was empty except for a couple of cardboard boxes. The rest of the place was a tip. She can’t have been well for weeks. I suppose the worse she felt the less she could do. But why didn’t she tell someone? Surely her neighbours must have noticed something wrong?’

  ‘On the estates people keep more to themselves. Here in the middle of the village if you was to cough Elsie would be round with hot lemon and honey.’

  ‘True.’ Recalling the kitchen’s single chair, Jess swallowed the lump in her throat with a mouthful of tea. ‘Do you know if Frances has got family?’

  He shrugged. ‘I’ve never heard of any, but I don’t know much about her. I remember Grampy saying her father Frank was his mother’s favourite because he passed for grammar school then got a job in the Council Office. Frank’s older brother, Roy, went fishing like his dad. He did well too. He had his own boat by time he reached thirty. But that was never good enough for their mother.’

  ‘It must have been a terrible shock for her when Frank was arrested for theft and embezzlement.’

  ‘She wouldn’t believe it. Went round telling everyone it was a mistake. Then she said he was taking the blame for his boss. The council asked PC Whetter to have a quiet word. Living here in the village he knew the family.’

  ‘There wasn’t any doubt ...?’

  ‘None at all. Frank did it. A couple of weeks after he was sentenced she had a heart attack. Doctor said she was dead before she hit the floor.’

  ‘That’s so sad.’

  Tom nodded. ‘But what’s sadder is that while Frank was embezzling money, Roy was risking his life and his mother never knew a thing about it.’

  Jess leaned forward. ‘What was he doing?’

  ‘Taking agents across to Brittany and bringing back people who needed to get out.’

  ‘How do you know? I’m not doubting you,’ she added quickly. ‘Will Olds told me the old stone quay at the marina was used by French fishing boats to pick men up or drop them back. But he didn’t know any more than that.’

  ‘He wouldn’t, bird. It was all secret. The men was told not to talk. So they didn’t. After the war everyone wanted to put it all behind them. Years went by and the men passed away without ever telling what they’d done.’

  ‘So how do you know? What do you know?’

  He shrugged. ‘Not a lot. The night before Grampy died – that’s Father’s father – he was rambling about nights at sea dodging submarines. He’d gone a bit wayward by then so I didn’t take much notice. When you’re young you aren’t interested in the past. After he died I asked Father about it. All he knew was that a fishing boat from Concarneau would come upriver to the yard once maybe twice a month, and Grampy would be gone for three or four nights.’

  ‘Tom, I don’t suppose –’ As she spoke, so did he.

  ‘Now I think of it –’

  ‘Go on,’ Jess urged.

  ‘Father was a hoarder. Terrible he was. It used to drive Mother wild.’

  Jess grinned. ‘I remember.’

  His gaze met hers, warm with shared memory. ‘When she got really mad he’d have a clear-up but he never threw anything away. He’d wait till she went up to the shops then get me to help him carry boxes of ledgers up into the loft. Can’t chuck they away, boy, he’d say. Might need ’em one day. I can hear him now. Before Susan left she looked up there to see if there was anything else worth taking. I told her she could have the lot so long as she shifted it. Soon as she saw I didn’t care, she didn’t want it.’

  ‘So it’s still there?’

  ‘Every bleddy crate, tea-chest and cardboard box.’ He drained his cup. ‘I should have got rid of it. But –’

  Jess got up, refilled the kettle and switched it on. She looked at him over her shoulder. ‘You were leaving it for me sort out?’

  Shock and realisation were swiftly followed by embarrassment. He shot to his feet, his chair scraping on the floor. ‘No! ‘Course not. Not by yourself. I’ll deal with it, Jess. I swear.’

  Having made her point, she turned his words back on him. ‘Not by yourself. Tom, you’ve got yard records going back maybe a hundred years or more. If you’re serious about getting rid of them, give the Country Records Office a ring. I bet they’d be glad to have them. But can I have a look at the
ledgers for the early 1940s?’

  Relief and pleasure lit his face. ‘You reckon there might be something in there about those secret crossings to Brittany?’ He picked up their empty plates and brought them to the work-top by the sink.

  Putting the lid on the teapot, Jess held up crossed fingers. ‘It has to be worth a look. When France fell to the Germans in June 1940, General de Gaulle fled to London and a lot of the French army escaped across the Channel to England in fishing boats.’

  His gaze held admiration. ‘How do you know that?’

  ‘You remember when Linda Trewern asked me to look back through her family tree to see if there was an explanation for Scott and Karen’s baby being black?’ As he nodded she went on. ‘I learned a lot about preparations for the D-Day landings and village life between 1939 and 1945. Some of it stuck in my mind. If we could find evidence that Frances’s uncle was involved in something brave, it might help balance out the misery her father caused. Lord knows she could do with some comfort.’

  ‘You’d do this for a woman who never had a good word to say about you?’

  ‘Seeing her today, with no one to care that she’s ill, made me realise how lucky I am. I have a family and friends I love –’

  ‘Am I still one?’ he asked quietly.

  She turned to meet his gaze. ‘A friend? Always.’

  He caught her hand and raised it to his mouth. His lips were warm and soft on her knuckles. ‘I do love you, Jess. More than anything I want for us to get married and live together –’

  ‘Tom –’

  ‘Let me finish, bird? I’m saying that’s what I want. So there’s no point me looking for anyone else. Wouldn’t be fair to them. It’s you, Jess. Always was, always will be. So now you know. I hope when you think about it, it’ll be what you want too. There’s no rush. You take your time. I aren’t going anywhere.’ He kissed her knuckles again.

  She touched his cheek lightly with her free hand, turning away as tears blurred her vision. She couldn’t give him what he wanted, not yet, but his offer, a gift all the more precious because of what it cost him, made her feel lighter, less stressed. She cleared her throat. ‘Cake? It’s apple and cinnamon.’

  ‘You need to ask?’ She heard the smile in his voice.

  Jess refilled their mugs. He carried them to the coffee table and put another log on the woodburner while she cut cake and joined him on the sofa.

  He took a bite and chewed. ‘Handsome that is. Chris can give me a hand to get they boxes down from the loft. We’ll have to cram them in the sitting room for now. I would have put them in the small bedroom but Alan’s coming to measure –’ he stopped, colour staining his face.

  ‘You don’t have to tell me,’ said Jess.

  ‘It was going to be a surprise. But I don’t want you thinking I’ve gone back on my word.’

  As Jess’s cheeks warmed, she thought again how well he knew her.

  ‘I’m having the upstairs changed round. Chris is moving into my room ‘cos it’s already got an en-suite shower and toilet. His room and the small bedroom will be knocked into one with a new doorway through to the bathroom. That’ll be stripped out and a new bath, basin and shower put in. When that’s finished Alan can start on the kitchen –’

  ‘Hang on a minute. Tom, that amount of work will cost thousands.’

  ‘I’ve told Alan I can’t go above forty.’ He picked up her hand, holding it between his. His face was carefully blank but his warm gaze held laughter and excitement.

  ‘Forty thousand pounds?’ She gaped at him.

  He nodded. ‘I won on the Premium Bonds.’

  ‘You didn’t!’ She laughed, pulling a face. ‘What a daft thing to say when you’ve just told me you did. You’re not having me on?’

  ‘I wouldn’t joke about that. I’ve only got twenty-five bonds. Gramps gave them to me for my eighteenth birthday. They never won anything and I forgot all about them. Sod’s Law, isn’t it? We break up and a couple of weeks later I win enough to get the house done up proper and give you the wedding you deserve.’

  Jess let that pass. ‘Does Chris know?’

  He shook his head. ‘Not yet. The win was fifty grand and I’m putting five back into bonds and five in the bank. Chris have been chewing my ear off about having a car so he don’t have to rely on buses to get to college.’

  ‘Oh Tom, I’m so pleased for you. No one deserves it more. You’ve worked so hard. It’s time you got lucky.’

  He raised her hand, kissed the back of it. ‘I did, my lover. The day you come back to the village. I haven’t slept through the night since we – anyhow, being awake in the early hours making pots of bleddy tea, I’ve had plenty of time to think. I haven’t forgotten saying you’d have a free hand. But when I looked at the place –’ His hand tightened on hers. ‘If you want the truth I was ashamed. Fair enough, the yard do take up most of my time. But like you said, you got your work same as I got mine. Asking you to move in then live in a mess while the house is put straight, that wasn’t right. Things need doing so I’m having them done. That’s why I was round Alan’s.’ His gaze slid away and she sensed his uncertainty. ‘He said it’ll be weeks before he need to know about paint colours, tiles, stuff like that. Maybe by then – anyhow, like I said, there’s no rush. Listen, about Natasha –’

  ‘It was she who asked you out. She told me.’

  ‘Soon as I said yes I wished I hadn’t. Then seeing you with him – like a knife in my gut it was.’

  ‘As far as I know he’s gone home.’

  ‘Be back will he?’

  ‘I wouldn’t have thought so, not now he’s accepted the second offer on his mother’s house.’

  His gaze holding hers, he gave a brief nod. The matter was closed and would not be mentioned again. He stood up. ‘I’ll get on home and shift the furniture to make space for they boxes.’

  ‘Will Chris help you get them down?’

  ‘Too right he will.’ He grinned. ‘Specially if he want me to take him round to Jimmy’s garage and ask about a decent second-hand motor that won’t cost an arm and a leg to run.’

  Smothering a yawn she followed him to the door where he shrugged into his jacket. ‘Sleep well, Tom.’

  ‘I will now. Night, my lover.’ He hesitated then leaned towards her, his lips brushing her cheek. She cupped his face, tenderly kissed his mouth. ‘Thank you.’

  He smiled. ‘For bringing your chips?’

  ‘And everything else.’ She knew he understood.

  ‘I’ll ring you soon as I can.’

  ‘I’ll be here.’

  Chapter Six

  ‘So, is everyone clear about their contributions for the next edition of the magazine?’ Claire raised her voice as Viv clattered crockery on the worktop.

  ‘I’m writing about care of antique linen and using raised embroidery in a quilt,’ Gill called.

  ‘With photos,’ Claire reminded and Gill nodded.

  ‘Ben will photograph every stall at the Rally,’ Mor promised. ‘Then you can choose the ones you want to use.’

  ‘Ask him to take shots of the vintage cars and tractors,’ Claire said. ‘He knows everyone so they’ll let him in past the barrier.’

  ‘He dearly love his camera,’ Mor beamed. ‘He’s getting some good with it too. He’s bound to take too many –’

  ‘No he won’t,’ Claire broke in. ‘Keeping some photos back will give us a head start on the next issue. Viv, I know you’ve got a lot on with your mum –’

  ‘I have, but we could do with a few more bums on seats at the Lunch Club. So I was thinking we could put in a photo of the hall with the tables all laid, and a few lines alongside or underneath. You know, something like, come and enjoy two tasty courses with tea or coffee after, all for £3.50. Meet old friends, make new ones. Visitors welcome. That should fill half a page.’

  ‘Viv, that’s great. You could add that people are welcome to bring along a bottle of wine or beer to have with their meal.’ Claire grinned. ‘I’ve got a
bit of good news. Four more businesses have bought advertising space.’

  As everyone clapped and offered congratulations, Jess switched on the kettle. ‘Viv, Annie, tell Claire about Frances.’

  ‘How is she now?’ Claire asked when they had finished.

  ‘Better than she was,’ Annie said. ‘But it was like I thought. She’ll be on tablets and injections for the rest of her life.’

  It had taken Jess two days to wash, dry, and iron all the clothes she had brought from Frances’s bungalow. After they had aired all night by the woodburner she had placed them carefully in clean bin bags. When Viv had called for her after lunch Jess saw she had done the same, laying them carefully along the back seat. Jess put hers on top.

  ‘It gave me some shock when the amb’lance pulled up this afternoon,’ Viv went on. ‘I thought she was coming home tomorrow.’

  ‘I knew it was today,’ Annie said. ‘I wanted you there so she’d know who had cleaned her house and done all her laundry. But –’

  ‘Who bought two bags of groceries so she’d have food in?’ Jess reminded. Annie brushed that aside, about to speak.

  ‘Annie went out to meet the ambulance,’ Jess told Claire. ‘And let Frances know we were there.’

  ‘I should’ve realised,’ Annie began.

  ‘She looked a lot better than when she went,’ Viv cut in.

  ‘I hope she thanked you for everything you had done,’ said Gill.

  Jess and Viv exchanged a wry glance.

  ‘What?’ Claire demanded. ‘She did thank you?’

  ‘I’d just hung up her clothes in the wardrobe and Viv had put away the clean bed linen in the airing cupboard. We came out into the hall as Annie walked in,’ Jess began.

  ‘She jumped when she seen us, like we was strangers and shouldn’t be there.’ Viv snorted.

  ‘I smiled and said I hoped she was feeling better,’ Jess said. ‘She just nodded and went on through to the kitchen.’

  ‘I don’t b’lieve it,’ Mor gasped.

  ‘Jess and me went out and waited in the car,’ Viv said. ‘It was clear as daylight she didn’t want us there.’