East End Angel

by Rivers, Carol

  Amy looked eagerly at her daughter. ‘I’m sure it wouldn’t take Ricky long to see that Abingley is a lovely place to live.’

  ‘Yes, but he needs a job. There can’t be many going round here.’

  ‘Your father might be able to help.’

  ‘If I put in a good word at the aerodrome, would you and Ricky consider it?’ asked Syd.

  ‘I’m sure we would,’ Ruby nodded, to Pearl’s concern. Once again, Ruby was only thinking of what she wanted.

  ‘I’m sure he only wants the best for his wife and child,’ said their father quietly.

  Pearl saw Ruby’s expression change as they both remembered how Ricky felt about the baby.

  ‘This calls for a celebration,’ said Syd, going to the sideboard. ‘Let’s wet the baby’s head.’

  At this Ruby looked pale. ‘I don’t feel like a drink.’

  ‘Are you all right, ducks?’ asked Amy.

  ‘I’ve got to go to the lav.’

  When she’d gone, Pearl enjoyed a sherry with her father and mother.

  ‘To the baby,’ he said, grinning.

  ‘So Ruby’s happy, is she, love?’ Amy asked Pearl uncertainly.

  ‘Yes, course,’ Pearl nodded.

  ‘Do you really think she’d move here?’

  ‘Don’t know, Mum.’ Pearl didn’t want to give them false hope. She didn’t know what would happen when she and Ruby got back to the Smoke. Ruby was already forgetting how cruel Ricky had been. Pearl shuddered at the thought of seeing him again. At least she had a few days to think what to do for the best.

  Her mother’s cheeks were red with the sherry. ‘They might move, if you and Jim did, Pearl. We could all be one happy family.’

  Pearl looked away. She knew that could never be.

  ‘Amy, don’t let’s forget what’s been said today,’ Syd interrupted before Pearl could reply. ‘Our girls have got their own lives to lead and their husbands to think of.’

  But Pearl knew by the look in her mother’s eye that this wasn’t the end of the matter.

  Chapter 21

  When Pearl woke the next morning, Ruby brought her a cup of tea. She was wearing their mother’s dressing gown and slippers.

  ‘What time is it?’ Pearl sat up.

  ‘Half-past seven.’ Ruby glanced across at Cynthia, asleep on the Put-u-up and whispered, ‘I didn’t sleep very well. I was thinking of Ricky and wondering if he was all right.’

  Pearl felt her stomach drop. ‘Have you forgotten what he wanted you to do?’

  ‘Course not.’ Ruby sat on the bed. ‘Perhaps he didn’t mean it.’

  ‘You told me he did.’

  ‘Yes, but anyone can change their mind.’

  ‘Does that mean you’ve made up your mind to go back?’

  ‘No.’ Ruby looked away. ‘I’m still feeling sick. I know that upsets him. And I’d like him to miss me, as we said.’

  Pearl knew that Ricky wasn’t capable of any decent feelings. She was more frightened than ever for Ruby. ‘Do you like it here?’ she asked as she sipped her tea.

  ‘Yes, it seems very nice.’

  ‘Can you see yourself living in the country?’

  Ruby smiled and nodded. ‘Perhaps, if Ricky liked it too.’ She sat on the edge of the bed. ‘I’ve decided to phone him as I’ve got the number of the Disabled Servicemen’s Centre. I’m going to ask him to come down and see Abingley for himself; tell him that Dad might be able to get him a job. I’m sure that will make a difference.’

  Pearl nearly dropped her cup. ‘Ruby—’

  ‘Anyway,’ sniffed Ruby, tossing her head, ‘it’s about time we got dressed. Mum said we can borrow Patty’s pushchair and walk into town.’

  Pearl was left with a feeling of desperation. Ruby had chosen to ignore all the warning signs with Ricky. She had conveniently forgotten his violent behaviour and threats, and was now imagining a life of peace and tranquillity in the country.

  Later that day, as they walked round the market, they saw many well-dressed people shopping at the stalls. The farmers looked prosperous, with their cloth caps and corduroy trousers, and Ruby became excited when she saw a notice hung on one of the empty animal stalls.

  ‘See what it says? A stockman is wanted to help the auctioneer on market day.’

  ‘You’re not thinking of Ricky, are you?’ Pearl couldn’t see Ricky in boots and an overall.

  ‘Well, it’s a job,’ Ruby pouted.

  ‘You’re right, love,’ said Amy eagerly. ‘It would be a start.’

  ‘I’ll tell Ricky when I phone him.’

  ‘There’s a telephone box on the way home,’ said Amy, ‘but before we go, let’s see the rest of the town.’

  Although Pearl was filled with misgivings, she couldn’t voice an opinion. She tried to enjoy their walk meanwhile, as the air was fresh and clean, and a river, which wasn’t dirty like the Thames, ran under a grey stone bridge. Narrow brooks ran off it and ducks and swans bobbed on its surface. All the houses looked quaint and were well-tended, which reminded her of Brawton. Even the pub, called the Crossed Keys, was like the Brown Bear. The thought brought back bittersweet memories.

  ‘Good morning, Amy.’ A woman in a smart check coat and hat with a feather in its rim, stopped them.

  ‘Morning, Frances.’ Amy gave a big smile. ‘I’d like you to meet my two daughters, Pearl and Ruby, and my granddaughter, Cynthia.’

  ‘I’m pleased to meet you. What a lovely little girl.’

  Pearl smiled. ‘Thank you.’

  When she’d gone, Amy whispered, ‘Frances Butterworth is the secretary of the Churchwomen’s Guild. She’s a very well-to-do lady and has taken me under her wing.’

  ‘She seems very friendly,’ said Pearl, as Amy pulled back her shoulders and touched her hair into place.

  ‘Come along, girls, I’m going to take you for a treat.’

  Amy led them to the rows of shops in the market square. Some of them sold souvenirs and paintings of the town and the animals that were kept in pens on market day. At the end of the row was a tea shop.

  Inside, they sat at a window table. Amy ordered real cream cakes with cream from one of the farms. Pearl noticed that Ruby couldn’t take her eyes off the white tablecloth with roses embroidered on it and the dainty china and leaded light windows.

  ‘Mum, this is really quaint,’ said Ruby, all eyes.

  ‘Yes, it is, love.’ Amy poured the tea. ‘I meet my friends from church here once in a while. It’s better than a draughty old church hall that we had to put up with on the island.’

  Pearl was helping Cynthia to eat her sponge when she heard this. It didn’t sound like her mum. All her life Amy had been an islander. But was she trying to impress Ruby?

  ‘And they’ve got very good schools,’ continued Amy, nodding at a little girl dressed in a blue uniform, white socks and beret. She was sitting at the next table with her mother. ‘Talks properly too,’ whispered Amy, nudging Ruby’s arm. ‘All her pleases and thank yous and not gulping her food down.’

  Ruby stared at the little girl.

  ‘There’s a school in this road called St Boniface,’ said their mother. ‘It’s run by the nuns, but they take non-Catholic children, if you allow your child to learn the catechism. It’s to get more Catholics, you see, but you wouldn’t mind that in exchange for a good education.’

  ‘No, I wouldn’t at all,’ agreed Ruby eagerly as her attention strayed back to the little girl.

  Amy went on to describe the new flats and houses being allocated to evacuees. ‘If your name was to go down now,’ said Amy as they finished their tea, ‘you’d have a place by next year. Frances had friends who fell on hard times and she put a word for them. She would do that for me if I asked.’

  Pearl glanced at her sister. Ruby was nodding her head.

  Ruby was in the telephone box and looking agitated.

  ‘What’s wrong, do you think?’ Amy asked Pearl as she frowned at her daughter through the small panes of glass. ‘Cou
ld Ricky have something against them moving here?’

  ‘Mum, they’ve been married only six months.’ She rocked Cynthia back and forth in the pushchair. She knew that Ruby and Ricky were arguing again. If only Ruby had left him alone.

  ‘All the more reason to move before the baby. I wish you would encourage your sister.’

  ‘She’s a big girl now.’

  Amy sighed impatiently. ‘You’re the last person I thought would be against them moving. After all, Jim will be home after the war. What will they do then?’

  ‘I know you want the best for Ruby—’

  ‘And why shouldn’t I?’ Amy demanded. ‘After all, it’s almost two years since I last saw Cynthia, my only grandchild. I expect it’ll be another two years before I see her again.’ Amy put her hand on Pearl’s. ‘I’m sorry, I don’t mean to sound selfish, but I can’t help it.’

  ‘Ruby has her own mind.’

  ‘Yes, but if they were to move here, your dad and me could keep an eye on them.’ Amy looked at the telephone box again. ‘Ruby’s not as bright as you, Pearl. You’re level-headed, always knew where you were going and what you wanted. But your sister’s always been a bit on the impulsive side.’

  Pearl continued to rock Cynthia, who had fallen asleep under the blanket. It was at times like these that Pearl wished she could hide her head under the blanket too. Coming to Abingley had seemed a good idea at the time, but now it was causing more problems.

  Ruby burst out of the telephone box, weeping.

  Amy folded her daughter in her arms. ‘There, there, what’s wrong, ducks?’

  ‘Nothing,’ sobbed Ruby.

  ‘There must be something.’

  ‘I’m all right.’ Ruby pushed herself away.

  ‘So what did Ricky say?’

  ‘I told him about the job in the market and he said how could he do it with two fingers missing? S’pose he’s got a point, but it won’t be that easy in an office, either.’ Ruby blew her nose.

  ‘Did you tell him your dad was willing to help?’

  Ruby nodded. ‘He just shouted at me.’

  Amy slid her hand through her daughter’s arm. ‘Give him time to think it over. You can phone again at Patty’s. She won’t mind.’

  They walked on. Pearl had a heavy heart. Because of Ricky, they were all in a big mess. Ruby couldn’t tell Amy what Ricky had said about the baby, and Pearl guessed that his opinion hadn’t changed.

  After a while, Amy pointed to a block of houses all built in the same clean, neat style. ‘See them? They’re all new, with young families going in them from the Smoke.’

  Ruby dried her tears. ‘They’re very nice. And there are trees in the back gardens. It must be wonderful to look out of the window and see all green.’

  Pearl strolled on with the pushchair. She knew her mother and sister wanted to be near one another. But she also knew that Ricky, a bully and a coward, would never tolerate an outside influence.

  The next day was cold and rainy. Patty from next door sent her little girl, Elizabeth, to play with Cynthia after school. She was five and had just started her first term at St Boniface.

  Pearl was sitting with them, when Ruby appeared. She sat down with a big sigh. ‘I phoned Ricky from Patty’s.’

  ‘What did he say?’

  ‘He’s going to see a firm of hauliers at Aldgate. They need a clerk in their office and he won’t change his mind about the market job and so we’ll have to stay in the Smoke.’ Ruby looked sorry for herself as she stared out of the window at what their mother called ‘the green’, a large expanse of mowed grass that was bordered by a thick hedge. The top deck of the buses was just visible as they passed by. Unlike London, there were trees all along the road.

  ‘The Smoke’s not so bad,’ said Pearl with a shrug.

  ‘But Abingley’s better for a child,’ said Ruby determinedly. ‘When I met Hope and her children, I thought, that’s what I want. I suddenly realized it wasn’t enough to have a pretty face and big smile. They don’t get you what money can buy. I used to be happy at Brewer’s, but it’s just a factory, as Ricky keeps telling me. I’m only a worker on an assembly line.’

  ‘There’s nothing wrong that.’

  ‘No, but it’s not for me.’

  ‘Do you really want to move to Abingley?’

  ‘Yes, I do. I’ve made up my mind that’s what I want. There’s the baby to consider, and its future. Although Ricky is against it at the moment, I’m sure he’ll come round.’

  Elizabeth looked up and they smiled at the pretty child with silky brown hair, neatly clipped back with a slide. She had large, intelligent brown eyes and a clean face, as opposed to Cynthia’s grubby one.

  ‘The children are so well behaved in the country,’ said Ruby thoughtfully. ‘There’s no swearing or putting out their tongues and making faces like the little horrors around where we live.’

  ‘They’re not all like that,’ said Pearl, wishing she’d taken time to run a flannel round Cynthia’s mouth. ‘They haven’t got fields and woods to play in and have to make do with the bombed sites.’

  ‘That’s why I’d like to live here. It will take years to clean up the East End. But if we were here we could have that house I’ve always dreamed of, and you and Jim could come to stay. And our children will all speak properly and be well mannered, like Elizabeth.’

  Cynthia laughed loudly. Even at her tender age, her broad cockney accent set her apart. But that was the way islanders were, Pearl reflected. You had to shout louder than the next ten kids to be heard.

  ‘I’m sure if Ricky came to visit,’ Ruby mused as she rested her chin on her hands, ‘he’d change his mind and see that we could have a good standard of living here.’

  ‘You’ve only just got married,’ Pearl replied cautiously. ‘There’s plenty of time to build a new life.’

  ‘I’ve given him time,’ Ruby insisted. ‘He’s just being stubborn. This is the chance of a lifetime. We would be classed as evacuees if we moved now and given priority. Like Mum says, when the war ends it will be every man for himself, and all the nice places will be taken.’

  Pearl didn’t have the answers to Ruby’s problems. She was struggling with her own. If Ricky was determined to turn all their lives upside down, he would. But only she knew it.

  The next day was Saturday and, after being very sick, Ruby clearly wasn’t well enough to go out.

  ‘Sit down and put your feet up,’ said Amy as Ruby appeared with a white face.

  ‘I thought I was getting better.’

  ‘You should eat something,’ Pearl said as she had so many times before.

  ‘Even a biscuit would help.’

  ‘I’ve got some plain arrowroot from the aerodrome canteen.’ Amy hurried off.

  Ruby was sick again before she returned and Amy persuaded her to go back to bed. It was much later when Pearl heard a shout. She rushed into the bedroom and found Ruby doubled up. A red stain was on the sheet. She knew that she had to get help quickly. Opening the window she waved at Amy and Cynthia in the garden. ‘Mum! Come in quick!’

  Memories were flooding back of her miscarriage. Could this be happening to Ruby?

  Pearl was staring from the window across the green to the path where the ambulance had been. She was wondering if she should walk up to the aerodrome with Cynthia and tell their dad what had happened. Amy’s last words as she’d thrown on her coat and snatched up her bag before accompanying Ruby to hospital were that she’d phone Patty as soon as there was news.

  ‘Aunty Ruby gone.’ Cynthia wriggled in Pearl’s arms. She had watched wide-eyed as the two ambulance men had carefully wrapped Ruby in a blanket and laid her on a stretcher. Patty had offered to have Cynthia, so that Pearl could also go in the ambulance, but Amy was worried about Syd.

  ‘Granny will let us know how she is,’ Pearl said as she led Cynthia to the kitchen. ‘Let’s make a sandwich for Granddad.’

  ‘You all right, Pearl?’ It was Patty, ten minutes later, poking her h
ead round the back door. She was a slim, dark-haired woman in her mid-thirties, who had lived all her life in Abingley. Amy had said that Patty’s husband, Dennis, was manager of the local cinema and his job entitled him to have a telephone. This, from Amy’s point of view, had been a real boon.

  ‘Yes, have you heard from Mum?’ Pearl asked hopefully.

  ‘No. Is there’s anything I can do?’

  ‘Don’t think so.’

  ‘Does her husband know?’

  Pearl shook her head. ‘No.’

  ‘Do you want to phone him?’

  ‘Not yet.’ Pearl had no intention of speaking to Ricky, but she couldn’t say that to Patty.

  ‘Try not to worry.’ Patty closed the door but opened it again. ‘Send Cynthia in this afternoon, if you like, to play with Elizabeth.’

  ‘Yes, I will.’

  With a brief smile she left, and Pearl set out the cold meat and pickles for her father’s lunch. No sooner than she’d finished, he walked in the door.

  ‘Hello, love.’ He took off his navy-blue greatcoat and bicycle clip. ‘That’s a big hug,’ he grinned as Cynthia ran into his arms.

  ‘Aunty Ruby gone.’

  ‘What’s that?’

  ‘Dad, Ruby wasn’t well this morning. She had to go to hospital.’

  His face went grey. ‘What’s wrong with her?’

  ‘It might be to do with the baby.’

  Syd looked bewildered. ‘She won’t lose it, will she?’

  Pearl shrugged. ‘Mum will ring us from the hospital.’

  He sank down on the chair. ‘Soon as I get me breath back I’ll cycle over there.’

  ‘Have something to eat first.’ She put his meal in front of him. It wasn’t any use telling him to stay home. Ruby and the baby meant the world to him, much more than they did to Ricky.

  That afternoon, when Syd had left, Cynthia went to play with Elizabeth. Pearl washed out Ruby’s sheets and hung them on the line to dry. Was she losing the baby? She had been in pain but luckily the ambulance had come quickly after Patty had made the 999 call.

  Pearl busied herself with housework and, after putting Cynthia to bed, she peeled the vegetables for supper. She would make a hot meal, though she didn’t know if anyone would want to eat it. What had happened at the hospital?