CHAPTER 50
Mildred came home from her first day at work white-faced and shaking with tiredness.
'I'm not as young as I was,’ she said. 'Where's Eldred?’
'He left a note on the table saying he'd gone to the park to play football,’ Edgar said. 'It's not right. There should be someone here when he comes home, Mildred. He's only nine.’
Mildred sat down and eased the shoes off her feet, wincing. 'We can't have it both ways,’ she said. 'He'll get plenty of supervision if he goes to boarding school.’
'You can give up that idea,’ Edgar said irritably. 'You're wearing yourself out for nothing. Look at the state you're in after one shift.’
'I'll get used to it,’ said Mildred. 'The first week's always the worst, so they say.’
'The first week!’ Edgar scoffed. 'You won't last another day in that place, by the look of you.’
'I'm going to get the tea ready,’ said Mildred with dignity.
Edgar relented. 'Sit there for five minutes first. I'll make you a cuppa.’
He returned with two cups of tea and found her sitting back on the sofa with her eyes closed. He nudged her gently and handed her the cup. 'I put a sugar in it. Good for energy.’
'Thanks, love.’
'I don't mean to be discouraging,’ he apologized. 'I feel we should be able to provide for him. We only have one son and we can't give him what he needs.’
'Maybe he just needs us to try,’ said Mildred.
'If he was slow at his schooling the State would provide,’ Edgar fumed. 'Special needs. But Eldred has special needs and they don't give a damn. All that head teacher says is that he'll do well anyway and he'd probably learn even without any teaching.’
'He has a point,’ said Mildred. 'He does teach himself things, doesn't he?’
'Not at school,’ said Edgar. 'Why send him to school at all, if it's the only place where he doesn't learn anything?’
'I expect he learns something,’ Mildred said, 'even if it's only how to get on with other children.’
'That school's not fulfilling its responsibility,’ said Edgar wretchedly. 'Why can't they at least give him extra work, if they won't put him up another class?’
'I know,’ said Mildred. 'Perhaps the programme will shake them up a bit, make them think.’ She yawned. 'Eldred's late.’
'I'll go down the park and fetch him,’ Edgar said. 'You get the tea on.’
He caught Eldred coming out of a public phone box. 'What are you doing?’ he asked, seizing his arm.
'Nothing,’ said Eldred. 'I was on my way home.’
'Who were you phoning?’
'Nobody,’ Eldred said. 'I mean, a friend.’
'Why can't you phone him from home?’ Edgar demanded. Frustration at his inability to earn money to help Eldred turned to rage at Eldred's ingratitude. 'You don't appreciate the sacrifices your parents make for you,’ he told him. 'Your mother's been slaving all day at that job of hers and you can't even be home on time.’
'I forgot it was her first day,’ Eldred said. 'How did she get on?’
'You forgot because you're selfish,’ Edgar said, 'and you think the whole world should revolve around you and your clever ideas of yourself.’ They finished the walk home in silence.
Eldred went straight to the kitchen to find Mildred. 'Sorry I'm late,’ he said. 'How was your first day at work?’
'Fine, love; I enjoyed it,’ Mildred said. 'Come here,’ she added, on a note of concern. She turned Eldred towards her. 'You're crying.’
'I'm not,’ he denied. 'I'll go and wash my hands.’ He ran upstairs.
'What have you said to him, Edgar?’ said Mildred.
'Told him to show a little concern for others, that's all,’ said Edgar gruffly.
'He's only nine,’ Mildred reproached him.
'He has to learn he can't just think about himself,’ Edgar said.
'Eldred thinks a lot about others,’ said Mildred. 'He worries too much at times. Let him play with his friends and be late home occasionally.’
'He was in a phone box, by himself,’ Edgar said.
'Phoning who?’
'He wouldn't say. A friend, he said.’
As if on cue, their own phone started ringing.
'Shall I get it?’ said Eldred, jumping down the last three stairs.
'No, leave it to me,’ his father said. 'Someone else about that damned television programme, I expect.’
'Come and taste this cheese for me, Eldred,’ Mildred said. 'I got a new kind. It was going cheap. One good thing about working at that supermarket is you get discounts on your own shopping.’
Eldred took the wedge of cheese she held out to him. 'Quite nice,’ he said politely. 'Was it hard work today, Mum? You look a bit tired.’
She hugged him. 'I expect it's because I'm hungry. Nothing a good tea won't put right.’
They both heard the change in Edgar's voice.
'Yes,’ he said in his most formal tone, 'I am almost certain that will be suitable but of course I will have to check with my wife to ensure she has no prior engagements.’
Mildred and Eldred moved to the doorway of the living-room and stared at him.
'Yes,’ said Edgar, 'I shall telephone your secretary at approximately that time tomorrow morning. Not at all. Thank you. Thank you. Goodbye. Yes, of course. Thank you. Goodbye. Goodbye.’ He put down the phone and mopped his forehead with his hand.
'Who was that?’ said Eldred.
'That was Mr Clinford,’ Edgar said impressively, 'headmaster of Abingdale School - that big private place on the way to the crematorium.’
Eldred giggled. 'Does he get his pupils cremated if they don't behave?’
'This is no time for a joke, Eldred,’ Edgar said. 'He's offered us an interview. I'm to ring his secretary tomorrow to confirm that we can go. He suggested Wednesday at 6 p.m. You'll be home by then, Mildred.’
'An interview for what?’ said Mildred, bemused.
'For the school,’ Edgar said. 'One of his teachers told him about the local news on the television; he didn't see it himself, he said, but they would be very interested to meet Eldred, with a view to offering him a place at the school.’
'I hope you told him we couldn't afford the fees yet,’ said Mildred. 'Not for a year or two.’
'Do I have to go?’ asked Eldred.
'Well!’ Edgar exploded. 'Listen to the two of you! The headmaster - the headmaster himself, in person, not a secretary, mind - phones our house to say he's interested in offering a place to Eldred, and who knows what offering means until we meet him and talk to him, eh? And all you can do is raise objections. Eldred, this is for your benefit, you know. Where's your gratitude?’
'All they'll want is to say I'm a pupil at their school,’ said Eldred, 'and that I invent things, and then they'll take all the credit for themselves. And when I'm not good at the things they want me to do, they'll drop me like a hot brick. I'd rather wait and see what Louise comes up with.’
Edgar clenched his fists and opened his mouth to speak.
'Tea first,’ said Mildred hastily. 'We'll discuss everything afterwards. Lay the table, Eldred, will you?’
Genius Page 50