“The whole family were so relieved and pleased when Elsie was found and convicted of murdering Freddy. It was like a fresh start for them. Harry and his other son, Charlie, were expanding the family business. Anne, the eldest daughter, had recently had a little boy. Janie, the youngest daughter, was about to set off in a few weeks to travel the world with her boyfriend and Megan was settling in at uni. I thought that letting them know that all Elsie had got for Christmas was a three-inch scar down her face might just be a welcome parting gift from me! But how wrong was I?” Mike Turner watched as Jack lifted the empty whisky glass.
“Refill, Guv?” he offered, standing. Jack handed over the glass and watched as the young PC ordered him a refill at the bar. On his return, he noticed it was a double measure.
“Thought you looked like a single wouldn’t do.”
Jack nodded and took a mouthful of the amber liquid. It burnt as it slid down his throat. “They’re a good honest family, are the Arnolds,” he continued. “Have always made the best of everything that’s been thrown at them, but Bea, well, Bea’s in a class of her own. She’s the strongest woman I’ve ever known. Life has certainly thrown her a curve ball or two, but she’s never held a grudge. She’s never wallowed in her own self-pity, just always put others first. And now life has thrown her the worst curve ball imaginable. She’s got terminal cancer. Just a matter of a few months to live. Makes you wonder if there is a God, doesn’t it? Thirty-odd years I’ve been a policeman. I’ve seen things and witnessed things that no God-fearing man should ever see. I’ve helped put away murderers, rapists, all kinds of lowlifes and do you know what they all have in common, Turner?” Mike shook his head. “They’re all in good health. Banged up they might be but they’re all drawing breath. Then you’ve got people like Bea who are about to face an agonising death who have done nothing but good. Doesn’t make sense, does it?” Jack finished off the whisky in one go and pushed the glass away from him.
“You know what, PC Turner? If I hadn’t already retired I’d have resigned on the spot after hearing Bea’s news. I’ve lost all faith in God, in justice, in everything I believed in as a police officer.” Jack rose from the table. “And they say crime doesn’t pay! Sure as hell feels like it does to me right now. Let’s get me to the airport and on this plane. The further away I am from this way of life the better.”
PC Mike Turner followed the retreating retired DCI Jack Wilde with one thought in his head! “IS THIS JOB REALLY WORTH IT?”
CHARLIE & GEORGE
“Wished they’d slit her throat,” remarked Charlie to his grandad. The mood that day inside the house was at an all-time low, so when George had suggested that they slip out for a breath of air Charlie had readily agreed, knowing his grandad had meant for a sneaky pint or two.
“Aye, lad, I’m with you on that score, but it was good of that copper to call in and let us know.”
“I bet he wished he hadn’t now,” replied Charlie.
“Aye, lad, I’m with you on that one as well. Seemed to take it hard, he did, about our Bea.”
“He did, Grandad. I could tell. He’s been coming and going since Freddy died. Dad said he was a rare thing. A good cop, he called him. I didn’t quite understand at the time. Thought he meant that all cops were bad, but he didn’t, did he, Grandad?” George eyed up his young grandson. He was looking more and more like his dad every day, except for the blonde hair of course, which he’d inherited from his mother. He had the same jawline. The same intensity to his eyes. The tall, muscular build and, most importantly, the same thoughtfulness towards others. It never ceased to amaze George how his only son and youngest daughter had such a capacity to love, to forgive, to move on, despite all the horrors they’d undergone. He liked to think he was a good man. An honest man. But he wasn’t so quick to forgive and forget. He hadn’t spoken to his ex-wife or his eldest daughter, Mary, since he’d walked out on them the day Bea re-entered their lives. Now there was a pair who could hold a grudge and spit venom at the drop of a hat. Never had he known such hatred ooze from two people. And why? George asked himself. Ethel had never had it so good on meeting him. Her family had nothing. Lazy sods and all, if his memory served him right. She’d landed on her feet when she’d hooked him, everyone would say. Yet, Ethel was never satisfied. Always wanted more and never had a good word to say to anyone, least of all him. And Mary was no different. Born angry at the world, his old mum used to say. Boy, that was true. Then along came sweet-natured Bea and her brother, Harry. Where Mary would stomp about, grizzle, cry or do all three, Bea and Harry would smile, laugh and skip around the house. Anne, Harry’s eldest daughter, could be a mardy so-and-so at times, but Charlie and Janie were eternal optimists. Freddy had been that way too. The glass was always half full with them. And now, after what seemed such a short space of time, he was going to lose his beautiful Bea all over again and for good this time.
“Did he, Grandad?” Charlie’s voice brought him out of his reverie.
“Sorry, son, what did you say again?”
“I said he didn’t mean that all coppers are bad?”
“No lad, no. There’s a few bad’uns but there’s also some that go that extra mile, like that Jack Wilde.” Charlie guessed that his grandad had tuned out, thinking about Bea and who could blame him.
“Another, Grandad?” asked Charlie, raising his empty glass. George looked at his half-empty glass of beer and inwardly laughed at the irony of it.
“You go ahead, son. I’m still ploughing through this one.”
Charlie turned his back on his grandad and stifled back the tears that were bubbling close to the surface. He knew the news of his Aunt Bea’s terminal cancer had hit his grandad really hard. Charlie knew he still blamed himself for all those years that Bea had been kept away from the family. When Bea had come back to look after them he’d begun to see a different side to his grandad. Before that, his grandad had just spent his days either down on his allotment or getting under his dad’s feet at the garage. On visits to his grandparents’ house, Charlie had only seen his grandad ensconced in his old armchair, his gran constantly berating him. Since he’d walked out on his granny, Charlie had seen his grandad come to life. He’d joined a local bowls club, volunteered at the local animal shelter, played dominoes for the pub they were now enjoying a pint in and had a small army of old ladies vying for his affections. Charlie could now identify with the man that his father spoke of from his childhood. Charlie just hoped that this latest bombshell regarding Bea wasn’t going to send his grandad back into himself again. Charlie paid for his pint and turned back to face his grandad.
“Our Janie will make sure Aunty Bea is well cared for, Grandad.”
“Aye, that she will, lad, that she will. I just wish Bea had longer. We had longer with her. We’ve been playing chess on a Wednesday morning these past few years. I taught her how to play when she was seven years old. I used to play with my old dad and when he died Bea asked straight away if I’d teach her how to play. She told me that she’d taught Arthur how to play. Said she found it gave her a connection to me, to the past, to the good times. I’m not ashamed to say, I cried when she told me. Now, now I’m losing her and those lovely mornings of playing chess all over again. It’s hard, lad, very hard.” Charlie placed an arm around his grandad’s shoulders.
“I used to play chess at school, Grandad. No one else in our house was interesting in playing so I stopped going as I just wasn’t getting enough practice. Maybe I could give you a game?” George smiled at his grandson. He was still amazed by how much he didn’t know about his grandchildren.
“I’d like that, lad, very much, but I doubt your dad will give you the morning off to play chess with me.”
“Probably not, Grandad, but I could come round yours one evening a week and have a game – if you’ve got one spare, that is,” joked Charlie. George smiled at his grandson. In one small gesture, he’d lightened his heart. There was nothi
ng he’d like more than to start spending some quality time with this delightful young man.
“I’ll have to check my diary,” he jested, “but I think I can squeeze you in on a Tuesday evening if you’re free?”
“I’m free,” Charlie replied, mimicking John Inman’s character from TV series, Are You Being Served?
JANIE
Janie had been deliberately avoiding Josef since she’d overheard the conversation between her Aunt Bea and her dad. She’d put him off with saying she wanted to spend quality time with her family before heading off in the New Year for the start of what would be an eighteen-month tour around the globe. Now he was knocking on the front door. Janie steeled herself for what was to come and opened the door to him.
“Christ, Janie, thought I was going to freeze to death on the doorstep waiting for someone to answer it,” he remarked as he stepped into the hallway.
“I was upstairs and no one else is home,” replied Janie.
“That’s gotta be a first, hasn’t it? I mean, everyone out?” Janie closed the front door and headed along the hallway to the kitchen.
“Dad’s taken Bea to see some old film at the Clifton. Charlie’s having a pint with grandad and Megan has gone out somewhere with Dave. Tea?” she asked as she began to fill the kettle.
“Please. Any of Bea’s delicious fruit cake going?” he asked.
“There might be some left-over Christmas cake in that red tin over on the dresser.” Josef busied himself with cutting off a large slice of the cake, while Janie poured them both a mug of tea.”
“What do you fancy doing tonight?” asked Josef between mouthfuls of cake.
“Nothing, Josef. I’ve got something very important to tell you.”
“Christ, you’re not pregnant, are you?”
“No,” replied Janie, “nothing as simple as that.”
“What do you mean by that?” Josef asked.
“Something could be done about that, but nothing can be done about this.” Josef finished off his mouthful of cake and swilled it down with a swig of his tea.
“What’s with all the cryptic clues, Miss Marple?” he joked. Janie took a deep breath.
“Bea’s cancer isn’t getting better. She lied, Josef. She’s only got a few months at the most to live.” Janie watched Josef’s face as he digested what she had said. It was almost as if she could see the wheels turning in his mind, figuring out what she’d just said. Finally, he spoke.
“I’ll speak to the band in the morning. I’ll tell them that we might have to pop home at a moment’s notice due to your aunt dying. I’m sure they’ll be cool with it, so don’t worry, Janie, it’ll be fine.”
“FINE?” screamed Janie. “FINE? You think it’ll be fine?” She was yelling now but couldn’t help it.
“For Christ’s sake, Janie, get a grip. I know you’re upset about your Aunt Bea but there’s no need to get hysterical.” Josef got up off his chair as he spoke and made to wrap Janie in his arms, but she was on her feet, batting his arms away.
“Do you really think I’m going to swan off with you, traipsing around after some second-rate band that have duped you into photographing their journey – for free, I might add – while my Aunt Bea is alone in her cottage dying an agonising death from cancer.” She knew she was getting hysterical now but his off-hand response to her devastating news had sent her fractured emotions over the edge.
“For FUCK’S SAKE, Janie, Bea isn’t going to die alone. Your family won’t allow it for a start and we made a commitment to the band. We said we’d take the photographs and chronicle the tour. We made a commitment, Janie. A COMMITMENT, REMEMBER. You can’t just walk away from a commitment.”
“You made the commitment, Josef, YOU, NOT ME! You turned our backpacking adventure around Europe into an unpaid job for some fucking band that no one’s ever heard of. You did that, Josef, and I was expected to go along with your plans. It was supposed to be our adventure, not someone else’s, but you didn’t care about that, did you? You thought your desire to be some hotshot photographer to the rich and famous was far more important, didn’t you?” Janie shouted at him.
“I was thinking of our future, Janie, thinking about making a name for myself so we could have a good life. Forgive me for trying to make something of my life. I want the finer things in life, Janie. The fast cars, designer clothes. I want to eat in the best restaurants and stay in the best hotels. I want that for us, Janie, for you and me.”
“I don’t want any of those things, Josef, and if you really took the time and thought about me from time to time you’d know that. All I want is to be happy. To be with people who I love and love me. I don’t need fancy clothes and plush hotels. And, right now, I need to stay here and look after Bea. I need to make sure that she’s got everything she needs. To hold her hand when the time comes and let her know how much I love her and how much I’m going to miss her. I need to do that, Josef. I need to do it just as much for me as I do for Bea. If you truly loved me you’d understand that.” Janie collapsed back down onto the kitchen chair and rested her arms and head on the table. She prayed that Josef would see the sense in what she was saying. See the need for her to stay and take care of Bea. Janie’s prayers went unanswered as Josef exploded in a fit of rage.
“If you really loved me, Janie, you wouldn’t be leaving me and the band in the lurch. I’d pegged you for a lot of things, Janie, but being selfish wasn’t one of them. I’m trying to do the right thing by you so now I need you to do the right thing by me. Spend the remainder of your time here with Bea but come the twenty-fifth of January you need to be packed and ready to leave. Do you hear me, Janie? You need to be ready to leave and carry out your commitment to me and the band.”
Janie lifted her head off the table and stared deep into Josef’s eyes. Oh! How she used to love to stare into the depths and warmth of those deep, dark brown eyes. To see the love, or what she’d believed to be love, in them. Now they just look cold and hard. Had he ever loved her? She was no longer sure! She’d thought that he was her knight in shining armour, yet now he looked more like the evil baddie in a movie. How had she ever fallen in love with him? Because she had. She still was in love with him, despite all of this, but she didn’t like him anymore. She didn’t like that he thought ‘the band’ and his plans were more important than her dying aunt. Janie surprised herself with how calm her voice sounded as she spoke.
“I won’t be packed and ready, as you say, to leave on the twenty-fifth to chase around after you and some godawful band. I’ll be down living at the cottage in Talybont with Aunt Bea and seeing to her needs. My only commitment is to her, Josef. To her and my family to make sure her last days are happy ones. If you choose to go ahead with the commitment you made to the band, then that’s your choice. I made no commitment to them. You made a commitment for me without even consulting me. I’m doing you the courtesy of telling you what I’m committed to doing. Something you never gave me. Now, please do me the courtesy of leaving.” Without another word, Josef stormed out of the kitchen and made for the front door. He stood there with his hand around the door handle, waiting for Janie to stop him. When she didn’t he finally broke the silence.
“If I leave now, Janie, I won’t ever be coming back, do you hear me? I’ll be gone for good. Is that what you want? What you really want?” Janie placed her head down on the table and waited for the inevitable to happen. And then it did! In one single action the door was wrenched open and Josef was outside, with the door slamming shut on him. He was gone, and Janie’s tears fell like raindrops onto the kitchen table. Inside, her heart was breaking. Her Josef had gone. She’d hoped he’d understand. She’d hoped he’d be supportive. She’d hoped he’d loved her enough to stay. Janie was beginning to get the feeling that all those she loved would leave sooner or later. First it was her mum, then Freddy, now Josef and soon, too soon, it would be Bea’s turn to leave.
Josef
stomped his way through the snow out of the driveway, heading towards his parents’ home.
“Damn you, Janie,” he shouted out into the cold winter’s night. Damn you for letting me down. Damn you for being so weak. Because that’s exactly was she was. Weak where her family was concerned. She should be putting him first, after all in the future he’d be her family. Well, not anymore. He didn’t need a selfish wife holding him back, keeping him from reaching his full potential, from achieving his dreams. He knew a dozen girls who’d kill to be with him and join him on this once-in-a-lifetime tour. Who needed Janie Arnold anyway? He sure as HELL didn’t. Josef changed the direction his was heading in. Amber Murray would probably be working behind the bar of The Barley now. He’d go there and ask her if she fancied a jaunt around the world with him.
MEGAN
10th January 1983
Megan shut the boot of her little yellow Mini and made her way back into the house. She would be heading back to university in Aberystwyth within the hour but a cup of tea with her Aunt Bea was calling. As she entered the kitchen, Bea was pouring boiling water from the kettle into a china teapot. On the kitchen table were two cups and saucers, a milk jug, a sugar bowl and a plate of assorted biscuits. Megan sat down at the table with a heavy heart.
“It should be me going to the cottage to look after you.” Bea turned with the teapot held firmly in her hands. She spoke as she crossed the kitchen and placed the teapot in the middle of the table.
“We’ve gone over this a thousand times, Megan. You’ve got university, Harry and Charlie have the garage. Janie will take good care of me and you’re only an hour or so’s drive away. I’ll, we’ll, look forward to your fortnightly visits.”
Cutting the Cord Page 16