In the Bleak Midwinter

by Stan Mason

  ***

  The news of James’s death came as a tremendous shock to Teddy and Ivan. For a while, the Russian was filled with despair, especially when he realised that he would be unemployed again. He became angry at the way Teddy treated the news. There were no tears, no signs of remorse and no symptoms of woe. The woman was like an iceberg with no feelings whatsoever! He believed that there were certain conventions recognised by a widow following the death of her husband but, almost uncannily, Teddy failed to display any emotion at all. Ivan had already moved out of her apartment and rented a room of his own. It was impoverished and very small but he perceived it to be a temporary haven,

  It suited him at that particular time as it allowed him to rid himself of James’s wife and free him from her cold calculated attitude. He arrived at the office on that fateful day and learned that his master had died in a car accident. They closed the office and Teddy drove him to the scene of the accident where they surveyed the wreckage sadly. The car had burst into flames on impact and the burned-out metal carcase of the vehicle had been pushed to the side of the road by a large bulldozer. It was an awful awesome sight to realise that someone had lost his life in that wreck!

  Later that week, after James’s solicitor was informed as to the death of his client, he contact Teddy and Ivan to attend his office.

  ‘I offer my condolences to you, Mrs. James,’ he began. ‘Your husband asked me to prepare his Will some twenty minutes before he died. It’s a legal document assigning me as his executor and I’m empowered to read it to you now.’

  Ivan stood up sensitively. ‘I ought to leave in such a personal matter,’ he said politely.

  ‘I’d like you to stay,’ insisted the solicitor firmly. ‘There’s mention of you in the Will.’

  ‘Of me?’ The Russian was sincerely surprise. ‘I’m mentioned in the Will?’

  They settled themselves down as the lawyer opened the folder and produced a sheaf of papers. He picked up a pair of pince-nez spectacles from his desk and placed them delicately on his nose before starting to read the contents.

  ‘This is the last Will and Testament of Stephen Montague James being of sound mind...’

  Teddy shifted in her seat and interrupted him rudely. ‘Cut to the chase and get to the main issue. What’s he left, how much, and to whom?’

  The pince-nez almost fell off the solicitor’s nose as his head jerked up in surprise. ‘I’m sorry?’ her replied quietly, giving her the chance to modify her questions. ‘I wasn’t sure what you asked.’

  ‘We don’t need to waste time going through all the legal jargon,’ she returned. ‘Just tell us what he’s left, how much, and to whom. Then we can go home!’

  ‘I appreciate you’re very upset,’ spluttered the solicitor displaying surprise at the callous attitude shown by the woman. ‘This is the last Will and Testament of your husband. I thought you’d be interested in hearing the reasons for his final wishes.’

  ‘Nor particularly. I just want to get out of here as quickly as possible. I presume he left me the apartment in which I live and the money from the assurance policies. That’s all I want to know.’

  ‘Don’t concern yourself about her attitude,’ commented Ivan flatly. ‘She’s like that all the time.’ Teddy struck out at him with her arm but he caught it and flung it down. ‘All the time!’ he repeated with venom.

  ‘Please!’ intervened the lawyer, astonished to witness such a scene in his office. He looked down and the document and decided to hasten the process before anything else occurred to disrupt the proceedings. ‘I leave the apartment known as The Laurels at 12, Lodge, which is free from all encumbrances, to my ex-wife, Edwina Harriet James. Additionally, I leave to her the sum of thirty thousand pounds which will be forthcoming from my assurance policies.’ He looked up to determine the effect the benefits had on the woman but she appeared to be extremely bored having expected those items to be left to her, ‘The proceeds from my house at 22, Acacia Avenue,’ he continued dolefully, ‘plus the sum of ten thousand pounds, are to be distributed to the following charities:... ‘ He tailed off, deciding to accelerate the reading by dispensing with the names, turning over the page and letting his eyes run on a little further. ‘Ah, he we are! To Ivan Obsiovitch, my apprentice. Although I have known him for a very short space of time, I look on him as a man of my own heart. A rough diamond, but someone who has a love of mining,... not for his own sake but for the people who work it, I come to the conclusion that he saved the mine from occupation on the day that it was invaded by the miners for which I shall always be grateful. For that reason, I dedicate the shares in the mine that I own to him, plus the sum of eight thousand pounds to start him off in life in the proper manner. I am certain that he is the man to look after Botallack in my memory and for the family always.’

  Ivan clasped his hands together and stared at the desk in front of him in disbelief. James had rewarded him handsomely for saving the mine that day. It was a magnificent gesture! After all, he barely knew the man! He could hardly digest the news that he now owned half of the Botallack mine after all the deceit and skulduggery that had taken place to possess it. In that moment, his mind drifted back to Elsie who had given him all her savings to become part of it. She would be proud of him if she could see him now.

  ‘I’m not certain that document is valid,’ cut in Teddy jealously. ‘You wrote that he was of sound mind. He couldn’t have been, giving the apprentice he hardly knew all his shares in the mine.’

  ‘Do you wish to contest the Will?’ asked the solicitor realising that he might be in line for more business.

  She laughed loudly at the question. ‘Wouldn’t you love that!’ she replied caustically. ‘All that money going on legal fees instead of to the beneficiaries! No... I’m satisfied with my share of the estate. There’ll be no contest.’ She turned to look at Ivan with an icy expression on her face. ‘The practice has now closed for good,’ she told him. Collect your personal things from the office. I don’t expect to lay eyes on your again!’ She stood up and went to the door before turning finally to the solicitor. ‘Send me the deeds of my apartment together with a cheque as soon as you can!’ On that instruction, she left, slamming the door behind her.

  Ivan stared blankly at the solicitor who seemed at a loss for words. ‘Don’t worry,’ he muttered audibly. ‘I have to work with her in the office. I even stayed at her apartment for some time. I think I ought to be awarded a medal.’

  ‘My task, as far as you’re concerned, Mr. Obsiovitch is completed with the exception of the share certificate and a cheque for eight thousand pounds, less my fees. I’ll be in touch with you shortly.’

  The Russian stood up in a state of euphoria as the legal man tidied the sheaf of papers and placed them back into the folder and he left the office without saying another word.

  As he reached the steps leading to the street, he clenched his fists, raising his arms high into the air, before emitting a series of wild whooping sounds. To those people passing by, it appeared that he had lost his senses. Indeed, in view of what had transpired, he would wholeheartedly agree with them!

  He returned to the office to gather his personal effects. Teddy had arrived there before him. They avoided each other during the brief meeting, refusing to speak with each other. Then the telephone rang which she answered. She pointed the receiver towards him coldly.

  ‘For you!’ she snapped tersely, without advising him of the name of the caller.

  He took the receiver returning her stare and placed it to his ear.

  ‘It’s Chapman here,’ greeted the metallurgist. ‘I’ve had a chance to examine the uranium sample more carefully now. It’s not of the highest quality but it does have commercial value. The problem lies in the fact that you’ll have to dig an enormous volume if you intend to make your fortune which means the added expense of more miners and more equipment. Mind you, if you
struck a thick lode, and followed it through, you would do well. Anyhow, the news is good. It’s uranium after all. There’s one thing you should be aware of and that’s radon gas. It can cause disease not unlike leukaemia,’

  The Russian offered his gratitude to the metallurgist and terminated the call. He then sat in James’s chair for a while to consider Chapman’s assessment. They had mined for uranium at the beginning of the last century and had found it, so there was no reason to doubt that it was there in abundance. He needed someone like James to survey for the mineral but, sadly, he was no longer available.

  He dwelt on his change of circumstances on the train on his way to London. It was quite different being a half owner to serving as an apprentice. Malford had made the appointment for James to attend a meeting in which arrangements for the delivery of nuclear waste would be discussed. When he entered the offices, he noticed that Malford appeared to be distant. James’s death, the change of ownership, and the unusual agreement to deceive the local population were symptoms of an accord built on sand. The government officials were exceedingly unhappy about the plan but they recognised that they had to move with the tide of events. Ivan gave them personal assurances of his intent. He outlined the programme in detail and identified a date when the first shipment could be delivered. It was only then that he released the information he thought most relevant to his plan.

  ‘What I wish to say now,’ he went on, ‘is between these four walls only. Is the Government interested in another contract for the purchase of uranium discovered at the mine. I’ve received a report from a metallurgist that commercial quantities of the mineral are in evidence at Botallack.

  Malford glanced at Devine briefly and then looked back at Ivan. Uranium? In Cornwall?’ he uttered in disbelief. It was immediately obvious that he was interested.

  ‘Well make up your mind about it,’ lied the Russian. ‘There’s been a leak somewhere and I’ve already had a few enquiries from interested parties... two of them from the Continent. You could have a double advantage with our plan. When the ships unload the nuclear waste, they can load up with uranium.’

  The two government officials remained impassive but the Russian was certain that they favoured the idea.

  ‘Naturally we shall have to consult with our superiors,’ Devine told him diplomatically. ‘Please leave the matter open for us. We’ll be in touch with you within the next few days.’

  Ivan left the building with a broad smile on his face. From his point of view it had been a very good meeting. As he walked along one of the main London thoroughfares, he recalled that he had decided to visit his Russian colleagues at Botallack mine. Little did they know that they were now working for him!

  Chapter Eighteen

  On the day after the enquiry, following the abortive attempt to sail to South America, Anna became extremely concerned about the health of her baby. Little Ivan had fallen ill and she believed that he was suffering from the effects of the immersion in the cold Atlantic waters. At best, he had a chronic chill; at worst, it was something far more serious. The child awoke at five o’clock that morning suffering from a very high temperature and he had cried continuously for no apparent reason. She tried everything in her power to calm the infant, starting by rocking him in her arms and trying to feed him, but his temperature remained high and he wouldn’t settle down. Eventually she placed him in his cot and ventured to lay down on her bed, hoping that he would stop crying and fall asleep. She lay awake, with her eyes open, listening to her son wailing, trying to block the sound from her mind. She dwelt on the exodus and its total failure. At that moment, they should have been sailing on the high sea somewhere far out in the ocean. Instead they faced the penalty for not succeeding more from their own misery rather than from the failure itself. As one student had uttered afterwards: ‘God will forgive me, but I cannot forgive myself!’ They now realised, in hindsight, that their plan had been badly flawed. They ought to have left early in the morning to steal a vessel in broad daylight, and sailed into the open sea in full view. Within a short time, they would have been out of territorial waters and free to sail wherever they wanted to go. It seemed all so simple now. If only they could be given a second chance to repeat the process over again! In real life, however, there was only one chance... only one chance. The baby’s wailing brought her back to her senses and Peter began to stir.

  ‘What time is it?’ he asked, rubbing his hand tiredly across his forehead.

  ‘Time to get up,’ she answered, placing her legs over the edge of the bed..

  ‘We’ll all be down the mine today,’ he said before starting to cough badly. ‘Every one of us. We should have cleared the site of rocks very soon.’

  ‘I can’t go today, Peter,’ she told him. ‘Little Ivan’s sick. I have to take him to a doctor.’

  He sat up in bed and shrugged disconsolately. ‘Then you’re the only one with a valid excuse. The rest of us will have to go down the mine.’

  ‘You’ll be careful, won’t you?’ she cautioned with a worried expression on her face. ‘You won’t do anything stupid.’

  ‘We’re only clearing rubble, woman,’ he retorted. ‘Only rubble!’

  She started to weep at their fate. ‘How I hate what’s happening to us,’ she sobbed bitterly. ‘How I detest it all!’

  He put his arm around her shoulders affectionately. ‘Don’t be upset, darling. It won’t always be like this,’ he consoled knowing that his words would fall on stony ground. ‘I don’t believe it will always be this bad. It can’t be!’

  ‘I’m not letting them send my baby back to Russian,’ she cried with an element of fear in her voice. ‘He was born in this country. He’s British!’

  ‘Easy!’ he soothed, kissing her gently on the head. ‘Easy! No one’s going anywhere. Have faith!’ He lay back as a rash of thoughts flooded his mind. At first he had dispensed with the past to live for the present and the future. Now he was forced to abandon any ideas but to live for the present. The terror filling his mind was having to face the future when there was none!

  ***

  Later that day, Peter trudged slowly to the front gate of Botallack where he joined the other students. Horace Trevelyan met them with a grin crossing his weather-beaten face as he unlocked the gate to admit them. It was a dull day with a heavy overhand of black cloud obscuring most of the natural light with a steady discomforting drizzle encourage by a westerly wind.

  ‘We’re better off at the levels below than we are up on the surface,’ commented one student, trying to force a laugh.

  ‘I know a joke like that,’ responded another student. ‘A man was to be shot by a firing squad on a day when it was raining cats and dogs. He was marched out by an officer and complained what a miserable day it was for an execution. ‘I don’t know why you should complain,’ said the officer. ‘We have to walk back in this!’

  Some of the students laughed but silence reigned until they reached the shaft. They climbed into the cage and stood there with bleak expressions on their faces before Trevelyan telephoned instructions to the whim house. Once again, they descended slowly into the bowels of the earth, with the wire rope jerking occasionally causing their hearts to beat faster. Peter found himself thinking about Anna and the baby. He was not overly concerned about the condition of the child. Most children were ostensibly indestructible capable of withstanding any kind of minor calamity. Of greater importance was the fact that Anna did not have to go to the mine that day. The cage jolted as it stopped at the appropriate level allowing the students to climb out. They walked along the level, their footsteps echoing in the narrow tunnel until Josef stopped to face the old man.

  ‘We’ve cleared nearly all of the loose rock in this part,’ he told the old man bluntly. ‘What do we do next?’

  Trevelyan walked past him beckoning with his hand. ‘There be an angled stope through ‘ere,’ he muttered, walking a lit
tle further on. ‘We be goin’ along the stope an’ clearing it the way along.’

  Tania, a female student, produced a sheet of paper which she unfolded to gaze at a rough drawing she had made of the mine. ‘We’ll be on a level reaching under the Atlantic Ocean,’ she advised the others.

  ‘Amazing!’ intruded one of the other students. ‘Two days ago we were on top of the Atlantic Ocean. Today we’re underneath it.’

  Josef shook his head slowly. ‘No!’ he told Trevelyan firmly. ‘We will not risk our lives working under the sea!’

  The old man stared at him and glanced at the map. ‘That map be wrong,’ he responded. ‘E ‘as to go deeper to be under the sea.’ He walked on confidently expecting the group to follow him but only Josef went ahead to question him.

  ‘I think you lie!’ he said brazenly. ‘The sea is above us here!’

  ‘Why should I lie to ‘e?’ returned the old man.

  Josef left him to return to the others so that they could discuss the matter, wondering whether Tania was in error., however she insisted that her map was correct.

  It took them two hours to cleared the angle stope by which time they found themselves at a lower level, able to forge ahead more easily. The clearance heralded a recess for refreshments and Josef went over old grounds again.