The Silver Ladies of London

by Eames, Lesley

  ‘Just to make sure,’ he said, then launched a flaming bottle through one of the office windows.

  Jenny! Fear for her friend gave Ruth a surge of strength. She stamped hard on Vic’s instep then jerked her elbow into his ribs. His grip loosened and, turning, she smashed her palm into his nose.

  Something glinted in the shadows behind him. Another bottle. Ruth grabbed it and slammed it onto his head with all the force she could muster. The bottle broke. Vic sank to the cobbles and Ruth ran to Johnnie, dragging him away from the burning building, while screaming for Jenny to get out, get out, get out…

  Jenny didn’t get out. Ruth banged on the office door but couldn’t get in without her key.

  Where was her bag? There! Ruth threw herself onto her knees beside it, found her key and ran back to the door, sobbing as her shaking fingers struggled to get the key into the lock. Damn! She tried again and this time succeeded.

  Opening the door was like opening a furnace. Ruth staggered backwards.

  ‘Help!’ she screamed down the mews, ‘Help!’

  But she couldn’t wait.

  Pulling her coat off, she threw it over her head and ran upstairs. Smoke stung her eyes and heat sizzled against her face. All she could hear was roaring and cracking. She tried to call Jenny’s name but was gripped by racking coughs as the smoke seared her lungs. She closed her eyes, opened them again and, in the split second before the smoke stung them afresh, saw Jenny face down on the office floor, overcome as she fled.

  Ruth dropped down and crawled to her. A spark landed on Jenny’s dress and the fabric ignited. Ruth dragged her coat from her head and beat the flames out. Then she slid her arms under Jenny’s shoulders and hauled her inch by excruciating inch to the top of the stairs.

  Oh God! Smoke was streaming through the gaps in the stair treads and the wooden panels that partitioned the stairs from the garage. Flames could be only moments away.

  Someone loomed out of the smoke to join her. Johnnie.

  ‘Let me.’

  Ruth gave up her place and, as Johnnie lifted Jenny’s upper half, she scrambled round to lift Jenny’s feet. They set off down the stairs with Johnnie leading. One, two, three, four…

  The collapse came suddenly. A crack like rifle fire sounded from beneath Ruth’s feet and her body plunged downwards in a shower of sparks and pain.

  This was it – death – for she was powerless to move and all around her was a hell of smoke, heat and flames. But it was a kind death because Johnnie and Jenny must surely be safe. Then a dream came in which Johnnie seized hold of Ruth and told her how much he loved her.

  Ruth drifted into oblivion with a smile.

  More dreams came over time. But how many dreams and how much time? Ruth didn’t know.

  Then one dream was different. Her body gained substance. Pain too.

  ‘Nurse!’ She was dreaming of Johnnie’s voice again.

  Except that it wasn’t a dream. She was waking up.

  ‘Don’t struggle, dear.’ That was a different voice. Cool and professional.

  Ruth wanted to struggle. She needed to know where she was and what had happened.

  She opened her eyes only to squint at the brightness of the light.

  ‘Thank God!’ Johnnie’s voice again.

  Her head followed the sound and there he was, sitting beside her as she lay… Where exactly?

  In a bed. A hospital bed. But why?

  Oddly, her face felt tight and sore. Her left leg ached. Even more oddly, Johnnie’s golden hair and beautiful jacket were blackened with—

  Of course! The fire. And before that the attack on Johnnie.

  Ruth’s gaze searched him anxiously, but there was just a small patch of dried blood in his hair. His hands were bandaged – he must have burned them – but he was smiling. He was all right.

  But how was Jenny? ‘Is—’

  ‘Jenny’s fine,’ Johnnie told her. ‘You saved her.’

  The relief was wonderful.

  ‘We both saved her,’ Ruth said, her voice still croaky from the smoke.

  Then she remembered Vic and started to panic again.

  ‘Don’t worry about Rabley,’ Johnnie said. ‘Thanks to you, the police have him and he’s likely to be locked up for a very long time.’

  That was wonderful too. But more questions were rearing up. ‘Silver Ladies?’

  ‘Damaged at the front, but the living quarters escaped. Luckily, Grace had taken a lot of the paperwork to work on at home. She’s already planning to repair the building using the insurance money. Meanwhile, she’s running Silver Ladies from Owen’s.’

  Ruth realised there was stubble on Johnnie’s jaw. ‘When was this?’

  ‘The fire? Yesterday.’ He paused. ‘You haven’t asked about yourself.’

  She hadn’t, had she?

  ‘You’ve broken your leg,’ Johnnie told her. ‘The same leg as me, coincidentally. You’ve got superficial burns too, but you’re going to be fine. You don’t need to worry.’

  She did need to worry, but not about her injuries. Having returned to ask Jenny for a second chance, was Johnnie hoping Ruth would help plead his cause by telling Jenny how he’d helped to save her life?

  The last thing Ruth wanted was for Johnnie’s heart to be broken all over again but she’d seen how happy – how right – Jenny and Hux were together. Besides, gratitude alone was no basis for a marriage. Surely the sooner Johnnie understood that, the better?

  ‘About Jenny,’ she began, and was dismayed when he sat forward eagerly.

  ‘I don’t know how much you remember about what happened?’ he asked. ‘About what I was hoping when—’

  ‘I remember everything.’

  He swallowed. ‘So what do you think? Do you believe that someone can be utterly convinced they’re in love with one person only to realise they’re mistaken because they love someone else?’

  Ruth couldn’t imagine it happening to her, but it had certainly happened to Jenny. It would be cruel to let Johnnie think he had a chance of winning her back. ‘I’m sorry to give you pain but stop. Please stop.’

  ‘But—’

  ‘No, Johnnie.’

  He stared for a moment, then looked away. When he looked back at Ruth, his face was bleak. ‘I’ve no hope at all?’

  ‘People can’t love to order, Johnnie.’

  ‘Of course not.’ His sad smile cut her to the quick. ‘You don’t blame me for trying?’

  ‘I don’t blame you for anything.’

  ‘You’re a special person, Ruth.’

  ‘I’m ordinary.’

  ‘You’re far from ordinary.’

  But he’d never feel for her the way she felt for him.

  ‘What will you do now?’ she asked.

  ‘I have a friend in Paris. I might join him. I’m not sure I can stay in London when—’

  ‘Paris sounds marvellous.’ Ruth wanted to clutch him close and never let him go, but it was best for him if he left. ‘Goodbye, Johnnie.’

  He got to his feet, then hesitated. ‘One kiss?’ he asked. ‘One kiss of farewell?’

  Torture. But how could she refuse?

  He pressed his lips to her cheek. Ruth closed her eyes, breathing in the smoky scent of him. Dear God, how could she bear his leaving?

  She had to bear it.

  ‘Be happy, dearest, darling, Ruth,’ Johnnie said. ‘The man who wins you as his bride is going to be the luckiest man in the world.’

  Because she’d make him comfortable? Ruth didn’t want that. She wanted to be the girl Johnnie loved to madness.

  But he straightened his shoulders and walked away.

  Ruth could hold herself in no longer. Sobs shuddered through her body.

  ‘Ruth!’ someone cried, a short time later.

  Grace’s face swam into view. ‘Are you in pain? Shall we fetch a nurse?’

  Ruth shook her head. Jenny and Lydia had arrived too. All of them were precious to her, but just now Ruth wanted to be alone.

&nb
sp; ‘Is it Johnnie?’ Grace said. ‘We saw him in the distance. We called out, but he didn’t hear. Or didn’t choose to hear. You mustn’t feel bad about rejecting him, Ruth.’

  ‘No one wants to see Johnnie happy more than me, but marrying a man you don’t love… It wouldn’t be right for either of you,’ Jenny added.

  What on earth… Had the world gone mad?

  Ruth struggled to sit upright.

  ‘Careful,’ Grace cautioned, but Ruth had to understand.

  ‘You don’t remember, do you?’ Lydia guessed. ‘Johnnie didn’t come back for Jenny. He came back for you.’

  What? No, Lydia was wrong.

  ‘He said he was cut up about me when he first went away, but as time passed he felt he was waking up from a dream,’ Jenny explained. ‘He realised he’d spun a fantasy around us – me as the golden princess and him as the golden prince – but as the fantasy faded the person he most missed was you.’

  It wasn’t possible.

  ‘He admires you so much, Ruth,’ Jenny continued. ‘And there’s no fantasy about it this time. It’s real.’

  Ruth remembered being cradled in Johnnie’s arms. A dream? Or not a dream at all?

  ‘I got back to Shepherds Mews just as he pulled you through the office door,’ Lydia said. ‘He kept telling you how much he loved you. So soppy! He insisted on paying for this private room so he could sit with you, and he wouldn’t go home. He’s been driving the Matron mad.’

  Johnnie hadn’t been talking about Jenny’s feelings changing just now. He’d been talking about his own. He really did love Ruth. But she’d driven him away.

  Her mind was suddenly sharp. ‘You saw him?’

  ‘He was leaving,’ Grace said. ‘But we can call at his flat and—’

  ‘I need to see him now.’

  ‘I’ll look for him.’ Jenny ran out and Lydia followed.

  ‘I need to look for him too,’ Ruth said. ‘Where’s my coat?’

  ‘We had to throw it away,’ Grace told her. ‘I won’t waste my breath asking you to rest, so here. Take mine.’

  Lydia burst back in with a wheelchair. ‘Stolen, but in the best possible cause.’

  They helped Ruth into the seat. ‘Quickly,’ Ruth urged, uncaring of her plaster-casted leg.

  A creaky lift took them down to the ground floor, where Jenny was pacing the corridor. ‘Sorry, Ruth. We’ve missed him,’ Jenny said.

  ‘Take me outside.’

  A passing doctor gave them a curious look as they raced to the door, but Lydia stared boldly back.

  There was still no sign of Johnnie, but Ruth’s instincts stirred when she saw the railings of a garden in the distance. Lydia wheeled Ruth inside and—

  ‘There!’ Ruth cried.

  Johnnie was sitting on a bench with his head in hands, a picture of despair, but he must have sensed their approach because he looked up and leapt to his feet. ‘Ruth!’

  Lydia, Grace and Jenny tiptoed away.

  ‘I love you, Johnnie Fitzpatrick,’ Ruth said. ‘I’ve always loved you.’

  ‘But—’

  ‘You asked if I’d remembered everything but I didn’t know what you meant.’

  ‘You didn’t?’

  ‘Sit down, Johnnie. You’re looming.’

  He lowered himself to the bench.

  ‘I thought you still loved Jenny,’ Ruth told him.

  ‘Jenny’s a great girl but not the girl for me. It wasn’t until I went away that I realised the person I couldn’t get out of my head was you. I missed you so much: our photography lessons, your cups of tea, the way you always knew when my leg was hurting… I missed your courage too.’

  This was going too far. Ruth gave him a sceptical look.

  ‘Courage isn’t just about dangerous things like Lydia’s racing,’ Johnnie told her. ‘It’s about putting others first no matter what it costs. You risked your inheritance to give your friends the chance to make their way in the world and you’ve worked like a Trojan ever since. You protected your family from vile Vic Rabley too.’

  Ruth shook her head. She was just plain Ruth Turner. Lucky with her inheritance and even luckier with her friends.

  ‘What I’m trying to say is that, even if I was too dazzled by Jenny to notice, you crept into my heart,’ Johnnie said. ‘It’s you I want to hold in my arms, Ruth. You I want by my side as we grow old.’ He paused. ‘If you’re thinking you’re second best to Jenny, you’re wrong, though I’ve worried you might think it. That’s why I stayed away for so long. Three months, two weeks and three days to be exact, though it’s felt much longer, especially after…’

  ‘Yes?’ Ruth prompted.

  ‘After the first time I came back.’

  Ruth didn’t understand.

  ‘It was a month ago. I saw you walking along Farley Street and you looked so pretty, Ruth, so pink-cheeked and fresh with your big dark eyes and the sun catching all the shades of autumn in your hair. I was trying to find the courage to get out of the car and speak to you when another young gentleman walked past and gave you an admiring look. There isn’t a conceited bone in your body, so you didn’t even notice. But I did. My courage failed me and I drove away.’

  He sighed. ‘Since then I’ve been trying to think of the words I might use to convince you I love you, but all the words that come to mind sound dull and unromantic. Like ‘real’ and ‘comfortable’ and ‘companionable’. They couldn’t compete with the flowery language you might hear from other young men who could talk of love for the first time. But my words couldn’t be more sincere, Ruth. They come from my heart. Which is why I finally decided that all I could do was tell the truth.’

  He got down on one knee and took her hand. ‘I love you, Ruth Turner, and—’

  ‘Mr Fitzpatrick!’ The Matron was bearing down on them. ‘What on earth do you think you’re doing? Miss Turner is a patient and this wheelchair has been taken without permission.’

  ‘I’m proposing marriage to the girl I love,’ Johnnie told her. ‘I’m just waiting for her answer.’

  ‘Yes,’ Ruth smiled. ‘My answer is yes.’ She flung her arms around Johnnie’s neck and he gathered her close to kiss her soundly. How lovely it was!

  ‘Well, really!’ the Matron protested.

  Johnnie got up to shake the Matron’s hand. ‘You can be the first to congratulate us.’

  Others weren’t far behind. Grace, Jenny and Lydia were approaching with Owen, Hux and Harry. There were hugs and more kisses, then Harry produced two bottles.

  ‘The shop round the corner sold champagne.’

  ‘They lent glasses too,’ Hux said.

  The Matron sighed. ‘I’ll allow ten minutes, Mr Fitzpatrick. Ten minutes and I want my patient back in her room.’

  Johnnie saluted. ‘Aye, aye, Matron.’

  Glasses were passed around, then Owen lifted his glass high. ‘To Ruth and Johnnie,’ he proposed.

  ‘And to Jenny and Hux,’ Johnnie added, receiving a warm smile of gratitude from both of them.

  The champagne bubbles tickled Ruth’s nose, but they were nothing to the happiness that fizzed inside her. ‘We should toast Silver Ladies too,’ she suggested. ‘It was Silver Ladies that brought us all together.’

  ‘Indeed it was,’ Johnnie said, and there were murmurs of agreement all round.

  ‘Do you have a camera?’ Ruth asked him.

  ‘Am I ever without one?’ He hailed a passer-by to take their photograph as they gathered in a group.

  ‘To Silver Ladies,’ Ruth proposed.

  They raised their glasses and the passer-by pressed the button at just the right moment.

  That photograph became one of Ruth’s favourites because every one of them looked filled with joy. It was the first photograph Ruth fixed into the album Johnnie bought for her, though other photographs soon joined it – pictures of Grace’s wedding and Lydia’s. Then pictures of Jenny’s wedding and Ruth’s.

  Jenny was married in the same church as Lydia with the reception being held
in a palatial country hotel nearby. It was December but the time of year suited the white and silver theme of the wedding. Vast displays of white gladioli and chrysanthemums intertwined with pale green ivy decorated both the church and the reception, and no one was cold because log fires blazed in inglenook fireplaces. Jenny’s dress was a celestial confection of white and silver while the bridesmaids – Grace, Lydia and Ruth – wore white dresses with short velvet capes around their shoulders.

  Fate smiled kindly by striking Jonas down with a stomach bug which kept him at home so Owen gave Jenny away while Grace and Ruth took Alice under their wings to ensure she had what she called the most wonderful day of her life. Not that Jonas was the menace he’d once been. After meeting Johnnie and then Hux, he was afraid to go anywhere near Jenny.

  Ruth’s wedding also took place in December, allowing her to indulge her love of Christmas by having fairy lights and pretty Christmas trees in the Bayswater church and at the plush West End hotel which hosted the reception. Jenny made Ruth’s dress from white silk decorated with white beads which were arranged like tiny snowflakes. Ruth’s brother, Jimmy, walked her down the aisle and Jimmy’s sweetheart, Ellen, was a bridesmaid alongside Grace, Jenny and Lydia, all looking lovely in the burgundy-trimmed white dresses Jenny had made to reflect the Christmas theme.

  Johnnie had arranged for Eunice and Bert to be driven down from Ruston but both had sat quietly throughout the whole occasion as though awed by the affection and respect in which Ruth was held, not only by her immediate friends but by others too. There was the gloriously handsome Johnnie, of course, and also his parents who’d warmed to Ruth’s gentle ways almost from the beginning. There were the grand guests too, like Rollo and Martha Crockford, and Maggie O’Hara from the Herald.

  Ruth knew her parents would never love her the way they doted on their sons but being loved by other people had given her the confidence to realise that the fault lay with her parents rather than herself. It was their loss if they didn’t value her, though Ruth didn’t give up on them. Priding herself on being the better person, she still sent them money and still visited, managing to find amusement in the way they received her with awed reserve instead of barking out a list of chores.

  The wedding pictures were followed by photos of the children. Gareth Tedris was an intelligent, practical boy with wise green eyes that gleamed good humour. The Dellamore twins, Teddy and Sebastian, were cut from wilder cloth but still managed to be adorable, teasing their mother with endless cuddles as they knew she didn’t really mean it when she protested that hugs were soppy. They’d been born at Fairfax Park, where Lydia had gone to watch Harry race because she was sure she couldn’t be due for ages. Her labour had begun as Harry was preparing to race, and so swift and easy had it been that he’d returned from the race to find himself a father of two.