The Ballroom on Magnolia Street

by Sharon Owens

  ‘Thank God. Thank God,’ he said. ‘Oh, my heart, is it really you?’

  ‘It is,’ she said. ‘I’m home.’

  ‘Oh, Eileen! My love. We couldn’t raise the money on our own, and the bank was no help. I’ve been out of my mind with worry. Where have you been? Did they bring you back?’

  ‘We escaped under our own steam. That fool, Eugene Lolly, did it.’

  ‘The one who shot himself, years ago?’

  ‘The very same.’

  ‘Eugene Lolly. On his own?’

  ‘Yes. The rotten leech. I wore him down, day by day. He fell asleep, and we escaped.’

  ‘How?’

  ‘He was careless. No doubt I’ll have to tell the police all about it so time enough for you to hear the gory details then. We got the keys off him and locked him in. Now, run me a hot bath, would you? I hated that modern shower, the pressure was far too strong. Oh, and ask Johnny to bring me a cooked chicken from the supermarket. I’ve been living on prime steak for days, and I’m heartily sick of it.’

  Marion waved them inside and raced off for her own dear home in Derryvolgie Avenue. She couldn’t wait to see Eddy’s face. And her children, too.

  James and Eileen were hugging in the hall.

  ‘Eileen, you were so brave!’

  ‘It was no trouble to escape that cockroach! His brain is smaller than a walnut.’

  ‘You could have had a heart attack.’

  ‘Now, don’t fuss, James. Didn’t we lose our only son in the war? If I can survive that, I can survive anything. Phone Johnny right away and tell him not to bother with the ransom money – and ask for that cooked chicken. And then phone the police in Donegal and tell them that Eugene Lolly is hopefully still stuck in a big, modern, pink bungalow on the coast road. There’s a big hedge round the house, and two stone eagles on the gateposts. And oh, maybe it belongs to an artist because it’s full of big paintings.’

  ‘I can’t believe all this. I feel quite weak all of a sudden,’ he said, sitting down on the sofa. Eileen came and put her arms round him, and they sat like that for half an hour.

  James made several phone calls, while Eileen relaxed in the bath, and the media frenzy started up all over again. The big house on Eglantine Avenue was full of policemen, reporters, friends, family and neighbours. Eileen was magnificent, giving endless interviews, and telling the story of her daring escape over and over again. Johnny was delighted, and the two of them posed for photographs on the sofa. James finally ushered everyone out of the front door at eleven o’clock so that Eileen could go to bed and get some rest. Within seconds, she was sleeping soundly. James lay beside her, holding her hand, tears of happiness in his eyes.

  Back in the elegant sitting room of Derryvolgie Avenue, Eddy was still holding Marion’s hand, and he wouldn’t let it go. Twice now, he had almost lost the love of his life. But he wouldn’t be so careless for a third time. He promised himself that. And if Hogan ever came near Marion again, Eddy knew that he would kill him. He didn’t allow himself to dwell on what might have happened during the women’s ordeal with that deranged fool Eugene Lolly. They were both dizzy from a lack of sleep and food. Marion kept bursting into tears and hugging him, and telling him how much she had missed him. That was the only good thing that had come out of the kidnapping. Eddy now felt sure that he had finally supplanted that gigolo, Hogan, in Marion’s affections. She wasn’t even remotely interested in how Johnny was feeling. She hadn’t mentioned him once.

  Declan, Shirley and the girls were in the big modern kitchen, cooking up a celebration dinner of spaghetti and garlic bread and pizza, as they hadn’t been able to eat anything during the days that Marion was missing. Poor Shirley’s face was as grey as cement, as she hadn’t much of an appetite to begin with. Marion was pleased that the crisis had brought them even closer together. They seemed to realize how lucky they were to have one another. It made her very happy to see Declan fold Shirley into his arms and kiss the top of her head gently. Shirley was one of the Greenwood clan now.

  *

  At midnight, just as Johnny was locking up, there was a phone call. The Gardai, who had gone to the pink house beside the sea, said that the place had been thoroughly searched, and it was empty. Some empty wine bottles and a pile of steak bones was all they found. They wanted the Hogan family to be very careful for the next few days, until Mr Lolly was picked up. Johnny decided to sleep on the information and decide what to do in the morning.

  22. The Moment of Truth

  The mysterious disappearance of Eugene Lolly did little to dampen the high spirits that followed the daring escape of Eileen and Marion. The Hogan family and the Greenwood family were drawn together in the short burst of publicity and celebrations that followed their big adventure in Donegal.

  Marion knew that it was only a matter of time before Johnny and Declan got to know each other, and before Johnny saw a reflection of himself in Declan’s handsome features. Now that her son was leaving his youthful looks behind and maturing into a fine young man, he looked more and more like Johnny every day. And since he had changed his hairstyle, the similarities were impossible to miss. Marion begged Declan to go back to being a blond, but he said that dark hair was much more fashionable in the music-loving circles that he mixed in.

  Johnny was organizing a big celebration dinner at a local hotel for all his friends and family, and the Greenwoods were invited, and Shirley, too. Of course, Eddy didn’t want to go; he never wanted to see Johnny again. (He had postponed his plan to beat Johnny up, for the time being.) But out of respect for Eileen Hogan, they decided to attend the meal and leave the hotel as soon as it was over. Marion was still feeling very emotional and tearful, after her ordeal, and she had closed the bridal shop for a while to give herself a rest. She had been enjoying long lie-ins and hot bubble baths, and watching black and white films on the television in the afternoons; and so the party invitation was simply an unwelcome irritation to her. But it was impossible to say no.

  When the day of the party arrived, Eddy had a couple of whiskeys to fortify him before they set off in Marion’s car. Marion told him that Johnny had invited about one hundred and fifty people, so hopefully they could sit somewhere near the back, and keep a low profile. Eddy just shook his head and sighed. He knew that Johnny would home in on Marion the moment he saw her. Johnny Hogan never did anything nice for other people unless there was something in it for himself. Eddy knew that Johnny was planning to use the kidnapping to start building a relationship with Marion again. Right under Eddy’s nose. He’d done it before, giving her a job in the ballroom and flirting with her constantly.

  But with his three daughters sitting in the back seat, there was nothing Eddy could say about how he was feeling. The children did not know that Johnny and Marion had once been an item. So he wasn’t able to warn his wife to stay by his side in the hotel, and to be on her guard against Hollywood Hogan and his silver tongue. He gave himself a little lecture about keeping things in proportion; the scales were weighted in Eddy’s favour this time. Hogan was dealing with a losing deck. A lifetime together, and a home and children with Eddy Greenwood versus a youthful infatuation with a vain poser who still used hairspray at the age of forty-eight. Put like that, was there seriously anything to worry about?

  The hotel foyer was full of people when Marion’s Mercedes pulled up in the car park. Most of the guests seemed to be over the age of fifty. There were a lot of beige slacks and walking sticks in evidence. Emily, Eve and Eloise groaned. They were bored stiff before they even got out of the car. They hated stuffy things like this, with the grown-ups chattering on endlessly about the good old days. They made a last-minute bid to be released from attending and practically had to be shoved in through the main doors by their mother.

  Declan was going to drive to the hotel in his own car, although Marion had told him that he needn’t bother coming if he didn’t want to, which made his sisters very cross indeed. They protested that if they had to endure such a boring part
y, then so should Declan.

  ‘Well, he is getting married soon,’ Marion had explained. ‘He might want to spend the day with his fiancée. He needs his rest before the baby is born.’

  And so, Eddy, Marion and their three daughters stood in a little huddle beside an enormous flower arrangement on the reception desk, and waited to be summoned into the dining room. There was a real undercurrent of excitement in the hotel. Everyone was animated and happy, waving to old friends and telling each other to put their money away.

  ‘I think I’ll try to get a drink at the bar, though it looks very crowded. Do you all want something?’ Eddy felt in his pockets for his wallet and began to make his way haltingly across the room, saying hello to people as he went. Marion could hear him saying, ‘Yes, she’s fine now,’ and ‘Yes, it was a terrible shock,’ and ‘Thank you, I’ll pass on your good wishes.’

  Just then, Johnny came in, cigarette in hand. A middle-aged James Dean, with his collar turned up against the breeze.

  ‘There’s Johnny,’ said someone, and Eddy turned round to look. He saw Johnny scan the crowd, and wave to Marion. She waved back. Johnny threaded his way through the guests, shaking hands with this one and that one, working the crowd with grace and elegance. He kissed Marion and her daughters on both cheeks, and stood right beside them. As if they were a little family. Eddy bit his lip and frantically waved a ten-pound note at the bar staff, but they were all busy serving other customers. Johnny was drawing deeply on his cigarette, his cheeks pale with recent worry and concern. However, his black hair was still irritatingly thick and shiny. Eddy had offered up thousands of prayers over the years, hoping that Johnny would go bald. He’d said whole rosaries for it. Johnny Hogan might as well be castrated, if the top of his head was smooth as an egg. He had based his whole persona on his image. The luxurious quiff was his best feature. Eddy often wondered if Johnny had gone to some place in America and had his scalp preserved with chemicals.

  As he watched his wife from the bar, Marion patted Johnny’s arm, and smiled at him. They began to talk. Johnny leaned in very close to her, to catch what she was saying. The girls got bored and slipped off to the ladies’ room. When Eddy eventually attracted the attention of a barman, he asked for two small whiskeys, and three colas, and told the lad to keep the change. He hurried back to his wife, to rescue her from Johnny. But she sent him straight back to the bar to get a drink for Johnny, and two glasses of stout for James and Eileen who had just arrived also. Eddy was totally fed up. Stout would take ages to settle in the glasses. And the queue at the bar had trebled. He’d be there for half an hour at least. He was filled with impotent rage.

  By the time Eddy had the drinks assembled on a little round tray, the guests were already taking their seats in the function room. It never ceased to amaze Eddy how quickly people could move themselves when there was free food involved. Within seconds the crowd had moved from the foyer to the dining room and were organizing themselves into groups of eight.

  Eddy hovered in the doorway, looking for Marion’s blonde curls in the crowd, and was dismayed to see Johnny pulling out a chair for her at his table. James and Eileen were already sitting down, and had the decency to look uncomfortable with the arrangement, but Johnny was starting to relax. Taking off his coat, handing out cigarettes, and saluting friends and relatives at nearby tables. Before Eddy could make his way over to them, all the other seats at Johnny’s table were taken. Eddy stood alone, with his little tray, and wanted to roar. Then, he saw Emily waving him over to a table at the very back of the room and he darted over to her, grateful at least to be able to sit down. He sent Eve over to Johnny’s table with the drinks for Johnny and his grandparents and with a message for Marion that they had kept a seat for her at their table. But of course, by that time, Marion and Eileen were deep in conversation about their kidnapping ordeal, and Eileen was holding Marion by the arm and telling her all about the police questioning her, and that they were going to press charges against her for wounding Lolly, when he was eventually found. But that she would get off with a caution. And that James had nearly gone berserk when he was told that his wife had been brandishing a weapon. Then, the empty seats that Eddy had been saving for Marion, Declan and Shirley were taken by some late arrivals and Eddy had to resign himself to dining without his beautiful wife by his side.

  Naturally, Johnny had to make a big speech about the whole thing, and there was a wave of applause that went on for five minutes. Eileen put her hand up several times, to signal to the crowd to stop clapping, but they went on and on and even cheered hooray as well. It seemed like a hundred years had gone by when all the fuss was over and the food could finally be served. Johnny raised his hand to the head waitress, like some sort of Roman emperor from two thousand years ago, and then she motioned to the younger waitresses to get the party under way.

  Halfway through the meal, Eddy left the room and went to sit in the lobby, nursing a large drink. The girls had told him they were going to shake hands with Eileen Hogan after the teas and coffees had been served, and then they were going to phone Declan to pick them up. Thank goodness Declan and Shirley hadn’t turned up for the party. Declan didn’t go to Hogan’s ballroom very often, and so far, Johnny hadn’t spoken to him for any length of time. But in broad daylight at a family function? Well, that was another matter. Eddy considered moving house briefly, but there were just too many things tying them all to the city. Two successful businesses, a lovely house that would cost over a million pounds in London, and the girls were doing very well in school. He sighed. Sixty minutes later, Marion came out of the function room, and spied her husband slumped in his armchair, staring into the dancing flames.

  ‘There you are,’ she said. ‘Sorry about that, sweetheart. Once Eileen gets talking, you can’t stop her. I just couldn’t get away. The whole thing seems to have given her a new lease of life. In fact, it’s taken far more out of me than it has of her. I wish I had her bravery.’

  ‘It doesn’t matter. Can we go home now?’

  ‘Oh, Eddy. You’re cross with me. I thought you’d be fine with the girls for company.’

  ‘You thought nothing of the sort. You were too busy comforting Johnny Hogan. I was far more upset than he was. I nearly went out of my mind. But I had to hide my feelings in front of the children. Not rock the boat. As usual. You still care for him, don’t you?’

  ‘What?’

  ‘I saw you laughing with him. You still love him, don’t you?’

  ‘Eddy, I do not. Don’t be absurd. How many drinks have you had?’

  ‘I’m going home.’ He got up and nearly stumbled on the hearth; his jealousy making him more drunk than the whiskey.

  ‘Don’t be silly, Eddy. Don’t leave. Come in and say hello to Eileen, and have some coffee, and stop behaving like a spoilt teenager. I don’t want to be here, either, but it’s nearly over.’

  ‘I can’t stop you and Hogan making fools of yourselves, Marion. But I’d rather not be here to witness it, if you don’t mind. I think I saw a taxi out there. Excuse me.’

  ‘Eddy, please! Stay with me. I can drive us home, I didn’t finish my drink.’

  ‘I’m telling you now, if I go into that room, I’ll reach for Hogan and I’ll bloody well kill him. He has no respect for me, whatsoever. I am your husband, and he treats me like some kind of a chauffeur. What did you ever see in him anyway?’

  Marion laid her hand on Eddy’s shoulder and massaged his neck. Eddy loved her to do that when he was tired after a long day working in his restaurant. But it was not enough to pacify him today.

  ‘I’m beginning to wonder if I ever knew you at all, Marion.’ He shrugged his wife’s hand away, and stormed out of the hotel without looking back.

  Some people sitting nearby saw the entire incident and Marion was very embarrassed. She hurried to the ladies’ room, and wept for a while in an empty cubicle. She knew she should have listened to Eddy and cried off the party altogether. God knows she had the perfect excuse. She could have
said she was still in shock and it was half true. But then, Eileen would have been very offended. And if it hadn’t been for Eileen’s quick thinking, they might still be locked in the pink house by the sea, with that madman drinking his way through a hefty supply of wine.

  It was so hard to please everyone. Some days, she wondered how she had found the strength to keep going for all these years. Bringing up four children, running her boutique, and keeping the secret of Declan’s real father to herself.

  She needed Eddy. Just as much as she loved him. He was such a good and wise man. She was deeply shocked at his display of bad temper.

  And she knew that Eddy was right about Johnny. Johnny was insensitive and vain and obsessed with his ballroom, and he dressed like an eccentric, and acted like he was famous. And he did ignore Eddy. That was true as well. Johnny had a smile and a good word for every stranger on the street, but he barely acknowledged Eddy whenever they met.

  She was stuck at the main table of this party with everyone clapping for her, and she wasn’t even feeling very well. Her nerves were in tatters. God, she had to get out of here! She would just collect her jacket and handbag, say her goodbyes to Eileen and James, and go straight home. Thank goodness she had refused all those drinks. She longed to feel her trusty car keys in her hand once again!

  When she returned to the table, Johnny noticed that she had been crying. He dabbed her eyes with a napkin and gave her a gentle hug. She told Johnny that Eddy had gone home with a migraine. James caught Johnny’s eye, and shook his head. You’re treading on thin ice. But Johnny ignored him. It was perfectly acceptable to speak to an old flame at a party. Some of the younger guests came over to the table then, shook hands with everyone, thanked Johnny for the lovely meal, and went home. The majority of the older relatives retired to the bar, to make a night of it. Who knew when they would all be together again? James and Eileen decided to go home and put their feet up. Emily, Eve and Eloise went to the foyer to wait for Declan. Johnny and Marion were left alone in the function room. They chatted for a few minutes, until Marion was sure that Declan and the girls would be on their way home. Then she tried to say goodbye.