Battles Lost and Won (19 page)

‘No, sir, I can’t stay, but thank you.’ Bob stretched out his long legs and relaxed. He hadn’t been sure of his reception, but everyone seemed to be pleased to see him. It was a good feeling.

‘You’ve changed,’ Ben said, studying him carefully.

‘So Mrs Trent tells me,’ he laughed. ‘I’ve grown up and learnt a few lessons along the way. I might not have done that if I’d stayed here.’ Ben’s smile was wry. ‘A very kind lady said Fate was guiding me. It’s a nice thought, but I don’t believe that. It was pure chance I ended up where I did.’

‘You like what you do then?’

‘It’s challenging.’ Bob knew the captain was still trying to discover where he was and what he was doing. ‘It’s no good you trying to find out because that’s all I’m saying. Anyway, you’d never believe me if I did tell you.’ He changed the subject. ‘I was wondering if you have any news of my Dad and the Coopers?’

The captain drew in a deep breath. ‘I have, but you’re not going to like what I have to tell you. Before I begin can I ask you not to storm off again? It happened more than two years ago, and all is well now.’

‘I don’t like the sound of this.’ Bob sat upright. ‘What’s been going on?’

By the time the captain had come to the end of telling him what had happened to Ruth, Bob’s hands were curled in tight fists. ‘I wouldn’t have let her be treated like that!’

‘Neither would I, but unfortunately for Ruth we weren’t here. I arrived back the next morning to find Steve Cooper here, in a towering rage, and determined to clear his daughter’s name, which we did very quickly.’

Sadness showed in Bob’s eyes. ‘Poor little devil. Being accused of stealing must have come as a terrible shock.’

‘It did, and I think she will be more likely to question people’s motive in the future. I did manage to persuade her to write to us now and again, and we do receive an occasional letter. I don’t think she will ever really trust us again.’ He looked steadily at the young man in front of him, and then said gently, ‘Or you.’

Bob actually flinched. ‘Is she all right now?’

‘I think so. She is putting her sewing skills to use making toys and children’s clothes, and has her own market stall now. Don’t you want to know about your father?’

‘Is he still off the drink?’

‘Yes; like me he’s never touched a drop again.’

‘That’s all I need to know.’

‘Are you going to see him?’ When Bob shook his head, he asked, ‘Will you give me permission to tell him I’ve seen you and you are all right?’

‘You can do that after I’ve gone.’

‘Thank you.’ Ben stood up, smiling for the first time. ‘Let’s see if you can still ride. Lillian will be getting impatient.’

For the next two days, Bob spent all his time on the estate, and Mrs Trent cooked his favourite food. He enjoyed every minute of his stay, but he had promised Sister he would return, and it was time to leave. But there was one more place he wanted to visit first.

After the green fields of Kent, this place looked even rougher than Bob remembered. The dirt and grime made him grimace in distaste, and wondered why on earth he’d come. But he was here now, so he might as well go in.

When he stepped inside he couldn’t believe his eyes, or ears. Children were running around screaming and throwing things at each other. Two teachers were trying to restore order, and another young woman was huddled in the corner with tears streaming down her cheeks. A little girl, obviously frightened, ran towards Bob, and he scooped her up, murmuring soothing words, but never taking his eyes off the chaos. It didn’t take him long to spot the ringleaders, and when one of them ran to the door intent on escaping for the day, he locked it and slipped the key into his pocket.

The ruffian tugged at the door in vain, then snarled, ‘What you do that for?’

Still holding the girl in one arm he caught the boy by the collar and lifted him over to the man who looked like the headmaster. ‘Get your cane ready, sir; it looks as if you’re going to need it.’

‘Put me down!’ the boy yelled, kicking his legs. ‘I’ll set my dad on you.’

Bob’s smile was gleeful. He was now at least six feet six inches in height, and could lift a grown man with ease. ‘Your dad can try.’

One of the other boys sniggered. ‘He’ll knock your dad into next week, Freddy. Just look at the size of him.’

Curiosity had stopped the noise and the kids were mostly silent, eyeing the newcomer with suspicion.

Bob handed the little girl over to one of the teachers, still holding on to the struggling boy. Then he pointed out three others. ‘It looks as if these are the four you have to deal with, Headmaster.’

The accused kids all began to shout and blame each other for starting the trouble.

‘Quiet!’ Bob towered over them. ‘You will all be disciplined in one way or another, so if the rest of you don’t want the cane you had better get back to your classrooms. And we don’t want to hear a sound from you.’

Subdued by Bob’s powerful presence, they filed quietly back to their classes.

‘Phew!’ One of the teachers – a man with greying hair – took a deep breath. ‘I’m getting too old for this. I don’t know who you are, but thank you for your timely arrival.’

‘How did this start?’

‘It was my fault.’ The woman who had been crying in the corner now dried her eyes, still shaking badly. ‘I can’t control them and they know it.’

‘We’ll talk about that later, Miss Greenwood.’ The headmaster then turned to Bob. ‘Help me with these boys, will you? My office is at the end of the corridor.’

Bob handed the key to one of the teachers so they could unlock the door again, then ushered the four boys towards the office.

When each one had been dealt with and was back in class, the headmaster thanked Bob for helping. ‘I’m Mr Edwards. Can I finally ask who you are and why you are here?’

‘My name is Bob Hunter and I used to be a pupil here. I was passing by and decided to have a look at the old place.’

‘Ah, that must have been before my time, but we are very grateful you happened to be around at that moment. Miss Greenwood is afraid of some of the children and shows it. That’s all they need to start bullying her. It’s a shame because she’s a good teacher.’

‘Perhaps she would be better suited to a quieter area.’

‘Undoubtedly. Would you like to have a look around now?’ He gave a hint of a smile. ‘And perhaps you would like to look in on Miss Greenwood’s class before you leave?’

‘Might be an idea.’

The young teacher had bravely returned to her class and smiled hesitantly when Bob walked in with the headmaster.

‘Are they behaving?’ the headmaster asked.

‘Yes, sir, thanks to this young man.’

‘Good.’ He surveyed the class. ‘Now you all know that disorder of any kind will not be tolerated again. Mr Hunter was once a pupil here and he is going to talk to you.’ With that announcement he sat at a desk right at the back of the class, and nodded to Bob to begin.

This was rather disconcerting. Bob had only intended to have a look round the old place, but he understood the huge problem the man had, so he would want to listen.

He stood to his full height and looked at the sea of faces for a moment, then said, ‘As Mr Edwards told you, I was a pupil here and lived only a couple of streets away. Tell me, do you like living in the slums, never having quite enough to eat, and watching your parents struggle to keep a roof over your heads?’

‘Course not!’ one boy said forcefully. ‘It’s a bloody disgrace. My dad fought in the war and he can’t even get a job.’

‘Nor mine!’ several others chimed in.

‘They was promised a better life,’ Freddy said, ‘and what a joke that is. Those in charge sit on their backsides and do nothing about us.’

When they all began to mutter, Bob held up his hand for silence. ‘I agree that changes need to be made, and you are the generation who are going to see that those changes happen.’

‘How we gonna do that? No one takes any notice of us,’ someone shouted from the back.

‘Then make them. But not by fighting, shouting or swearing. Listen to the way Miss Greenwood speaks and copy her, then study hard. Read as much as you can, and I don’t mean rubbish. Your future is in your own hands, but if you carry on the way you are now you’ll either end up on the streets, or in prison. The choice is up to you. Is that what you want?’

Every head in the classroom shook.

‘Then do something about it, and the time to start is now. And remember, you are all individuals with your own strengths and weaknesses. Help each other as friends.’ Bob perched on the edge of the desk. ‘Any questions?’

Every hand in the room shot up, including the headmaster’s, making them all laugh. ‘We’ll leave you to last, if you don’t mind, sir?’ Bob’s eyes fixed on the leader of the riot. ‘You, Freddy.’

‘I took you for a gent, but you’re one of us, so how did you do that?’

‘I worked hard at school and when I left I took any rotten job I could find. I’ve dug ditches, been a stable boy shovelling muck, and many others, all hard labour. I’ve fought a lot of tough battles with myself – some I’ve lost and some I’ve won – and I know there are many more ahead of me. But I’ve always believed that the way we live is up to us. It’s a constant challenge, but one I’ll keep fighting.’ He gazed at each face in turn. ‘And you can all do the same.’

For the next hour he patiently answered questions so that everyone had their chance, even the headmaster.

Finally, he stood up and smiled. ‘Thank you for listening, and for the many intelligent questions you have asked. It’s been a pleasure to meet you.’

The children clapped as hard as they could and there was a completely different atmosphere about the place now. While he had been talking everyone in the school had crowded into the one classroom.

Bob shook hands with the teachers, waved to the children and walked to the door with the headmaster.

‘The way you stood up and talked so frankly to the children was just what they needed. Have you ever thought about becoming a teacher?’

‘I’ve thought about it,’ was all Bob said, opening the door.

‘Will you visit us again, young man?’

‘I’ll try.’ Bob closed the door behind him and walked towards the station. That had been quite an experience. He’d thought that coming here would help to make his mind up about teaching, but honestly, he still didn’t know how it would be possible to get the necessary qualifications. What was it the professor had said? We must walk the path in front of us and see where it leads? Well, that’s all he could do, and the path he was on now didn’t appear to lead to teaching.

The next day Eddie burst into the scullery, bursting with excitement when he saw everyone there, including Mr Hunter. ‘Guess what I’ve just heard?’

‘Stop hopping around or you’ll be too out of breath to tell us,’ Steve teased.

‘I was just talking to Freddy Atkins—’

‘I’ve told you not to go near that boy,’ Daisy scolded. ‘He’s a bad lot.’

‘He’s all right now. Anyway, he was telling me about a riot at his school yesterday. Just when some of them were about to escape for the rest of the day, this man walks in and locks the door so they can’t get out.’ Eddie took a deep breath, gulping in air, and then continued. ‘Freddy said he made them all go back to class – him and his mates got the cane for starting the trouble, and then this man came and talked to them. He let them ask him all sorts of questions.’

Eddie stopped and gazed at each one, savouring the moment when he told them his final bit of news. ‘Freddy said the man was wearing a good suit and spoke well, and he told them he’d been a pupil at that school. He was ever so tall . . . and his name was Hunter.’

There was a stunned silence. The only sound was a knock on the front door.

‘Bob was in Canning Town?’ Alf gasped.

‘It couldn’t have been him. He would have come here, surely?’ Steve was shaking his head in disbelief.

Eddie shrugged. ‘Freddy said it was him. He sort of recognized him, but he was smart and all grown-up, so he couldn’t be sure at first. But I knew it was him as soon as Freddy said he was ever so tall.’

‘You’re quite right, Eddie. It was Bob.’

They all stared at the man Daisy brought in.

‘Captain Russell, what on earth is this all about?’

‘Sit down,’ Steve urged, as they all shuffled round to make room at the table. ‘Tell us what you know.’

‘Bob turned up at the estate and stayed for two days. I asked him if he was coming to see you, and when he said no, I wanted to let you know immediately. He said I could tell you when he had left. I urged him to stay longer, but he told me there was somewhere he wanted to visit before returning to his job in Surrey. Daisy gave me a brief outline of Eddie’s story, so I’m guessing it was the school he wanted to see again.’

‘Dear Lord, I don’t believe this.’ Alf was perplexed. ‘What’s the boy up to?’

‘I’m not sure.’ Ben smiled at Daisy when she put a cup of tea in front of him. ‘I couldn’t get much information out of him, but he’s changed, and if it wasn’t for his size and easy way of moving, I might not have recognized him at first.’

‘Changed in what way?’ Steve asked.

‘Well, outwardly he’s a couple of inches taller, the suit he was wearing was not of the best material, but it was tailored to fit him well.’ Ben paused to drink some tea. ‘He was calmer, more in control of himself, and less like the troubled boy of some two years ago.’

‘Didn’t he give you any idea what he’s doing?’

‘I’m sorry,’ Ben told Alf. ‘All I could get out of him was that he was living somewhere in Surrey, and if he told me what he was doing I wouldn’t believe him. All I can tell you is that he is well and very grown-up now.’

Alf smiled then. ‘That’s good to know. Thanks for coming to tell us, Captain, but I’d love to know what he was doing at the school. Do you think he’s going to teach soon? It was always his dream.’

Pursing his lips, Ben shook his head. ‘I don’t think that’s what he’s doing. I’ve puzzled over it ever since his visit. His hands were clean and smooth, so he isn’t engaged in manual labour, and he’s very strong with well developed muscles.’

‘That’s what Freddy said.’ Eddie joined in. ‘He picked up one girl to stop her getting hurt, and at the same time caught hold of Freddy and lifted him right off the ground. The kids didn’t mess with him after that.’