In Search of Hope (23 page)

It took a five-point turn to get a car as big as his pointing back up the hill, then he drove up to the church again. He’d walk down and spy out the land.

Greaves might not be there, of course. But it was worth a try. There weren’t many other choices.

He climbed over another of those damned dry-stone walls, catching the sleeve of his suit on a projecting piece of sharp metal which some fool had stuck in a crack. It not only tore his sleeve but his shirt too, scratching his arm so that a few drops of blood trickled out on to his shirt to add insult to injury. Muttering a curse, he crept carefully on towards the house.

As he got closer the upper storey came into view, then the tops of the front doors. So it was a group of four cottages. Tiny places and … Ah! He’d hit gold. Well, possible gold. There were three cars parked at the right-hand end of the row. One belonged to Greaves. Whose were the others?

Disappointment ran through him like acid. Libby’s old heap wasn’t one of them, so she couldn’t be here.

It looked as if he’d be searching online again. And paying through the nose for information.

He waited, because he couldn’t leave until after the lawyer had gone, in case the fellow recognised his car.

Well, he could be very patient when he wanted something. He stood under one of the scrubby little trees near the wall and through its sparse branches watched the end houses.

Come on, you old fool. Go home, then I can get back to the hotel.

Libby came downstairs smiling. ‘Ned fell asleep straight away. He looks like a little angel now. Thanks.’ She accepted the mug of coffee from Joss and took a sip. ‘Lovely. Now, Mr Greaves, what’s the something else you need to tell me about?’

‘Your birth mother is looking for you.’

She stared at him in shock.

Joss whistled softly. ‘One thing after another.’

‘She’s been looking for you for a while now,’ Mr Greaves said quietly. ‘And you registered to find her, I think.’

Libby opened her mouth but no sounds came out. When she tried again, her voice was scratchy. ‘How do you know that?’

‘The man who found you for her has just contacted me. She wants to meet you.’

‘I’d like to meet her, too. Oh, I would! That’s why I contacted the agency. Only I haven’t had a reply.’

‘They did write to you. Twice. They got no answer to the first letter, but the second time someone filled in the form and signed it to say no contact was wanted.’

She turned so white, Joss went to stand behind her, his hands on her shoulders. For a minute she leaned back against him, closing her eyes, then she moved away. ‘I’m all right now. I was just … shocked. I didn’t think even
he
would do that when he knew how important it was to me.’

‘Men who want to control someone usually want complete control. He wouldn’t have wanted you to have anyone else to turn to,’ Joss said quietly.

‘But he
encouraged
me to contact the agency when I wondered about it.’

‘Clever. I bet he said you’d probably never hear from your birth mother.’

‘Yes. Yes, he did.’ She took a deep breath that sounded very close to a sob. ‘I’ve been so very stupid, so easy to fool, as well as cowardly.’

Joss squeezed her hand. ‘You’ve escaped now.’

‘Have I?’ She turned to Mr Greaves. ‘Who is she?’

‘I’m not yet authorised to reveal her details, but I can tell you how you came to be adopted, if you like.’ He explained how her mother had been fooled into thinking her baby had died, while the baby had actually been sold to some parents longing for a child.

When he’d finished speaking, Libby sat staring down at her hands, which were clasped tightly together in her lap.

Neither man interrupted her.

At length she looked up. ‘It makes me feel better that she didn’t want to give me away. Silly, isn’t it? After all these years.’

‘Not at all silly.’ Joss wished he dare hold her close and comfort her more openly; she looked so anguished.

‘How did my birth mother find out I hadn’t died?’

‘She was working for …’ He hesitated. ‘There’s a man called Leon. I don’t know his second name. Your mother used to work for him.’

Joss said quietly, ‘We know Leon. I work for him sometimes too, and Libby just did a small job for him.’

‘Goodness! It’s a small world. But it makes it easier for you to understand. This Leon found out about your mother’s child when he was investigating the group running this scam. It can be a very lucrative trade, babies, and this group had grown into quite a large international operation. It went on until they were stupid enough to place a baby with a rather important couple. Then one of their operatives tried to blackmail him and his wife, which would have caused a very unwelcome scandal.

‘The authorities had to act and who better than Leon’s unit for such a delicate situation?’

Libby nodded a couple of times, still feeling the warmth of knowing she hadn’t been given away. ‘I’d very much like to meet her. It’d be so good to have a blood relative. I don’t count my stepfather, and Grandma Rose is dead, so I’m completely on my own in the world.’

‘Shall I arrange a meeting?’

‘I wish I dared meet her, but it depends on what Steven does. I may not be here for much longer.’

‘Can I tell her who you are? Mention Ned, perhaps. She’d love to have a grandson, I’m sure.’

‘No names yet. I don’t want to risk this getting back to Steven. And … I don’t want her to see me as an abused wife. You could tell her I have a son, though. Does she live locally? Is that how you come to know about this?’

‘Yes, she does live nearby. She’s being as cautious as you. The man who found you for her contacted me on her behalf.’

‘There’s another reason to wait for this business with Steven to be sorted out before I meet her. I don’t want to put her in danger.’

‘Very well.’ He glanced at his watch and stood up. ‘I’d better get home now. If you have to leave suddenly, keep in touch with me.’

Joss stood up. ‘I’ll show you out, Henry.’

As they stood beside Henry’s car, he said in a low voice, ‘If her husband is half as bad as she seems to think, she’s right to be cautious. I won’t leave her side, I promise you.’

He stood waving goodbye to Henry, then went back into the house to find Libby standing staring out of the kitchen window. She turned to Joss. ‘I don’t know what to do next.’

‘Why don’t I call Leon and tell him about Pulford? They’ve already offered to investigate him if you wish.’

‘Why would they do that?’

‘Because you helped them get Jane to a safe refuge and you may be useful to them in the future.’ He snapped his fingers as something occurred to him. ‘If anything does go wrong – if for some reason we’re separated and you have to flee – go to the antiques centre. Emily and Chad will be happy to help you, I’m sure. They’ll keep you safe. And I’ll know where to find you.’

‘All right.’

He gave her a hug. ‘But that’s only the worst-case scenario. My intention is to stick to you like glue and keep you safe.’

She leaned against him and they stood for a while, not speaking, just being together. When this was over, she wanted to get to know Joss better. She wasn’t going to rush into anything, but she wasn’t going to let her experience with Steven put her off finding another partner, either. Well, even with her husband, there had been some good times in the beginning.

Her ambitions weren’t unrealistic. She wanted, had always wanted, a proper home and family, the small pleasures of daily life with someone she was fond of. Perhaps more children. Three or four even. A real family.

Was that too much to ask?

Steven continued to watch the cottage and eventually Mr Bloody Greaves came out, escorted by a tall, thin fellow. They chatted for a short time, after which the man went back inside and Greaves got into his car.

Steven frowned as he studied the house. He was assuming Libby was somewhere around here, because she’d talked about her grandmother living in a small village on the edge of the moors, but what if she wasn’t? What if the lawyer’s visit was about something else? Neither of the two other cars was hers, after all.

His elation faded. He’d have to check, which meant waiting here in this cold, damp field until darkness, trying to catch a glimpse of the occupants of the house. Or should he go back to wait in his car? No. He’d wait here. He had to know.

When it began to rain, he cursed, but stayed where he was.

It was well over two hours before the light faded enough for him to approach the group of houses. He made his way round them, climbed over another damned dry-stone wall and approached the rear of the buildings from uphill.

His shoes were muddy, he was cold and his clothes were damp, but the anger burned brightly enough still to keep him there.

Whatever it took!

When he reached the rear of the house, he found they’d drawn the curtains in the kitchen and cursed under his breath.

But luck was with him, because a movement upstairs showed Libby in a lighted bedroom, just about to draw the curtains.

He laughed softly and moved back up the hill, easily finding his way to the church car park. He’d done it! He’d found her!

He started the car, hoping they wouldn’t notice it, and drove slowly down to the village. The shop was closed but there was a brightly lit pub. He was tempted to go in and see what he could find out, but he didn’t want to give his presence away by asking questions. And anyway, he was wet through.

He turned up the heater, shivering still, and found his way back to Rochdale, stopping to buy some fish and chips. Luckily the rain had stopped, so he could eat them standing outside the car. He couldn’t bear to have it smelling of grease and food.

There was an off-licence nearby, so he bought a bottle of whisky and took it back to the hotel. He wasn’t in the mood for sitting in a public bar; he needed to think.

Just a nip, he told himself, enjoying the warmth trickling down his throat. But the bottle was half empty before he realised it.

He forced himself to stop and put the top back on the bottle. He mustn’t drink too much. He didn’t want to end up an alcoholic like Libby’s stepfather.

After taking a hot shower, he got into bed. He still hadn’t made proper plans, but the long day had taken its toll and he fell asleep before he could work anything out.

The following morning, Steven woke knowing exactly what to do. He visited a magistrate, pleading an emergency. He explained about his wife, how fragile her emotions were, how she’d taken their son and run away, leaving her anti-depressant medication behind.

He obtained a letter requesting Mrs Pulford to appear before the magistrate with her son at the earliest possible opportunity to answer the claims her husband had made against her.

That wasn’t enough, so Steven emphasised that he was worried about his small son’s safety. ‘She has been known to beat him,’ he said sadly, shaking his head and sniffing as if close to tears. ‘I can’t bear him to be hurt again. Or worse.’

Steven knew there had been a case recently where a father had killed his child rather than let the mother take him back after a parental visit. As he had expected, the magistrate erred on the side of caution.

An officer of the court was sent with him to deliver the letter, make sure Mrs Pulford received it and see that she presented herself to the magistrate immediately, with her son.

This time Steven drove openly up the hill, smiling at his own cleverness, followed by the official.

The two cars were still outside the cottages, thank goodness. Where the hell had she got a new car from? He got out and saw a figure in the downstairs room. The figure left the room immediately, but it had been a woman. Well, Libby couldn’t get away without her car, could she?

He turned to wait for the official, who was standing by his car fussing with some papers.
Come on, you fool
, he thought.
Get a move on!

When Libby heard a car, she rushed into the front room and peered out of the window. ‘Joss, come here! It’s Steven!’ she yelled, moving to the back of the room. ‘And there’s someone with him.’

He came running to take a quick look. ‘The other guy looks like an official.’

‘I won’t be able to get away now that they’re here. What am I going to
do
? If Steven gets hold of Ned, I’ll have to go back to him, for my son’s sake. I bet he’s relying on that.’

‘Let’s see if I can help you escape by a little trickery. Take Ned out the back way while I keep them talking. Will he stay quiet?’

‘He will if I tell him his father is here.’

‘Right. Wait at the corner of the house till I invite them inside. I’ll make sure they come through into the kitchen. Then get in your car and drive away as quickly as you can.’

‘What about our suitcases?’

‘No time for them. You know where to go. I’ll meet you at the antiques centre and bring the cases if I can.’

The knocker sounded and she grabbed Ned. ‘Your father’s here, but we’re going to run away. Shh. We’ll go round the back way.’

He had gone rigid, looking afraid. He’d not make a noise, she was sure. She put her finger to her lips and led him outside.

Joss closed the back door quietly, waiting until the visitors knocked again before yelling, ‘Coming!’

He took his time about opening the front door and looked at the two men politely. ‘Can I help you?’

‘I’m Libby’s husband and I want to see her. I need to make sure my son is all right.’

‘Of course he’s all right. He’s just having his bath. If you’re who you say you are, I suppose you’d better come in, but I’m going to insist you produce some ID first.’ He closed the front door, trapping them in the hall.

The official fumbled in his pocket, producing a laminated card.

Joss took his time about studying it, then handed it back and turned to Pulford. ‘And you? You say you’re Libby’s husband, but how do I know that? I need some ID from you, too.’

‘Oh, for heaven’s sake! She’ll be able to identify me all right.’

‘I’m not letting you near her till
I
am sure.’

‘What are you, her lover or her bodyguard?’