Sweet Memories of You (Beach View Boarding House) (38 page)

She’d prepared everything and had just sat down for a cup of tea and a fag when Doreen came up the cellar steps. One look told her that her sister had not been walking the hills, but was in a furious bate about something.

‘Sit down before you explode, Doreen,’ she said mildly. ‘Then, once you’ve got your breath back, you can tell me what’s eating you.’

Doreen shrugged off her coat and dumped everything on a nearby chair. She sat down and eased her feet out of her shoes. ‘Is it that obvious?’

Peggy pushed the cup of tea towards her. ‘I’m afraid it is. Want to talk about it?’

Doreen’s gaze slid away and she concentrated on sipping her tea as Ron came through the back door and stumped up the stairs with Harvey at his heels.

Peggy gave Ron some tea as well, then as Harvey collapsed wearily on the hearthrug, she sat back down again. ‘Doreen was just about to tell me what’s eating her,’ she said with a warning look to keep his trap shut.

‘Oh, aye? So who’s been upsetting you then, Dorry?’ he asked around his pipe stem.

‘It was my own fault,’ she said. ‘I went to see Doris to apologise.’

Ron’s eyebrows shot up and Peggy gasped. ‘Whatever for?’ she asked. ‘She was appallingly rude and deserved everything she got.’ Peggy eyed her younger sister, surprised to see her so out of sorts. Run-ins with Doris usually enlivened her. ‘It would have been better to let her stew in her own juice,’ she said dismissively.

‘That’s what I thought for a while, but I felt guilty, Peggy. And now I feel even worse.’

Peggy frowned as Ron snorted. ‘Why?’

As Doreen described how shocked she’d been at their sister’s appearance, then told them about Ted’s determination to have a divorce, the decamping of Caroline, and Anthony’s imminent move to the Midlands with Suzy, Peggy felt slightly more sympathetic towards Doris. As awful as she could be, Doris genuinely regretted the break-up of her marriage and, of course, adored Anthony.

‘That must be hard for her to take,’ she said, ‘but life must go on, and Doris has to learn that she can’t possibly keep tabs on poor Anthony for the rest of his life.’

‘I know. But the fact that Suzy’s expecting has really put the tin lid on it.’

Peggy brightened immediately. ‘Suzy’s expecting? Oh, how wonderful. She and Anthony must be thrilled.’ She glanced over to the dresser and the pile of knitting patterns, her mind already working on what she could make to give her before she left.

‘I don’t think Doris feels quite that way,’ said Doreen. ‘She seems determined to believe that Suzy won’t let her have anything to do with the baby – and as they’ll be in the Midlands until at least the end of the war, she won’t get a chance to see it either.’

‘Oh, dear,’ sighed Peggy. ‘Poor old Doris. Life has been unkind to her, hasn’t it?’ She stubbed out her cigarette in the Guinness ashtray Ron had filched from the Fishermen’s Club. ‘But then she made a rod for her own back, the way she insisted on trying to take over their wedding plans, and making it clear that she felt Suzy had come between her and her only son.’

Doreen nodded. ‘I got the impression from what she said that she still feels that way.’

‘Then more fool her,’ rumbled Ron as he pushed away from the table. ‘That wee Suzy has been the making of that boy. Mark my words, your sister is bringing a whole heap of trouble on her head if she keeps up that sort of thinking.’ He clenched the pipe between his teeth and went down the steps to his room.

Doreen drained the cup of tea and changed the subject. ‘By the way, Peggy, my leave has been extended for another fortnight.’

‘But that’s marvellous. Will you be going to see the girls?’

‘I did think I would, but having looked into the travel arrangements, it seems I’ll need endless permits to travel all that way, which could take time to come through – and the few trains that go there are unreliable and often cancelled. So I’ll just have to make do by writing lots of letters.’

Peggy noted the sadness in her, reached across and took her hand. ‘I’m so sorry, Doreen. This damned war has a great deal to answer for, splitting up families and bringing so much heartache to everyone.’

‘Yes,’ she murmured. ‘Still, there’s not much any of us can do about that except just keep on going.’ She straightened in the chair. ‘I feel a bit of a fraud staying here, to be honest, Peg. I’m much better now, so I’ll probably return to Halstead in a few days anyway. There’s a lot of work going on there and they’ll need me.’

‘Stay a while longer, Doreen,’ Peggy pleaded. ‘It’s been so lovely to have you home.’

Doreen returned the pressure on her fingers and then collected up her things. ‘We’ll see,’ she murmured before she left the kitchen.

Peggy sat at the table for a while after she’d left. The spat with Doris couldn’t possibly have upset her that much, she reasoned. Something else was clearly worrying Doreen, and Peggy meant to get to the bottom of it.

She finished her cup of tea and began to set the table. The thought that dear little Suzy was expecting thrilled her. She and Anthony made a lovely couple and deserved to be happy. Peggy just hoped that they’d call in before they left, for she hadn’t seen much of either of them since their wedding.

Rita came flying up the steps into the kitchen and dragged off her coat to reveal a pretty woollen dress and cardigan. ‘I’m sorry, Peggy, but I’m running late and will eat at the fire station tonight. I forgot I was on night duty, what with all the excitement of having Matt to myself all day.’

Peggy smiled as the girl dashed into the hall and thudded up the stairs. Rita never did anything slowly, and she suspected that the room she shared with Ivy now resembled a jumble sale – and a very untidy one at that.

Smiling indulgently, she put the vegetables on to boil and slid the tray of crusted pork into the oven. There would be an extra helping for Ron now – and why not? He’d certainly earned it.

She was humming quietly as Sarah came home and was almost knocked flying by a hurtling Rita. ‘I can’t stop, Auntie Peg,’ Rita said as she pulled on her uniform jacket. ‘But will you tell Ivy I’ve got something important to tell her?’

‘Oh, yes. And what’s that?’

‘It’s nothing for you to worry about, really it isn’t. It’ll keep until morning.’ With that she was out of the door, her heavy boots clumping on the garden path as she ran towards the gate.

Peggy’s curiosity was piqued, but, she reasoned, it was probably nothing as Rita had said. Those two girls were as thick as thieves, and she was sure that if it was anything serious, Rita would have confided in her, rush or no rush.

Ivy knew very well that Peggy had sharp eyes and could tell if something was wrong in an instant, so she determinedly plastered a smile on her face as she climbed the steps into the kitchen. ‘Hello,’ she said brightly. ‘That smells lovely. I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.’

‘It’s pork chop and roast spuds,’ said Peggy, giving her a hug. ‘Have you had a good day?’

Ivy took off her blanket coat and kicked off her boots. ‘The same as always. Me and Ruby had one of the other girls to sort out, but the rest of the day was like usual.’

There had been an incident a few days ago in which Ivy had tussled with another girl over something and nothing. She was a bit of a scrapper, was her Ivy, but for all that, Peggy couldn’t help but be fond of her. ‘I hope you haven’t been fighting again, Ivy,’ she said, trying to look stern. ‘The last time you nearly got the sack.’

‘It weren’t my fault. She started it. Weren’t my fault today either – and no, I didn’t pull her hair or try to scratch her eyes out, even though I really wanted to.’ She gave Peggy her cheekiest grin to fend off any further questions, for she didn’t want to tell her the reason behind the falling-out with Beryl. ‘Is Rita home yet?’

‘She shot in and shot out again. Forgot she was on nights after a day out with Matt. She said to tell you she’s got something important she wants to talk to you about.’

Ivy stiffened and her pulse began to thunder in her ears. ‘What were that then?’ she asked, as casually as she could.

‘She didn’t say. I expect it’s about cancelling her ticket for the dance tomorrow night. She obviously won’t be able to go now she’s on nights.’

‘Yeah, probably.’ Ivy picked up her boots and coat. ‘I’ll go and ’ave a wash and get changed,’ she said. ‘I’m meetin’ Ruby for a drink later.’ She was doing nothing of the sort, but Peggy didn’t need to know what she was actually planning.

‘That’s nice. I’m so glad you’ve become friends. Ruby’s a sweet girl, and I rather miss not having her around.’

Ivy nodded. ‘I suppose you ’eard about her stepdad?’ Peggy obviously hadn’t, for she frowned. ‘Well, he’s dead. So Ruby’s hoping Ethel and Stan will finally make it legal.’ She flashed her dimples. ‘After all,’ she added, ‘they’ve almost been living together for a while now.’

‘That would be wonderful,’ sighed Peggy. ‘Stan’s been a widower for too long and Ethel needs to have a man like him in her life after what she went through with that other toerag.’ She gave a little chuckle of happiness. ‘It’s lovely to get so much good news in one day.’

Ivy listened as Peggy told her about Suzy’s coming baby and Doreen’s extended leave. She let her ramble on, only taking in enough to keep track of the one-sided conversation as her thoughts skittered over what Rita might have to tell her – and her plans for tonight.

‘Ivy? Ivy, you haven’t been listening to a word I’ve said.’

Startled, Ivy looked back at Peggy and then quickly looked away again. ‘Course I have,’ she replied.

‘Ivy, is something troubling you, dear? You don’t look quite the ticket, if you don’t mind me saying so.’

‘Nah, I’m fine,’ she said brightly. ‘It’s just been a long day, that’s all.’ She clutched her boots and coat to her chest, aware that Peggy was watching her closely – clearly suspicious that something wasn’t right – and she hurried upstairs to avoid any further questions. She needed to prepare for the evening, but she really wasn’t looking forward to it at all.

Ivy helped wash the dishes after the lovely meal, and then spent some time helping Cordelia with her tangle of knitting. Eventually, realising she couldn’t put her plans off any longer, she pulled on her coat and left the house.

The blackout meant that it was quite tricky to negotiate the potholes and cracks in the pavement, and to avoid the lampposts which suddenly seemed to loom in front of her. There wasn’t even a moon tonight to guide her, and so it took a while to reach the fire station, which was at the bottom of Camden Road. The large building appeared to be in darkness, but she knew that behind those blackout curtains Rita and the others would be tending their engines and preparing for any emergency that might arise.

Her heart was thudding as she crept along the broad expanse of forecourt to the pale bead of light coming through the keyhole in the big double doors. It was a small hole and the view of the main area was restricted, but as she watched, she began to count the men and women who walked past. She knew from Rita that there were eight full-time firemen in each watch, the volunteers and part-timers only coming in when they were needed. So far she’d counted seven, but there was no sign of Andy, and she wondered if perhaps he was in the upstairs office with his chief, John Hicks.

And then John appeared and gathered his crew together. ‘Fireman Rawlings won’t be with us again tonight,’ he said. ‘So I’ve called in Fred Sharp to keep up the numbers, and I want …’

Ivy had heard enough. She stepped back from the keyhole, her legs trembling so badly she could barely stand. Again? He wouldn’t be there
again
? Just how many times had Andy not turned up for work? What the hell was he playing at? The awful realisation that Beryl’s snide revelations were actually rooted in some kind of truth made her feel quite ill.

She took deep breaths of the sharp night air and then pushed away from the wall and headed for the High Street, the anger and hurt lending her speed. Reaching the turn-off that would take her to his billet in South Street, Ivy’s mood darkened. If he was in, then she’d make him tell her why he’d lied to her – and if he wasn’t, then she’d go to the Crown and see for herself just what he was up to.

She checked the numbers on the two-up, two-down terraced houses and came to a stop outside 55. The blackouts were pulled across, and she couldn’t hear any noises coming from the house, but that didn’t mean no one was there. She walked along the short, tiled path to the front door and rapped the knocker, her heart thudding as she waited.

The door opened and a middle-aged woman appeared in a floral, wrap-round pinafore and tatty slippers. ‘Yes, love?’ she asked.

‘Is Andy in?’

‘Sorry, ducks, you just missed him. He’s gone for a drink at the Crown.’

Ivy’s mouth was dry and she had to swallow before she could reply. ‘Was he with anyone?’ she asked, hating herself for sounding so feeble.

‘Someone did call for him earlier, but I was in the kitchen so I didn’t see who it was.’ The faded blue eyes regarded her with some kindliness. ‘I expect it was just one of his friends from the fire station,’ she said gently.

‘Thanks,’ Ivy muttered. She hurried back down the path and broke into a run as she headed back towards the High Street and the Crown.

There were knots of servicemen and women standing on the pavement outside the pub door, drinking, smoking and generally making a lot of noise. Ivy could hear someone crashing out a tune on a piano and a raucous sing-song going on inside, and as she pushed through the door she was met by a wall of noise and a blast of fag smoke and spilled beer. The place was positively heaving.

The atmosphere was very similar to the boozer in Hackney where she’d spent many hours as a kid, sitting on the doorstep with a bottle of pop and a few chips waiting for her parents to take her home, and on any other night she would have joined in with the fun. But now her whole focus was on finding Andy.

She weaved through the tightly packed saloon bar, ignoring the banter from the men and slapping away fingers that tried to pinch or fondle her backside as her gaze darted over the faces and round the bodies to see if he was there. A few tables were set with benches at the far end, but still she couldn’t see him, and she began to wonder if she should just go home and confront him tomorrow. After all, if he was with a mate from the fire station, she’d look pretty daft. And yet the fact that he’d lied to her about being at work rankled, and she needed to hear his explanation.