Love or Duty--A saga set in 1920s Liverpool Page 15

  ‘Don’t talk nonsense! I have said we are not prepared to have anything further to do with that child and I mean it. Anyway, there is no question at all of her being released from St Saviour’s Remand Home.’

  ‘She would have been released into my care today if you hadn’t interfered,’ Penny said bitterly.

  ‘Stop being so insolent and talking such nonsense, Penny,’ Captain Forshaw said angrily, his florid face becoming even redder. ‘You don’t expect me to stand by and do nothing while you continue to ruin your future just because you have some stupid idea about saving this child.’

  ‘I am not trying to save her; I merely want to try to give her a better chance in life.’

  ‘She’s the produce of the slum that she’s been born into and that has been proved. The moment she was out of your influence she was in trouble with the police.’

  ‘Maybe, but it was not of her own volition. It was her older brother’s influence over her that caused the trouble,’ Penny defended.

  ‘Leave her where she is. The nuns may manage to straighten her out in the remand home; something you will never be able to do.’

  As Penny was about to reply he held up his hand to silence her. ‘No more; this discussion is at an end. Go to bed, Penny, and resolve to make a new start tomorrow and let all of us put this sordid matter behind us.

  Penny couldn’t sleep. She tossed and turned going over and over in her mind all that had taken place in the courtroom and since.

  She kept thinking of how dreadfully disappointed Kelly would be when she was told that her hopes and dreams had been shattered and that she was not going to be released from St Saviour’s.

  She knew that the nuns would offer no words of comfort to Kelly when they told her of the court’s decision and her heart ached for Kelly knowing how let down she would feel.

  When Penny finally fell asleep it was almost dawn and she found herself embroiled in a terrifying nightmare involving an argument between her father and Kelly.

  The quarrel between them didn’t make any sense to her and yet she felt herself becoming involved deeper and deeper in their conflict. Try as she might she couldn’t calm either of them because they ignored everything she said. It was almost as if they were in another dimension and although she could see and hear everything that was going on between them they couldn’t hear her voice. She kept wishing Bryn was there to help her deal with them but although she called out his name time and time again he never appeared.

  When she finally woke up in panic the sun was streaming in her window and as her senses levelled out she felt a sense of relief that it had all been a dream.

  Her parents were both in the breakfast room when she went downstairs. Although they were cordial in their greeting there was a tense atmosphere between the three of them.

  Penny had barely started her breakfast when Mary came into the room to say that she was needed on the telephone.

  ‘Do you know who it is, Mary?’ Captain Forshaw frowned.

  ‘Dr Cash, sir.’

  ‘Then tell him Miss Penny will call him back after she has finished her breakfast.’

  ‘He said it was important,’ Mary said looking questioningly at Penny.

  ‘It’s all right, Mary, I’ll deal with it now,’ Penny said quickly, wiping her lips with her napkin and standing up.

  Before her father could stop her she hurried from the room and into the hall.

  ‘Hello Bryn, is something wrong?’ she asked, as she picked up the phone.’

  ‘Yes, I’m afraid there is. I’ve just had a visit from Father O’Flynn. It seems Kelly has run away from St Saviour’s.’

  ‘When did this happen?’

  ‘They’re not sure. She was there last night when one of the nuns told her about the court’s decision to adjourn a decision. It seems that Kelly took it rather badly. She was in tears and saying over and over again that it meant she’d never be able to come and live with you.’

  ‘Oh dear!’

  ‘This morning, when they took the roll call before early morning prayers she wasn’t there. At first they thought she was sulking and deliberately being late. Then when they checked the dormitory and the classrooms they couldn’t find her. It seems they’ve looked everywhere for her and she is definitely not in the building.’

  ‘Has she taken refuge with Mrs Reilly, do you think?’

  ‘No, the police have already paid her a visit and she hasn’t seen anything of Kelly.’

  ‘Then perhaps she has gone to her own home in Cannon Court.’

  ‘No, she’s not there. Her mother hasn’t seen her since she was sent to St Saviour’s. They were going to contact the police in Wallasey to call at your house but I asked them to let me telephone you first because I didn’t think you would want your father to be involved.’

  ‘Thank you for that although of course he will be informed. I found out last night that it was because of his intervention that the magistrate adjourned his decision.’

  ‘Are you sure about that?’ Bryn sounded taken aback.

  ‘Quite sure. He told me so last night as soon as I got home. Someone at the court recognized my name and the address I had given and telephoned him. Well, you can guess the rest.’

  Bryn was silent for such a long time that Penny asked, ‘Are you still there, Bryn?’

  ‘Yes, I was trying to work out what to do next. We must be careful not to make things even worse for Kelly.’

  ‘Where do you think she might be? If she hasn’t come to you for help and she hasn’t gone back to her own home or to Mrs Reilly then she must be wandering around Liverpool. Do you want me to come over and help look for her?’

  ‘No; I think it might be best if you stay where you are because she might be trying to make her way to you,’ Bryn said thoughtfully.

  ‘It would be difficult for her to do that because she won’t have any money,’ Penny pointed out. ‘She would need some in order to buy a ticket to come over on the boat,’ she added.

  ‘True, but knowing Kelly she will find a way to mingle with the crowd and somehow manage to slip on board unnoticed.’

  ‘And then she would have to walk all the way here, to Penkett Road, from Seacombe Ferry.’ Penny added in a dubious voice.

  ‘If she is determined to find you she will and I am pretty certain that is what she has in mind,’ Bryn insisted.

  ‘So what do we do now?’

  ‘Well, as I said, I think you should stay where you are because I am sure that she will turn up there eventually. Mind you, I don’t think she will walk straight up to the front door so keep an eye open for her.’

  ‘In the meantime you’ll keep looking for her over in Liverpool?’

  ‘Yes, but I have a clinic this morning at the hospital and another this afternoon so I won’t be free to do very much until this evening.’

  ‘You will phone me if you have any news?’ Penny said anxiously.

  ‘Of course I will and make sure you phone and let me know if she turns up. You can always leave a message for me if the receptionist is unable to put you through.’

  The rest of the day seemed endless to Penny. She couldn’t concentrate on anything but found herself startled by every sudden noise. She kept popping out into the driveway to peer this way and that up and down Penkett Road to make sure that Kelly wasn’t there. She was afraid she might be hanging around and hiding behind one of the trees until she felt it was safe to come to the house.

  Bryn phoned twice but he had no fresh news to tell her about Kelly. He’d asked several of his patients if they had seen her but no one had. He’d even found time to pay a visit to Ma Reilly’s and also to go to the Murphy’s house in Cannon Court in case she had gone there after the police had called but neither Ellen Murphy nor Mrs Reilly had seen or heard from her.

  ‘They must both be very concerned about what has happened to her and where she is, especially Mrs Reilly,’ Penny said, her voice conveying how very worried she was herself.

  Towards teatime th
e sky became overcast and it began to rain. At first it was merely a heavy drizzle, then the clouds became heavier and the rain lashed down. Within a few minutes it was accompanied by deep rumbles of thunder followed by brilliant flashes of lightning.

  Penny remembered how frightened Kelly had always been whenever there was a thunderstorm and hoped that she was able to take cover somewhere safe.

  As Penny went round the house closing all the windows she peered out in case Kelly had crept into the garden and was sheltering under one of the shrubs.

  It was almost seven o’clock and the storm was starting to abate when there was a knock on the door.

  ‘I’ll get it,’ Penny called out as she rushed to open it, pushing Mary to one side as the girl came out of the kitchen and into the hallway.

  Her heart was thudding, hoping that it was Kelly, but to her surprise it was Bryn standing on the doorstep and he was soaked from head to foot.

  For a moment they stared at each other in silence before she invited him inside.

  ‘I came over on the ferry and then walked here from Seacombe. I was trying to trace Kelly’s footsteps in case she had come over to see you and was sheltering somewhere from the storm,’ he explained as he stood in the hallway, water dripping from him on to the floor. ‘I was hoping I might find someone who had seen her.’

  ‘Talk about looking for a needle in a haystack,’ Penny said with a smile. ‘How could you possibly expect anyone to remember one small girl among the many hundreds of people who make the crossing every day.’

  ‘She will still be wearing that drab blue dress and most people in the Liverpool area know that it’s the uniform they wear at St Saviour’s Remand Home,’ he reminded Penny. ‘Furthermore her picture is featured on all the newsstand placards as well as the front page of the Liverpool Evening Echo stating that she has run away from the home.’

  Penny clamped her hand over her mouth in dismay. ‘Oh Bryn, how awful! I didn’t know that; it makes her sound like a criminal.’

  ‘I know; that’s why it is so important that we find her. Not only the police but the general public will be keeping an eye out for her now and if any of them find her first it will be straight back to St Saviour’s for her.’

  ‘Come in, take off your wet coat and while we talk about it I’ll get Mary to make some hot coffee to warm you up.’

  ‘Perhaps Dr Cash would like to stay and have dinner. That would give all of us the opportunity to have a serious chat.’

  Penny looked round, startled, as her father suddenly appeared in the hallway.

  ‘Good evening, Captain Forshaw. That’s very kind of you but I am afraid I can’t accept because I have far too many other commitments,’ Bryn said firmly.

  ‘Then you and I had better have a little talk on our own,’ Marcus Forshaw insisted. ‘Do take off your wet coat and then come into my study.’

  Bryn looked at his watch and then shook his head. ‘I’m extremely sorry but I don’t have the time to stay any longer. Perhaps some other time.’

  Before anyone could speak Bryn had turned, opened the front door and was gone.

  Twenty

  Penny and her parents had only just sat down to dinner when there was an urgent knocking on the front door. They heard Mary scurrying along the hallway to answer it followed by a babble of voices.

  ‘That’s Kelly’s voice,’ Penny exclaimed, relief and excitement mingling in her voice. She pushed back her chair and hurried out into the hall.

  Penny drew in her breath sharply as she saw Bryn and Kelly standing there; for a moment she wondered if she was imagining it. The next minute Kelly was in her arms, sobbing and clinging to her desperately.

  ‘What the devil’s going on now?’ Captain Forshaw demanded angrily as he followed Penny out into the hallway.

  ‘You’re back again!’ He stared aggressively at Bryn. ‘And you’ve brought that damned child with you.’

  ‘Kelly was on her way here and I met her out in Penkett Road,’ Bryn explained, looking at Penny as he spoke.

  ‘This is wonderful, I am so glad you found her,’ Penny breathed as she smoothed the soaking wet strands of dark hair back from Kelly’s eyes and planted a kiss on her brow.

  ‘She’s not staying here,’ Captain Forshaw interrupted. ‘You found her Dr Cash so you can take her back to Liverpool with you and return her to St Saviour’s Remand Home, which is where she belongs,’ he said, addressing Bryn forcibly.

  ‘No, no! I don’t want to go back there I want to stay with Penny,’ Kelly screamed in a terrified voice and threw her arms around Penny. She began to sob noisily. ‘Don’t make me go back there. I want to be with you, Penny,’ she pleaded looking up into Penny’s face.

  Penny looked helplessly from her father to Bryn and back again.

  ‘Surely Kelly can stay here until the morning so that she can have a good night’s sleep and then we can all talk things over tomorrow and decide what to do for the best,’ Bryn suggested.

  ‘I’ve already decided what is best,’ Marcus Forshaw stated abruptly, ‘and that’s to get that damned child out of here right away.’

  ‘If you turn her out then I shall go with her,’ Penny told him defiantly.

  ‘Are we going through all that nonsense again? Think of your mother and how it will affect her. It’s your duty to stay here and care for her; she needs you.’

  ‘Mother is quite fit again and she doesn’t need me to be here, so I’m leaving unless you are prepared to allow Kelly to stay here with me,’ Penny said quietly.

  ‘Very well,’ she added when her father remained silent. ‘I’ll go and tell Mother what is happening and collect my things. Kelly you wait with Dr Cash, I will only be a few minutes.’

  Upstairs Penny reached down a suitcase and tried to think what she needed to take with her. Her mind was in turmoil as she packed things into it haphazardly including a bundle of Kelly’s clothes that she had bought for her earlier in the summer and still had. It was almost like a rerun of all that had happened before and she hoped that her leaving wouldn’t have an adverse effect on her mother.

  Kelly had fallen into an exhausted sleep by the time they reached Liverpool. Bryn carried her from the boat up the floating roadway and along to the taxi rank at the Pier Head.

  ‘Blenheim Road,’ he told the driver as they settled into the cab.

  Ma Reilly looked taken aback when ten minutes later they knocked on her door.

  ‘I’m so relieved that you’ve found her,’ she commented, her wrinkled face softening into a smile as she looked down at the sleeping child in Bryn’s arms. ‘She looks absolutely exhausted. Had she got very far?’

  ‘She’d made her way to Wallasey to try and find Penny,’ Bryn Cash explained.

  Ma Reilly suddenly seemed to notice the suitcase that Penny was carrying and a look of consternation registered on her face.

  ‘Oh gracious me, you’re wanting to stay here with me again are you! I wasn’t expecting you … leastways not until September,’ she said looking directly at Penny. ‘I haven’t an empty room until then.’

  ‘Oh heavens!’ Penny looked from Ma Reilly to Bryn in dismay. ‘What ever are we going to do until then?’

  ‘I’m sorry, luv. There’s nothing I can do, I’m all booked up until September,’ Ma Reilly repeated worriedly.

  ‘Don’t worry, Mrs Reilly. It’s no problem,’ Bryn said quickly. ‘We only called to let you know that we had found Kelly and that she was safe and sound. Come on, Penny, we must get this little sleeping beauty tucked up in bed.’

  ‘What on earth am I going to do now, Penny asked worriedly as they walked away. ‘Do you know of a cheap hotel?’

  ‘What’s wrong with my spare bedroom,’ Bryn asked. ‘You are more than welcome to stay there,’ he reminded her.

  ‘I don’t know,’ Penny said hesitantly. Then she looked at Kelly’s tear-stained face and made her decision. ‘Very well, as long as you are quite sure you don’t mind us doing that.’

  ‘I don’t min
d at all. There’s only one bed in there so Kelly will have to sleep with you tonight. Tomorrow we can buy a bed for her.’

  Bryn’s living accommodation was a large flat above a newsagent’s in Scotland Road. It was spotlessly clean but rather sparsely furnished. In the spare bedroom that he was offering them Penny found there was a four-foot bed, a chest of drawers and a wardrobe that was built into the alcove on one side of the small iron grate.

  ‘I think it might be best if Kelly went straight to bed,’ Bryn said as he carried the sleeping child straight through to this room and put her down on the bed.

  ‘I wonder when she last had something to eat or drink?’ Penny mused as she put her suitcase down and slipped off her coat.

  ‘She can have something to eat if she wakes up later on. For the moment though, I think she is so exhausted that we should let her go on sleeping,’ Bryn insisted.

  ‘We’d better try and remove her wet dress; it’s bound to be damp and we don’t want her catching a chill.’

  As they started to undress her and remove the drab blue uniform dress, that was now torn and grubby, Kelly stirred and stared up at them in a bewildered daze.

  ‘We’re only taking your dress off because it’s rather wet,’ Penny explained.

  Kelly immediately held up her arms so that Penny could slip it off.

  ‘I’m cold,’ she snuffled, shivering and wrapping her arms around her thin little body.

  ‘One more minute and then you’ll be snug and warm,’ Bryn promised.

  He fetched a small light blanket and wrapped Kelly in it before taking her through to his living room and settling her down in an armchair

  Kelly looked round frowning at the unfamiliar surroundings. ‘Where are we?’ she asked in a puzzled voice. Then, before either of them could answer she asked, ‘Can I have a drink of water?’

  ‘Of course you can,’ Bryn told her. ‘Or, better still, how about a mug of hot cocoa and a buttered crust to eat with it?’

  Half an hour later Kelly had stopped shivering and was yawning and rubbing her eyes in an effort to stay awake.

  ‘Ready for bed?’ Bryn asked as he picked her up in his arms and carried her through to the bed in the spare room.