On Saturday morning Holly glanced at the clock on the wall in the shop. There was only an hour to go until she could leave and then she and Ivy were going shopping for some new clothes for Ivy and a new skirt and blouse for herself. Lady Hamilton, it appeared, was not the only one who wished to have a gown made for the various society events over the summer and they had had a steady stream of customers requiring new gowns all week. She was busy returning the bolts of material to the shelves when the shop bell tinkled and, plastering a smile to her face, Holly turned to greet the customer. Her mouth fell open when she saw who it was, and quite forgetting herself she whispered, ‘Mother!’
‘Oh, darling, I’ve missed you so much!’ her mother answered and seconds later, quite forgetting where she was, Holly was in her arms.
‘Ahem! Why don’t you take your guest through to the staff room?’ Miss May suggested and Holly smiled at her apologetically.
‘I’m so sorry, I had no idea she was coming.’
‘It’s quite all right. In fact, why don’t you take her upstairs to your flat? It’s almost time for you to finish work now anyway.’
‘Thank you, Miss May.’ Holly flashed her a grateful smile then still holding fast to her mother’s hand she dragged her out of the shop and up the stairs to her new home.
‘I’m sorry to come unannounced,’ her mother said breathlessly as Holly hauled her into the small lounge, her face alight. ‘But once you sent me your address I couldn’t wait to see you. I needed to know that you’re all right.’
‘Well, as you can see, I am,’ Holly told her as she filled the kettle at the sink. ‘And it’s wonderful to see you. Now tell me everything that’s gone on back at home.’
Emma removed her hat and after placing it on the table she told her daughter excitedly, ‘That’s partly why I’ve come to see you. You see, your grandfather has had a change of heart and he’s said that you can come home.’
Holly looked astounded as she tried to digest what her mother had said. ‘And what brought that about?’ She was surprised that she wasn’t feeling happy about it.
‘Well, a few days after you’d gone Mr Dolby turned up with the most enormous bunch of flowers for me and a bottle of fine brandy for your grandfather. He said it was his way of apologising for what had happened and he’s been to see us a few times since then. He as good as told me that it had actually been your grandfather’s idea that he should court you and he said that as soon as he offered you the ring, he’d realised it was a terrible idea and that you were far too young to tie yourself down to a man of his age with a ready-made family. He was most distressed to hear that you had left home and begged your grandfather to let you return. He’s actually a very nice man. So what do you think? Will you come back with me?’
Holly frowned as she spooned tea leaves into the pot. Part of her welcomed the chance of returning to the comfortable existence she had known at home and yet in that moment she also realised that although she missed her mother dreadfully she was actually very happy having her independence and living with Ivy. But she loved her mother dearly, so how could she tell her that without hurting her feelings?
‘The thing is …’ she began, choosing her words carefully. ‘It isn’t as simple as that. Ivy and I rent the flat from Miss May who owns the shop downstairs, as I told you in my letter. Her husband is very poorly and she’s come to rely on me. And … well, to be honest, we’re happy here now we have somewhere nice to live. Grandfather was always so strict with us, we had very little freedom, but here I get to meet people and me and Ivy can come and go as we please … and I am grown up now,’ she ended softly. ‘I would have flown the nest sooner or later anyway.’
Just for a second she saw the hurt flash in her mother’s eyes but then Emma forced a smile. ‘I suppose I can understand how you feel. I should have stood up to my father and made him give you a little more time with people of your own age.’
‘It’s all right. I understand how hard it was for you.’ Holly gave her mother’s hand a reassuring squeeze as she blinked back tears. Seeing her again had brought home to her just how much she had missed her and she couldn’t bear to think she’d upset her. ‘At least now we can keep in touch properly and I can even come home and visit from time to time if grandfather has no objections.’
‘Yes, yes of course you can.’ Emma hastily brushed away a tear and forced a smile. Glancing around the cosy room she remarked, ‘You’ve certainly made this place very cosy. And how is Ivy?’
Holly had no time to answer for at that moment they heard footsteps clattering up the stairs and seconds later Ivy burst into the room in her work clothes looking somewhat bedraggled. She skidded to a halt when she saw Emma and then her face broke into a broad smile.
‘Why, this is a nice surprise.’ She dumped the bag of shopping she had bought on her way home from work on the table then glancing down at her work clothes she told her, ‘Sorry about the state I’m in. I suppose Holly’s told you I work at the match factory. It’s quite a dirty job, unfortunately, but I’m going to start to look for something else very soon.’ Then grinning at Holly she told her, ‘Hurry up with that tea, will you, me mouth is like the bottom of a bird cage. An’ there’s a nice sponge cake to go wi’ it in the bag.’
Emma smiled. She was pleased to see that Ivy hadn’t changed at all in some ways, although she did seem a lot more confident now, perhaps because here in London she was in charge of her own destiny? Whatever the reason she had to admit that both girls seemed content, although she was bitterly disappointed that Holly didn’t want to come home with her. She had missed her more than she could say but now she realised that it was inevitable that Holly would have become independent one day, her father had just hurried the process along.
They spent the next couple of hours munching cake and drinking tea, reminiscing about old times, and sharing their hopes for the future, until Emma glanced at the clock on the mantelpiece.
‘I’m afraid I should be getting back to Euston,’ she told the girls regretfully. ‘My train leaves in less than an hour.’
‘We’ll come with you,’ Holly offered. The visit had gone far too quickly and she was eager to spend every precious moment she could with her mother. ‘When we’ve seen you on your way we have to go shopping for some new clothes for Ivy and I could do with a new skirt and blouse for wearing in the shop myself.’
‘Well, now that I know where you are I’ll have your clothes sent on to you,’ Emma promised. Packing them up would give her something to do and relieve some of the lonely boredom that stretched ahead of her back at home.
Once at Euston Station, Emma gave the girls a hug, bravely holding back the tears. ‘Be sure to write at least once a week,’ she told Holly. ‘And come home for a visit whenever you find the time. Your room is just as you left it.’
‘I will,’ Holly promised, although she didn’t know how she would manage with the hours she worked, unless it was a very fleeting visit. But she was sure Miss May would give her some time off when she had worked for her a little longer if she explained how much she missed her mother and made the time up when she got back.
They watched Emma board the train then stood and waved until it was out of sight.
Glancing at Holly, Ivy saw that there were tears in her eyes and she put her arm about her shoulders. ‘Come on, let’s go shopping; it’ll cheer you up,’ she told her friend, and arm in arm they headed for the market with Ivy clutching her pay packet. Holly was reluctant, but she went along anyway, not wanting to disappoint her friend.
Later, Ivy urged Holly to come to Whitechapel where some of Ivy’s colleagues had said they would be able to find good second-hand clothes for a reasonable price. As they wandered through the streets it suddenly struck Holly that she was in the area her father came from. She had never given it much thought before but suddenly she wondered what he was like. Oh, she knew what her mother had told her and she believed every word but she suddenly wished that she could have met him herself, just once. After believing him to be dead for so many years, it had come as a shock to her to know that he was still alive out there somewhere. She might even pass him now on the street but how would she know? She suddenly remembered that Dora Brindley, one of the seamstresses who worked at the shop, came from there too. Would it be worth asking her if she knew a family by the name of Farthing?
‘Penny for ’em? You’ve gone all quiet on me.’ Ivy’s voice interrupted her thoughts and Holly gave a sad smile.
‘I was just thinking that this is where my father lived,’ she answered and Ivy gave her a sympathetic smile. Her own father had left a lot to be desired but at least she had known him and she could only imagine how hard it must be for her friend.
‘From what you’ve told me an’ how he treated yer mam, yer better off wi’out him,’ she told her.
Holly supposed she was right, but if she could just meet him once it would ease her mind.
‘Let’s go in this café here for a cuppa, eh?’ said Ivy, hoping to lighten the mood. ‘All this shoppin’ is thirsty work.’ She grabbed Holly’s elbow and hauled her into the first café they came to.
The next day dawned bright and clear if cold and after dinner Ivy suggested, ‘Let’s go for a stroll in Hyde Park. A bit o’ fresh air will do us good.’
Holly had seemed very preoccupied since her mother had gone back to the Midlands, and even the shopping trip hadn’t helped. Ivy hoped that a walk in the park, surrounded by beauty, might cheer her up a little.
When they got there, they were surprised to find that many women were milling about bearing placards, which said ‘Votes for Women’.
‘These must be them suffragettes they’re always on about in the newspapers,’ Ivy said intrigued. ‘Look.’ She pointed ahead to where one woman was standing on a raised platform addressing a crowd. ‘Let’s go an’ listen to what she has to say.’
Holly wasn’t too sure about it but Ivy wasn’t taking no for an answer so she followed her to where a large crowd of women had assembled to listen to the speaker. They had been there no more than a few minutes when suddenly a large number of policemen with truncheons appeared from nowhere and all hell seemed to break out as they tried to disperse the crowd. Women began to scream as the police manhandled them and now it was Holly who urged, ‘Come on, I think we should get out of here, there’s going to be big trouble.’
Some of the women clearly had the same idea but others were openly fighting the police and screaming abuse at them.
By the time they reached the road again and began to hurriedly walk along it, Holly’s nerves were in shreds but Ivy was buzzing with excitement and indignation.
‘Can’t see what the women were doin’ wrong!’ she said. ‘It were a peaceful enough talk so why did the coppers have to come an’ interfere! From what I heard that woman was talkin’ a lot o’ sense. Why shouldn’t we women be allowed to vote an’ have the same rights as men?’
Holly shrugged. She hated trouble of any sort and had no intention of getting mixed up in it but Ivy was well and truly riled.
‘I shall be comin’ again to hear what the women have to say,’ she declared as they hurried home arm in arm, and Holly had no doubt she would. She, on the other hand, was eager to pursue her Red Cross training and intended to do something about it that very week now that they were settled. She would make her mother, even her grandfather, proud.