29

‘I’m exhausted after yesterday,’ Lily said as she stretched her arms above her head and yawned. ‘Are you really going to do a staff inspection this morning?’

‘I feel the same and can only think that Miss Tibbs’ sherry must have been awfully potent,’ Rose laughed. ‘As for your question about a staff inspection: that’s what I’m here in the staffroom for, so look lively.’

‘I thought you’d say that,’ Lily said, rummaging in her locker. ‘I’m sure I had a new pair of stockings in here . . . Oh well, the ones I have on will have to do.’

Rose went to her own locker and took out a pristine pair. ‘Here you are, but please hurry up and put them on. I have a feeling we are due a visit from you-know-who.’

Lily groaned as she started to unfasten her damaged stockings.

A young Nippy dashed into the staffroom. ‘Mrs Hargreaves? There’s a telephone call for you from the Ramsgate teashop, and I was told to say it’s urgent.’

‘Oh God; that can only mean one thing,’ Rose sighed as she hurried through the teashop to her small office, where she found the telephone receiver lying on the desk. ‘Hello, Katie. I’m sorry to keep you waiting – I was in the staffroom and just about to start an inspection. How are you feeling today? I’m fit for nothing.’

‘Thank goodness somebody answered your telephone; I’ve been ringing for ages! You’d best look lively, as Miss Butterworth is on her way to you. Would you believe she was camped out on our doorstep before we even opened this morning? Talk about catching us on the hop. I feel as though she’s chewed me up and spat me out; I’ve been left with ever such a long list of things to do. She even mumbled something about finding a replacement manageress.’

‘I’m sure she didn’t mean it,’ Rose replied, concerned by how down Katie sounded. ‘I still think her bark is worse than her bite, but thank you for letting me know. Will you be going along to the dance at the West Cliff Hall this evening?’

‘Try to stop me,’ Katie said. ‘I’ll need cheering up after I’ve worked my way through all these jobs Butterworth left me with.’

‘Good luck with that. I’ll see you later,’ Rose smiled as she replaced the receiver. Glancing around her office, she thought she’d better spend half an hour tidying it up. As a rule, no other staff members were allowed in the room, but with her having had the morning off yesterday and then not come in for the rest of the day, it didn’t look its best. Post had been left piled on the desk and the room needing a good dusting.

‘Oh God,’ she groaned. ‘I forgot to ring head office to say we wouldn’t be back in work yesterday afternoon.’ She sat down and put her head in her hands, then sighed as she heard somebody enter the room. ‘If that is you, Lily, could you arrange a cup of coffee, please? I need to clear my head before I start going through this work. You can also tell the staff I’ll be skipping inspection this morning after all, as I need to catch up in here.’

A sharp cough brought her to her senses. ‘Mrs Hargreaves, are you shirking your duties?’

Rose raised her head to see Miss Butterworth standing before her. ‘Good morning. How lovely to see you,’ she said, even though it pained her to do so. She imagined what the teashop, her office, and the uninspected staff must look like through the new area manager’s eyes. No doubt Rose too would have a very long list of work given to her by Miss Butterworth today, going by the stony look on her face.

Miss Butterworth placed her briefcase on the desk, pulling over a seat that Rose kept for visitors. She sat down opposite Rose and waited for her to speak. ‘I haven’t got all day, Mrs Hargreaves; I believe you have something to tell me?’

‘I’m sorry . . . I . . .’

Miss Butterworth raised a hand to stop her stammering. ‘I do not have time to watch you as you fail to remember the most basic of your duties. Answer me this: where were you yesterday?’

Rose felt her stomach turn inside out. So, Butterworth had heard she’d failed to return to her duties after the air raid. She could have kicked herself for not putting through a call to head office to explain. She straightaway blamed the police inspector for arriving at Sea View just at the wrong moment, but knew in her heart of hearts that she was the only one who was truly responsible. Furthermore, her mistake meant the other teashop staff who had been with her would be in trouble too, since they’d been relying on her to clear the situation with head office.

‘I can explain, but first, can I fetch you a cup of tea?’ she asked, hoping to soothe the savage beast as she stood up to leave the office. With luck, she could tip off Lily, who could then keep the staff on their toes before an inspection.

‘Sit down. I require an answer to my question. Then I will inspect the teashop and staff before making my recommendations to head office.’

‘Recommendations?’ Rose asked, forgetting that she was supposed to answer Miss Butterworth.

‘I will be implementing changes. I believe you would refer to it as a new broom sweeping clean? I will decide once I have completed what I came here to do. Your career very much hangs in the balance, depending on your explanation for having disregarded your duties yesterday. I take it alcohol and Lily Douglas were involved?’

Rose felt her cheeks start to burn. ‘Of course not. For your information, I hardly ever drink. I had one sherry last night after a rather upsetting day. If I may, I’d like to explain what happened.’ She took a deep breath to compose herself. ‘Yes, Lily was involved, as was Joyce Hannigan, and Katie from the Ramsgate teashop. I am the one at fault, as I told them I would place a call to head office and explain why we could not return to work in the afternoon, following the air raid. I’m afraid that with the police visiting my mother’s home, it completely left my head. I’m sorry,’ she added, fearing she would cry if she said much more. She imagined her failure to fulfil her promise to her friends had cost them their jobs at the Lyons teashops.

Miss Butterworth peered at Rose over the top of the spectacles she wore for paperwork. After a moment, she removed them. ‘Why would the police be visiting your mother’s home?’

Rose sighed. ‘If you will allow me, I’d like to start at the beginning.’

‘Go ahead.’

Rose started by telling her about Anya taking leave from the Ramsgate branch to work in London training the Sallys; then, shortly afterwards, her son being abducted. ‘Her friends were caring for Alexsy, as Anya’s husband is still missing in action,’ she added.

‘It must be hard for her,’ Miss Butterworth said without showing any form of compassion. ‘Continue.’

Rose cleared her throat before explaining how, with no police action, they had heard that the man they believed had snatched Alexsy had been seen in town. ‘We had no choice but to meet at my mother’s and head to the house. Of course, then there was an air-raid warning and we rushed to the tunnels, and the man snatched Lily’s little girl as well . . .’

Miss Butterworth shook her head. ‘This is worse than a penny dreadful. Next you will be telling me he is the father of these children.’

‘No, only Lily’s daughter,’ Rose replied before slapping a hand over her mouth, realizing she had added that last piece of information without Lily’s consent. ‘Both the children are now safe thanks to the army getting involved, along with our friends in the RAF.’

‘Where is the navy when you need them?’ Miss Butterworth said scathingly.

Rose bit her lip, not sure whether the older woman was joking. ‘We were grateful for their help.’

‘What happened to the man who abducted the children?’

‘He is safely locked up and cannot do any more harm. We were informed he was absent without leave from the army and, along with the widow of another soldier, was planning to sell the stolen children to childless couples.’

For the first time, Miss Butterworth’s face showed a flicker of emotion. ‘It must have been traumatic for all concerned. How are the children?’

‘After a good night’s rest they are as right as rain, thank goodness. The adults involved aren’t as relaxed, as it has been an awful time. It was the police inspector along with the army officers arriving yesterday that put all thought of notifying head office out of my mind. I can’t apologize enough,’ she said miserably, bracing herself to hear the worst about her position with the Lyons company.

‘Thank goodness for that. You may think I am a hard woman, Mrs Hargreaves, but I do have a heart. I lost a child myself when I was only a young woman and can sympathize with the parents of Mary and Alexsy. Tell me, does Mrs Polinski know about everything that has happened?’

Crikey, Rose thought, whatever could she say that wouldn’t make Anya look like a bad mother who could not be bothered to come back to Ramsgate and help search for her child? ‘It is rather difficult, as Anya is doing a very special job that involves the government; I only found this out because I went to look for her at the training school in London. Please, can you keep that information to yourself? I’d hate anyone to get into trouble, and that includes Anya.’

‘You are a trusted friend; I’ll not be putting this into my report. However, may I ask if the man who is at the bottom of all this trouble is our ex-employee Thomas White?’

Rose nodded. ‘It is,’ she whispered. ‘And I hope we never have to set eyes on him again. I’ve never met such an odious person, capable of treating people in such a despicable way.’

Miss Butterworth got to her feet. Going to the door of the office, she caught the attention of a passing Nippy. ‘Tea and toasted teacakes for two, in here as soon as possible, please,’ she said before returning to her seat.

‘What happens next?’ Rose asked, feeling herself tremble all over. Her fate lay in the hands of Miss Butterworth.

‘The way I see it, you need to tidy your office and inspect your staff, as well as the kitchen. I shall enjoy my tea and be on my way,’ the area manager said, closing her notebook and placing it in her briefcase.

‘But my job . . .’

‘Your job is also to care for the wellbeing of your staff, as well as being on top of your position as manageress. You are a loyal friend, and your staff should be grateful that you care; that is something I wasn’t always very good at in my own time as a manageress. Don’t dare argue with me,’ she said, raising her hand as Rose went to speak. ‘Now, let’s have our refreshments and then I will leave you to get on with your work – and no doubt to speak to Mrs Jones at the Ramsgate teashop,’ she added, giving Rose a smile. ‘Ah, good, here they are. I don’t know about you, but drinking sherry always leaves me feeling hungry the next morning. Will you be mother, or shall I?’

Rose couldn’t have spoken if she’d tried. She knew she didn’t deserve the outcome of this meeting. When times got tough in her job, she would look back on this day and remind herself never to think the worst of Joe Lyons’ management.

The girls spent the evening at the West Cliff Hall, Ramsgate, as the guests of Peter and Stew; the regular dances there were hosted by the staff of nearby Manston airfield.

‘You have no idea how much I enjoyed that,’ Lily said breathlessly as she sat down next to Rose. ‘After all we’ve been through with that bloody Tom White, it’s about time we got ourselves dressed up and had some fun. I didn’t expect so many people here,’ she added, looking out at the dance floor where couples were squashed together, dancing shoulder to shoulder. There was a mixture of civilians and service personnel in the crowd, all enjoying a rare night out.

Rose smiled. ‘You and Peter make a lovely couple on the dance floor. How do you feel about him?’

‘Why are you asking? Do you fancy being a bridesmaid?’ Lily sniggered as she reached for her glass, finishing the port and lemon in one gulp.

‘I just wondered. He does seem keen on you, and it’s not every day a handsome pilot drops into your garden on the end of a parachute.’

Lily chuckled. ‘It wasn’t that romantic, as we had to cut him down from where he was dangling in the apple tree. To be honest, I don’t know how I feel about Peter. He’s a decent enough bloke, but I don’t think I could go through however long the rest of this war will be worrying about whether my husband will come home at the end of the day. You know, Anya puts on a brave face, but you can tell that deep inside she is grieving for her Henio. I can’t be like her; I just know I can’t. So, I’ll enjoy Peter’s company and see how things go from there.’

‘I understand completely. If I didn’t know Ben was safely ensconced behind a desk running some department or other for the army, I too would be tearing my hair out and praying for the war to end.’

Lily snorted with laughter. ‘I’m sorry; I’m not laughing at you. It’s more that here we are, dancing and all dressed up in our best frocks, and you’re acting as miserable as sin. Look, Peter’s bringing over more drinks. After that, why don’t you get up with the band and give us a song or two? You know you want to. I saw your face light up when the bandleader asked you to sing as we came in. What do you say?’

‘I’ll have that drink and then I’ll get on that stage and sing my heart out, just as you suggest. Life’s too short to be miserable,’ Rose grinned.

‘It looks like those two are having a good time,’ Lily nodded towards the dance floor, where Katie and Stew were attempting a quickstep. ‘They make a good-looking couple. It’s a shame the pair of them are married . . .’

‘To other people,’ Rose added. ‘That is something to be worried about.’

‘I say let her have some fun; he’s a decent chap and won’t mess her about. You know, they talk for hours about his family and her Jack; it’s quite sweet.’

‘Sweet it may be, but it isn’t right. We’re going to have to watch them as Katie’s quite an innocent, and I’d hate her to be hurt if Jack should find out. It’s best if she decides not to see Stew any more.’

‘She’s going to tell us to mind our own business,’ Lily said. ‘We will have to take it carefully. Perhaps you could come to Captain’s Cottage one evening for supper and we could bring up the subject . . .?’

‘I’ll do that,’ Rose promised, as Peter arrived with the tray of drinks. She hastily changed the subject. ‘I wonder what I should sing?’

‘I don’t mind, as long as it’s something by Helen Forrest that we can dance to,’ Lily said as she snuggled up to Peter. ‘Something that tugs at the heartstrings.’

‘I know just the song,’ Rose said as she squeezed past the couple and headed towards the stage.

Katie and Lily watched as Rose spoke to the leader of the band before standing in front of the microphone and wating for her cue as the saxophonist played the first moody notes.

‘. . . You made me love you, I didn’t want to do it, I didn’t want to do it . . .’

She closed her eyes and swayed to the music, cupping the microphone in her hands as she poured her heart out in the song. ‘. . . I want some love that is true . . . give me, give me, give me, give me, what I sigh for . . .’ She imagined she was in Ben’s arms as he steered her around the dance floor. ‘. . . You know you made me love you . . .’

Rose opened her eyes as the song ended to a round of applause from the dancing couples, who had all stopped at the edge of the stage to hear her sing.

‘Ladies and gentlemen, give your applause to Ramsgate’s answer to Helen Forrest,’ the bandleader called out as he helped her down from the stage, and she returned to her friends.

‘I know I say this every time you sing, but you are wasted working for Joe Lyons,’ Lily said as she gave Rose a hug.

‘I agree,’ Stew said. ‘This is the first time I’ve heard you sing, and you are up there with the best of the singers with the big bands.’

‘I’m happy as I am, thank you,’ Rose replied, suddenly feeling shy. ‘I met my Ben at a dance like this,’ she added a little sadly, looking around her. ‘Who will dance with this neglected married woman?’

‘I’d be honoured,’ Peter said as a foxtrot started to play, and he took her hand.

‘Hmm, one song and she has the pick of the men; perhaps I should learn how to sing,’ Lily grinned.

‘Don’t even try; you are tone deaf,’ Katie laughed as she stood up to dance with Stew, leaving Lily to watch her friends on the dance floor.

‘I’m the only single woman here and I’m a wallflower . . .’ she said, shaking her head until a soldier stepped forward and asked her to dance. She took his hand willingly and continued to dance the night away – until the evening was cut short by the arrival of Moaning Minnie, and they all headed down to the public shelters once more.