‘Ah, but then Mr Jacobs wouldn’t like that,’ Amy informed him. ‘He has this policy, each man trained to excel in his own job, and no swapping over.’
‘You’re a killjoy, you know that?’
‘And you should go for lunch. By the time you get back, Len will be here.’
Harry was still contemplating what to do, as Phil Saunders drew up at the end of the street. ‘Right! Make sure you do it proper.’ He watched
Judy climb out of the car. ‘Don’t let me down.’ He opened the glove compartment to give her a sight of the gun. ‘I meant what I said.’
Judy nodded. She knew he would not hesitate at murder if necessary.
Saunders watched her walk down the street. He saw her pause at the entrance to the store, and breathed a sigh of relief when she walked inside. He smiled. ‘Good girl!’
He waited a moment, then
drove slowly by; thrilled to see how she was actually inside the store and heading towards the desk. ‘She’ll do it,’ he gloated. ‘She knows what will happen if she doesn’t.’
Amy saw her first. Having brought Harry a cup of tea, she put it down on his desk, and looked towards the entrance, at the young woman coming their way. She recognised her as the same young woman who had stood at the back
of the store that day, talking to Harry’s friend Kathleen. Today, however, there was something different about her. The last time she was here, she had been quite plain in her appearance. Now, she seemed to be dressed for some special occasion.
‘You make a great cup of tea, Amy, I’ll give you that,’ Harry said. Noting the expression on her face, he turned to see who or what had caught her interest.
He saw the young woman standing halfway down the store, just standing there, looking straight ahead, almost like someone in a dream.
‘Judy?’ Her name fell from his lips like something precious. Was it really her?
When she looked straight at him, with that familiar, wistful smile, he got out of his chair, his heart beating like a crazy thing. ‘
Judy!
’ The mere act of saying her name gave him comfort.
Looking on, from one to the other, Amy was in no doubt but that these two were deeply in love. It shone from their faces, lit up their eyes, and she could sense the powerful link, a force-field between them. ‘There’s that couple looking at the carpets,’ she muttered, backing away. ‘I think they were wanting some advice …’
Approaching Judy, Harry cleared his throat nervously. ‘You look lovelier
than ever,’ he said shyly. ‘I really didn’t think to see you again so soon.’
For a moment Judy looked up at him, drinking in his features, and blossoming in the aura of his tall, confident stance. Oh, how she loved him, had always loved him and would for ever.
She forgot why she was there. She wanted to throw her arms around him and ask him to take her away from this dark place.
Yet she knew
what would happen if she did that.
What became of her was of no consequence; in fact, it might be a mercy if Phil were to kill her. Harry though had done nothing to merit such a fate – and what of his child, already without a mother? Little Tom would suffer the same fate as his daddy all over again: he would be orphaned. Judy could not let that happen.
Then there was Kathleen to consider. It
would destroy that old dear friend, if Harry’s life was snuffed out by a madman like Phil Saunders.
‘I think we should talk,’ she suggested softly, ‘… but not here. Somewhere quiet, just the two of us.’
Harry agreed readily. ‘That would be wonderful. I’ll go and tell Amy.’ He smiled. ‘She’s already been nagging at me to take my lunch break.’
Judy watched him walk up to the desk; she saw the
quick exchange between him and Amy, with Amy occasionally peeking at her, and the shame of her errand made her feel like a Judas.
In a minute he was back, sliding his arm in hers, as though it was the most natural thing in the world. For Judy it was something she had longed for.
Leading her to the entrance, he beamed down on her and gently
squeezed her hand. ‘You’re right,’ he said. ‘We do need
to talk. There so much I want to ask you … if that’s all right?’
Judy told him it was, though as they came out of the store, her heart sank, for there was Phil, parked at the corner, watching every move she made.
Alarmed, she quickly looked away, allowing Harry to lead her down the street and round the corner, where they emerged into the High Street. ‘So, where did you want to go?’ he asked.
‘There’s the River Hotel; I’m told they have a great restaurant.’ He felt like a kid on his first date, hardly able to believe that Judy had actually come looking for him. ‘I’m sure they’ll find us a table,’ he speculated.
Judy graciously declined; she wasn’t used to fancy places and she had an idea that neither was Harry. ‘I’d rather go to that little café just up by the Boulevard.’
Harry was
happy with that, as he pinched himself into believing he was really holding Judy, and they were actually going on a date – well, a kind of date.
It was then that he began to wonder. Why had she come to the store? What did she want to talk about, and why was she dressed to kill?
Somehow, it was not like her, and if his instincts were true, she was in a strange mood. As they made their way to
the café, she kept looking back, then quickening her step, and when suddenly she lapsed into a deep silence, his curiosity was greatly heightened.
But then he thought she might be nervous, just as he was. After all, it had been many a long year since he and Judy had walked down the street together, and it was just amazing!
The café Judy had chosen was the very same where she and Kathleen had
met, and when the waitress showed them to the table, it was also the very same where she had sat and lied to her dear old friend. How fitting to the occasion, Judy thought cynically.
They placed their order – ham sandwiches and a pot of tea for two – and while the waitress was dealing with that, Harry concentrated on Judy. By now, he could tell there was something very wrong. ‘What is it, my
love?’ he asked tenderly. ‘What’s wrong?’
For a moment she said nothing. Instead she toyed with the end of the tablecloth, before looking up with a bright smile. ‘What makes you think there’s something wrong?’ she asked in a brittle voice.
‘I don’t know … it’s just that you seem so nervous. I’m not sure what to think.’ He asked her outright: ‘Why did you come to the store, looking for me? What
is it you need to talk about?’
Peering out of the window, she saw Phil’s car parked across the street, and she knew that time was running out.
Her soft grey eyes swept over Harry, as she etched his face into her mind for all time; that strong face full of character and goodness, and her love was tenfold. ‘Will you do something for me?’ she whispered.
‘Anything.’ He struggled to understand;
he knew she was troubled. ‘What is it you want me to do?’
Judy leaned forward. ‘
Kiss me!
’
‘What?’ Excitement rippled through his senses.
‘Kiss me,’ she urged, ‘like you used to when we were sweethearts.’
Reaching up to place his hands either side of her face, he leaned to her and smiled; a moment just to be sure, then he covered her soft lips with his, and kissed her long and tenderly, his
senses in chaos.
As he reluctantly drew back, the waitress returned with their order, which she placed before them. ‘I hope you like chutney on your ham,’ she remarked, ‘because that’s how we make the sandwiches.’
There were a few awkward moments when they pretended to eat their food and talk of days gone by, until Harry asked quietly, ‘Can I kiss you again?’ He was disappointed when Judy answered,
‘Best not.’
Embarrassed and confused, Harry chatted on, ‘So much has happened over the years, but I never forgot you. I got married, to a wonderful woman called Sara. Right from the first I told her about you, and she understood. After she died, someone else told me how we can love in so many different ways, but we never forget that special love – the kind you and I had.’
Stretching out his
two hands, he cupped her slender fingers in his. ‘I loved Sara from that first day, but you were always there … my special love. She knew that, and as I said, she understood.’
Judy envied her. ‘She must have been a wonderful person.’
‘She was. She did not deserve to suffer as she did, and then to leave us.’ Swallowing back the tears, he asked Judy again: ‘What was it you wanted to talk about?’
He had been amazed when she asked him to kiss her and hardly dared to go on: ‘Is it about you and me? Is there a chance we might get back together?’
When she looked down, he feared he might have gone too far too soon. ‘I’m sorry. Forgive me if I’ve overstepped the mark.’
There were so many pertinent questions he had to ask. ‘Are you
happy with Phil, Judy? Does he take care of you? Does he treat
you right?’
For one agonising moment she was tempted to tell him the truth; that Phil was a maniac, that he beat her into submission and made her life a living hell. She wanted to tell Harry how she had often thought to take her life, because of Phil; and that she missed Harry, every waking minute.
She wanted to scream from the rooftops that she was here to do something she wished with all her
heart she did not have to do, but that if she did not do it, Harry would be murdered, and so would she, but that she cared nothing for herself. She cared only for Harry, and the son who would be orphaned.
Sensing danger, she looked towards the door; there was no one there. Then she glanced into the far corner of the café, and there he was; Phil Saunders, dark and shadowy, like evil itself.
She saw him take the gun from his pocket and lay it on his leg, where only she could see it.
Judy knew the message he was sending, and she was so afraid, she could hardly breathe.
Seeing that gun had galvanised her intent. She thought of Harry and his son, and she decided that it would be better for Harry to have his heart broken than to be murdered.
‘Judy?’ Harry gently brought her to her senses.
‘You didn’t answer me.’
‘Phil takes great care of me,’ she lied, averting her gaze. ‘He makes sure I never go without, and in spite of his reputation, he’s so tender and loving.’ She made a supreme effort at a happy smile. ‘We love each other so much, Harry. I’m such a lucky woman to have a man like Phil.’
Harry was struck to the heart. After that soul-kiss, he had not expected this. He was
devastated, yet at the same time relieved that his darling Judy was not being ill-treated.
‘It seems as though he’s changed then?’ he said rather shakily. He swallowed hard. ‘I’m pleased, really I am.’ He gave a half-smile, but felt physically sick. ‘When I saw you at the store just now, I imagined all kinds of things – that he was beating you, that he was taking it out on you because of me.
I don’t blame him for threatening me at the store. He must have thought I was chasing after you, that I wanted you back.’ The words spilled out, but what he really wanted to say, remained unsaid.
Judy leaned forward, her voice so quiet it was almost inaudible. ‘And do you, Harry? Do you want me back?’
Harry looked into her dove-grey eyes and for one incredible, wonderful moment, he was lost.
‘I won’t lie,’ he whispered. ‘I still love you. To have you back would complete my life.’
Mortified, he then backed away. ‘Oh, I’m sorry, I should never have said that. I was wrong even to think it. I let my love for you colour my judgement. I badly misjudged Phil Saunders. I listened to gossip and I wanted to believe it. I’m sorry.’
Judy choked back the emotion. ‘Please don’t be sorry.’ Out
of the corner of her eye she saw Phil Saunders; he was here to remind her of a purpose – one which she must carry out or face the consequences.
Turning her attention to Harry, she raised her voice. ‘To tell you the truth, I’ve never forgiven you, Harry. You left me when I desperately needed you. My life was ruined for a long time because of you. When Phil found me, I was living on the streets,
caring for nothing and no one, not even bothered if I lived or died.’
She was out of the chair now, hands spread on the table and shouting at him. ‘
You
did that to me, Harry! I will never forgive you for running away like you did.’
Harry was shocked to his roots. One minute she was soft and gentle, the Judy he knew, and now she was behaving more like Phil Saunders! ‘What the hell is wrong with
you, Judy?’ he appealed to her. ‘Have you forgotten the truth of what happened back then? It wasn’t like you just said, and you know it.’
Aware that the waitress was watching, he tried to persuade Judy to sit down, so they could discuss this calmly and quietly, like civilised people, but she would have none of it, and so he reminded her again. ‘You deceived me, Judy. You let me believe something
that wasn’t true; something that could so easily have had me sent to jail, but it wasn’t just that. It was you, and the way you lied – that’s what I couldn’t live with.’ He remembered how it had been; he recalled how Judy was at the time. ‘You were behaving strangely,’ he recalled ‘much as you’re behaving now. It was as if something had happened to change you. What was it, Judy, because it certainly
wasn’t me!’
‘Hah! Now you’re trying to shift the blame. It
was
you who ran off, you who deserted me.’ She deliberately kept her voice loud.
‘No, Judy, you were different. There
was
something, and you wouldn’t even talk to me about it. Then you lied, and not long after that, you dropped the bombshell. I left because you lied to me. You were even prepared to see me jailed.’ He shook his head.
‘What kind of love is that? You didn’t love me then, and you don’t love me now, so tell me, Judy … what game are you playing?’
‘Enough, Harry!’ She had to stop him there, before he revealed too much. She had never told Phil Saunders about there having been a child, when Harry left. If Phil knew that, it would be yet another stick to beat her with. ‘Why did you come back here?’ she deliberately
taunted him. ‘Yes, you’re right – I never did love you. I used you, that’s all. Now I wish I had never clapped eyes on you. I never want to see you again. I want you out of my life, for good. Do you hear what I’m saying? Do you, Harry?’