Daughters of the Mersey (21 page)

She nodded but once she was alone with June she was overcome with anger. Elaine liked to throw a party once in a while and Leonie had met Ralph Harvey on several occasions at her house. She remembered him now, he was usually the life and soul of the party but surely too old for her daughter. Leonie was ready to blame him for causing June’s injuries and present suffering. And how did she come to be out in his car in last night’s storm?

She tried to talk to her daughter. ‘June, you told me you were going to the cinema last night with the nurse who has the next bedroom to yours.’ June was breathing deeply but not even the smallest muscle on her face moved. ‘Why did you change your mind?’

Leonie felt frustrated. There was so much she didn’t know about what had happened. The only way she’d get to the bottom of this was to have a word with Elaine’s brother. She went back to the sister’s office to thank her and tell her she was leaving.

She asked to be directed to Ward One and found it without difficulty. The ward sister was a woman well past middle age, with a firm manner that brooked no argument, developed over many years of coping with patients drawn mostly from Birkenhead’s tough dock workers. She seemed rushed.

‘Mr Harvey already has visitors. Our official visiting hours are Wednesday and Sunday afternoons between two and four. Can you not come back then?’

Leonie felt like crying. She explained who she was and why she wanted to speak so urgently to him. The ward sister
relented and patted Leonie’s arm. ‘Nurse Dransfield’s mother? All right, but please don’t stay long. That’s Mr Harvey’s bed over there, with the screens round it. The police are interviewing him.’

‘What about?’

‘The accident. You’d better take a seat outside the office until they go.’

Sitting still and waiting frustrated Leonie even more, but at last the two uniformed police officers walked out. A nurse removed the screens and beckoned Leonie forward. Elaine’s brother looked very sorry for himself. He’d lost the look of self-assured debonair confidence she remembered and was propped up on pillows with his arm in a sling.

‘Do you remember me? I’m June Dransfield’s mother,’ she said briskly, pulling out the chair near his bed. ‘We met at Elaine’s house. I didn’t realise you knew my daughter. I want to know how she came to be in your car last night.’

‘I took her out for a meal. I’m very sorry.’ He paused. ‘How is she?’

‘Unconscious.’

‘You haven’t spoken to her?’

‘She isn’t capable of speech. I told you, she’s unconscious.’

‘Oh dear, I was hoping . . . They told me she had lots of grazes, I hope they aren’t on her face. June will hate anything like that.’

‘They’re all over her.’ Leonie didn’t intend to make things easy for him. ‘She told me she was going to the pictures with another nurse. Why did she change her mind? Did you persuade her?’ Leonie swallowed hard, she’d failed to persuade June to share the casserole with her and Steve and that hurt now. ‘Where did you take her?’

‘We had
dinner at the Queen’s Hotel in New Brighton.’

Leonie gasped. He’d taken June out to New Brighton for dinner? ‘You must have known it was dangerous to drive in a storm like that.’

She could see he was getting angry too. ‘The accident wasn’t my fault. You saw the police officers here. They told me there was an attempted robbery at the Midland Bank last night. The bank had had a new security alarm fitted and the police knew there were intruders on the premises. They disturbed them and they might have got away if they hadn’t crashed into me. It seems the police were chasing them. So you see I’d have got June back safely but for that and nobody would have been any the wiser.’

Time stood still for Leonie as her mind flashed back to something Elaine had told her ages ago. She’d been confiding her worries about Steve when Elaine had confessed that her brother worried her. His marriage had failed and he’d become a rather wild bachelor about town.

Leonie could hardly spit the words out. ‘How long has this been going on? It isn’t the first time June’s been out with you, is it?’

He sighed heavily. ‘Well, you’ll have to know now. Not only have those wretched robbers put us both in hospital but they’re going to cause us no end of other problems. No, it isn’t the first time. I’ve been taking her out for the last couple of years, possibly more.’

That took Leonie’s breath away. That must mean June had been keeping him a secret for all that time. She’d thought her a normal happy teenager but she’d been secretive, devious and telling lies. She felt sick. ‘What exactly has been going on?’

He shrugged and
then winced. ‘I’m very sorry. I should not have allowed her to keep secrets from you and her father. You must blame me.’

‘I do,’ Leonie said through clenched teeth.

‘I love June. She loves me. We want to get married, but as she’s under age, she’ll need your permission.’

‘Over my dead body,’ Leonie retorted. ‘You’re saying you took up with June when she was only sixteen? And you encouraged her to keep it secret?’

He had the grace to look embarrassed. ‘Yes, I’m sorry.’

‘It’s a bit late to apologise, isn’t it? You look much older than her. How old are you?’

‘Thirty-three.’

‘Old enough to know better.’

‘I don’t know why it always comes down to age. People can fall in love at any age.’

‘I’m horrified. I can’t believe it. Elaine said you’d been married.’

‘Yes, I was married for seven years but I was divorced long before I met June.’

‘Have you been sleeping with her?’

He looked ashamed. ‘I’m sorry you had to find out this way. As I said, we want to get married.’

Leonie stood up so suddenly the chair crashed back behind her. She stormed out of the ward, almost bumping into a nurse. She fumed at the bus stop, unable to keep still, unable to think clearly. What should she do about this? She was angry with June and absolutely furious with Ralph Harvey. She wanted to tell Steve but she ought to check on the shop first. She virtually had to pass it to go home.

Ida was pulling on her coat and
told her what she’d done and who had come in during the morning. ‘I’ve got to rush,’ she said. ‘The kids are coming home from school for their dinner today.’

To be back in familiar surroundings cleared Leonie’s head. She was reaching for the phone to talk to Steve when she realised it was lunchtime and she could go home and see him. The sooner she brought him up to date the better because he’d be worried about June.

Mrs Killen was just leaving as she went in. ‘Is June all right? I hear she’s been in a car crash.’

‘Yes, last night. She’s not all right, she hasn’t regained consciousness yet.’

‘Poor June, but she’ll be getting the right treatment in hospital, they’ll bring her round, won’t they?’ Mrs Killen said. ‘I’m glad you’ve come home, Mrs Dransfield, I wanted a word with you. I’ve been thinking for some time that I ought to do more to help the war effort. The munitions factory is working full out and is always advertising for more workers.’

Leonie felt her spirits plummet. ‘You’re not thinking of leaving me?’

‘I don’t like doing this, you’ve been very kind to me but they pay more money.’

Leonie sighed. ‘And there is a war on. I don’t know what I’ll do without you.’

‘Well, you don’t need me to look after Amy in her school holidays now, so I’d like to give you a week’s notice.’

‘Oh dear, I’ll be very sorry to see you go.’

‘Mr Dransfield’s just starting his lunch. I made a pan of vegetable broth this morning, there’s plenty left if you want some.’

‘Thanks, I will.’ Leonie took
off her coat, feeling very down. Mrs Killen was a good worker. She kept the house clean and tidy, laid the fire every morning and even did a bit of washing. Without her, she’d have a lot more to do.

She knew she’d find Steve tucking into his broth sitting in solitary splendour at the dining table. He wouldn’t eat anywhere else. ‘How is June?’ he asked.

‘The sister says she has concussion but she doesn’t seem to have broken any bones.’ Leonie pulled out a chair and sat down at the table with him. ‘She’s still unconscious so I couldn’t talk to her.’

‘But how did she come to be out in a car in that storm last night?’

‘She’s got a boyfriend, Steve, a long-term boyfriend.’

His soup spoon clanked back in the bowl. ‘I can’t believe that, she’s never mentioned a boyfriend to me! What d’you mean, long term?’

‘I went up to the male ward and asked to see the man she was with.’

‘Good for you, I hope he’s in a worse state than she is.’

‘He had a dislocated shoulder, four broken ribs and he’s cricked his ankle, but he’s sitting up and looking in better shape. They’ve been seeing each other regularly for two years.’

‘Seeing each other? You mean he’s been taking her to the pictures?’

‘He’s been taking her to bars and restaurants while she’s been telling us she’s going to the pictures with her girlfriends.’ Leonie felt hurt that her own daughter wasn’t able to tell her the truth.

‘She’s been telling lies? June wouldn’t, not to me.’

‘He’s got a
flat close to the hospital. She goes there to spend time with him. I’ve been wondering if that was why she wanted to train there.’

Leonie saw the tide of anger rush up his cheeks. ‘Good God! Are you saying they’ve been having sex? For the last two years?’

‘I understand so. He says he wants to marry her.’

‘A fine husband he’d make. It would be over my dead body.’

‘That’s exactly what I told him.’

‘He’s violated our daughter. This isn’t a man, it’s an animal. Did you get his name?’

‘Ralph Harvey, he’s Elaine’s younger brother.’

‘For God’s sake, I never did like that woman. You’ve spent far too much time with her. I knew no good would come of it.’ Steve was furious.

‘It’s no good going on about Elaine. This has nothing to do with her.’

‘But it has, they must have met at her house. You must have taken her there.’

‘I don’t think so.’

‘How else could she have met him?’

‘I’ve no idea.’

He was outraged. ‘Then you should have. You’re her mother. You’ve let her run wild.’

‘How many times have you said, “Leave June to me, I’ll look after her?” You’re her father and you’re here all day. You said she was your favourite and you saw more of her than I did.’

His expression changed. ‘You know I’m ill. I give all I can. I do my best but you expect too much from me.’

Leonie saw red. ‘Believe you me I don’t expect
anything from you because time and time again you fail to give it. I’m sick of the way you keep playing the wounded soldier, pretending to feel too ill to do anything.’ She leapt to her feet. ‘I just wish you’d accept some responsibility and help me when we have a problem.’ She was heaving with fury as she went to the kitchen to get herself some soup, but it was the worry about June that was making them both jittery. Really, she was in no position to judge June. After all, she had done much the same thing with Nick. Falling in love could drive all reason from the mind.

Leonie was glad she could say with all honesty that she had to go back to the shop because she had two clients who were coming for fittings. But it didn’t stop her feeling weighed down by the problem.

During the afternoon Elaine came in and Leonie could see she was embarrassed. ‘I had a phone call telling me Ralph was in hospital,’ she told Leonie. ‘And I’ve just been to see him. I don’t know what to say to you.’

Leonie felt tears prickling her eyes. ‘I’m very worried about June. As soon as I heard about the crash, I was afraid it was something like this. She isn’t the first girl he’s been involved with, is she?’

‘No, I told you all about him some time ago.’

‘I know he’s been married and had a string of girlfriends, all very young.’ Leonie shuddered and blew her nose. ‘I haven’t told Steve about that yet and he’s already dancing with rage. He feels he was close to June but she managed to keep all this from us. She knew we wouldn’t let her go out with a man of his age. It was going on right under my eyes and it makes me feel guilty that I didn’t even know about it.’

‘Let’s go upstairs and I’ll make us a
cup of tea. You mustn’t blame yourself, Leonie.’

‘But I do. So does Steve, he said this wouldn’t have happened if I’d been a normal wife and stayed at home.’

‘I hope you told him that if he’d been a normal husband who earned the family living you wouldn’t have had to work.’

Leonie shook her head.

‘No, of course you didn’t. That’s not the sort of thing you’d ever say. Don’t let this come between you and me, Leonie. If this was what Ralph and June chose to do, neither you nor I could have stopped it. June must have known you wouldn’t approve, otherwise why would she have kept it quiet?’

‘But she’s so young! I want her to be happy and have a better life than I’ve had but I’m afraid she’s made a mess of it already.’

‘That’s up to her, Leonie, it was her choice.’

‘But what are we going to do now? It’s a bit late in the day to forbid her to see him. And now she’s left home we’d have no control over that anyway.’

‘It’s still up to them what they do,’ Elaine said. ‘Tom says, let them get on with it, I’m not my brother’s keeper.’

‘But I have a duty to care for June. She thinks she’s grown up but she’s only eighteen.’

‘I suppose so,’ Elaine said sadly. ‘While I was at the hospital I tried to see her, but the sister gave me a list of visiting times and refused to let me in. She did say June was floating in and out of consciousness and that she needed to rest.’

June was coming round and at first couldn’t make out where she was. She felt fuzzy and ached all over and she had a thumping headache. She remembered
the crash, the sound of tearing metal and the way she’d been thrown about and realised now she was lying in a hospital bed.

Oh God! Her family would surely have been told about the accident and that meant they must also know about Ralph. Pa would go berserk and Mum would look pained and say she was disappointed in her. She should have told her.

June saw the bell push placed conveniently close and jabbed her finger against it. A nurse appeared immediately. ‘Oh good, you’re awake at last. How d’you feel?’