Flowers on the Mersey (27 page)

‘That’ll mean more Irregulars on the run.’ Rebekah stared at him, her breath coming fast.

‘And more filling the prisons.’

‘Shaun?’ She went over to the fire and dipped a ladle in the stew that was simmering in the pot.

‘Who knows?’ he said shortly. There was a silence.

‘I met the priest today,’ she said brightly. ‘He was very nice. Enquired after your health and asked how much longer we’d be staying.’

‘And what did you say?’ He placed two bowls on the table.

‘I said we’d be leaving at the end of the summer.’

‘Why did you say that?’ He sat on a chair and drummed his fingers on the table. ‘I’ve got to be earning, Becky. We’ll go to Dublin. I know a few people—’

‘Lily.’ The name came out without Rebekah even thinking about it.

He stared at her. ‘If that’s a joke, it’s not funny.’

‘Sorry!’ She spooned the stew into the bowls. ‘But it seems to me, Daniel, that I’m going to be left alone in a Dublin that’s just as dangerous as it was two years ago. I don’t believe the Irregulars’ll give up on the city. It’ll be guerilla warfare again, and woe betide anyone who gets in the way.’

He stirred his stew, frowning down into the bowl. ‘You’re over-reacting because I’ve got to leave you. But I did tell you what it would be like married to me.’

‘I’m not married to you,’ she murmured, hurt because he seemed unable to understand how insecure and scared she felt.

Daniel looked up. ‘I did ask you. Is that what this is about?’

‘Don’t talk stupid,’ she said angrily. She sprinkled damp salt on her stew. ‘I said the other week I wasn’t bothered about being married.’

‘So you did. I thought it unlike you.’

‘Why?’ She met his gaze squarely. ‘Did Lily want to marry you?’

‘Lily again!’ He put down his spoon. ‘What the hell’s this about? She meant nothing to me!’

‘It’s easy to say that.’ Some devil was driving Rebekah. She dipped her spoon in the stew. ‘Did you go to bed with her?’

His eyes hardened. ‘I’m not telling you. But I’ll say this – she would have been happy to! Perhaps I can still make her happy, the way things are going on!’

‘Things!’ she banged her spoon down on the table, splattering it with gravy. ‘You mean the way
I’m
going on, don’t you? Perhaps you’d planned on marrying her? Maybe you’re wishing now we’d never met again?’

‘Who’s talking stupid now?’ He stood and rammed his chair against the wall. ‘I don’t know how you can even think that, never mind say it?’ he said vehemently, taking his second-hand coat from a hook on the wall. ‘Haven’t I asked you to marry me? I’m going for a walk, and perhaps when I come back you’ll be talking sense.’

‘
Me
talking sense!’ Rebekah jumped to her feet, folding her arms across her breast. ‘Walking in the pouring rain – you call that sensible?’

Daniel gave her a look and without another word, opened the door and went out.

Rebekah stared after him and burst into tears. She did not know what made her go on about Lily. What would Mama, if she could see her from heaven, be thinking of her now? What was God thinking, her living with Daniel and married to Joshua? She rubbed her wet cheek against her sleeve
and tried to control her tears. What was she to do?

A soaked through Daniel returned three hours later. She hurried to help him off with his coat. ‘Where’ve you been? I’ve been worried sick! I thought you weren’t coming back! Come over the fire and get dry.’

He smiled. ‘It did me good.’ He pulled her towards him and rubbed his wet hair in her face.

She protested but could not help laughing. ‘You pig!’

‘Grunt, grunt!’ He swung her off her feet. ‘I’m a selfish swine, Becky love. You’ve been worrying all the time about us not being married, haven’t you?’

‘I have?’ she stammered.

‘Of course you have.’ He wrapped his arms round her. ‘I went to see the priest. I told him that we’d been living in sin and asked him to marry us as soon as possible.’

‘You what?’ Rebekah could scarcely believe what she was hearing.

He grinned. ‘Don’t let’s argue religion. I have to make us legal before I go back to sea.’

She swallowed. ‘I see.’

‘I say you do!’ He laughed and swung her around again. ‘You will say yes?’

‘What about banns?’ she said desperately.

‘“Tush to that” said Father Donovan, when I told him what Green had done to us in order to get his hands on your money.’

‘You said that? Did he believe you?’ Rebekah was breathless with the speed of his actions.

‘Sure and he believed me! Isn’t Green English, a Protestant, and an uncaring landlord to boot?’

‘But – but
I’m
Protestant and English. Doesn’t he—?’

‘But you’re half Irish, polite and pretty! And you came back to Ireland in search of me and rescued me from the jaws of death!’

‘You didn’t say that?’ Rebekah was starting to feel peculiar.

‘I did. I told him that we loved each other madly.’

‘Mad’s the operative word,’ she said, sagging against him. ‘Oh, Daniel, I don’t know what to say! I feel sick.’

He looked anxious and ushered her over to the couch. ‘Let’s sit down. It’s the shock! And we didn’t eat our dinner. You’ll feel better once you’ve got some food down you.’

‘Food. Yes,’ she said faintly. ‘Let’s have some dinner.’

He hurried over to the fire. She watched him filling the bowls and tried to form the words ‘I’m already married’, but they would not come. Instead she murmured, ‘When is this wedding?’

‘Soon. Maybe tomorrow. Or the next day.’

‘Right,’ she said, trying to control the terrible churning in her stomach. ‘I’ll have to pick out a frock.’

Daniel smiled as he brought her a bowl of stew.
‘That pale green crêpe-de-Chine. I like that one.’

She returned his smile and ignored the voice in her head that told her that what she was planning was wrong. ‘Dum-dum-de-dum,’ she murmured.

‘There’ll be no music.’ he said. ‘Just a quiet ceremony.’

‘That’ll do me.’ she said, and ate her stew.

That night Rebekah could not sleep. The words ‘Bigamist! Liar! Cheat!’ kept running through her mind. She had read of a case in the
Liverpool Echo
only a few months ago. A soldier had been brought to court for having one wife in Liverpool and another in Preston. What was she to do? She could not bear hurting Daniel. She considered all they had been through and how they had found each other again. She smiled. They had been happy. Slowly she relaxed. She slept and dreamt her old dream of being locked in the turret, and was afraid. Someone was coming up the stairs and she could not escape.

It was daylight when she woke. Daniel was out of bed and dragging on a shirt.

‘Who do you think it is?’ she mouthed.

At that moment there was a knock on the door and a voice said, ‘Danny! Are you in there?’

She watched him open the door a few inches to reveal Shaun’s face.

‘Out!’ Daniel pushed his brother before him and closed the door, shutting Rebekah in.

She got out of bed quickly and dragged on
her dressing gown. Downstairs the two brothers confronted each other, one either end of the table.

‘I knew she was here.’ said Shaun. ‘They told me in the village. Miss Rebekah Rhoades is staying in this house with her Liverpool cousin. But nobody has seen the cousin.’ He grinned, ‘I found that interesting so I came out here.’

Daniel’s eyes narrowed. ‘How long have you been here?’

‘An hour or so. Stirred up the fire. Had a cuppa tea and some bread and jam. Not a bad place but a good bloody walk to find you.’

‘How did you find the village?’

‘A couple of the lads are from around here. It was one of the mothers who mentioned Miss Rhoades and her motor.’ Shaun smirked. ‘It was after that I mentioned that I knew her and the cousin might be my brother. They let on that you and her are the talk of the place since yesterday. A wedding in the offering and her getting married in our church. Quite a romantic tale you made out of it, Danny boy, but you’re not married to her yet.’

‘I will be soon,’ said Daniel. ‘What d’you want?’

Shaun looked injured. ‘You could be a bit more welcoming. I could have been killed. I thought you’d be glad to see me.’

‘Why? You’re nothing but trouble.’

‘Now that’s a fine thing to say! There could be state troopers on my tail.’

‘So you go and declare yourself to all and sundry in the village?’ Daniel’s tones were disbelieving. ‘Don’t make me laugh!’

Shaun sighed heavily. ‘It’s a fine thing to be calling your brother a liar. And there’s me worrying about you.’

‘Come off it! You’re a liar.’

‘Don’t believe me then.’ Shaun shrugged. ‘I was in the fighting at Waterford. I was lucky to get out.’

Daniel stared at him before walking over to the window. ‘It’s a bloody shame. It says in the newspaper that de Valera wants to talk peace.’

‘So he does – but who’s listening? Michael Collins and Griffiths sold us down the river. There’ll be no peace.’ Shaun’s expression was ugly. ‘What you’ve got to decide, Danny, is if you’re with us or against us.’

‘I’m out of it,’ said Daniel. ‘I’m going back to sea.’

‘You can’t quit!’

‘You’re going to stop me?’ A grim smile played around Daniel’s mouth.

‘Danny! You know they won’t let you,’ insisted Shaun. ‘You’re either for or—’

‘You know what I’m for.’ Daniel held his brother’s gaze. ‘But I’m not going to be fighting my fellow countrymen for it, and that’s my final word on the matter.’

There was a silence during which Rebekah felt faint again and lowered herself on to the bottom stair. Shaun glanced at her. ‘It’s her fault we’re arguing!
Mam must be turning in her grave. I tell you, Danny, you could be making a mistake. Guess what I found in that bag over there.’

Involuntarily Daniel looked at Rebekah’s canvas bag sitting on the floor in the corner. ‘You went nosing in Becky’s bag?’ he said furiously. ‘You’ve got no right—’

‘Hold on,’ said Shaun, placing on the table a wedding ring and ruby and diamond engagement ring. ‘I found those in it.’

Daniel stared at them and did not speak for a moment. ‘So? They’re her mother’s,’ he said at last. ‘Aren’t they, Rebekah?’

She stood up. ‘Yes.’ She came over to the table and feeling like an old, old woman, sank on to a chair. She did not look at Daniel.

‘There,’ he said to his brother. ‘Now get out.’

Shaun’s gaze went from one to the other. Then without another word, he left the house.

Daniel watched him through the window until he was the other side of the gate, then he turned. ‘He could be back with others.’

She stared at him. ‘But you haven’t done anything wrong.’

‘You heard me tell him I’ve quit. You should know what they’re like. I think it’s best we do go to Liverpool. You’ve got friends there.’

There was a silence before she murmured, ‘You think I’m going to need friends?’

‘We all need friends.’

She felt cold to her stomach. ‘Has he actually brought any men with him?’

‘You heard what he said.’

She nodded and squared her shoulders but her heart was thumping as she reached for the oats and put a cupful in the frying pan. ‘Are we leaving today?’

‘Yes.’ He picked up the rings. ‘I didn’t know our Shaun had taken to thieving. Are they your mother’s?’

Rebekah stared at him and her throat ached and she felt so sick that she could not answer him immediately. He looked at her with a slight pucker between his brows. ‘Well?’

She swallowed. ‘I’d hardly take them from her dead hand.’

‘Your Grandma’s then?’

‘No.’ A splinter of laughter escaped her. ‘The Bible says, “Be sure your sins will find you out!” and that’s what’s happening to me.’

‘Becky!’ He went pale and moved over to her. ‘What is it? Tell me!’

‘You won’t love me any more! You’ll hate me!’ A sob shook her throat.

Tell me!’ He shook her.

‘I’m married, Daniel!’

She would have found it easier if he had immediately shouted at her but instead he was silent for what seemed an age before his arms slackened and then dropped. There was an expression in his eyes that
made her want to cry and cry and when he shouted in a furious voice: ‘It’s Green, isn’t it? It’s bloody Green!’ she did start crying but he ignored her tears and yelled, ‘Why, Rebekah? Why if you loved me?’

‘I did love you! I
do
love you!’ She scrubbed at the tears on her cheeks and her voice rose, ‘But I thought you were
dead
, and he was so persuasive. It was what Papa wanted and I felt so guilty about him because we quarrelled and he died. I wanted to please him even though he was dead! Can you understand that?’ Daniel was silent, just staring at her. She continued, ‘I realised my mistake as soon as I married him. He changed. It was frightening. He was cruel, calculatingly cruel. That scar on my shoulder you asked about – he did it on our honeymoon with a cigar because I mentioned your name. He knew that I loved you and he told me that one of the reasons he married me was because he hated you.’

‘Green told you he hated me on your honeymoon?’ His expression was disbelieving.

‘Yes!’

‘Why?’

‘Why on the honeymoon? Or why hate you at all?’

‘I know why he hates me.’

Rebekah smiled bitterly. ‘You were his friend once. I think he liked you. He kept going on about you. He wanted to know if you’d tried anything on with me. I couldn’t understand it, but of course he knew all the time you weren’t dead and that I loved
you. On our honeymoon I didn’t want him to touch me and he raped me. He wanted to be the first with me, but of course he wasn’t. You were. Not that I told him that. As it was he hurt me. Since then I’ve lost count of the times he’s hurt me. He has a Cat o’ Nine Tails.’ She choked on the words and stopped.

‘Don’t tell me any more.’ He was white about the mouth. ‘I need to think. I’m going for a walk.’ Not bothering with a coat he opened the door and went out.

Rebekah ran after him. ‘Daniel, you will come back! You won’t—’

He pushed her away. ‘Just let me be for a while!’

She watched him go with his hands rammed in his trouser pockets, and had to lean against the door jamb. Her head throbbed and she felt sick.