The Runaway Woman (6 page)

Before he announced his decision, though, he had to be absolutely certain that Paula really meant what she said. They must have another serious conversation.

After he’d spoken with Paula, he would know which way to go.

Settled on his plan of action, Martin scrambled out of the van, grabbed his tools and headed off to work with a determined stride. He had so much
to think about, his head was spinning. His troubled thoughts kept coming back to Lucy, that gentle, good woman who had given him two much-loved children. She was one of Nature’s mothers: always there when needed.

The truth was that just to be with Paula fired Martin with excitement, while Lucy was just there; like a shadow in the corner, like an ornament you might bring out and polish now and
then. She had little to say and even fewer opinions to share. There was no spirit, no naughtiness, or humour of any kind. She was just Lucy, content in her own little world. Happiest when she had family about her.

But though she brought no excitement to his life, she was the mother of his children, and grandmother of his daughter’s child.

Other than that, Lucy was simply a sad relic of his wasted
youth.

And yet, for all that, he was loath to hurt her.

K
ATHLEEN RILEY AND
Lucy Lovejoy had worked together at the plastics factory for almost two years. It was a busy, happy firm, turning out all manner of plastic goods, including watering cans, children’s tea sets, and see-through plastic macs, which were one of the company’s best sellers.

Lucy made the belts for the macs, and Kathleen made the collars. Other workers joined all the
pieces together and when finished, the macs were attractive, very fashionable and easy to wear.

Sitting at the machines all day was physically demanding work, especially on the legs, which were required to push back and forth with the swing of the metal welder which dropped down rhythmically to seal the pieces together.

At the end of the week, the size of the wage packet depended on how many
pieces each worker had produced, which was an incentive for everyone to work hard.

Having started on the same day and followed the training programme together, Lucy and Kathleen had quickly become the best of workmates, though because of Lucy’s family commitments, they only very occasionally met up outside of work.

Today Kathleen was worried about Lucy, who had hardly spoken a word since being
summoned to the manager’s office earlier. In the end Kathleen just had to ask outright.

‘Hey, Lucy, is everything OK? Has the ol’ dragon had a go at you?’

Short and curvy, with chocolate-coloured eyes, and red curly hair, Kathleen had her hair pinned back so tightly she looked like she’d been in a wind tunnel.

When Lucy seemed not to have heard, Kathleen left her machine to hurry across to
her. ‘Has she given you a dressing-down because you had the day off yesterday?’ Aware of the others watching, she quickly lowered her voice. ‘Don’t let her get you down. Sometimes her bark is worse than her bite. You’re a good worker. She knows you would never be late if there wasn’t a problem.’

Lucy was close to tears. ‘That’s the trouble,’ she admitted. ‘There’s always a problem of one kind
or another. When I think everything’s going well, and I can rest easy, something happens to mess things up.’

‘Ah! But y’see, Lucy, that’s sometimes the way of it with families, but it won’t always be like that. You’re going through a bad patch at the minute, but it’s not your fault.’ Glancing up to see the foreman on the prowl nearby, she edged away. ‘Look, I’d best get on, but we’ll talk later.
Meantime, don’t let the buggers get you down!’

Having quickly returned to her work-bench, Kathleen was head down and working hard, until the shriek of the lunchtime buzzer pierced the air. ‘Come on, time for a break, Lucy!’ she called out, but Lucy was already on her feet.

‘Get your bag, Lucy, and let’s get outta here,’ Kathleen said. ‘Me poor ol’ feet have swelled up like two fat puddings,
so they have.’

Lucy felt much the same. Sitting at the machines for hours was punishing. With a sense of relief the workers began to filter away in different directions: some to the canteen, some to the alley where they would have a quick cigarette; others headed to the four corners of the factory yard, to flop down wherever they felt comfortable.

Outside in the clean, fresh air, Lucy and Kathleen
settled themselves on the wall at the back of the factory, with their legs dangling over the edge and their flasks of tea sitting side by side.

‘I’ve got cheese.’ Kathleen opened her lunch bag. ‘What have you got?’

‘Ham and tomato.’ Lucy offered up her box. ‘Want to swap?’

‘Oh, aren’t you the little angel now?’ Kathleen did not need asking twice. Holding out her puny sandwich, she made the
exchange and licked her lips. ‘Go on then, Lucy. Your sandwiches are always better than mine.’

After pouring tea from the flask into a plastic cup, Kathleen was intent again on knowing what had been said in the manager’s office earlier. ‘She’s upset you, hasn’t she … the old divil?’ Kathleen gently pursued the subject. ‘You mustn’t let her get you down.’ Taking a bite of her sandwich, she waited
for Lucy’s response.

Lucy remained silent for what seemed an age, and then she dug into her overall pocket and handed Kathleen an official-looking envelope. ‘Here. Read that.’

Kathleen gingerly opened it and read what it contained.

‘Jaysus, will ye look at that! An official, written warning … You should inform the union about this!’

‘No!’ Official aggravation of that kind was the last thing
Lucy wanted. ‘Considering how many times I’ve been late, or not turned in at all, it’s like she said: I’m unreliable. She has every right to issue a formal warning. She also made it clear that if I can’t keep to regular hours from now on, or if I miss one more day without prior notice – unless it’s a matter of life and death – then I’ll be given my walking papers on the spot!’

She looked at the
sandwich she was holding for a moment before sneaking it back into her lunch box. She had not only lost her appetite but, after the grilling she had been through in the office, she felt like a hopeless failure.

Kathleen had seen her reject the sandwich. ‘Hey,’ she pointed to Lucy’s lunch box, ‘you can’t go without yer food. Sure, that won’t solve nothing at all!’ She did understand how Lucy must
be feeling, though. ‘Look, Lucy, I really think you should inform the union. Let me talk to the steward – he’s a sensible man. He’ll have a quiet word with her. Sure, it doesn’t have to go any further than that if you don’t want it to.’

Fearful, Lucy told her to leave it be and, being the good friend she was, Kathleen promised she would not say another word, though she was a natural rebel and
could not be certain she would keep such a promise.

From previous conversations between herself and Lucy, it was clear to Kathleen that the family did put upon Lucy’s good nature, and she felt she had to mention it now. ‘As far as I can see, Lucy …’ she hesitated, before going on, ‘… there is only one solution to this.’

Intrigued, Lucy hitched herself further onto the wall. ‘Oh, and what’s that,
then?’

‘Look, don’t take offence, but you must stop being a buffer for the family. They’re old enough to sort out their own problems. It’s not right that they should come running to you at every little hurdle. Y’see, the more you let them lean on you, the less responsible they’ll become for their own actions and misfortunes.’

‘But they’re my family, Kathleen. I can’t turn away from them when
they come to me for help.’

‘Sure, I understand that, and I’ve helped my own family many a time – show me a parent who hasn’t – but we have to draw a line. We have to let them live and learn, allow them to search for their own solutions, otherwise how will they ever cope? I mean, you won’t be here for ever, will you, so how will they manage when you’re not there to pick up the pieces?’

‘I know
what you mean. But it’s hard not to do what you can, if there’s a problem.’

‘True, but all I’m saying is, you need to be sure whether it’s a problem they could deal with themselves, and if it is, then you should maybe just give advice. That way, it’s right for them, and right for you. I’ve got four grown-up children, as you know, Lucy, and I promise you it took a long time for me to realise I
could step back and leave them to deal with their lives themselves … much as we had to do when we were their ages.’

She laughed out loud. ‘I’ll admit we had a few hairy moments with our son Michael. He was the wild card of the family. Even after he got married and had a child, he leaned on us at every turn. But I promise you, we got there in the end, and so will you.’

When one of their colleagues
threw a rolled-up newspaper to them, Kathleen caught it and quickly flicked through the pages.

‘Look at this!’ Holding the pages open, she showed Lucy the photograph of three young men. ‘Would you believe, killed in a car smash on the way to a mate’s wedding. They were so young … the families must have been devastated. But there you are … It just goes to show, you never know what’s round the
corner, do you?’

Realising she and Lucy were the last two left outside, Kathleen leaped off the wall. ‘Hell’s bell’s, Lucy! Everybody’s gone. If we don’t get our backsides in there, we’ll know well enough what’s round the corner! It’ll be the length of the ol’ dragon’s tongue, so it will!’

With thoughts of those three young men in their minds, Lucy and Kathleen made their way back inside the
factory.

‘I don’t know what I’d do if I got my walking orders from here,’ Lucy confided to Kathleen as they hurried to their machines. ‘If I lost my job, whatever would I tell Martin and the children?’

Kathleen wagged a finger at her. ‘There you go again!’ she chided. ‘More concerned about the family than you are about yourself! Put yourself first for a change, Lucy Lovejoy! Do that, and the
chances of you losing your job will be less likely. OK?’ She gave Lucy a friendly wink.

Lucy smiled. ‘OK.’ In truth, she would not even know
how
to start putting herself first.

Eventually the loud screech of the works’ siren marked the end of another working day. The machines were switched off and an eerie silence fell across the vast open space of the factory floor.

Very soon, though, the
silence was shattered by the march of many feet as the workers made their way out. And then the noise of hurrying feet was quickly overridden by shouts and laughter as everyone relaxed into ‘going home’ mode.

As always, Kathleen and Lucy merged with the other workers on their way out, but at the outer gates Lucy split away from Kathleen. ‘I’m walking home tonight,’ she explained.

Kathleen was
surprised. ‘Even if you cut through the alleys, it’s a fair old walk to your street. But why walk when you can catch the bus as usual and be home that much earlier?’

Lucy shrugged. ‘No particular reason. I just need to think, that’s all.’

‘You’re not fretting about getting a warning, are you, Lucy? Because I’ve told you, if need be we can get the union on to it.’

But Lucy was adamant. ‘No,
Kathleen, I don’t want that. Anyway, I won’t give her the chance to carpet me again … not if I can help it, anyway.’

‘All right, Lucy, no union,’ Kathleen conceded. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow. Mind how you go, eh?’

‘You too, and thanks, Kathleen.’

‘What for?’

‘Well … for siding with me, and listening to my troubles.’

‘You’re welcome. Ooh, there’s Barney!’ Kathleen spied the foreman, a handsome
man some ten years older than Kathleen. ‘I’ve been meaning to ask him about my machine. It keeps playing up.’ She gave a naughty wink. ‘’Bye, Lucy … see you.’

Lucy had to chuckle. ‘Shame on you, Kathleen Riley, you brazen little hussy!’

She set off, leaving the effervescent Kathleen openly flirting with the foreman.

Turning the corner, Lucy crossed the street and headed for the park. A few
quiet minutes there would be just lovely. She reminded herself of how often she used to walk home through that way, but she had not done so for some time, and anyway, the nights were only now drawing out after the harsh winter.

Lately, she seemed never to have the time to linger. Instead, she was forever chasing her tail, with no opportunity to relax.

Now, though, in spite of the teasing breeze,
she was determined to follow her instinct. The closer she got to the park gates, the quicker she walked, and the lighter her weary heart felt. There was something magical about the park, with its secret, meandering pathways and majestic trees.

In spring, the park was a surprise and a delight, with its curving swathes of wild flowers, all mixed in with cultivated plants. The riot of colour and
profusion could take one’s breath away.

Deep in thought, Lucy reflected on that meaningful little talk with Kathleen at lunchtime. It was right what Kathleen had said about never knowing what was round the corner.

Lucy recognised how her own world had become small and restricted. She suddenly recalled her mother’s prophetic words of many years ago, when she and Paula were schoolgirls. ‘I think
Lucy will be the home-maker,’ their mother had remarked.