The Legacy: Trouble Comes Disguised As Family (Unspoken Book 2) T. Belshaw (management books to read .txt) 📖

‘I’m only saying what I heard,’ she whimpered.

‘You’re a scheming, despicable, two faced, liar.’ Amy stuck out her chin and fixed Beryl with a glare that would have scared Joe Louis, the world’s most famous boxer. ‘Don’t think I’ve forgotten the lies you told about me at work. There will be a payback one of these days if you don’t start keeping that snake-like tongue of yours in check.’

Jan, one of the women that Beryl had been drinking with, reached to grab her coat from the peg on the wall.

‘I’m nothing to do with this, Amy. You know me, love. I’m not a muck spreader.’

Amy continued to glare at Beryl who looked around desperately for support. When none arrived, she slammed her drink down on the counter and followed Jan to the door.

‘I didn’t mean anything by it, Alice, honestly. I was just telling you what I had heard.’

‘Keep it to yourself next time, she isn’t interested.’ Amy delivered her parting shot and turned back to me.

‘Blimey,’ I said, mouth gaping. ‘Where did that come from?’

‘Oh, she’s been asking for it for ages,’ Amy replied. ‘And, I did tell you that my hormones are all over the place at the moment.’

We turned towards Joyce and the girls who were still laughing at Beryl’s embarrassment.

‘What did you get for your birthday?’ asked Joyce.

‘All sorts of useful stuff, from winter socks to bath salts. Amy got me Glenn Miller’s Moonlight Serenade record from America. I haven’t stopped playing it all day.’

‘Oh, I’d love to have a record player,’ said Joyce wistfully. ‘I have to make do with the versions they sing on the radio. They’re pretty good, but the BBC Light Orchestra isn’t exactly Glen Miller, is it?’ She turned towards the bar to get a refill, singing the first line of the ballad.

We stayed in the Old Bull until chucking out time, which was unusual for us. The six of us spent a happy hour and a half singing our favourite songs. Stan, the landlord, came in to tell us to, ‘keep it down’, after receiving several complaints from the miserable shower of men in the bar, who thought they owned the pub and hated the thought of women having a good time without them.

Amy gave me a big hug at her front gate and I walked on down the lane to the farmhouse. When I stepped into the kitchen, Miriam was hopping from one foot to the other in excitement.

‘Oh, thank goodness you’re home. Mr Wilson, your lawyer, has been ringing you for the last half hour. I think he has something important to discuss with you.’

‘Has he really?’ I looked at the big clock on the wall, it was ten to midnight, I usually got home well before eleven thirty.

‘It must be important for him to call at this time of night. I had to get out of bed to answer the telephone. If I hadn’t been looking after Martha, I’d have come up to the pub to let you know.’

I patted Miriam on the arm reassuringly.

‘Go to bed, Miriam, I’ll sit up in case he calls again.’

I made myself a cup of Ovaltine and walked through to the front room. As I sat down at the old round table, the telephone rang.

‘Hello?’

‘Happy Birthday, Alice. I hope you’ve had a lovely day.’

‘It’s been fun, mostly,’ I replied.

‘I’m sorry I couldn’t get over. I’d have loved to have spent a bit of time with you today. We attended a wedding. I didn’t get home until after nine.’

‘There’s no need to feel sorry, Godfrey. I know how things are. I honestly didn’t expect you to drop by.’

‘Even so, I’d much rather have been in your company than the dreadful people who attended the wedding. Society people are so boring. They only ever talk about what they possess, or hope to possess in the near future.’

‘Well, it’s very nice of you to think of me,’ I replied. ‘But it’s late, Godfrey, your wife will be wondering what you’re up to.’

‘I told her that awful wine had given me heartburn. It’s true too, it did. I switched to cocktails half way through the evening.’

‘Did you have a Martina?’ I laughed to hide the embarrassment I still felt after asking him to buy me one at a posh restaurant we had visited. The young naïve me had mispronounced Martini. Godfrey had promised to invent a cocktail with that name in my honour.

‘I haven’t actually got round to mixing one myself yet, but when I do, you will be the second person to test it out.’

I yawned, then apologised.

‘You’d better get to bed, Alice, I’m being very selfish, I know full well what unearthly time you have to get up in the morning. I just felt the need to hear your voice, that’s all.’

‘I’ll be fine, Godfrey, I’m used to early mornings. It was very sweet of you to call. Good night.’

‘There is one more thing,’ he said with a note of excitement in his voice. ‘I had to register for the military yesterday. I’m within the age range for the call up. Because of my education and family ties, they’re going to send me for officer training. I have to report to a military camp in Chatham for the preliminaries and a medical on Thursday, so… well, I hoped I might see you before I go.’

‘Not you as well!’ I almost shouted down the telephone line. ‘Damn Hitler, damn Chamberlain. They are determined to take away everyone I ever cared about.’

‘It’s my duty, Alice. I missed out on the first war by just a few months but they managed to snare me this time.’

‘Bugger duty,’ I said angrily. ‘You can’t go, Godfrey, I…’ I tailed off knowing that nothing could stop the inevitable.

‘Can I see you on Monday?’ he asked, quietly.

‘Of course, you silly man. Make it after lunch. I’ll have done with the pigs and I’ll have time to change. I can’t have you going to war remembering me in my filthy