Blue Moon (10 page)

‘I’m not in the least bit political,’ said Jim, ‘but, according to Isaac, Chancellor Hitler has some dangerous ideas.’

‘Isaac?

‘Isaac Kaufman, my German friend and fellow lodger,’ said Jim. ‘He’s had to flee for his life.’

‘What does he do?’

‘In his own country he was a cobbler,’ said Jim, ‘but at the moment he’s working for Worthing’s Parks and Gardens. At least he feels safe now.’

She nodded.

‘I told him about you,’ Jim went on, ‘and he said he would be happy to teach you.’

‘Then I’d be happy to meet your lodger,’ said Ruby, wiping the corners of her mouth after a delicious piece of sponge cake, ‘but I’d prefer it if someone else was with me.’

‘Of course,’ said Jim. ‘If I can’t be with you, you could always meet in the library.’

‘You have to be quiet in the library,’ Ruby grinned.

When they had finished their tea, Jim suggested a short stroll on the beach. They lingered for a while by
the charred remains of the pier, before moving on. Ruby had to be back on duty in time to turn the beds down.

‘Ruby, can I see you again?’ he asked as they arrived at the staff entrance at Warnes.

‘I should like that,’ she smiled.

‘How about a bike ride?’ he said. ‘Do you have a bike?’

‘I do,’ she said, ‘but I’m not as fit as you and Percy.’

‘That’s all right,’ he said. ‘I know a lovely tea room in Ferring. A bike ride and a cup of tea: does that sound all right?’

‘Heavenly,’ she said.

‘Hello, you two,’ said Edith coming up behind them. ‘Did you have a nice time?’

‘Yes, lovely,’ said Ruby.

Jim tipped his hat. ‘Thank you for an enjoyable afternoon.’

‘Thank you too,’ said Ruby, but he was already striding away.

CHAPTER 7

Another magazine! Ruby felt like Christmas had come early when she found it under the bed. It looked so interesting that she had to stop herself reading it there and then.

She had spent a very confused hour and a half in the hotel while she turned the beds down. She really liked Jim, but he hadn’t even mentioned Martha, even though everybody knew they were stepping out together. She felt excited at the thought of being with him, but guilty at the same time. She wasn’t the sort of girl who got mixed up with someone else’s beau, and yet she really, really liked Jim. If only Edith hadn’t interrupted them, she might have been brave enough to bring up the subject; but in her heart of hearts she knew she wouldn’t. When she was with Jim, everything else went out of the window.

It didn’t take her long to realize that Edith had never intended to come along with them that day. How sweet of her to leave them together, but she didn’t want Edith getting big ideas. For that reason Ruby was cagey about their meeting. Yes, she had enjoyed herself. Yes, Jim was
a lovely man. Yes, as a matter of fact he had asked to see her again … and they were going for a bike ride.

‘Please don’t tell the others,’ she begged. Ruby hated the thought of being ribbed about Jim.

‘Your secret is safe with me,’ grinned Edith.

She’d been right all along. She didn’t need Mrs Knight and her seance meetings. Her husband had come to her himself, when she’d been dozing in the chair in the afternoon. Just lately her work at the hotel made her so tired that it was easy to drop off as soon as she sat down. She remembered stirring, as if a sudden noise had disturbed her, and then she heard the unmistakable sound of his voice. She had turned, half-expecting to see him standing beside her, but there was only his picture in the silver frame. Never mind; she was no fool. She knew it must have been in her head, but it
was
him. It was definitely him. She had held her breath as the joy flooded through her whole being. Death wasn’t the end. She couldn’t tell anyone, of course. They’d think she was mad, but he was still here and she found herself whispering, ‘Oh, my darling … my very own darling …’

By the time Friday came, Ruby was all of a dither. It had taken her ages to decide what to wear, and it was so long since she’d got her bike out that Percy had to mend a flat tyre. She and Jim met at the end of Newlands Road.

It was wonderful going along the country roads. They
were spoiled for choice, with the seashore one way and open country the other. The area was well known for its glasshouses, and although there were a tad fewer than there had been in Victorian times, Worthing was still famous for its tomatoes, cucumbers and grapes, which went up to Covent Garden market every day by train.

Ruby’s legs ached fairly quickly, but she cruised along behind Jim quite happily. It was obvious that he was holding back and could have gone a lot faster, but he didn’t complain. They reached Martin’s Retreat, a small purpose-built tea room right beside the beach near the River Ryfe in Ferring, in good time and enjoyed their tea together. Ruby had never felt happier.

‘I need to tell you something,’ Jim said as he pushed a plate of cakes in front of her. For a minute Ruby’s heart sank. He was going to say he didn’t want to see her again. ‘You remember I took that picture of you on the pier?’

‘I remember, but you never showed me. I must have looked an absolute sight. My hair was all over the place and I had soot on my face, remember?’

‘I thought it was quite good,’ he said cautiously, ‘so … I’ve entered it in a competition.’

‘A competition?’ Ruby echoed.

‘It’s a national competition run by
World of Photography
,’ he said. ‘I don’t suppose I’ll get anywhere, but I thought it might be fun.’

Ruby was quite taken aback, but she smiled. ‘Then I wish you luck. What’s the prize?’

‘Um … camera equipment, I think,’ he said. ‘I didn’t really look.’

Ruby chuckled. ‘Do you remember what you told me about following my dream? Well, when you ask your friend Isaac if he will teach me to speak German, tell him I can pay him now.’

Jim raised an eyebrow, so Ruby told him about the five-pound reward that she’d saved.

‘That’s amazing,’ he said. ‘Isaac arrived in this country with only the clothes he stood up in. I think anything you can afford to give him will make him very happy.’

‘You don’t think I’m selfish, keeping the money to myself?’ she asked. ‘My family know nothing about it.’

‘Absolutely not!’ said Jim. ‘I think it’s a brilliant idea, and who knows where it might lead you in the future.’

As they parted, they agreed that she should meet Isaac on Monday, her day off.

The next evening, when she came out of Warnes, Ruby was surprised to see her brother Percy waiting for her. She was immediately anxious. ‘Has something happened to Mother?’

‘No, she’s fine.’

‘Then why are you here?’

‘I’m leaving, Sis,’ he said, as she slipped her arm through his and they set off for home. ‘I meant what I said the other night. I can’t stay in the same house as him a minute longer.’

Her heart sank. ‘What’s he said now?’

‘Nothing out of the ordinary,’ said Percy.

‘Then why do you have to go? Something must have happened.’

‘I found out something about him,’ said Percy, ‘and before you ask me, it’s better that you don’t know.’

‘Oh, Percy,’ she protested. ‘You can’t say something like that and just leave it there. It must be something bad. Tell me.’

‘I can’t, Sis,’ he said. ‘It’s nothing for you to worry about, but I can’t bear to be in the same house as him a minute longer. I’ve nearly saved enough, and then I’m off.’

It was frustrating, but she knew Percy well enough to realize that if he said something, he would stick by it. She didn’t want him to leave, as she knew she would miss her brother. ‘But what about the fishing? You know Father wants to carry on the family tradition. And what about Mother?’

‘You know perfectly well I don’t give a damn about the fishing,’ he said vehemently. ‘Look, I am sorry about Mother. I’ll try and send money, but if I go, there’ll be fewer rows for her to cope with anyway.’

‘Oh, Percy, what will you do?’ cried Ruby. ‘You get so passionate about things that you forget everything else. You must have some sort of a plan?’

‘No … I don’t know.’

‘Then stay a little longer until you do.’

‘Ruby, I can’t live with him.’

‘Can’t you think about it for a while? Stay until after Christmas, and if you still feel the same …’

‘A pal of mine has promised me a long-distance
driving job,’ he said. ‘Next year everybody will have to take a driving test before they can drive on their own. That costs money, so I want to get in before you need it.’

‘What does Father say about all this?’

‘He doesn’t know yet,’ said Percy. ‘I’ve still got to pluck up the courage to tell the old bugger.’

They had reached the Quashettes, a network of brick passages that ran from High Street to the railway and the tunnel at Ivy Arch. ‘You really mean it, don’t you?’ Ruby stopped and hugged her brother. ‘Oh, Percy, I shall miss you,’ she sighed.

‘You must get away from him too, Ruby. Don’t end up like Mother. Don’t let him crush your spirit.’

‘You’re the second person who’s said that,’ she said, remembering that Dr Palmer had said something similar on High Salvington, ‘but I can’t leave Mother.’

‘Then find yourself a husband, and take her with you,’ said Percy, ‘but for God’s sake don’t marry Albert Longman. I’ll never forgive you if you do that.’

‘Not much danger of that,’ she said with a hollow laugh. They linked arms again and walked on. ‘When you go,’ she said, suddenly stopping, ‘you will keep in touch, won’t you?’

‘I’ll do my best,’ said Percy.

It was hard having to wait until she saw Jim again. She wanted to talk to somebody about Percy, but she didn’t want to tell her mother or the girls at work. Time seemed to crawl and yet, apart from worrying about her brother,
Ruby was happy. She still felt a bit guilty about Martha, but it wasn’t as if Jim had asked her to be his girl or anything, was it? They’d shared a bike ride and she was going to meet his fellow lodger – that was all.

Monday turned out to be another lovely day, although it was obvious that the sun was beginning to lose its strength. Last week the temperatures had still been in the 70–75°F bracket, but now it was more like 65–68°F, still balmy, but with the offshore breeze it was definitely cardigan weather. Ruby dressed with care, choosing a pretty cerise dress with white cuffs and collar. Everyone told her the pink colour suited her dark hair and complexion, and it was a flattering style.

Jim met her at 2 p.m. He was waiting by the Dome, and as she approached he pushed his hat back from his forehead in an attractive way. His eyes creased as he smiled that wonderful wide smile of his. ‘Ruby!’ he cried. ‘You came.’

‘Of course I did,’ she said, wondering why he should doubt her. ‘I promised, didn’t I? I’d never let you down.’

‘I’m glad,’ he said, falling into step beside her, ‘and Isaac is very excited.’

They walked side-by-side, not quite touching, but Ruby was very aware of his presence.

‘So what have you been doing since we last met?’ he asked.

There was little to relate. The routine at Warnes never changed, and things had gone on as usual, with the cleaning taking up the lion’s share of her time. At home in the afternoon she’d done her share of the ironing
and cleaning the brass for her mother, and on Sunday afternoon she’d taken May to Sunday school. Father and Percy had had a spat or two, but she didn’t mention that. Ruby had been carefully taught that you didn’t air your dirty washing in public, as her mother would say. What happened in the family was meant to stay in the family.

Since they’d last met, Ruby had spent a lot of time thinking about Jim, but of course she didn’t tell him that, either. She had thought about Isaac quite a bit too, and she wondered if she would master learning German, so she told Jim that.

‘What about you?’ she asked as they reached the other end of town and were heading towards Rowlands Road. ‘What have you been doing?’

‘The old man let me photograph a wedding on Saturday,’ he said. ‘Miss Cheryl Warner married Mr Lawrence Pye at Holy Trinity in Shelley Road.’

Ruby started giggling.

‘It was quite a swanky affair,’ said Jim, pretending to be offended. ‘Luckily I got everything in order.’

‘I’m sure you did,’ Ruby laughed.

‘Then what’s so funny?’

‘The bride’s new name,’ said Ruby, by now almost helpless.

Jim frowned.

‘If she’s Mrs Cheryl Pye, I wonder if they’ll call her “Cherry Pye”?’

‘I never noticed that before,’ he said, and they both laughed.

They arrived at the house in a side-street off Rowlands Road, where Jim lived. It was part of a terrace that had seen better days. The paint was flaking and the brown front door was cracked and the wood starved. A short wall separated the house and road, and a few bedraggled weeds waved their heads in a tiny flower bed. When Jim opened the front door with his key, a stale smell crept out of the house and a woman came out of a room at the back. She was quite old, fifty at least. A lit cigarette hung from her bottom lip. It appeared to be permanently stuck there because, whenever she spoke, it went up and down with her mouth. The smoke was going into her eyes and, because of that, she had one eye partially closed most of the time.

‘Mrs Grimes, this is Miss Bateman,’ said Jim.

‘Miss Bateman,’ said the woman with a polite nod.

‘Miss Bateman has come to see Isaac.’

‘Show her into the dining room,’ said Mrs Grimes and added, as a word of caution, ‘I don’t allow any young women upstairs. This is a respectable establishment.’

Jim opened the door and Ruby stepped into a clean but rather cluttered dining room. The four small tables and chairs, and the wall with a cabinet containing trinkets and souvenirs, seemed to fill every corner. China dogs with ‘A present from Weymouth’ on them competed with lighthouses filled with coloured sand, and with dolls of all shapes and sizes. Several pictures hung from the picture rail, but these were mostly dull landscapes showing long-horned Highland cattle standing around.
On the other side of the room was a small dresser with a drawer, and two cupboards made of heavy wood. Ruby lowered herself onto the edge of a chair, careful not to disturb the knives and forks laid for tea.