Forgive and Forget (26 page)

‘Don’t go, Dad, please don’t.’ Polly begged. ‘You’ll hear soon enough if it is true.’

William shook off her restraining hand on his arm. ‘I’m going. I’ll see this through to the end, an’ there’s nothing you can say to stop me.’

She followed him that afternoon as far as St Mary’s Street, where she saw his fellow railway workers congregating. They formed into lines and marched as if in a procession to South Common. Polly followed no further, but returned home to help Violet with the baby.

Saddened by all that happened, Polly was even more distressed that her father hadn’t even mentioned the arrival in the world of his grandson.

William returned that evening jubilant that what Polly had already told him was indeed true. ‘It’s over. You were right, lass, it is over, though they’ve still got soldiers guarding both level crossings.’ He shrugged. ‘There’s no need now it’s settled though. What do they think we are? A bunch of hooligans?’

Polly went to her father and kissed his cheek. ‘I’m just glad it’s over, Dad. Maybe we can all get back to normal. And now, would you like to come upstairs and say hello to your grandson?’

It was while William was making the acquaintance of Michael Fowler Longden that a loud banging came on the door.

‘Now what?’ Polly muttered, leaving William leaning over the cot and tickling the baby with his finger.

She opened the door to find Leo standing there with another constable.

‘Is your father in, Polly?’ Leo said solemnly.

‘Yes, he’s upstairs with—’

‘Will you fetch him down, please?’

Fear flooded through her. Was her worst nightmare about to come true? Had they identified William as being one of the troublemakers? Too late, she realized she could have lied and told them he was out. She’d no choice now but to call him down. She turned away, leaving them standing on the doorstep.

‘Dad!’ she called up the stairs. ‘Can you come down? Leo’s here.’

William came downstairs and went to the door. ‘Hello, lad. Come away in. And your mate. Cuppa?’

‘William Longden,’ Leo began formally. ‘I’m arresting you on suspicion of causing an affray on the night of Saturday the nineteenth of August, of a breach of the peace and of criminal damage.’

William’s mouth dropped open and Polly gasped and clung to the doorframe for support. Leo was now reciting the official caution and his colleague was already rattling a pair of handcuffs in readiness. Before Polly scarcely had time to take in what was happening, William was being marched up the street in full view of all their neighbours.

‘Oh, Leo,’ she whispered as she watched them go, ‘how could you do this? How could you?’

She went slowly upstairs to the bedroom. ‘Dad’s just been arrested.’

‘Arrested? Whatever for?’

‘Causing trouble last night.’

‘Did he?’

Polly glanced at her, then looked away without answering. But Violet guessed the truth.

‘You
saw
him when you went out, didn’t you?’

‘Oh, Vi, he was going to set an office on fire and it was close to some cottages. The women who lived there were begging him not to do it. I – I managed to stop him but – ’ she rubbed the bruise on her shoulder – ‘he hit me before running off.’

‘My God!’ Violet breathed. ‘I know he’s got a quick temper, but I never thought he’d do anything like that.’

Polly caught hold of her hand. ‘Vi, you mustn’t say anything. You mustn’t tell a soul.’ She tightened her grip. ‘Promise me.’

‘Of course, I won’t tell anyone. D’you think I want to see him in jail?’

Polly shuddered. ‘Oh don’t, Vi. Please don’t say that.’

Violet was eyeing her sister’s stricken face. ‘Poll,’ she asked quietly, ‘who arrested Dad?’

Tears sprang to Polly’s eyes as she whispered hoarsely, ‘Leo.’

The following day Polly bought her own newspaper. She didn’t want to ask Bertha Halliday if she could read theirs. It gave details of how the agreement to settle the strike had been reached. Representatives of both the workers and the companies had agreed to a Royal Commission being set up to investigate the causes of the discontent. In the meantime, all the strikers were to be reinstated if they reported for work immediately, in which case, the paper said, no action would be taken against them. There were other details that followed, but Polly read no more. She rushed down the street to the Hallidays’ home and banged on the door.

‘Leo, Leo—’ she shouted, but it was his mother who opened the door.

‘Where’s Leo?’

‘In bed asleep. And I’m not going to let you disturb him.’

Polly leant towards her. ‘I need to see him now. This is my
father
we’re talking about.’ She shook the newspaper under Bertha’s nose. ‘It ses in here that all the workers are to be reinstated if they go back immediately. Dad won’t have the chance if he’s locked up, will he? You know Leo came to arrest him and carted him off, I suppose? The whole street saw.’

Now Bertha’s mouth was a hard line. ‘And you saw Leo’s black eye and his head’s cut an’ all. I bandaged him up mesen, so I know what your dad did to him.’

‘Dad? It was
Dad
who injured Leo?’

Bertha nodded grimly. ‘Leo tried to tell you when you came to fetch me to your Violet, but you wouldn’t listen. Polly, Leo’s bent over backwards to keep your family out of trouble, but this time, he’d no choice. He did warn you a few weeks back when there was that trouble at the coronation celebrations and your Eddie was part of it.’

Polly felt her face growing hot. So Leo did not always keep police matters to himself like he’d said. Bertha knew all about Eddie and now she seemed to know about William too – more than Polly knew herself right at this moment.

Bertha sighed. ‘All right then, I suppose you’d better see him, though I wish you’d leave it till later.’

But Polly was adamant: she must see Leo at once.

Minutes later, she was sitting in Bertha’s kitchen waiting for Leo to appear. He staggered into the room wearing only his pyjamas. Tousle-haired with sleep and with the bandage around his head, he looked like a small boy who’d been in the wars. One eye was still half-closed.

Polly felt a surge of love for him flood through her, but she hardened her heart.

Leo slumped into a chair and rested his arm on the table.

‘Why have you arrested my dad, Leo?’

Leo’s face was anguished. ‘He threw a brick and knocked my helmet off. Then the next thing he lobbed at me – I think it was a bottle – cut my forehead.’ He touched the place gingerly and winced. ‘Good job Mam’s handy with a bandage else I’d likely be in hospital.’

‘But you didn’t have to arrest him.’

‘’Course he did,’ snapped Bertha, who’d been listening to their conversation. ‘What else did you expect him to do? He’d have arrested his own dad if he’d done what yourn’s done.’

‘And where
was
Mr Halliday when all this was going on?’

‘Safely at home where he should have been and where your father – and your brother –
ought
to have been.’

‘I’m sorry, Poll,’ Leo said heavily. ‘There were no other arrests last night, but there will be more.’

A new fear shot through Polly. Eddie? Did Leo know that Eddie had been there too?

‘How – how d’you mean?’

‘We know the names of the ringleaders. They’ll be rounded up and charged.’

Now she rattled the newspaper at Leo. ‘But it says here a settlement’s been reached—’

‘Not exactly,’ Leo said, surprisingly gentle now. ‘They’ve agreed to a Commission being set up to look into it. That’s all. It doesn’t mean the strikers have got what they want. At least, not yet. That’ll depend on what the Commission reports.’

‘But they’re reinstating all the strikers if they go back to work at once. There won’t be any more trouble surely?’

Now Leo’s face was grim once more. ‘We’re going to make damn sure there isn’t. Another one hundred and fifty soldiers arrived yesterday to help guard the railways. There’ll be no more trouble, Poll, I can assure you of that.’

Polly stared at him and then asked softly, ‘But how can my dad get his job back if he’s locked up in a cell?’

‘I’m sorry about that, Poll. But I had to do my duty.’

‘Your blasted duty!’ Polly raged. She stood up and suddenly felt light-headed. She realized that she’d had nothing to eat since yesterday dinnertime. With the anxiety over her father’s arrest, she’d had no tea the previous day. And this morning she’d run out early to get a newspaper. Then the news it contained had quite driven all thoughts of breakfast from her mind. She put her hand to her head and swayed. Concerned, Leo rose and put out his hand.

‘Don’t – ’ Polly gasped. ‘Don’t touch me.’

‘Poll, don’t be like that. I – I had to do it. I’d no choice.’

‘Yes, you did.
You
needn’t have been the one to arrest him.’

Leo’s face was bleak but his expression hardened as he asked quietly, ‘What sort of an upholder of the law would I be then?’

Polly thrust her face close to his. ‘A compassionate one who thought about the girl he’s supposed to love.’

‘I do love you, Poll, you know I do, but—’

Polly was scarcely aware of Bertha muttering, ‘I’ll leave you to it,’ and quietly leaving the room.

‘There shouldn’t be any buts between us. Love should be unconditional.’ Her voice softened and trembled with the love she felt for him and the overwhelming sorrow that it was slipping away from them.

‘And have you always been honest with me, Poll?’ he whispered. ‘I think you’ve always known more about Eddie’s antics than you’ve let on.’

Polly glared at him, but now she couldn’t answer. The conflict between her love for Leo and loyalty to her family was tearing her apart. At last she muttered, ‘I’m going. I’ve Violet and the youngsters to see to.’

As she turned and moved away towards the door, Leo said, ‘I’ll see you later, Poll. And I’ll let you know what’s happening about your dad.’

She whirled around to face him. ‘
Nothing
would be happening to my dad if it hadn’t been for you.’

When she got back home, it was to find Stevie alone in the kitchen, wolfing his breakfast.

‘Where’s Miriam?’

‘Cooing over the baby,’ he answered.

Stevie, still blithely unaware of William’s arrest, grinned, ‘He’s a grand little chap, isn’t he, even though he’s been yelling this past hour?’

‘Oh dear, I’d better go up and help her. Maybe Vi’s having trouble feeding him.’

She was moving towards the door leading to the staircase when Stevie said, ‘I’ll be off then.’ Stevie had been working extra hours for Mr Wilmott since the start of the school holidays. He stood up and laughed as he asked, ‘By the way, where’s Dad? Gone off to the picket line already?’

Slowly, Polly turned back to face him. ‘Sit down a minute, Stevie love.’

‘I can’t, Poll. I ought to go.’

‘There was a lot of trouble in the city centre on Saturday night.’

‘I know all about that. I spent all yesterday clearing up all the glass. They tore down the boards Mr Wilmott put up and still smashed his windows. We had to throw a lot of fruit and veg away. There was glass all over it – at least what didn’t get pinched,’ he added grimly.

‘Stevie – Dad – ’. She ran her tongue around her lips. ‘Dad was involved in the trouble and – and he – he’s been arrested.’

Stevie was suddenly still. ‘
Arrested!
When?’

Polly nodded. ‘Last night. Before you got home.’

‘Why didn’t you tell me last night?’

‘You were so late home, I – I – ’

He moved to her and put his arms around her. ‘I was helping Mr Wilmott, Poll. He was in a right state about all the mess and everything that the looters had nicked. I had to stay, but I wouldn’t have done if I’d known what was going on at home. So – where is he now? Is he going to be charged?’

‘I expect so.’

‘Then hadn’t we better find out where he is and what’s going on? Can Leo help?’

Tears filled Polly’s eyes as her legs gave way beneath her and she slumped into a chair. She covered her face with her hands and wept.

Stevie touched her shoulder. ‘What is it, Poll? Tell me.’

She raised anguished eyes to look up at him as she whispered, ‘It was Leo who arrested him.’

Now Stevie too sat down again and took her hands in his. ‘Oh, Poll, no.’

They sat together for some moments, clinging to each other’s hands for comfort but neither could find any words to say. The thin wail of a hungry baby brought Polly to her feet.

‘You go, love. Mr Wilmott’ll likely need your help again this morning. Go on.’ She gave him a gentle push. ‘But don’t tell him about Dad. He’ll find out soon enough,’ she added grimly. ‘Everybody will. But we’ll keep quiet about it as long as we can.’

For the rest of the morning, she helped Violet with the baby. It took a while for the tiny infant to take to the breast, but once he’d got the hang of it he suckled greedily. Violet pulled a face. ‘It hurts, Poll.’