help support the young boy in his early years.
“Best be going now, love.” Frankie waved to another man he’d known in his days at the market, and began to walk away from the churchyard.
Once again Maisie slipped her arm through his. “Will you stay at the flat again this evening?”
“No, love. I should be getting back.”
“All right, but look, I’ll come to the station with you.”
“You’ve no need to—” Frankie looked up as Jennie walked across the churchyard towards them. She was holding something in her hand, waving it as she called out.
“Maisie! Maisie, wait a minute.” Jennie pressed her free hand to her chest as she approached, dressed in an old but well-ironed black skirt and jacket, with a brooch pinned to her lapel. A black cloche was pulled down on her head, with a small patch of black decorative net covering her face. She pushed back the net.
“Nice send-off you gave him, Jennie.” Frankie removed his cap as he spoke.
“No more than he deserved, God love him.” She turned to Maisie. “I found this yesterday. We’d already done a bit of clearing in Eddie’s room, but to tell you the truth, it was too much for both of us, so we sort of left it. I was turning the mattress yesterday and found this underneath. It’s his pay book. Maud always told him he had to try to write down what he’d earned, so he could keep an eye on his money. He wasn’t very good at writing his numbers, but Maudie nagged to get him to keep it all in his little ledger. Anyway, this one has the details for this year so far, and it’s got the money he earned in his last few months. I might be able to find more of these, but as you can see, when he came to the end of a book, he added it all up, then rubbed out everything he’d written and started all over again, with the amounts earned that year listed before the new earnings.” She opened the book. “Look at this first page, it goes back five years, according to the list of numbers, but as you can see—” She flicked the pages in front of Maisie. “As you can see, the pages are all gray now because he kept rubbing out the numbers and names so he could write new ones in.”
Maisie took the notebook and squinted to read the thick, deliberate, but almost illegible hand. She turned page after page. “He didn’t do too badly, with all these jobs, did he? And you’re right about what you said when I came to the house—he was working a bit further out, and for some wealthier people. He’d upped his prices for them, too.” As she turned the pages, Maisie realized she was looking for a particular name, and was somewhat disappointed when she couldn’t find it, though it would have been a surprise all the same. Then several pages before the notations ended, Maisie stopped.
“Oh.”
“What is it, Maisie?” asked Frankie.
“Oh, nothing, nothing.” She turned to the woman beside her, who was now kneading a handkerchief with her fingers and looking down so that no one could see her face.
“Are you all right, Jennie?”
The woman nodded. “I’ll come round. I’ve got to keep my chin up, what with looking after Maudie. But we’re broken without our Eddie. We’d always looked after him, you see. He was the sun in our lives, even though he wasn’t right, and he could be a handful—remember that, Frankie?”
“Oh, yes, I remember, Jen.”
“But we miss him.”
Maisie nodded. “May I keep this?”
“Of course you can, love. If it helps you, then you keep it.” She paused and rubbed her eyes with the handkerchief. “We might have laid our Eddie to rest, but there’ll be no rest for us until we know the truth about what happened to him. Now then, this will never do—I’d better get back to Maudie.”
Father and daughter watched her walk away.
“I don’t want to miss my train, love—look at you, you’re miles away,” said Frankie. “I know that look—there’s something on your mind.”
“What? Oh, sorry, Dad. Yes, let’s get
“Best be going now, love.” Frankie waved to another man he’d known in his days at the market, and began to walk away from the churchyard.
Once again Maisie slipped her arm through his. “Will you stay at the flat again this evening?”
“No, love. I should be getting back.”
“All right, but look, I’ll come to the station with you.”
“You’ve no need to—” Frankie looked up as Jennie walked across the churchyard towards them. She was holding something in her hand, waving it as she called out.
“Maisie! Maisie, wait a minute.” Jennie pressed her free hand to her chest as she approached, dressed in an old but well-ironed black skirt and jacket, with a brooch pinned to her lapel. A black cloche was pulled down on her head, with a small patch of black decorative net covering her face. She pushed back the net.
“Nice send-off you gave him, Jennie.” Frankie removed his cap as he spoke.
“No more than he deserved, God love him.” She turned to Maisie. “I found this yesterday. We’d already done a bit of clearing in Eddie’s room, but to tell you the truth, it was too much for both of us, so we sort of left it. I was turning the mattress yesterday and found this underneath. It’s his pay book. Maud always told him he had to try to write down what he’d earned, so he could keep an eye on his money. He wasn’t very good at writing his numbers, but Maudie nagged to get him to keep it all in his little ledger. Anyway, this one has the details for this year so far, and it’s got the money he earned in his last few months. I might be able to find more of these, but as you can see, when he came to the end of a book, he added it all up, then rubbed out everything he’d written and started all over again, with the amounts earned that year listed before the new earnings.” She opened the book. “Look at this first page, it goes back five years, according to the list of numbers, but as you can see—” She flicked the pages in front of Maisie. “As you can see, the pages are all gray now because he kept rubbing out the numbers and names so he could write new ones in.”
Maisie took the notebook and squinted to read the thick, deliberate, but almost illegible hand. She turned page after page. “He didn’t do too badly, with all these jobs, did he? And you’re right about what you said when I came to the house—he was working a bit further out, and for some wealthier people. He’d upped his prices for them, too.” As she turned the pages, Maisie realized she was looking for a particular name, and was somewhat disappointed when she couldn’t find it, though it would have been a surprise all the same. Then several pages before the notations ended, Maisie stopped.
“Oh.”
“What is it, Maisie?” asked Frankie.
“Oh, nothing, nothing.” She turned to the woman beside her, who was now kneading a handkerchief with her fingers and looking down so that no one could see her face.
“Are you all right, Jennie?”
The woman nodded. “I’ll come round. I’ve got to keep my chin up, what with looking after Maudie. But we’re broken without our Eddie. We’d always looked after him, you see. He was the sun in our lives, even though he wasn’t right, and he could be a handful—remember that, Frankie?”
“Oh, yes, I remember, Jen.”
“But we miss him.”
Maisie nodded. “May I keep this?”
“Of course you can, love. If it helps you, then you keep it.” She paused and rubbed her eyes with the handkerchief. “We might have laid our Eddie to rest, but there’ll be no rest for us until we know the truth about what happened to him. Now then, this will never do—I’d better get back to Maudie.”
Father and daughter watched her walk away.
“I don’t want to miss my train, love—look at you, you’re miles away,” said Frankie. “I know that look—there’s something on your mind.”
“What? Oh, sorry, Dad. Yes, let’s get
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