LITMIR.BIZ

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six months old and is trying to walk already. Did Pearl say we can have him next weekend?’

      ‘Yes, and I invited her too.’

      ‘That’s nice,’ Dolly said, playing her game and pretending she was pleased. She grimaced then as Johnny grabbed a chunk of her hair – ‘Oh, you little bruiser’– and whilst doing her best to disentangle his hands she asked, ‘What time are you picking him up on Saturday?’

      ‘At nine o’clock, but it’ll be chaotic with the removal men here too. Still, it’s our last chance to see him before we go.’

      Dolly hid a smile. It was all going to plan, everything in place, and both Pearl and Bernie had a shock coming. As far as she was concerned it served her husband right. He should have gone along with her plans, but he’d always been a weak, soft and useless bugger.

      Come to think of it, he and Pearl were two of a kind, neither of them capable of bringing up Johnny. Children needed discipline, and that had been her mistake with Kevin. She’d spoiled him, been too soft, but she wouldn’t make the same mistake with her grandson. Oh, she’d love him, but she’d be strict too. Johnny was her second chance, and for Kevin’s sake she’d make sure that his son turned out right.

      The doctor had examined Nora’s mother, and now Bessie looked at him worriedly as she answered his question.

      ‘I don’t know if she’s got any family. Why do you ask?’

      ‘I’ve given her a thorough examination and in my opinion she has dementia.’

      Dr Baxter’s expression was grave. He’d been Bessie’s doctor for many, many years and she trusted him – but dementia …? ‘Christ, poor Lily. Are you sure?’

      ‘Yes, Bessie, I’m sure. Not only does she seem confused and agitated, there’s memory loss. She also has difficulty with reasoning and communication. There are signs of malnourishment too.’

      ‘Gawd, no wonder Nora always seems hungry.’

      ‘Yes, well, her mother is incapable of looking after her now. In the circumstances, and until other relatives can be found, I’ll make arrangement for Mrs Dobbs to be admitted to hospital immediately.’

      ‘But what about Nora?’

      ‘A home will have to be found for her too. I’ll get on to the health authorities.’

      ‘No, don’t do that. She can stay with me for a while.’

      ‘Are you sure, Bessie?’

      ‘Yes. She’ll be better off with me than stuck with a load of strangers.’

      ‘I’ll still need to inform the health authorities.’

      ‘You do that, and no doubt the nosy buggers will be round to check me out.’

      ‘Yes, they’ll have to, but don’t worry, I’ll vouch for you.’

      ‘You can do that?’

      ‘Yes, Bessie, and I’ll tell them that despite your grumpy nature, you have a heart of gold.’

      ‘Grumpy! I ain’t grum—’ She saw the amused smile on his face and halted. ‘Oh, you …’

      ‘I’ll go and make the arrangements. Will you stay with Mrs Dobbs until the ambulance arrives?’

      ‘I’ll suppose I’ll have to,’ Bessie complained.

      ‘See, I told you – grumpy,’ he said, still smiling with amusement as he left.

      When Bessie was finally able to return to the shop, she spoke to Pearl out of Nora’s hearing.

      ‘The doctor’s had Lily admitted.’

      ‘Admitted! But why?’

      ‘She’s got dementia.’

      ‘Oh dear. What about Nora?’

      ‘I said she could stay with us while they trace any relatives. I just hope they find someone to take her on.’

      Pearl stood back as Bessie approached Nora, gently breaking the news. Surprisingly, Nora didn’t seem upset, only throwing her arms around Bessie. ‘I stay with you?’

      ‘Yes, love, and I tell you what, how do you fancy a nice plate of pie and mash?’

      Nora nodded vigorously and Bessie took some money out of the till. ‘What about you, Pearl?’

      ‘No thanks,’ she said, unable to understand what the local people saw in it. She could stomach the pie, and the mash, but the thick, green and sickly-looking liquor that was poured over the meal made her stomach turn.

      Nora went off eagerly and Pearl found out why when the door closed behind her.

      Bessie said, ‘She’s half starved, her mother too. There was hardly any food in the cupboards and goodness knows when they last had a square meal.’

      ‘But Nora doesn’t look to have lost any weight.’

      ‘Well, there was a bag of broken biscuits and a loaf of bread. They must have been living on stuff like that.’

      ‘It’s just as well you went round there.’

      ‘Yes, but it’s odd when you come to think of it. It was the end of September when Nora first turned up looking for a winter coat, and still mild. Seeing Lily, I doubt she was capable of thinking about Nora’s clothes. In fact the woman hardly knew what day it was.’

      ‘Yes, it is strange, but it’s just as well she came in. If she hadn’t, I dread to think what would have happened.’

      ‘Me too, love and you should have seen the state of the place. Still, Nora will be all right now. We’ll take good care of her until someone in her family turns up.’

      ‘Huh, and you call me soft. You’re just as bad.’

      ‘Yeah, well, keep it to yourself. I don’t want the customers to think I’m an easy touch.’

      ‘There’s no chance of that,’ Pearl said, yet smiling fondly at Bessie.

      It was only a little later when the door opened with a ping, and Pearl saw that Bernie had returned. ‘Has Johnny been good?’

      ‘He always is. Talk about a placid nipper. As agreed, I’ll pick him up at nine on Saturday and that will give us a couple of hours with him before we go.’ His eyes saddened. ‘Dolly’s gonna be heartbroken to leave him – me too.’

      Bernie leaned over the pram, gently kissing Johnny on the cheek, and he gurgled with pleasure. ‘’Bye, lad. Grandpa will see you on Saturday.’

      Johnny’s chubby hands reached out to touch Bernie’s face, and suddenly Pearl felt selfish. Bernie and Dolly were Johnny’s grandparents and, other than her, the only family he had. She’d been an orphan, with no relatives of her own, and now she was depriving her son of his only family. She still couldn’t bear the thought of letting them have Johnny for the weekend, but maybe she could take him to see them occasionally? In the meantime, she still had to carry on with the charade.

      ‘The rental on the cottage has been finalised now so we’re all sorted,’ Bernie said. ‘It’s a nice little place and we’ll be fine there for a while. We’ll be going down in Kevin’s car. There’s no sense in leaving it to rot.’

      ‘I didn’t know you could drive, Bernie.’

      ‘Of course I can, love, but it’s been years since I had a car.’

      ‘Oh dear, are you sure you’re not out of practice?’

      He grinned. ‘Don’t worry, I’ll be fine, and when he comes to stay Johnny won’t come to any harm with me.’

      Pearl lowered her eyes. Yes, Johnny might be safe with Bernie, but after Kevin’s warning, she still couldn’t say the same about Dolly.

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