The Birthday Present (7 page)

Rose took a chance. ‘Why doesn’t your mother come here instead?’

There was a long pause and then Letitia said, ‘Because I refuse to have that man in this house and Mother won’t come without him!’ She was breathing rapidly and avoided Rose’s gaze.

Rose, concentrating on her breakfast, said nothing but she recognized the sudden anger and wondered what was behind it.

As though reading Rose’s mind, Letitia forced a smile. ‘Nothing for you to worry about, Rose. All families have secrets and the Bennleys are no exception. Please forget I said what I did. There was no need to involve you in our problems.’

Rose searched for a way to change the subject and reverted to the wedding itself. ‘Are you marrying in a church near here?’

‘No. Bernard’s Uncle Henry and Aunt Sarah are hosting the occasion in their ballroom – they are quite hopelessly rich – as their wedding present to us. Isn’t that wonderful?’ She laughed. ‘They live at Longley Manor – the family home for generations. The churchyard is full of tombstones bearing the da Silva name! They have acres and acres of land. They have no children so one day Bernard will own it all – you might say we shall be the master and mistress of the manor!’

There had to be a reason, thought Rose, why she was prepared to marry a rather stuffy man. Obligingly she said, ‘How wonderful!’ and wondered what Bernard’s parents were like and whether he had sisters and brothers. The door opened and Steven joined them. He looked pale and ill at ease and Rose assumed he was suffering from the excesses of the party the night before. She smiled and wished him a ‘Good morning!’ but his sister was less forgiving.

‘You look like death!’ she told him crossly. ‘It serves you right for drinking so much. You never know when to stop.’ She looked at Rose and shook her head. ‘Do you have a younger brother?’

‘No. There’s just me. And my father, of course.’

Letitia was watching her brother through narrowed eyes. ‘You look terribly pale. Perhaps you should go back to bed.’

He put a hand to the left side of his jaw and said ‘Toothache!’

Rose said, ‘It does look a bit swollen. Poor you.’

Steven hovered by the table but made no effort to eat. Instead he said to Rose, ‘I may have some good news for you. A friend of mine  . . . that is, a chap I know, name of Markham, runs a supper room. Nothing flashy but you could do worse  . . . I mean, you have to start somewhere in your line of business  . . .’ He stopped to clutch his jaw, then pulled out a chair and sat at the table opposite Rose.

Letitia stared at him, shocked. ‘Not Andy’s Supper Room? Heavens, Steven! That’s seriously seedy! What on earth are you suggesting?’

He looked at her angrily. ‘How would you know what it’s like? You’ve never set foot inside it! Have you? Tell the truth!’

‘I’ve never wanted to set foot inside it but I have heard of it. It’s on Marlborough Street, a couple of miles from here. A run-down hall with a few tables—’

Rose interrupted their exchange, her heart fluttering with excitement. ‘What about this place, Steven? You said I have to start somewhere. What did you mean?’ She crossed the fingers of both hands.

Letitia dabbed her mouth with her serviette and stood up. ‘I’ve heard enough. Take whatever he says with a pinch of salt, Rose.’ She made her way towards the door and then turned back. ‘Anyway, thanks again for last night’s entertainment. Everyone was very impressed and Marcus is like a dog with two tails. I’ll send you an invitation in due course.’

When she had gone Steven frowned. ‘Invitation?’

‘To the wedding.’

‘Oh that!’

‘I may not be able to come but—’

‘Look here, Rose. About this chap I know – he called here earlier and I mentioned you. He’s going to do me a favour and give you an audition – if you’re interested. Take no notice of my sister. She’s a stuck-up piece – and worse since she got engaged to Bernard. What a crashing bore that man is! I can’t see what she sees in him unless it’s the money, the aristocratic family, hobnobbing with the famous at society events!’ His mouth twisted sourly.

Rose said, ‘An audition? You mean I get to sing some of my songs? And then what?’

‘Well, if he likes you I suppose he’ll give you a spot in his stage show. But –’ he held up a warning finger – ‘I can’t promise anything. You have to understand that. All I’m doing is mentioning you and you have to take it from there. Make your own decisions. What I mean is, if he
likes
you  . . . as a person  . . .’ He glanced away as his voice trailed off.

‘It sounds wonderful! Really, Steven, it sounds too good to be true!’ Her eyes shone as her mind filled with fantastic visions. She had hoped the private booking would lead to further such engagements but this leap seemed incredible. A personal introduction to a man who owned a supper room! ‘Will he  . . . I mean, do you mean paid employment?’

He shrugged. ‘I’ve no idea, Rose. As I said, all I did was pass on your name and say you were promising. The rest is up to you. Depends how good you are.’ He winked. Crossing to the window, he thrust his hands into his pockets and stared out of the window. ‘Don’t blame me for anything that  . . . that goes wrong. If it does, I mean. It’s a tough business, show business. You take the rough with the smooth or you get out.’

Rose was determined not to be dissuaded. ‘If he’s a friend of yours that’s good enough for me!’ she told him. ‘I’m tremendously grateful, Steven.’

He closed his eyes. ‘Just don’t say I didn’t warn you. I don’t want everyone blaming me if you get  . . . led astray.’ He fingered his jaw gingerly, cursing Markham – both for hurting his jaw and for putting him in an awkward position with regard to Rose  . . . If his brother ever found out there would be hell to pay. Steven knew that for a certainty. Not that he imagined Marcus felt anything for the girl, that was hardly likely on past experience, but he might feel responsible because he had introduced her to the family.

‘I think you should go to a dentist,’ Rose told him. ‘Your jaw looks a bit swollen to me. Have the tooth out if he can’t do anything with it.’

Steven gave her a long look which she found unfathomable, then got up and walked to the door. ‘You’d better go and find Marcus.’

As he went out she jumped to her feet and rushed after him. ‘When shall I go to Andy’s Supper Room?’

‘This coming Monday. I’ll send a taxi for you but I won’t be able to come with you. I’ve got plans for Monday. Don’t worry. I’ll settle with the taxi in advance so you can ride home but after that you’ll have to make your own arrangements. Find out about the buses.’

‘Aren’t you going to wish me “Good luck”?’

‘Good luck, Rose!’ He headed for the stairs and as he went up he muttered, ‘You’re going to need it!’

Three

When the taxi arrived to take Rose home, Marcus and Rose climbed in and settled themselves on the leather seat. Rose began at once to tell him about the wonderful opportunity that his brother had set up for her. He listened in a way that she found irritating, showing no enthusiasm whatsoever and occasionally shaking his head.

At last she stopped. ‘You’re as bad as your sister! You should be happy for me,’ she told him. ‘I thought you’d congratulate me but instead you’re po-faced. Don’t you want me to be famous?’

‘It’s not a very nice place, Rose. I do want you to be famous but not there. It has a bad reputation.’

The driver swerved to avoid a brewer’s dray and Rose was thrown against Marcus who said, ‘For heaven’s sake! Not you, Rose, the driver.’

When she had regained her position she said, ‘But Steven doesn’t think so! He recommends it so how can it be a bad place? I don’t understand.’ Perhaps he was annoyed, she thought, because Steven was being so helpful. Maybe he was jealous that his brother was interested in her.

There was a silence and then he said, ‘They  . . . that is some of them, are not nice people, Rose. Not to be trusted. I’m astonished that he recommends the man. What did Letitia say about it?’

‘That it was seriously seedy but that doesn’t mean—’

‘You should listen to her. Steven has no right to interfere and you should take whatever he tells you with a pinch of salt. A large one!’

They sat in an unhappy silence until Rose said, ‘Well, I’m going anyway, whatever you say. It’s my first big chance and I’m not wasting it. I trust your brother even if you don’t.’

‘I know him better than you do, Rose, and he can be devious. I’m not trying to spoil the moment for you – why should I? Something tells me there’s more to this than meets the eye and I don’t want you to be exploited in any way.’

Minutes passed. Rose said, ‘Letitia’s invited me to her wedding. I suppose you won’t approve of that either!’

‘How will you get there?’

She glared at him. ‘By bus, of course, if I have to but she said I can be your guest because you won’t know anyone else!’

‘That sounds just like Letitia.’

‘Don’t you have any friends?’

‘I don’t know. I’ve never thought about it.’

The taxi swerved again and the driver now shouted something rude to the driver of another taxi who retaliated by shaking his fist.

Marcus groaned. ‘Of all the taxi drivers in London, I seem to have chosen the craziest  . . .’

He smiled briefly. ‘Letitia will be a happier person once she’s married. It’s important to her. Ever since she was a child she’s had ambitions to be rich. Bernard is the answer to all her prayers.’

Rose was thawing a little. ‘I suppose we all have hopes for the future – like me with the stage. What’s your ambition, Marcus?’

He hesitated, opened his mouth to speak but then changed his mind. ‘It doesn’t matter.’

At that moment their taxi forced itself in front of the other taxi which came to a juddering halt. Two elderly women stared helplessly into their taxi from the window of the other one and Marcus swore under his breath. ‘This is ridiculous!’

Rose, who was actually beginning to enjoy the excitement, said, ‘It certainly is!’

‘Oh no!’ Marcus tutted as their driver nipped down from his cab and met the other driver who had also left his vehicle. They immediately began to use their fists and passing traffic hooted as the fight interrupted the traffic flow.

‘We’re getting out of this!’ cried Marcus and, opening the door, he took Rose’s hand and hauled her unceremoniously from the taxi. From the safety of the pavement they joined the crowd that was collecting and watched the two elderly women make their escape.

Someone somewhere blew a whistle and a policeman could be seen hurrying towards them.

Marcus said, ‘Come on. I’ve seen enough.’

‘But we haven’t paid for the taxi!’

‘And we’re not going to. He’s lucky we’re not reporting him for dangerous driving.’ He looked around him. ‘Good job we’re nearly there. I’ll get you home in ten minutes.’

Clutching her bag, Rose resigned herself to the early end to her cherished taxi ride and trotted obediently beside Marcus. After a while she said, ‘You were telling me about your ambition for the future.’

‘I told you it doesn’t matter.’

‘It does to me.’

‘Believe me, Rose.’ He shook his head. ‘It doesn’t matter to anyone.’

Having been escorted to her home, Rose watched Marcus walk away and was immediately aware of a deep sense of anticlimax.

‘Cinderella after the ball!’ she muttered. Somehow the thrills of the previous evening had been thrown into shadow by the unsatisfactory ride with Marcus who, she now decided, was a mournful sort of person who had few friends, if any, and had a low opinion of the members of his own family. According to him, Letitia was a snob and Steven was not to be trusted. Marie alone remained a nice person in everyone’s opinion. She felt she had been robbed of all the happy memories of the previous evening but she put on a cheerful expression and breezed in, determined to impress her father with the details of her overnight events.

He was slumped as usual in his favourite chair, reading
The Sporting News
. He had no shoes on and there was the inevitable hole in each sock where his big toes poked through. She knew at once, by the disgruntled look on his face, that she was about to hear bad news. As she deposited her costume on the table, he said, ‘Ruddy coppers! Can’t leave me in peace for a moment. Bang, bang on the door first thing this morning. I wasn’t even up! Damned sauce I call it, waking decent folk at that time!’

‘The police? What did they want?’ She eyed him nervously. ‘You haven’t done anything.’ She was immediately filled with doubts.

‘Asking stupid questions. Routine enquiries, they call it. I know what I call it – harassment! That’s what!’

Alarm bells were sounding at the back of her mind but she dumped her bag on the table and joked, ‘Someone been murdered, have they?’

‘Murdered? Course not! They were coppers, not detectives. Making routine enquiries about some robbery or other. I gave them short shrift. Don’t expect me to do your job for you, I told them. You get paid, you put in the leg work!’ He scowled. ‘Well, don’t just stand there. Put the kettle on and make a pot of tea.’

Rose said, ‘Was it Colonel Fossett’s place?’

‘Him and a few others. Fuss about nothing!’

‘He lost a valuable snuff box which had sentimental value. He was at The White Horse and they were all talking about it the other night.’ She regarded him anxiously. ‘So they don’t think you did it?’

‘Me?’ He gave her an indignant look. ‘I should ruddy well think not! They were just trying to put the frighteners on me but I’m too fly for that sort of nonsense. They said they could come back with a search warrant. Come back with anything you like, I told them. Bring Scotland Yard with you! See if I care.’ He sighed heavily.

Rose gave him a sympathetic smile. ‘Forget all about them, Pa. Miserable lot! I’ll make that tea and then I’ll tell you about my private evening. I’ve got plenty of good news – oh! I nearly forgot. The housekeeper gave me some leftovers for you. They’re in the bag wrapped in greaseproof paper.’

He perked up at once. ‘Leftovers?’

‘You know – sliced ham and a smoky sort of fish and—’

‘Smoky fish? What, like bloaters? I’m very partial to a nice—’