The Runaway (22 page)

Ernie shook his head. ‘No point,’ he mumbled. ‘At least I’ve got me job cleaning cars an’ that. So long as Poll don’t mind I guess things ain’t so bad. Only if there is goin’ to be a war I’d ha’ liked to be … oh, I’d ha’ liked to be a part of it.’

The kettle began to boil and Dana started to make the tea, speaking over her shoulder to Ernie as she spooned the leaves into the warmed pot. ‘I know how you feel; but look at me! I don’t know whether you realise, but I ought to be working right now, only the corner shop doesn’t need me and apart from the fish market all my other little jobs have dried up. Of course I’ve evening work at the Freeway, but the truth is there’s no money about. If Polly hadn’t got the job as Jake and Ralph’s assistant, with usheretting whenever she has time, we’d be struggling to pay the rent, let alone feed ourselves. But when I was moaning in the queue for ice at the fish market last Friday someone said that I’d soon be in work again because the government are building new factories all over the place, including Liverpool. They aren’t ordinary factories either; they’re making uniforms, aeroplanes, wireless sets, guns and ammunition … stuff like that. I reckon you and I will be earning good money at one of those factories once they start recruiting staff.
So you see we’ll be doing our bit just as though we had been accepted for the services.’

‘Do you think so?’ Ernie said, brightening visibly. ‘Aeroplanes! I’d be a dab hand at that, very likely. Cor, that ‘ud be one in the eye for some o’ the lads at me lodgings what keep sayin’ they’re goin’ to join up, but haven’t got round to it yet.’

‘Well, the fellow who mentioned it in the ice queue has a brother who’s on the council so he ought to know what’s going on, and he said if I didn’t believe him I ought to go out on the tram to what they call the suburbs and I’d see all sorts being built,’ Dana said. She poured two mugs of tea and carried one over to Ernie. ‘Here you are, get that down you! Yes, and he said if I were to ask one of the construction workers what was going on, he’d just shrug and say it were government business and move away quick like, not wanting to be questioned, see? So I honestly think he was telling the truth. It’s about time the country woke up and began to arm itself, because you’ve seen the pictures on the newsreels showing Hitler’s Brownshirts and the thousands of German planes and tanks and so on which are all a part of the war machine he’s building up. But our politicians simply tut-tut and say this can’t go on and do nothing … look at those Japs, sinking our ships, threatening to do worse. Talking is all very well, but in war it’s actions which count.’

Ernie sipped his tea, then nodded slowly. ‘Aye, I reckon you’re right. I didn’t want to work at the Freeway because I was hoping the army would have me, which would have meant letting Jake and Ralph down. So I’ll stay wi’ me car an’ lorry cleanin’ until they begin to advertise for
workers in the factories and then I’ll be first in the perishin’ queue.’

Dana grinned at him. ‘No you won’t, because
I’ll
be the first; you can be second!’

Shortly after this Ernie left, clearly heartened by Dana’s attitude towards his failure, though she pressed him to stay. He shook his head firmly, however. ‘Thanks, but I’d best be on me way,’ he said gruffly. ‘I’d like to wait for Polly, but if I do she’ll think I’ve got good news. Oh, I know you say she’ll be glad in her heart that I’m not joining up, but if I’m honest I’m still dead scared to see her face fall.’

‘You won’t,’ Dana said at once, but Ernie was firm.

‘You tell her, there’s a pal, Dee,’ he said anxiously. ‘It’ll come better from you. Then, when she and meself meet up again, she can hide her disappointment, or wharrever.’

But when Polly did come in, not long before midnight, she was all of a glow, pink-cheeked, bright-eyed, and obviously hugging to herself some secret or piece of news which she was absolutely dying to impart. However, she took off her coat, hat and gloves and commented that it were a vile night, and cold enough to freeze wharrever it was that brass monkeys were said to possess. ‘And there’s one of them there lazy winds,’ she said, shivering and holding out her hands to the Primus stove which was boiling a kettle for two cups of hot cocoa. ‘You know, a wind that’s—’

‘Yes, I know; too lazy to go round you so it goes straight through instead,’ Dana said, having heard the description several times both in Ireland and Liverpool. ‘And now stop fooling around and tell me why you’re feeling so
pleased with yourself. You’re late coming home, but I can’t think that’s the reason for your bright eyes and big grin.’

‘It’s not,’ Polly admitted. ‘Look, let’s sit down and drink our cocoa and I’ll tell you what happened tonight. Ready?’

‘I’ve a good mind to tell you to keep your gossip to yourself,’ Dana said severely, but she knew she was not fooling her friend. She sat down, cradled her mug of cocoa in both hands and raised her eyebrows. ‘Well? Cat got your tongue?’

Polly giggled. ‘The truth is I don’t know where to start. So I’ll begin at the beginning …’

‘And continue until you get to the end,’ Dana said. ‘Oh, do come on, Poll! I’m dying for my bed!’

‘Well, all right, here I goes then,’ Polly said, putting down her own mug and beaming at Dana. ‘You know that Jake said they’d think about a cafeteria some time, but not yet? Well, I think he’s changing his mind. He says there’s a war coming and once it arrives they’ll put an embargo – I think he said embargo – on any sort of new business which isn’t connected with winning the war. So if he means to start anything it ought to be done at once.’

‘Oh, don’t say he’s decided against catering!’ Dana said through a mouthful of biscuit. ‘It’s the one bright spot on my horizon. What does he want to do with the top floor now? Sell books or records or something?’

‘Wouldn’t you like to know … all right, all right, I’m goin’ to tell you,’ Polly said hastily as Dana leaned across the table and tried to slap her. ‘He asked me to go up to the top floor with him and see what I thought we could use it for …’

‘And I suppose you didn’t like to remind him about a cafeteria,’ Dana said. She took another biscuit. ‘And if you don’t get to the point in the next two minutes I’m going to switch you off, like a wireless set, and put myself to bed.’

‘I’m telling you, aren’t I? Well, he and Ralph think the room would be ideal for a place to eat. He’d partition it so’s the kitchen bit couldn’t be seen by the customers … and he said with war on everyone’s lips we shouldn’t ought to wait but should get going right away!’

Dana squeaked and beamed at her friend. ‘And did you remind him that Caitlin and I had started Cathy’s Place? And that it was a real success with me in charge? Did you say we had made it one of the most popular eating places in Liverpool? Did you …’

‘Course I did,’ Polly said scornfully. ‘Only I sort of made it sound as though it were just you. I didn’t
lie
, exactly,’ she added virtuously. ‘I just sort of made it sound as though … well, as though you was the brains behind it and Caitlin were just a pretty face and when she left … well, what I did I sort of concertinaed it, like, so’s I didn’t confuse him too much. And he liked the whole idea and Ralph said it would make the place more productive without a huge outlay, and I honestly think he means to go ahead.’

‘Gosh! To actually get another chance … but of course it wouldn’t be ours, like Cathy’s Place was. It’s a pity you had to lie, but …’

‘Excuse
me
,’ Polly said indignantly. ‘First go off, Cathy’s Place were never yours, nor Caitlin’s either. Oh, you thought it were, but remember, if that ’orrible Jimmy Mortimer hadn’t poked his nose in and bought the lease,
you’d never have started the place; no, not in a million years. And second go off, I perishin’ well did not lie! I just showed him what a wonderful manageress you’d been and would be again and the up and down of it is, he wants to discuss the idea with you around eleven thirty this Thursday, if you can make it, your supreme majesty,’ she added sarcastically. Dana saw that Polly was hurt by her accusation of telling lies, and quickly put matters right by rushing round the table and giving the other girl a big hug.

‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry, of
course
you didn’t tell one single fib, and you’re the best friend in the world so you are,’ she said warmly. ‘Thursday, you say? Good job I don’t work at the corner shop on Thursdays. I’ll be at the Freeway on the dot of eleven thirty, and I’ll have a business plan mapped out. I’ll tell him I know a dozen girls who would love to waitress again, and I’ll explain about uniforms and shifts and so on …’

‘That’s right,’ Polly said. She looked self-conscious all of a sudden, Dana realised. ‘Wear your black skirt and white blouse and them flatties you bought off of your pal in Paddy’s market. Oh, and there’s one other thing.’

‘What’s that?’ Dana asked, but she scarcely cared. The prospect of full-time work, and work which she would enjoy furthermore, was heady stuff. But Polly was looking sheepish.

‘Nothin’ much … I mean it’s a sprat to catch a mackerel, like,’ Polly mumbled. ‘I … er … I telled him you’d work for a very small wage – mebbe thirty bob, just for the first month, just so’s he could see how things were goin’.’

‘You told him I’d work for thirty bob? Oh dear God,
Polly Smith, whatever were you thinking of?’ Dana gasped. ‘Where will the rent money come from? And how will we eat? You’ve put your foot in it this time! I wouldn’t be surprised if your boss refuses to take me on if I’m that desperate and sacks you for suggesting it and then where will we be? We’ll still have to eat, you know.’

‘Oh, don’t be such a misery,’ Polly said. ‘As for food, we can eat bread an’ scrape for a month, can’t we? Besides, there’s always leftovers in catering, you know there are. We’ll live on stale cucumber sangwidges an’ half-eaten sticky buns until the month’s up.’ Dana tried to hide her smile, but knew she had failed when Polly broke into a broad grin. ‘You’ll give it a go, won’t you, Dee?’ she said coaxingly. ‘Come to the meeting and do your posh act and they’ll fall over themselves to employ you.’

‘Ha ha,’ Dana said, but she was smiling too. ‘And I dare say we’ll manage to eat and pay the rent if you don’t mind shouldering most of it until I’m earning properly again. I’ll have to give up the market and the corner shop and so on, and I’m afraid I don’t have a posh act, whatever that may mean, but I’ll be over the moon if we get along – that’s half the battle, you know – and he offers me the job of manageress! Even waiting on at a new place would be fun, but of course I do know what I’m talking about when a tea room is the subject of conversation so there’s no reason why he shouldn’t at least give me a trial.’

‘Give it your best go, gal, and we’ll be in clover, the pair of us,’ Polly said triumphantly. ‘Imagine, Dee, free cinema shows and free grub! We’ll be made up so we will.’

*

True to her promise, Dana spent every spare minute over the next few days working out how to run a café in conjunction with a cinema. She talked it over with Polly, who talked it over with the Freeway brothers. Until the café project had been mentioned, Polly had been rather in awe of Ralph, who was a hard worker and expected his staff to follow his example, but now she asked questions about the proposed cafeteria and found him far more approachable than she had dreamed, which cheered Dana immensely, and made her think that she might get through the meeting without making a fool of herself.

‘Both Jake and Ralph were talking about teas, coffees, scones and little sandwiches,’ Polly told her importantly. ‘But I guess they’ll be guided by you; I should say by whoever gets the job of manageress, I mean,’ she added hastily. It seemed that Ralph, whose baby it was, had made it clear that nothing was cut and dried.

‘I’ve a thousand ideas,’ Dana said enthusiastically as she and Polly walked to the tram stop on Thursday. ‘But I mustn’t crowd him, you said. Oh, I wish it were over and I’d got the job!’

Polly accompanied her to the cinema, pointed out the door of the manager’s office, then wished her luck and went off to check that her circle seats were all respectably clean and ready for the rush of customers at around two o’clock. Dana knocked, and almost before her hand had fallen to her side once more the door was opened and Ralph Freeway ushered her into the room. ‘So we meet again, Miss McBride,’ he said, grinning. ‘Sit yourself down.’

The meeting went well from the moment Ralph began
to outline his ideas. Dana listened, nodded, waited until he had finished and then asked him whether he had considered who his customers would probably be. ‘Oh, elderly ladies, who want a drink – tea, almost certainly – and a nice squashed fly biscuit before tackling the homeward journey,’ Ralph said, but there was the suggestion of a question in his tone and he smiled when Dana, after only a slight hesitation, shook her head.

‘Forgive me, but that isn’t quite how I see it, sir. I think your customers will be girls and young men who want to see the film but don’t have much time to spare or a great deal of money either. I think they’ll come into your café either before the show or after it, and they’ll want a proper, filling meal, the sort Joe Lyons provides. Oh, nothing elaborate, just something on toast, poached eggs or baked beans or even a well-filled sandwich, you know the kind of thing. Nothing which needs much time to either cook or prepare. And then a stodgy sort of pudding. Apple pie and custard, spotted dick, plum cobbler …’

‘Hey, hold on a moment,’ Ralph said. Dana’s hand shot to her mouth. Polly had warned her not to try to take over; had she been overdoing it? But when he spoke next he sounded more amused than angry. ‘I’d not thought of it like that, but I’m pretty sure you’re right.’ He sighed dramatically. ‘Bang goes my vision of a nice little old lady gasping for a cuppa and collapsing into a comfortable chair in our café in order to ask the waitress for a pot of tea and a Lincoln Cream!’

Dana grinned back. ‘After a little old lady had climbed all those stairs to reach the top floor she’d probably need more than a cup of tea to revive her,’ she observed, and saw once more his tight little grin. She had thought
him pleasant enough when they had met at the Adelphi, thinking him not a bad sort at all, but now she changed her mind. She actually liked him, liked him very much. He had a lively sense of humour and might prove fun to work with, and what was more he reminded her a little of Con, though she did not kid herself that Con was as handsome. It was something in Ralph’s lopsided smile, she concluded, and smiled more broadly than ever.