Love or Duty--A saga set in 1920s Liverpool (11 page)

Penny shook her head and looked appealing at her mother. Leonora Forshaw's mouth tightened. ‘No, that is not possible, Arnold. I'm afraid Captain Forshaw won't countenance it,' she said primly.

‘I'm sure you wouldn't mind keeping an eye on the child during the evenings once she is in bed?' he said in a persuasive tone.

Leonora Forshaw squared her shoulders and shook her head firmly. ‘No, Arnold. I have already told you that it is quite out of the question. We made it quite clear when we permitted the child to stay here after the car accident that she was Penelope's responsibility.'

‘I know, but do you realize that Penny is my fiancée and that she hasn't been out with me for the whole of August,' Arnold pointed out in an exasperated voice.

‘I am well aware of that, Arnold, and it is one of the reasons why I have begged her to take the child back to its mother. In fact, if she had done this when I asked her to do so a couple of days ago then the child would never have fallen over and broken its arm.'

‘Mother, her name is Kelly; I do wish you would stop referring to her as “the child”. As for taking her back to her home I did try to do that before the new term started as you very well know.'

‘In that case why was she still here with you when your new term started?' Arnold asked irritably.

‘Her mother said she was unable to cope until Kelly is capable of walking unaided.'

‘Absolute rubbish! She would have managed well enough if you'd left the child there,' her mother asserted. ‘As it was you brought her back here and took her with you to school even though you were asked not to do so – and look what happened. You've brought all this on yourself, Penelope, because you are so stubborn and won't listen to reason or to what we tell you. I have nothing more to say on the subject,' Mrs Forshaw added in an indignant voice as she swept out of the room.'

‘I can't believe that you can be so obstinate, Penny,' Arnold said tetchily the moment they were on their own. ‘You've ruined my summer and now it looks as if you are intent on spoiling all my chances with the drama group as well.'

Penny bit her lip. ‘As I said before, you managed to find someone to partner you at tennis all through the summer so I'm quite sure you won't have any problems finding someone to take on the leading lady role in the play,' she stated.

‘That's true enough,' he agreed. ‘Katy Wilson was hoping for the part so I'm sure she will be delighted to step into the breach when she hears that you have let me down.'

Penny felt hot colour staining her cheeks. Katy had been her rival in most things when they were at school and even now whenever they met she always took a special delight in flirting with Arnold. In the past she had always ignored this but now, remembering some of the gossip her mother had said she'd been told by some of her friends, Penny felt a surge of jealousy because she wasn't too sure about Arnold's feelings for Katy.

‘I'm sorry, Arnold; I would have loved to have played opposite you but I'm afraid that it is out of the question,' she repeated reluctantly.

She laid a hand on his arm and reached up to kiss his cheek but he shook her hand off irritably and pulled away from her.

‘Well, that's it, isn't it? You prefer to put this child before me. Since the situation looks like lasting for some considerable time I can see it is a complete waste of my time trying to make any plans for our future together.'

Penny stared at him in stunned dismay. ‘What are you implying, Arnold?'

‘I would have thought that I was making myself crystal clear,' he said abruptly. ‘Since it appears that you intend to make your own arrangements about this child without any consideration for me—'

‘That's not true, Arnold,' Penny interrupted him. ‘As soon as Kelly is well enough to go back to her own home then I will be free and ready to fall in with any plans you wish to make, the same as I've always done.'

‘Until the next lame dog comes along and demands all your attention!' he sneered.

‘Arnold!' Penny's voice caught in a sob but he was unrelenting.

‘I've pandered to your whims for long enough,' he went on in a hard voice. ‘Our engagement is at an end; it's all over between us, Penny. You can keep the diamond engagement ring I gave you as a memento of how foolishly you've behaved.'

As the front door slammed behind Arnold, Mrs Forshaw came rushing into the room.

‘Was that Arnold leaving?' She frowned. ‘I invited him to stay to dinner.'

‘He's gone, Mother and what is more he won't be coming back.'

‘What on earth do you mean, Penny. Have you two had a lover's tiff?'

‘Rather more than a tiff, Mother. Arnold has broken off our engagement.' Penny said, clenching her hands into fists at her side to stop herself from crying.

‘Don't be so ridiculous! I never heard such nonsense. Why on earth has he done that?' she asked in disbelief.

Penny walked over to the window and stared out unseeingly. She couldn't believe that after all this time Arnold had simply walked out of her life. She wasn't sure what she felt about his rejection; possibly more angry than heartbroken, she mused.

‘It's because of that dreadful child, isn't it?' her mother exclaimed in an ‘I told you so' voice before Penny had a chance to answer. ‘I warned you that this could happen but would you take any notice – of course you wouldn't. No man is going to like being pushed to one side simply because you decide to give all your attention to a slum child.'

Penny put her hands over her ears but it didn't shut out her mother's nagging voice.

‘What your father will have to say I dread to think. He and Arnold's father had great plans for your future together. They even talked about merging their two companies when they both retire in a few years' time and putting Arnold in charge as managing director.'

‘You talk about us as if we were a couple of puppets and you simply pull the strings and we dance to your tune,' Penny retorted bitterly. ‘If you were so keen on me marrying Arnold then why didn't you let Mary look after Kelly some evenings so that I could go out with him?'

‘You know the answer to that,' her mother retorted. ‘If you had done as Arnold and your father wished and put the child in a nursing home then there would have been no problem. As it is you've made a rod for your own back and now your engagement is broken off as a result. I have no idea what your father will say when he comes home and hears about it. It wouldn't surprise me if he turned you out.'

The colour drained from Penny's face. ‘You wouldn't let him do something like that,' she said in a small voice.

Mrs Forshaw gave an imperceptible shrug. ‘He's head of the house and I have to go along with what he says, surely you realize that by now.'

The atmosphere at the Forshaw's dinner table that evening was very strained.

‘I thought you told me that you were inviting Arnold to dine with us tonight,' Captain Forshaw stated when Mary brought in the soup. ‘Why aren't we waiting for him?'

‘Arnold won't be coming. As a matter of fact it seems that we won't be seeing very much of him in the future,' Leonora Forshaw stated in an ominous tight-lipped voice.

‘I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean?' Captain Forshaw shook out his napkin, picked up his spoon and attacked his soup.

‘What mother means is that Arnold has broken off our engagement,' Penny said in a low voice.

Captain Forshaw reacted in exactly the way Penny's mother had anticipated. Frowning heavily he stared directly at Penny in disbelief.

‘Did you say he's broken off your engagement!' he exclaimed. ‘That's quite impossible. What are you talking about?'

‘Arnold has broken off our engagement,' Penny repeated in a stony voice.

‘Don't be so ridiculous, Penny! What has brought this about? A lover's tiff?'

‘No, this is quite definite. There won't be any reconciliation,' Penny said tightly. She felt the tears welling up in her eyes; why was she always the one in the wrong. No one seemed to recognize that she had tried to act responsibly and do her duty in order to minimize the damage her accident might have on the rest of her family.

Her father's angry voice cut across her thoughts. ‘Utter nonsense! William Watson and I have a great future planned for the pair of you after you are married.'

‘Arnold is very fed up with the way Penny has been treating him for the last month or so and really I can't say that I blame him,' Leonora Forshaw piped up.

Marcus Forshaw looked from his wife to Penny and back again as if waiting for further details.

‘He's seen practically nothing at all of her this summer because she has been too busy devoting all her time to this child she's taken under her wing,' Leonora explained in a waspish tone of voice.

‘I thought that was all behind us. Surely your new term back at school started today, Penny, and we had agreed that you would take the child back to its mother.'

‘Instead of which she took the child along to school with her and there was an accident in the playground. Now the child has a broken arm as well as a broken leg,' Leonora told him before Penny could do so.

Captain Forshaw pushed his soup bowl away and dabbed at his lips with his napkin. ‘I cannot believe what I am hearing. How could a daughter of mine be so senseless and inconsiderate as to put a child from the Liverpool slums before her own future prospects,' he exclaimed bitterly, wiping his mouth fastidiously.

There was an ominous silence in the room as Mary came in to take away the soup bowls and to serve the main course.

‘You know quite well why I did it, Father,' Penny reminded him in a tearful voice as soon as they were on their own. ‘I did it because I felt it was my duty to prevent your name and Arnold's being dragged through the courts because of something I had done.'

‘What utter nonsense! The case would never have reached the courts,' her father stated as he attacked the lamb chop that had been placed in front of him.

‘Mother was worried in case details of the accident were in the newspapers and about the scandal that would result if my name was mentioned,' Penny persisted.

‘Do stop trying to justify your foolish actions. I am bitterly disappointed in your inane behaviour, Penny. You defied me and the results have been disastrous. I want that child out of my house immediately.'

‘I've already explained to mother that it is absolutely impossible for Mrs Murphy to look after Kelly because now that she has broken her arm she is unable to use her crutches to get about.'

‘I'm not interested in the details. I don't want that child here any longer; do I make myself clear? What you do with her is your affair,' Captain Forshaw stated in a clipped angry voice.

‘If you insist that she has to go then I'll go as well,' Penny said defiantly.

‘That is entirely up to you but do remember that if you do I may not want you back here ever again,' her father told her harshly.

They continued eating their meal in silence. Penny pushed hers around on her plate, her appetite gone.

As soon as he had eaten his desert Captain Forshaw pushed back his chair and stood up.

‘I'll have my coffee served in my study,' he said curtly as he left the room.

‘Do you think he really meant what he threatened?' Penny asked worriedly, looking at her mother.

‘I'm quite sure that he did,' her mother responded firmly, dabbing her lips with her napkin. ‘He is extremely upset that you have gone against his wishes. The best thing you can do is to take the child back to Liverpool right now and hope he says no more about it.'

Kelly was still fast asleep when Penny went upstairs. She stood by the side of the truckle bed looking down at her and wondering what to do for the best.

Kelly still looked so thin and so very vulnerable that she couldn't bring herself to do as her father had instructed and take her back knowing the conditions she would have to endure. It would feel as though she was abandoning Kelly when she most needed her help.

Penny was still pondering the dilemma she was in and wondering if there was anything she could do to put matters right when she went to bed herself.

The future looked bleak. She had lost Arnold, so there was no question of turning to him for help, and her father had been adamant that he wouldn't have Kelly living there any longer. Nor was there any hope of Miss Grimshaw letting her have her job back as long as she was caring for Kelly.

Penny woke to a dull wet morning. The sky was grey and overcast and although it was only the start of September it felt as chilly as November.

She had lain awake for a long time during the night thinking back to her own childhood and the wonderful times she had known as she was growing up.

As an only child it had been a very privileged existence. Her earliest memories were of Nanny Pritchard, a plump, loveable woman who had been her constant companion until she was old enough to go to school.

It had been Nanny who had comforted her when she felt sad and who had dressed her in pretty dresses when there were guests and had taken her down to the drawing room to meet them. Afterwards, when she escorted her back to the nursery she would listen to her childish prattle as she undressed her and put her to bed.

It was Nanny who accompanied her on her first day at the private school her parents had chosen for her. Nanny who had patted her shoulder encouragingly and then struggled to hide her own tears when she had to leave her there.

Nanny had always been at the school gate to meet her at the end of each day. She had listened attentively to her account of all the things that had happened to her at school.

It had been a sad day for both of them when a few weeks after Penny's seventh birthday Mr and Mrs Forshaw decided that she no longer needed a Nanny and Mrs Pritchard was sent on her way.