soon as Aunt Ivy left, it would mean wandering around for ages until it was time to meet Lily, which she wouldn’t mind. But she’d have to return home eventually, see Uncle Vince, meet his eyes, feel as if she’d let him down.
‘Josie Smith! I have asked you twice what four overfour equals.’ Mrs Barrett’s voice was sharp with annoyance. ‘Your body is present, but your mind clearly somewhere else. If you could bring mind and body together for a moment, you might come up with an answer.’
‘Sixteen?’
Mrs Barrett sighed. ‘No, dear. I think you’ll find the answer’s one. I expect you’re all tired, I certainly am. Thank goodness we break up tomorrow.’ The class uttered a huge groan of relief, and Mrs Barrett smiled wearily. ‘It might be nice to dispense with lessons on the last day, do something less taxing – a quiz, for instance. I’ll see what his lordship has to say.’
‘ Who , Miss?’ Josie’s hand shot up.
‘His lordship, dear. In other words, Mr Crocker, our esteemed headmaster.’
‘Why did she call him that?’ Josie whispered hoarsely to Lily, sitting beside her.
Lily looked puzzled. ‘It’s not rude or anything, Jose. Me ma sometimes says, “Where’s his lordship?” when she wants me da’, or “What’s his lordship up to?”’
‘Lily Kavanagh, stop talking, please !’
‘Sorry, miss.’
‘It was my fault, miss.’
‘In that case, Josie, you must be an expert ventriloquist. I could have sworn the words I heard came from Lily’s mouth.’
His lordship!
Either she believes me, takes us in, and gives his lordship his marching orders, or …
Had Uncle Vince been doing the same thing to Mam, pressing against her, making funny noises? Was that why Mam had left?
No, Aunt Ivy had chucked Mam out because she was in some sort of condition.
It was very confusing. Josie’s head ached with the effort of trying to make sense of it all. She began to dread the Easter holiday even more. Vince would be home as he was on nights.
Aunt Ivy got up at six. Josie heard her pottering around the kitchen. The smell of frying bacon wafted upstairs. Her aunt came up and went straight down again. She must have put the hot-water bottle in the bed. Shortly afterwards, Vince came home.
‘Oh, hel lo , luv,’ Aunt Ivy said in a warm, thrilling voice, as if she hadn’t seen him in years. Vince’s light voice was inaudible. Josie wondered if they were kissing, or was Aunt Ivy patting his shoulders, stroking his cheek with the back of her finger, caressing his hair, like she did all the time?
‘She can’t keep her hands off him,’ Lily had said, who’d noticed. ‘She finds him irresistible, like I find Alan Ladd.’
‘Come on, luv. Your breakfast’s ready. Put your slippers on, they’re warming by the fire.’
The truth might have killed the poor woman .
Josie sat up. Gradually, things were falling into place. Uncle Vince must have done something bad, but Ivy was Mam’s sister. Mam didn’t want to hurt her by telling the truth. Ivy was ‘besotted’ with Vince. Lily had looked it up in the dictionary. It meant ‘to be blindly infatuated’. Then she’d had to look up ‘infatuated’. ‘To be inspired with foolish passion’, it said. If Mam had told her sister the truth about Vince, it might have killed her.
Her aunt and uncle were coming upstairs! Josie quickly got dressed. She sat on the edge of the bed andheard the springs creak as Vince lay down. Aunt Ivy went to and from the bathroom several times. Instead of bacon, the house was full of her powerful scent.
At a quarter past eight, dead on time, her aunt’s heels clattered downstairs. She paused in the hall to put on her coat, the front door closed.
Josie was dying to use the lavatory. She reached the bathroom just in time, and went back to collect a cardy. She felt the hairs prickle on her neck when she turned to leave. Uncle Vince, in his pyjamas, was smiling at her from the door.
‘Here’s me, looking
‘Josie Smith! I have asked you twice what four overfour equals.’ Mrs Barrett’s voice was sharp with annoyance. ‘Your body is present, but your mind clearly somewhere else. If you could bring mind and body together for a moment, you might come up with an answer.’
‘Sixteen?’
Mrs Barrett sighed. ‘No, dear. I think you’ll find the answer’s one. I expect you’re all tired, I certainly am. Thank goodness we break up tomorrow.’ The class uttered a huge groan of relief, and Mrs Barrett smiled wearily. ‘It might be nice to dispense with lessons on the last day, do something less taxing – a quiz, for instance. I’ll see what his lordship has to say.’
‘ Who , Miss?’ Josie’s hand shot up.
‘His lordship, dear. In other words, Mr Crocker, our esteemed headmaster.’
‘Why did she call him that?’ Josie whispered hoarsely to Lily, sitting beside her.
Lily looked puzzled. ‘It’s not rude or anything, Jose. Me ma sometimes says, “Where’s his lordship?” when she wants me da’, or “What’s his lordship up to?”’
‘Lily Kavanagh, stop talking, please !’
‘Sorry, miss.’
‘It was my fault, miss.’
‘In that case, Josie, you must be an expert ventriloquist. I could have sworn the words I heard came from Lily’s mouth.’
His lordship!
Either she believes me, takes us in, and gives his lordship his marching orders, or …
Had Uncle Vince been doing the same thing to Mam, pressing against her, making funny noises? Was that why Mam had left?
No, Aunt Ivy had chucked Mam out because she was in some sort of condition.
It was very confusing. Josie’s head ached with the effort of trying to make sense of it all. She began to dread the Easter holiday even more. Vince would be home as he was on nights.
Aunt Ivy got up at six. Josie heard her pottering around the kitchen. The smell of frying bacon wafted upstairs. Her aunt came up and went straight down again. She must have put the hot-water bottle in the bed. Shortly afterwards, Vince came home.
‘Oh, hel lo , luv,’ Aunt Ivy said in a warm, thrilling voice, as if she hadn’t seen him in years. Vince’s light voice was inaudible. Josie wondered if they were kissing, or was Aunt Ivy patting his shoulders, stroking his cheek with the back of her finger, caressing his hair, like she did all the time?
‘She can’t keep her hands off him,’ Lily had said, who’d noticed. ‘She finds him irresistible, like I find Alan Ladd.’
‘Come on, luv. Your breakfast’s ready. Put your slippers on, they’re warming by the fire.’
The truth might have killed the poor woman .
Josie sat up. Gradually, things were falling into place. Uncle Vince must have done something bad, but Ivy was Mam’s sister. Mam didn’t want to hurt her by telling the truth. Ivy was ‘besotted’ with Vince. Lily had looked it up in the dictionary. It meant ‘to be blindly infatuated’. Then she’d had to look up ‘infatuated’. ‘To be inspired with foolish passion’, it said. If Mam had told her sister the truth about Vince, it might have killed her.
Her aunt and uncle were coming upstairs! Josie quickly got dressed. She sat on the edge of the bed andheard the springs creak as Vince lay down. Aunt Ivy went to and from the bathroom several times. Instead of bacon, the house was full of her powerful scent.
At a quarter past eight, dead on time, her aunt’s heels clattered downstairs. She paused in the hall to put on her coat, the front door closed.
Josie was dying to use the lavatory. She reached the bathroom just in time, and went back to collect a cardy. She felt the hairs prickle on her neck when she turned to leave. Uncle Vince, in his pyjamas, was smiling at her from the door.
‘Here’s me, looking
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