The Silent Appeal #3
The fact we’ve not had a “proper” marital relationship for several years is neither here nor there in the eyes of the church.
I’m afraid we must keep things as they are for the time being, or end it, which I feel wholly unable to do.
When I mentioned in my sermon the enduring power of love to bring light to every dark corner of the world, I was talking about my world and the light you bring to every part of it.
I tried to look at you as I said it—did you notice?
I’m sorry you’ve had trouble with Issy, although passing you a friendship bracelet is harmless, isn’t it? You can have compassion for her predicament, without encouraging her. Returning the gift and reporting her to a social worker seems rather harsh, but you know what’s best.
Unfortunately, I must counsel you against swapping flats with your poor friends.
My darling, you are so selfless, but we could never be together if you were living on the Grange estate.
Elizabeth volunteers at the food bank twice a week and is on the community hall committee.
We know so many people who live there. It would be impossible.
We are in a situation of horrible impasse. We can’t ignore our feelings—goodness knows, we’ve tried! But we can only be together because no one knows about us. Unfortunately, that’s the way it must stay until we work things out. Love xx
Undated page from a decorative journal belonging to Isabel Beck:
TODAY IS BETTER THAN YESTERDAY
Monday is the best day of the week for me! (Even though I have to work all day.) I’m meeting Nicky-Rose for an iced coffee before rehearsal tonight and then there’s the rehearsal itself to look forward to. The trouble is, it goes by in a flash and then there’s a WHOLE WEEK before next Monday.
Last night I finally opened the bag of crafting things Denise gave me. It contains the following:
Glue, scissors, a plastic stick.
Colorful paper shapes: bells, white roses, and gold rings.
Sticky tape with a white lacy design on it.
Gold and silver ribbon.
White and silver beads.
Silver “for the two of you” and “celebrate” stickers.
I think Denise’s daughter may have bought these to make wedding things. I’m sure I can mix them up and make them less wedding-y.
* * *
It’s later on “today” since I wrote the above, and now I’m feeling just as bad as I did yesterday.
Why did Fran have to tell tales on me to Mardien?
It’s not as if she’s Miss Perfect herself!
She’s having a fling with a married vicar, which is a LOT worse than making a friendship bracelet for someone.
But more than that, how did the bracelet I put in Nicky-Rose’s bag get into Fran’s bag?
Has someone seen that we’re getting friendly and switched it out of jealousy?
Did they want to get me into trouble with Fran?
I should look on the positive side: the mystery is solved and I’ll soon get the bracelet back so I can give it to Nicky-Rose properly.
It looks like my 11 a.m. hasn’t turned up.
Mrs. Godley is ninety-one and her patience is as limited as her visual acuity.
I get all the elderly patients. Perhaps I should ask Colleen if I can be assigned a few patients who don’t need to be told everything three times before they shout at me.
It’s funny how, wherever I work, I never seem to fit in.
They’re much nicer here than in Jelly Antics at St. Ann’s, but I don’t fit in just the same.
I’ve put up a poster for The Hollow in the staff room, and mention the play whenever anyone talks to me, but none of them want to come.
No one’s noticed my friendship bracelet, or asked what “love nicky-rose” means, even though I’m wearing it over my sleeve.
* * *
Why does Monday tick by so slowly? Mardien posted Nicky-Rose’s friendship bracelet through my letterbox when I was at work. I’m wearing it now on my other wrist but tucked under my sleeve. I’ll give it to her over our iced coffees in Squires at 6:45 p.m.
Message exchange between Lucas Stibson and Barry Walford on April 28, 2025:
11:22 a.m. Barry wrote:
Cheers for the for Saturday, boss.
11:25 a.m. Lucas wrote:
U earned it
11:56 a.m. Lucas wrote:
Now that shit has to be stashed somewhere
11:56 a.m. Barry wrote:
Under my mattress?
11:57 a.m. Lucas wrote:
Don’t hide where you reside. It’s only plausible deniability that got me off last time.
11:58 a.m. Barry wrote:
What’s that, boss?
12:00 p.m. Lucas wrote:
Never mind, bro. How well you know Mark?
12:00 p.m. Barry wrote:
A bit.
12:00 p.m. Lucas wrote:
He’s an undertaker, right?
12:01 p.m. Barry wrote:
A stiff shifter, yeah!
12:02 p.m. Lucas wrote:
What’s he like?
12:02 p.m. Barry wrote:
Bit creepy tbh but that might be the job think Mum knows the family, I’ll ask her.
12:06 p.m. Lucas wrote:
FFS don’t say anything to your mum!
12:07 p.m. Barry wrote:
Too late, boss. No worries I’ll style it out
Message exchange between Barry and Joyce Walford on April 28, 2025:
12:05 p.m. Barry wrote:
What’re the Digworths like?
12:06 p.m. Joyce wrote:
They buried Harry and he didn’t complain. Unlike me when I got the bill, the fucking vultures. Why?
12:08 p.m. Barry wrote:
Nothing. Forget I asked.
12:09 p.m. Barry wrote:
And don’t tell anyone else I asked either.
12:11 p.m. Joyce wrote:
I know when you’re up to something, Barry Walford. That Lucas is asking for intel.
12:12 p.m. Barry wrote:
No! It’s me. Just planning for the future, that’s all.
12:15 p.m. Joyce wrote:
You? You don’t plan beyond putting one foot in front of the other—now you’re picking out undertakers for when you pop your clogs?
12:16 p.m. Barry wrote:
Course not, Mum. It’s for when YOU pop YOUR clogs.
12:20 p.m. Joyce wrote:
You soppy bugger! You do make me laugh!
Message exchange between Nicky-Rose Dearing and Trina Neale on April 28, 2025:
1:46 p.m. Nicky-Rose wrote:
You’ll only be in trouble if Bridgetown police get hold of the docs.
1:53 p.m. Trina wrote:
That’s not going to happen is it? Not unless the person giving them wants to go down too.
1:54 p.m. Nicky-Rose wrote:
I want the money I lost BACK and in cash. It’s the price you pay for me to forget what I know and walk away.
1:55 p.m. Trina wrote:
Look, things are tricky right now, I’m working on it.
1:59 p.m. Nicky-Rose wrote:
The BPS are on the Ramirez case and they’ll want to know WHY she never made it back to the Eclipse.
2:02 p.m. Trina wrote:
Ricardo’s been arrested for some shit he did years ago. Might get bail, might not. But he’s the only one who can move that much cash to London.
2:02 p.m. Nicky-Rose wrote:
You bring it.
2:07 p.m. Trina wrote:
How do I know you haven’t copied the docs and will wait till you’ve got the money before blowing it all open?
2:08 p.m. Nicky-Rose wrote:
That’s classic. Assuming I’d do something because it’s what you’d do.
2:11 p.m. Trina wrote:
Don’t be like this.
2:12 p.m. Nicky-Rose wrote:
You’ll have to trust me. Like I trusted you.
To: Nicky-Rose Dearing
From: Lily Bielik
Date: April 28, 2025
Subject: Tiffany Ramirez
Dear Nicky,
I’m sorry to email you at your personal address.
As you know I was in Music from the Movies on Voyager Eclipse last summer, and emailed you when I was upset after Tiffany Ramirez went overboard.
Well, I’ve just been visited by Inspector Lascelles from the Bridgetown Police, and now I feel even more upset and confused.
I thought I’d tell you what I told him, because looking back on it now, that job was strange from the very start.
There was an atmosphere between the cast and the ship’s crew.
The head chef (who everyone called Rooster, even though it wasn’t his name) and a few of his cronies said offensive things to us dancers.
But you know what it’s like, you don’t snitch on anyone, we’re all in the same boat. Ha-ha.
Then there was the comedian who was sent home from St. Lucia.
I told Inspector Lascelles I had no idea why she was fired, except that morale was really low among the cast by then.
I’d spoken with Tiffany because it was her first job after graduating from dance school and she was nervous.
I told her I’d been shaky on my first job.
We bonded about how weird and scary it is when you first start.
That day in Bridgetown, I was going ashore to see my friend on Tiger of the Seas, which was also in port that day.
I didn’t want Tiffany to come because he’s a friend with benefits, if you know what I mean.
I felt bad enough when I heard she killed herself, but now they’re saying she never got back on board and if only I’d taken her with me and shown her the sights instead, whatever happened might not have.
I was back in my cabin by 11 p.m. but most of them were still out partying or whatever.
I know Tiffany wasn’t back then because no one in our section was.
The next day we had to be on ship by 6 a.m., but because Tiffany had been sharing a room with the comedian there was no one to say she hadn’t come back.
We didn’t have a show until the evening.
It was when she didn’t turn up for that we started looking around.
I was one of the first to go into her cabin and I know for a fact her case was in there, her makeup bag, her pajamas.
She obviously hadn’t been planning on spending the night ashore.
Then they found her passport and saw she signed back aboard at 11:25 p.m. That triggered a ship search.
She wasn’t found and they concluded she’d gone over.
Inspector Lascelles said they now think the passport was planted, her signature was forged, and that everyone who was working on the Eclipse will be traced and interviewed, because a crew member with access to the cabins and manifest must know something.
But I’ve worked on ships for two years now, and there must have been more than one person who knew she hadn’t come back.