Chapter Thirty-Two #2
Eventually, after checking the doors and windows were all securely locked yet again, she led Alfred back upstairs, but she didn’t go to bed.
She was too afraid that whoever had been trying to break in might come back, so she sat there gripping the poker and listening for sounds of their return.
She knew she should probably have phoned Marie and John, or even the police, but what could they have done?
By the time they’d have got here, the intruder would probably have been long gone and she hated to drag them out of bed for nothing.
By the time Ruth arrived for work the next morning, Annie was already up, dressed and in the shop ready to start.
‘You’re an early bird,’ Ruth said with a frown as she looked at the dark circles beneath Annie’s eyes. ‘Have you had a bad night?’
Annie nodded and told her what had happened.
‘But why didn’t you ring me or Marie?’ Ruth scolded. ‘What if they’d got in?’
‘They’d have had a hot poker wrapped around their head,’ Annie said angrily.
‘But please don’t mention this to Marie when she brings Nancy and Adam back.
I don’t want them frightened. Because everything has been so quiet for a while I haven’t bothered looking at any more properties to rent, but perhaps I should start again. ’
‘Or perhaps look for a shop to rent in a slightly better area?’ Ruth suggested. ‘I mean, it isn’t bad here and the nearer to the city centre you go the higher the rent will be, but you’ll also get a lot more passing trade.’
‘Mm, I suppose it’s worth thinking about,’ Annie agreed, looking around regretfully.
She’d worked so hard to make this shop look nice, but she could see the sense in what Ruth said.
‘Anyway, let’s forget about it for now. As soon as Nancy and Adam are back, I’ll go and get some more stock in if you’re all right here.
But first I think we both deserve a nice cup of tea.
’ And with that she pottered away to put the kettle on.
Over the next few days Annie went to view a few shops in more salubrious neighbourhoods, closer to the city centre, but they were wildly expensive and none of them had living accommodation above them, which meant as well as finding extra money for the rent of the shop she would have to rent them somewhere to live too.
‘I think I’ll stay where I am for the time being,’ she confided to Ruth, feeling a little downhearted. ‘Anyway, as you keep telling me, the incidents have probably been down to vagrants looking to steal.’
She tried hard to believe this. After all, who could have a vendetta against her?
But that hope flew out of the window one day when the bell above the shop door heralded a new customer. She was tidying the glove drawer, but she plastered a smile to her face and turned to greet them. The smile quickly froze when she found herself face to face with Reggie.
For a moment she could do nothing but stare at him, but then she managed to croak, ‘W-what are you doing here? I don’t think you and I have anything to say each other.’
‘Now don’t be like that, sister-in-law.’ He leered as he removed his hat. ‘I’ve come all this way, so the least you could do is look pleased to see me.’
‘But I’m not!’ she snapped as anger took over from shock. ‘Your mother has made it more than clear what she and the rest of your family think of me and Adam, so I don’t think we have anything more to say to each other.’
He threw his hat onto the counter and sank onto one of the little spindly legged gold chairs, crossing his legs.
‘Just because she finally realised that Monty had nothing to do with Adam’s conception doesn’t mean that you and I can’t be friends.
After all, if I remember rightly, we were very close once. ’
‘When you raped me, you mean?’ Her eyes were flashing fire. ‘And I repeat, how did you find me?’
He chuckled and studied his nails. ‘Oh, it wasn’t so very hard.
You didn’t think you could cover your tracks forever, did you?
All I had to do was watch and wait after you played the good Samaritan to Peggy, then I followed you back here.
It was very noble of you to go and look after her.
Seeing as she’s been living in sin with Levi for so long, I would have thought that he would have taken care of her.
But then you’d expect no better from their sort, would you?
Now, don’t you think it’s time we became friends again?
I’m sure it’s what Monty would have wanted. ’
‘Monty might have been your brother, but he didn’t like you any more than I do,’ she spat.
‘And how dare you call Peggy and Levi their sort? They’re good, kind, hard-working people, which is more than can be said for you.
So now would you please leave my shop. And don’t show your face here again else I’ll inform the police. ’
‘Inform them of what? That your brother-in-law dropped by to pay you a visit?’ He smirked. ‘I hardly think they’d look on that as a hanging offence.’
Thankfully, the shop door opened again and Ruth appeared. Annie didn’t think she’d ever been so pleased to see anyone in her life. She’d had a dental appointment, which was why she was coming in late, but Annie thought her timing was perfect.
Ruth instantly sensed that something was wrong. ‘Is everything all right?’ she asked as she turned her gaze on Reggie. She immediately guessed who he was from what Annie had told her about him.
‘Yes, everything is fine,’ Annie said firmly. ‘My brother-in-law was just leaving.’
‘Huh! And I wasn’t even offered a cup of tea,’ Reggie said sarcastically, but he rose from the chair, collected his hat and strolled leisurely towards the door.
‘Goodbye for now, Annie. I’ll be seeing you again . . . very soon.’
After he’d left, Annie dropped heavily onto the nearest chair.
‘How the hell did he find you?’ Ruth knew from things Annie had told her how much she detested him.
‘Apparently he followed me when I came back from Nuneaton the other week,’ Annie answered dully. Suddenly, a thought occurred to her and the colour drained out of her face. ‘You don’t think it was him trying to break in, do you?’
Ruth bit her lip. ‘I doubt it, but don’t worry, we’ll be extra vigilant from now on. Although after the welcome he just got, I doubt he’ll show his face back around here anytime soon. He’d have to be very thick-skinned if he did.’
‘Oh, he’s that all right.’ Annie shuddered as her mind drifted back to the night he’d raped her.
It was a long time ago and yet she could still feel the pain and disgust as clearly as when it had happened.
But she was a grown woman now, and Nancy and Adam relied on her, so after taking a shuddering breath she rose, held her head high and went back to tidying the glove drawer.
She had worked too hard to let him spoil things for her now and she tried to push him from her mind.
Within the next few weeks, she would be going back to Nuneaton again and there was every chance she might bump into him there.
But she sincerely hoped he wouldn’t come back to London.
Little could she have known that the trip back to her hometown was going to be life-changing for her.