Family Drama 4 E-Book Bundle. Leah Fleming

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СКАЧАТЬ Bessie,’ Pearl said, glad of the reprieve. ‘Shall I make us a drink first?’

      ‘No, you go and sort yourself out. I’ll see to it.’

      Whilst Bessie went to the kitchen, Pearl went upstairs to the back room. It amazed her that Bessie kept so many clothes that were out of date, a lot now covered in mildew and unfit for anything but the dustbin. With careful sorting she managed to find a few things, her mind on the future now. She didn’t like the idea of moving into Dolly’s flat, but hopefully it wouldn’t be for long. Once Kevin found work they could find a place of their own. Her heart lifted. They’d be a proper family, her baby with both a mother and father.

      An hour later, Pearl and Bessie were sitting companionably in old, threadbare chairs by the fire. Though Pearl was happy, she still dreaded facing Dolly on Monday morning. She glanced across at Bessie, seeing that the old woman was staring into the flames.

      Curious, she asked, ‘Bessie, you said our paths would cross again and you were right. Can you really see into the future?’

      Bessie turned, gazing at Pearl as though looking into her soul. ‘Yes, but not at will.’

      ‘But Derek’s gran …’

      ‘Go on, girl.’

      ‘No, it’s nothing.’

      Bessie chucked. ‘I can guess what Connie Lewis said. Like many bitter women, she thinks I’ve done her out of money. I suspect she said my powers are false too, but truth be known it’s because I didn’t tell her what she wanted to hear. Am I right?’

      Pearl avoided Bessie’s eyes. ‘She didn’t mention that, but she wasn’t happy with the amount you gave her for her husband’s clothes.’

      ‘Christ, that was during the war. Connie must have a memory like an elephant. I can’t remember how much I gave her, but times were hard then and a lot of men died in action. When that happened I was offered their clothes, but there was a glut and it was stuff I knew I wouldn’t be able to shift. Still, I did the best I could to help out, even if I could only offer peanuts. Women’s clothes were a different matter. There was a shortage and knowing I could sell them easily, I always gave a good price.’

      Pearl digested Bessie’s words, deciding that the old lady wasn’t the skinflint that Connie had portrayed. The woman’s psychic powers intrigued her and she asked, ‘Do you make things up when you tell fortunes? I mean, you said we would help each other, and though you’ve helped me, I haven’t been able to do anything for you.’

      ‘The time will come, you can be sure of that, and somehow I know you and I will draw close.’

      ‘But how?’

      ‘Gawd, I don’t know everything, girl, and sometimes I know nothing.’

      ‘I don’t understand.’

      She looked deep into Pearl’s eyes again. ‘I rarely talk about my powers, but I feel I can trust you to keep your mouth shut. If you must know, I learned the art from my mother. She had the gift of second sight but, like with me, it didn’t come at will. In fact it rarely does. My mother taught me how to read people, and you’d be surprised at what you can glean just by studying someone. When women sit in front of me they don’t realise how much they give away, just by their actions. For instance, they sit up straighter when I hit on the subject that’s worrying them, be it money, health, their husbands or children. There are things to look out for too: a wedding ring, or a white mark where there was one. Signs of illness can show up on the skin, eyes, and even the palms.’

      ‘So you make it all up.’

      ‘Don’t look so disgusted, girl. The women who come to me are mostly desperate and looking for hope – sometimes searching for a reason to carry on. I give them that hope. When in despair they fail to realise that all things pass in time, be it sadness, pain or debt. The circle turns and, looking back later, they’ll find that somehow they got through it.’

      ‘Do you ever use second sight?’

      ‘If it’s given to me – yes, but even then it may not be what the person wants to hear so I soften it as best I can. Sometimes I make mistakes, and when I do it isn’t always pleasant. Let’s get back to Connie Lewis as an example. Many years ago she came to me for a reading. When I mentioned her daughter she suddenly stiffened, giving me the clue. I’d heard on the grapevine that her daughter had left home, but not why, and thought perhaps Connie wanted to hear that she was coming back. Instead I had a sudden flash of intuition and knew she would never see her daughter again, but I also saw a child, one that would be living with Connie. Now there was the quandary. How could I tell the woman that she would never see her daughter again?’

      ‘What did you do?’

      ‘I just said that I saw a child and she might become a grandmother. Well, Connie went mad. She accused me of listening to gossip, said I had heard on the grapevine that her unmarried daughter was pregnant. She said I’m a fake, a shyster, one who takes money from people who can’t afford it. With that she marched out, and has never spoken to me since.’

      ‘So you saw into the future and knew her daughter was going to die?’

      ‘Yes, but not the details. It doesn’t work like that, but I saw the darkness.’

      ‘Do you always see bad things?’

      ‘No, thank goodness.’

      ‘How often does it happen?’

      ‘Blimey, I don’t know. Sometimes every few days, but then it might be weeks before I get another one. Now enough. This is becoming like an inquisition. Put some milk on and we’ll have a cup of cocoa before going to bed.’

      Pearl made the drinks, thinking about Bessie and her fortune-telling. She wasn’t sure that she approved of her methods, but surely it was all right to offer people hope when they were in despair.

      Her mind gave her no answer, yet Pearl knew as she poured milk into two cups that she had clutched at this problem to avoid thinking about the café. It wasn’t only Dolly she didn’t want to face, it was the others too. There was Gertie, Madge, Mo, and worse, Derek. She would have to see him every day – see the hurt she had caused him – and it was going to be awful. The costermongers, the locals, had taken her to their heart, but what would they think of her now?

      She and Kevin were to be married, and she was happy about that, but she wished Bessie could turn on her second sight to tell her what the future had in store.

       Chapter Twenty-Five

      Pearl still hadn’t gone to Mo’s to collect her things; instead she spent the whole of Sunday indoors. She felt ill with nerves, her stomach churning every time she thought about returning to the café and, after a restless night, woke heavy-eyed on Monday morning.

      She forced herself to get ready, Bessie sympathetic and telling her she could still change her mind. Finally, with her head down, she emerged from the shop, feeling as though every costermonger in the market was looking at her. She didn’t look towards Derek’s stall, couldn’t bear to see his face, and was relieved to scuttle into the cafe.

      ‘Morning, СКАЧАТЬ