Family Drama 4 E-Book Bundle. Leah Fleming

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       Chapter Thirty-Five

      It was mid-September and Pearl still hadn’t moved in with Bessie. She had no love for Dolly, but Bernie seemed incapable of looking after her. The doctor had put Dolly on medication and mostly she just sat, seeming to draw great comfort from just holding Johnny in her arms. Strangely, though, she always asked permission now before picking him up, and with all the housework, the washing, ironing and cooking to do, Pearl was sometimes pleased to hand him over to her mother-in-law. She had watched carefully, but hadn’t seen anything to make sense of Kevin’s accusations. Nevertheless, she remained vigilant, making sure that Bernie was always around before leaving Johnny in her mother-in-law’s care.

      Then, after all the waiting, Kevin was at last brought to trial, Dolly insisting that she was going to attend. As though it had brought her a new lease of life, she bustled around getting ready, only stopping her preparation when Bernie spoke.

      ‘The doctor has advised against this, but you just won’t listen. All right, go then, but you needn’t think I’m coming with you.’

      She hardly reacted, only closing her eyes for a moment before turning to Pearl. ‘What about you?’

      ‘Yes, I’d like to go, but I don’t want to take Johnny. Would you mind looking after him, Bernie?’

      ‘Of course I will – well, as long as you make sure you have his bottles made up.’

      Pearl smiled her thanks and went to get ready, afterwards preparing everything for the baby.

      Bernie insisted that she call a cab. Dolly hardly spoke during the journey, and when they entered the courtroom it was to find it packed, many locals showing an avid interest in the case.

      The chamber buzzed with voices, and a sea of faces looked at them as they sat down. Dolly kept her head low, Pearl surprised when she reached out to grip her hand.

      There was a hush as Kevin appeared in the dock, which continued when the judge entered the courtroom.

      The trial began, but after all Pearl’s nervous anticipation, it was quickly over. On his lawyer’s advice Kevin had pleaded guilty, and now the judge was looking at the medical evidence. The jeweller had recovered, but only just, the report revealing brain damage.

      Pearl’s found her eyes were fixed on the bench and the stern-faced judge. He looked grim as Kevin stood before him, and she gasped as he passed a sentence of fifteen years imprisonment.

      The courtroom came alive, buzzing with voices again, but Dolly slumped in her seat. Pearl thought she had passed out, and bent anxiously over her mother-in-law, but as Kevin was led away Dolly rallied enough to rise to her feet.

      ‘Oh, son,’ she cried.

      Kevin’s eyes flicked towards them, but then he was urged downstairs and out of their sight. Dolly stood transfixed, but Pearl took her arm, pulling her mother-in-law towards the exit.

      They emerged into bright sunlight, but it was the flash of a camera going off in Pearl’s face that made her blink. She hadn’t expected reporters, new headlines taking up the front pages, and now looked frantically for a taxi. One was coming and she raised an arm to hail it, almost bundling Dolly inside before slamming the door behind them.

      ‘Battersea High Street,’ she told the driver.

      ‘Oh, Pearl, I can’t believe it,’ Dolly whispered. ‘Why did Kevin plead guilty?’

      ‘With the amount of evidence against him, I don’t think he had any choice. If Kevin tried to plead not guilty and then lost the case, the judgement would have been harsher.’

      Dolly sunk low in her seat, dabbing at her eyes, and as the taxi drove off Pearl didn’t look back. Kevin was going to prison, he didn’t want to see her again, and that meant her marriage was over. Suddenly she felt a surge of freedom again, followed by another of shame. How could she feel like this when her husband had just been sentenced to fifteen years in prison? Yet as she closed her eyes against her guilt, Pearl found that nothing could mar her feelings of relief.

      Bernie was giving Johnny his bottle as they walked in, his eyebrows rising in enquiry. ‘Fifteen years,’ Pearl told him.

      ‘It’s what I expected,’ he said, but then as Dolly suddenly staggered he rose to his feet. ‘Pearl, take the nipper. I’ll see to Dolly.’

      She took her son, surprised when Bernie spoke firmly to his wife. ‘See, I told you not to go, and in future perhaps you’ll listen to me.’

      ‘Oh, Bernie …’ Dolly groaned.

      ‘Come on, let’s get you to bed,’ he said.

      As her father-in-law led Dolly from the room, Pearl saw that he was growing in stature. He seemed the leader now, Dolly clinging and the follower, but Pearl couldn’t help wondering how long this situation would last.

      As they left the room, Pearl sat down, popping the teat into Johnny’s mouth. She gazed at his face, seeing Kevin in his features. Her marriage was over, but he had given her Johnny and she would always thank СКАЧАТЬ