The Boy with the Latch Key. Cathy Sharp

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СКАЧАТЬ make an order for fostering.’

      ‘I’m so glad I rang you. I thought you might reprimand me for interfering?’

      ‘Not at all, Ruby. Did you have anyone in mind for foster parents?’

      ‘Well, I do know of a couple who have asked about fostering one of my girls. Mr and Mrs Bailey said they wanted to give a child a good home. I explained that my girls are here to be disciplined and could not be considered for fostering or adoption, but then I thought of June …’

      ‘What kind of people are they?’

      ‘She is a school teacher and he owns a grocery business; he helps to run a youth club in the evenings. They are both in their thirties and childless – and willing to foster older children, but they did ask for a girl.’

      ‘They sound ideal,’ Miss Sampson said. ‘Yes, give me their details in writing and I’ll make some inquiries. We are a little short of available foster parents at the moment, so they might very well be suitable.’

      ‘I am so pleased I rang you now. I was afraid you might think I was interfering in St Saviour’s business.’

      ‘Not at all, Ruby. You are a woman after my own heart and I trust your judgement. Please keep me informed of anything that attracts your notice.’

      Ruby glowed under her superior’s praise. It was exactly what she wanted – for Ruth to notice her and approve. Perhaps it was the first step to a relationship between them … but she still needed to be very careful; she must be sure her affection was returned before she made a suggestion. ‘I’m so glad you agree, because I am sure Sister Beatrice will not …’

      ‘Well you know my opinion there. Leave it with me, but as soon as I’ve verified this couple, I shall make an order for June Miller to be taken into custody …’

      Ruby was feeling elated when she finished her call; Ruth Sampson had thought she’d behaved properly, though Sister Beatrice would almost certainly be furious. She would believe that Ruby had gone beyond her remit and would no doubt be angry to receive an order for one of her children to be taken into care and then fostered. Ruby pushed the thought from her mind. She’d acted in the best interests of the child, which any bystander was entitled to do …

      Archie was pleased as he fingered the half-crown in his pocket. Ted Hastings had praised him for his work and rewarded him generously. He’d been so pleased that he’d told Archie he could have the job every Saturday morning if he wanted it.

      ‘I’ve been lookin’ for a likely lad to work on the stalls,’ he’d said as he handed Archie a plastic mug of tea and a sticky bun. ‘If you keep up the good work I could take you on when you leave school. In time you could be running a stall yourself and you might even own one in time …’

      Archie knew that Ted Hastings owned several market stalls. His daughter Maggie ran a stall selling material and she’d been busy the whole morning. Ted had sent Archie over with a cup of tea for her and Maggie had been just as friendly as her father.

      ‘Thanks, Archie,’ she’d said after he’d told her his name. ‘That’s just what I could do with. I hope you’re going to work for us every week?’

      ‘Mr Hastings said I can work for him when I leave school,’ Archie said. ‘I could leave next term, but Mum wanted me to stay at school and learn to be something proper – in an office or a mechanic or somethin’ …’

      ‘Dad says you never get anywhere as a wage-slave,’ Maggie told him. ‘I think you should come and work for us as soon as you leave. You’ll do all right for yourself with us. When Dad takes to someone he looks after them …’

      Archie wondered what Mr Hastings would think if he knew his mum was in prison for theft … a theft she hadn’t committed. Perhaps he should have told him, but it wasn’t something he was proud of. He might have believed Archie, but if he didn’t he probably wouldn’t have let him help on the stall.

      Archie was just going to have to prove himself, before he told his new friend.

      ‘Where did you get to all day?’

      June’s sulky tones made him turn to look at her. He’d been sitting in the little garden behind St Saviour’s because it was quiet and he wanted to think but now he was suddenly angry.

      ‘I should think you’re the one who should be telling me that,’ Archie said and stood up. ‘Why did you take those lipsticks? You know Mum would be furious if she thought you’d pinched anything.’

      ‘I didn’t,’ June said truculently. ‘Betty gave them to me …’

      ‘But she stole them and you knew what she’d done,’ Archie said. ‘It was stupid, June. Do you want to end up in a remand home like her?’

      ‘No …’ June looked fit to burst into tears. ‘I want to be at home with Mum but she’s in prison …’

      ‘Because someone lied about her,’ Archie said. ‘You’ve still got your freedom and it’s not too bad here. Sister Beatrice looks stern but she’s fair – and Wendy is lovely, so are Sally and Nancy. All of them are … We could be in a lot worse places, June.’

      ‘I know …’ June hung her head. ‘It was Betty. She kept taunting me and I wanted her to like me.’

      ‘If you want me to like you, just behave. I don’t want you sent off to some remand home. Mum would kill me when she got home. We’ve got to stick together, love – don’t you see?’

      ‘I’m sorry,’ June said. ‘I wish Mum was here …’

      As the tears slipped down her cheeks Archie relented and put his arms about her. ‘It’s all right, June. I’ll look after you. You’ll always have me. I promise …’

       CHAPTER 6

      ‘Was it a good film last night?’ Tilly asked as she met Kelly coming into work that evening. ‘My sister Mags wants to see it and I’ve told her she can go with her friends, but I’ve been thinking I’d like to see it myself.’ Tilly’s brother had joined the Army the minute he was old enough and intended it to be his career, but Mags had come to live with Tilly and her husband Terry after their mother had died the previous year. Mrs Mallens had been too fond of the drink and when she caught pneumonia, she hadn’t had the strength to fight it.

      ‘It was Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. It came out last year but I hadn’t seen it and I loved it,’ Kelly said. ‘I don’t get to the flicks often, because I work most nights and I’m usually busy at home even if I’m not at work …’

      Tilly nodded her understanding. She knew how ill Kelly’s mother was and sympathised with her, because although hers was a happier home than Tilly’s had been, there were several younger children for whom Kelly had been responsible until they were old enough to leave school, and there was still the youngest boy and her sick mother to care for. Until her death, Tilly’s own mother had often been moody, sometimes drunk, and always irritable since her second husband was sent to prison for attacking a young woman. She’d blamed Tilly for everything, but she’d got used to it over the years, ignoring her tantrums until the last. Mags had started working on СКАЧАТЬ