‘It is now that you’re back home.’

He gave her a warm hug. Ellen had spoken too soon. Now that both her parents were there, Alice joined them to pass on her news. She’d refrained from telling her mother when she first got back from school because she knew that it would provoke an argument. Alice was relying on her father to respond more calmly and reasonably to her decision. When they saw Alice’s expression, they sensed that an announcement was coming.

‘Why don’t we step into the living room?’ suggested Marmion. ‘There’s less of a pong in there.’

‘Cooked veg has a lovely wholesome smell,’ insisted Ellen.

‘Then I’ll be glad to eat it when it’s fresh out of a saucepan instead of having it the usual way — after it’s been kept warm in the oven for hours.’

They adjourned to the living room and sat on the sofa.

‘You’re not at school now,’ he said as his daughter remained on her feet. ‘Take a pew — there’s no charge.’

Alice perched on the arm of a chair and took a deep breath.

‘I’ve been doing some thinking,’ she said, ‘and I reached a decision. I know it will come as a shock but I think we’ll all benefit in the end.’

‘That sounds ominous,’ said Ellen, worried.

‘What is this decision, Alice?’ prompted her father.

‘I’m going to find a place of my own.’

Ellen was aghast. ‘You mean that … you’re leaving home?’

‘I feel that I need a little more space, Mummy.’

‘But there’s plenty of space here — especially since your father is at work most of the time. You’ve even got a free hand in the garden. What more space do you need?’

‘Don’t get so het up about it, love,’ said Marmion with a hand on his wife’s arm. ‘Alice is not only talking about physical space.’

‘That’s right, Daddy,’ said his daughter.

‘Do you have anywhere in mind?’

‘You’re surely not going to encourage her, are you?’ protested Ellen. ‘I love having Alice here. Don’t drive her away, Harvey.’

‘I’m just respecting her right to do as she wishes.’

‘Thank you, Daddy,’ said Alice.

‘So what’s the answer?’

‘I don’t have anywhere particular in mind. Wherever it is, it won’t be far away. It’s not as if I’m emigrating.’

‘This is Vera’s doing, isn’t it?’ said Ellen. ‘Mrs Dowling told me that she keeps going on about sharing accommodation with you.’

‘That would be a big mistake,’ observed Marmion. ‘Not that it’s up to me, of course, but Alice would get none of the space she wants if she moves in with Vera.’

‘You’re quite right, Daddy,’ said Alice. ‘I want to live alone.’

‘Fair enough — I have no objection to that.’

‘How can you say that, Harvey?’ demanded his wife. ‘Alice is our daughter. She belongs here. Well,’ she continued, ‘until she meets Mr Right and gets married, that is.’

Marmion smiled. ‘Has it never occurred to you that she might stand more of a chance of meeting the elusive Mr Right if she didn’t live under her parents’ roof? Think how awful it was when I courted you and had to be grilled by your parents every time I took you out.’ He put an arm around Ellen. ‘Life would have been a lot easier for both of us if you’d been in digs somewhere.’

Ellen was dismissive. ‘That’s water under the bridge.’

‘Your mother was so reluctant to let you go. You hated it at the time, yet you’re behaving just like her now.’

‘That’s not true, Harvey.’

‘We must be more understanding.’

‘All I understand is that I’m losing a daughter.’

‘Alice will probably be within walking distance.’

‘It’s not the same.’

‘I may still be able to look after the garden, Mummy,’ said Alice. ‘Why not think of the benefits? You won’t have to cook for me or do my washing or change my bed. I’m going to lighten your load.’

‘That’s not how I see it. You’re running away from us. First, you defy us over joining the WEC, and now this.’ Ellen was close to tears. ‘Whatever next — that’s what I ask?’

Alice continued to reassure her mother and Marmion added his own emollient comments but Ellen was in no mood to be pacified. For his part, the news had not come as such a shock. If anything, Marmion was surprised that Alice had stayed with them so long. He was glad that she felt ready to strike out on her own and could see the advantages for her. Ellen, however, could only see the disadvantages. Marmion steeled himself for a long discussion once they went to bed. His wife was not going to let the matter rest.

Irene had volunteered to cook the meal and had timed it so that it was ready only minutes after her sister returned home. They ate in the kitchen and compared their respective days. Dorothy said nothing about her encounter with Ernie Gill, though it was very much on her mind. After they’d eaten and done the washing up, they spent an hour or so playing cards. Irene noticed the difference in her sister. There was a muffled excitability about Dorothy that was untypical. When the game reached a natural break, Irene became inquisitive.

‘There’s something you’re not telling me, Dot,’ she said.

‘What a funny thing to say!’

‘Am I right?’

‘No,’ said Dorothy. ‘You know me. I don’t keep secrets from you.’

‘Then why do you keep smiling?’

‘We had a good day at the shop, that’s all. It was the busiest afternoon for weeks.’

‘I’m glad to hear that.’

‘Let’s play another game. It’s your deal.’

‘I thought you’d had enough.’

‘I’m not stopping when I’m on a winning streak,’ said Dorothy.

The cards were dealt and they picked them up. Irene could still see the smile hovering around her sister’s lips but she accepted the explanation given. She was soon absorbed in the game, especially as her luck improved markedly. The odd thing was that Dorothy didn’t seem to mind losing. That was unusual. She invariably bemoaned her fate if she was dealt a poor hand.

While Irene was concentrating hard on the game, her sister was preoccupied. The meeting with Ernie Gill had left her in a state of quiet elation, and not simply because he’d paid her a compliment. He’d interested her. Dorothy felt that she’d been given a wrong impression about him. She surmised that something had happened between him and Irene to make her sister wish to keep him as no more than a friend. Her curiosity finally got the better of her.

‘When did you first meet Ernie Gill?’ she asked.

‘Oh, it was years ago, Dot. We met on deck. And no,’ said Irene, quickly, ‘it wasn’t the start of a shipboard romance. I was pushing a grumpy old lady in her bath chair at the time.’

Dorothy shuffled the cards. ‘When did he propose to you?’

‘I’ve told you before. I try to forget that incident.’

‘But he was paying you a compliment, Irene.’

‘I suppose he was, looking back, and I must admit that I was amused by the coincidence.’

‘What coincidence?’ asked Dorothy starting to deal the cards.

‘Well, it turns out that his mother was called Irene as well.’

Her sister gulped and her hands froze in mid-air. Gill had made a point of telling her that his mother’s name had been Dorothy. Her good opinion of the man began to crumble.

‘What did you just say, Irene?’

Given the problems they’d had with Ruth, her disappearance was bound to cause panic. Herbert Stone joined Miriam in a frantic search of the whole house. They even scoured the garden. Ruth was not there and neither was her handbag. More telling was the fact that the window of her bedroom had been left wide open. It looked as if she’d climbed onto the roof of the shed below and lowered herself to the ground. Miriam was overwhelmed with guilt. In treating her daughter as a prisoner, she feared she’d forced her into a daring escape bid. As ever, Stone was quick to apportion blame.

‘This is your fault, Mimi,’ he said.

‘I can’t watch her all the time, Herman.’