Love or Duty by Roberta Grieve Read Free Book Online Page B

afraid that won’t be possible, Dora.’ Stanley’s voice was firm and his wife’s eyes widened. He cut off her protest with a raised hand. ‘I’m sorry, my dear. I hate to say this, but the time has come for us to make certain economies. I had hoped to avoid anything as drastic as cutting the staff and of course I wouldn’t dream of turning Cook away from what, after all, has been her home for nearly thirty years. But in a way this accident has happened at a rather opportune moment.’
    Louise gasped. ‘Opportune? Father, have you forgotten that poor Cookie is lying in hospital in great pain?’
    ‘Forgive me, Louise. I didn’t mean to sound callous.’ He pushed his plate away and ran his hands through his hair. ‘Oh dear. I wish I hadn’t had to spring this on you.’ He took a deep breath. ‘The fact is, things are not going well with the business. I’m sure it’s only temporary but, until things look up – we shall have to be careful.’
    ‘I don’t understand, Stanley. What about your investments?’ Dora’s face was white and her plump hand went to her throat.
    Hesitantly, Stanley explained that the nationwide slump had begun to affect his business. And the Wall Street crash some years before, which was still affecting Britain, had sent his shares plummeting.
    ‘But surely, Father, the building trade is thriving, despite other industries suffering from the slump? There are houses going up in Holton all the time,’ Louise protested.
    ‘That’s true, my dear. But building is only one aspect of my business interests and I’m afraid one can no longer afford to subsidise the other.’
    Dora gave a little sob and Stanley hastened to reassure her. ‘As I said, my love, it’s only a temporary setback. Things will pick up soon. But you can understand why I cannot contemplate engaging another cook at the moment. And I’ve also been thinking of letting Fred go. We will just have to manage for the time being.’

     
    Louise and Sarah were walking along the seafront towards the bandstand. Since Cookie’s accident and the tightening of the family purse strings, Dora had taken refuge in ill health once more. Today she was indulging in one of her ‘heads’ and Louise had found it difficult to bite her tongue. Her stepmother’s constant carping was beginning to get on her nerves and she had invented an errand in town just to get out of the house for a while.
    She stopped and leaned on the promenade railing, gazing out to sea at the passing ships in the Channel. To her right the Isle of Wight was a hazy smudge of blue on the horizon. How she wished she was on one of those ships – anywhere but here in Holton Regis. Even accompanying Keith Willis to Africa would have been preferable to this boring existence, Louise told herself, flicking a stray strand of hair off her face. But even that means of escape was denied her. She had gently but firmly refused his proposal of marriage and he had left a couple of weeks ago. Besides, it had been made clear to her that her duty was at home now.
    ‘I think Mother does it on purpose,’ Sarah said, echoing Louise’s thoughts.
    ‘Oh, Sarah, that’s a wicked thing to say.’ How could she tell her sister she felt exactly the same?
    ‘Well, it’s a funny thing that she’s perfectly all right when she wants to come up to London with me. But when it comes to helping you in the kitchen she’s just too poorly.’ Sarah clapped a hand to her forehead, closed her eyes and said, ‘Oh, my poor head’, in perfect imitation of her mother.
    Louise tried unsuccessfully to hide a smile. ‘You’re a wicked little minx. It’s not poor Mother’s fault that she’s sickly.’
    ‘Well, anyone would think Cookie broke her hip just to inconvenience
her
,’ Sarah said.
    ‘Really, Sarah, you should show more respect,’ Louise said, conscious of her big sister role, although she could not help inwardly agreeing.
    She turned away from the railing, pulling at Sarah’s arm.