The Mersey Daughter (Empire Street #3)(55)

‘Only if you can spare them,’ said Rita. ‘I’d love to have them, they’re very popular.’ She took the tin and left, grimly thinking that there was less and less to sell in the shop, popular or not.

Ruby was waiting for her when she went through the door to the shop, which had been closed since teatime. This wasn’t unusual these days, but Rita was brought up short by the sight of all the account books spread over the counter. She set down the tin and stared at them.

‘What are you doing, Ruby?’ She couldn’t believe that the young woman would be able to make any sense of them. They were complicated, with figures all over the place; she’d struggled to understand the system herself when she’d first encountered it.

Ruby looked up, her expression solemn. ‘There you are, Rita.’ She paused, as if summoning her nerve to continue. ‘Rita – the shop isn’t making enough money, is it?’

Rita gasped in surprise. ‘Whatever makes you say that, Ruby? We’re fine, we’re absolutely fine,’ she hurried to reassure her.

Ruby shook her head. ‘We aren’t, Rita. Look at these sums. We’re losing money and it’s all draining away. You should have said something before.’

Rita stared at her in amazement. ‘But how can you tell, Ruby? Those sums are very difficult. I’ve been doing them for ages now and I still get confused. You shouldn’t worry, you’ve probably not understood, but I can’t say I blame you.’ She couldn’t bear to think that Ruby was worried. The young woman needed protecting from a world that had treated her cruelly and in which she struggled to cope – the last thing she needed was to face the reality of the business’s finances.

Ruby stood her ground. ‘You don’t have to pretend to me, Rita. I don’t want you to pretend any more. It’s making you worried, isn’t it? But I can help.’

‘Ruby, Ruby.’ Rita felt despair wash over her. It was so kind of the girl to offer, but she could have no idea of the complexities of running the place. It would be far, far beyond her limited understanding of how the world worked. ‘You don’t know what you’re saying. It’s generous of you to say it. But really, don’t worry.’

Ruby came around the counter and put her hand on Rita’s arm. Her large pale eyes were steady and determined. ‘I told you ages ago, Rita. I can see patterns. It’s not a lie.’

‘No, no, I never thought you were a liar,’ Rita said hastily. ‘That’s not what I meant. But this isn’t like playing snap or something like that.’

‘It’s patterns in numbers,’ Ruby insisted. ‘I can see them, I don’t know how. I can see them in these books. I can help. You must trust me, Rita. Don’t you trust me?’

‘Yes, but …’

‘See here,’ said Ruby. ‘This is where you have paid extra all summer, isn’t it? You pay a bit more money to this person, and they are meant to put it towards the big sum you owe.’

Rita stared in astonishment. It was the only way she’d been able to keep supplies coming in, even though it was chipping away at what slender reserves she had. She’d had to include those figures in the overall totals, but how anyone other than herself could have noticed it was beyond her. ‘Well done,’ she breathed. ‘Yes, that is what those numbers mean.’

Ruby looked at her sadly. ‘But here is what you still owe,’ she said. ‘It isn’t changing like it should. If you meant to make the big sum smaller, it isn’t working.’

Rita stared even harder. That was a fact she hadn’t wanted to face. It had been eating away at her, but as she hadn’t known what else to do, she was carrying on as if all was going to plan. How come Ruby had spotted it?

‘What do you suggest, then?’ she asked, scarcely able to believe she was saying this to Ruby of all people. Jack, yes – he was clever with numbers. Or Danny; everyone knew that he’d got his new job because he was smarter than anyone realised. But she had far too much pride to ask them, even if Jack were here or Danny had the time. She would be too ashamed to admit she had failed to keep the shop in profit.

‘I think I should take these books and read them very carefully,’ said Ruby slowly. ‘I don’t want to talk to the people you owe, I don’t think that would do any good. But if I check all the sums, then I could tell you what you could manage to pay to make a proper difference. I could do that. That might help, mightn’t it?’

Rita gazed at the young woman almost as if she were a stranger. This unexpected new turn of events was unlike anything she could have predicted. Ruby certainly didn’t talk like an accountant, and her huge eyes made her look like a child as usual; but she might be on to something. Rita felt a little flutter of something she hadn’t known for a long time: hope. Well, why not give Ruby a chance? It couldn’t do any harm, and it might just help them all turn the corner.

‘Ruby, thank you,’ she said, giving the strange young woman a hug. ‘Thank you. I would love it if you could help.’





CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE


Frank stood before his commanding officer, wondering what the problem was this time. It was what he loved about his job and what he dreaded – never knowing what was going to come next. The pressures they were all under not to make a single mistake in their vital job of co-ordinating the defence of the Western Approaches were draining; it was their collective responsibility to ensure the supply routes from North America stayed open, and to outwit the many U-boats whose job it was to sink those all-important cargo ships. The strategic value of the North Atlantic could not be overestimated; Britain completely relied on it for important supplies. Although Frank did his utmost to maintain the necessary highest standards, he could never be completely sure that one tiny error hadn’t crept through. Was this what the summons was about?