The Mersey Daughter (Empire Street #3)(97)

‘Oh Jack, I can’t thank you enough.’ Rita gazed at him with gratitude added to her deep love for this wonderful man. He’d done his best to dress the wound on her leg, but had realised it was too serious for him to manage alone. So he’d borrowed Pop’s horse and cart and taken her to hospital that way. She’d protested that he could just have left her at the VAD nursing station where Sarah could have looked at it, under Rita’s own instructions, but Jack would have none of it. He wanted a fully qualified, experienced doctor to see to it, and she was ultimately glad he had insisted, as the main cut was very deep and the others also continued to bleed. She’d had three separate sets of stitches in the end, and had been given the strictest instructions to rest the leg for several days to prevent any of the injuries opening up again. They’d also done what they could for the angry red mark on her face where Charlie had slapped her so hard, although she knew it would turn into a bruise that would last for ages. She’d had enough of them before from him – just not as obvious and prominent.

Now she was propped up on one of the comfier chairs in what Winnie used to call the breakfast room, a stool next to it with her leg resting on an old cushion and a towel under it for extra padding. It didn’t feel too bad. She thought she had come off lightly, compared to what might have happened if the military police hadn’t arrived when they did. At least the ride to and from the hospital had given her a chance to explain to Jack what had gone on, and he had filled in some of the details he’d heard from Ruby.

Ruby was now over at Dolly and Pop’s, something she would never have dared to do only a few weeks ago, but the events of the day had given her courage. Besides, Violet was there, and she trusted her, along with little Georgie, who was a constant source of delight to her. Dolly had wisely surmised that Rita needed some time alone with Jack, and had asked Ruby to stay on for a few hours, ‘to help look after Georgie’, but really to make sure Rita had her privacy. Dolly wasn’t daft; despite Rita’s efforts to play down her feelings for the young man, Dolly could tell something was up. It was the way her eldest daughter’s face lit up at the very mention of him. Dolly had very strict views on the sanctity of marriage and knew her daughter was deeply moral – but if anyone deserved some time alone with the man she so clearly adored and who adored her right back, it was Rita.

‘You don’t have to thank me,’ said Jack seriously. He sat in the chair next to hers and took her hand. ‘Just being with you is thanks enough. Knowing what danger you were in has made me realise just how easily I could have lost you, and I can’t even begin to think about what would have happened then. You’re the most important person in my world, Rita. I’d do anything for you, taking you on a short ride to the hospital and back is nothing. I’d walk across burning coals.’

‘Please don’t do that.’ Rita’s eyes were bright with love. ‘You’re the most important person to me too – well, along with Michael and Megan of course.’ She stopped, reminded of how Charlie was going to kill her son. But now he could do no more harm. ‘I don’t know what I’d do without you. When your leave got cancelled it felt like the end of the world. I’d been looking forward to seeing you so much. It hurt more than my leg did this morning. It was all I’d been thinking about. It’s like a miracle, you turning up when you did.’

‘Just as well I did,’ he said seriously, squeezing her hand.

‘But imagine Ruby doing what she did. She’s scared stiff of the police or anyone in authority, but she somehow got herself out of the house on those crutches without me knowing anything about it, and then convinced the ARP warden that something bad was about to take place. I’ve completely underestimated her.’

‘So you didn’t think she knew what she was talking about?’

Rita shook her head. ‘It wasn’t so much I didn’t believe her, it was more that I thought it couldn’t be anything terrible. So a bit of stock was going missing. I was angry about it, but after everything that’s happened recently, the air raid, Elliott dying, it was more of an annoying puzzle. I suppose I imagined it was just Winnie dabbling in the black market again. It was different for Ruby, she didn’t usually leave the house, so she must have overheard more than she’d let on. I knew she’d worked out the stock would probably be taken today – but not that Winnie had been giving food to Charlie, or that he was so desperate. It means Ruby was braver than ever as she was terrified of him. I don’t know what he did to her before we brought her back from Southport, but she used to go white if anyone said his name. So to think she ran the risk of bumping into him – that took a lot of courage.’

‘It did.’ Jack stroked her hand gently. ‘So did trying to help Winnie and Charlie when the building collapsed. I don’t think I’d have been so selfless, Rita. I’d have left them to it, if they’d done to me what they did to you. But you’re so kind, you put yourself at risk to help your enemies.’

Rita looked gravely at him. ‘No you wouldn’t. You’d have tried to help, the same as I did – that’s the sort of person you are. Besides, I didn’t really think I’d be at risk. I was just doing what any nurse would have done. It wasn’t courage or kindness, it was what we are trained to do – our duty. And it turned out I couldn’t help anyway.’ She gave a deep sigh, recalling the scene: Winnie’s lifeless arm hanging down, covered in dust. The stupid horror of it. The terrible waste of lives needlessly lost.