A Cuckoo in Candle Lane Read Online Free

don’t want no charity.’
    Mary felt her temper flare. ‘Look here, this is not charity. Surely I can buy my niece a present if I want to. After all, she’s the only one I’ve got.’
    Sally rushed across the room, the coat clutched protectively to her chest. ‘Oh please, Mum,’ she begged. ‘Please let me keep it.’
    ‘For Gawd’s sake, Ruth, what’s the matter with you?’ Sadie cried. ‘You ain’t too proud to dress the kid in secondhand gear that makes her look like a bleedin’ ragamuffin.’
    Ignoring her mum, Ruth glared at Mary, eyes blazing. ‘How many times ’ave I told you not to buy us things. You just don’t listen.’
    ‘But it’s only a coat – why are you so angry?’ Mary asked in genuine puzzlement, watching as her sister floundered for a reply.
    All eyes were on Ruth as she sat with her head lowered, their breath held as they waited for her to answer. She finally raised her eyes, and with tight lips, said, ‘Oh, all right then, she can ’ave it.’
    Sally yelped happily and rushed back across the room. ‘Thanks, Auntie Mary! Thanks for buying it for me,’ she cried.
    ‘It’s my pleasure, dear. Now come on, let’s see what it looks like on you.’
    Smiling she put the coat on, raised the fur-edged hood and began to pose comically, turning this way and that, her chin held high.
    Mary thought she looked beautiful. The fit was perfect and the colour enhanced her lovely green eyes. Gone was the untidy urchin who had arrived that morning. How she envied Ruth her daughter. Look at her, she thought, she’s like a colt, all arms and legs, and that beautiful hair. ‘You look very nice, Sally,’ she said.
    ‘My, she looks a proper treat,’ Sadie grinned.
    ‘There’s something else in the bag that you’ve missed,’ Mary told her.
    Eagerly opening the bag again, Sally pulled out a matching fur muff, a cord attached to hang around her neck. ‘Oh, Auntie Mary,’ she whispered.
    ‘Come on, get that coat off now, and put yer old one on,’ Ruth ordered. ‘We’re going in a minute.’
    ‘But you haven’t had a cup of tea yet,’ Mary protested.
    ‘I know,’ her sister said belligerently. ‘But it’s late and Ken will be home soon.’ Picking up her shopping bags, she announced, ‘Right, we’re off now. See you next week, Mum.’
    Sally ran across the room, the bag holding her carefully folded coat clutched tightly in her hand. ‘Bye, Auntie Mary. Bye, Gran,’ she said, giving them both a quick hug.
    Mary watched her sister as she marched stiffly from the room. ‘Well, that’s nice isn’t it,’ she said indignantly, when she heard the front door bang. ‘All I did was buy Sally a new coat, and Ruth didn’t even have the decency to thank me for it.’
    ‘Now, don’t get all huffy,’ Sadie placated. ‘There’s more to Ruth’s behaviour than meets the eye, and I ain’t too happy about that cut on her mouth neither.’
    ‘That’s no excuse for being rude, Mum,’ Mary retorted, lifting the tea tray. ‘Trust you to stick up for her.’
    ‘For crying out loud, Mary, that girl’s got a hard life compared to you. Can’t you show a bit of compassion for once?’
    She stared coldly at her mother, trying to swallow her anger and biting back a retort. Christ, Mum, she thought, you have no idea how awful my marriage is, and if you did, would you show the same concern for me?

Chapter Three
     
    T he van rumbled slowly down the street and Elsie Jones, sitting in the passenger seat, stared at the dingy area with dismay. It was awful! There was nothing of beauty in these streets of mean terraced houses. No tree-lined avenues, no green fields, just scrubby grass struggling to survive amongst the rubble of old bomb-sites.
    How could she live here after the lovely leafiness of Wimbledon? Oh Bert, she thought, glancing at her husband in the driving seat, what have you brought us to?
    ‘Here we are, love,’ he said cheerfully, turning into a narrow lane and pulling into the