‘Can I help you?’ she asked the woman.
‘Na. But you can ’elp me.’ Tommy’s face peered round from behind the woman.
‘Tommy! How are you?’
A clean Tommy stepped out into the room. He had dark rings under his eyes, and still looked underfed, but his smile hadn’t altered. ‘Betta.’
‘Better? Have you been ill?’
Ruby looked to the woman, who’d yet to speak.
‘It appears Tommy has not been well for some months. He claims you know him, and I assume you are Miss Shadwell – Ruby.’ The woman’s voice was clear and educated, and Ruby doubted they were related.
‘I am, and I do. I’ve not seen him for some time, not since his uncle Earl took him back to London.’
Something in Tommy’s face made Ruby stop talking. Fear. It was definitely fear.
‘Evelyn Pearce.’ The woman held out her hand, and Ruby shook it.
‘Is there an adult I can speak with, with regard to this young man?’
‘I’m sorry; my guardians are out of town. Can I offer you a cup of tea, and a seat? I assume you’ve travelled from London?’ Ruby beckoned her to follow.
‘Leamington Spa, actually. A tea would be most welcome, thank you.’ The woman followed on into the quiet community room.
‘Blimey, where’s the crowd?’ Tommy asked.
‘A lot of the ladies have received their call-up papers, Tommy. Those who haven’t, have got jobs in the factories to cover the lack of men. Working flat-out, day and night. I only open this part two days a week now, for the knitters and fundraisers.’
She placed a cup and saucer in front of the woman, and sat down at the table. Tommy sat in one corner with a glass of milk and Ruby hunted out his treasured plane.
‘I kept it back, in case you came to visit,’ Ruby said as he yelled his delight at seeing it again. ‘Keep the noise down while we talk.’
‘I’m here to ask your guardian – your grandfather, as I understand it from Tommy, if they would consider giving him a temporary home. We have no room; the orphanage is full to overflowing, as you can imagine.’ The woman gave an exaggerated sigh. ‘It would be until we can find a permanent place for him within one of the evacuee communities.’
Tommy stopped roaring out aeroplane noises, and Ruby replaced her cup into its saucer.
‘I’m sorry … a home? His mother, uncle … Are they –’ Not wishing ill of the dead, Ruby truly hoped something dreadful had happened to Earl. She found it hard to forgive him for many reasons.
She watched as Tommy over-exaggerated his concentration on the plane.
‘Tommy is an orphan, Miss Shadwell. Sadly, the man claiming to be his uncle is in fact a rogue. An abuser. He is no relation. Tommy ran away from an orphanage when he was barely five. Originally from London, he fell into the clutches of a crook, and the man kept him on a tight leash in Leamington Spa. He taught Tommy to steal and then sell the items on.’
‘Oh, Tommy, you should have trusted us enough to say! You must have been petrified. I can’t believe you were so close, and not in London. I thought you’d gone back there with Earl, but it all makes sense now.’
Tommy looked up at her, and the love she felt for him came rushing back. Tommy was more than a child she wanted to watch over; he was a little boy sent to comfort her, and she to comfort him. Ruby went to him and knelt down beside him, stroking his head.
‘Na. I didn’t know ’oo ta trust. You wus kind, but ’e’d been kind at the start.’
Ruffling his hair, Ruby rose to her feet. She went back to the table. ‘I know we’ll give him a roof over his head; I own the house. My guardians love Tommy as much as I do, but I’m worried about the man he called his uncle. You gave the impression he is still around, and we can’t have him making life any more difficult than it already is – you understand?’
Evelyn Pearce pulled out papers from her attaché case. ‘He was arrested and is behind bars, and will be for a very long time. Tommy wasn’t the only child he had locked away in his house. They were found when a bomb hit the house next door and it exposed a wall.’
‘Locked away?’
‘Like animals, Miss Shadwell. Animals.’
Tommy fell silent, and Ruby put her arms around him.
‘Oh, Tommy. You’re safe now. We’ll look after you, and Auntie B will spoil you rotten. You try stopping her. I take it they are the papers for them to sign.’ Ruby pointed at the small pile in front of Evelyn Pearce.
‘Yes, he has a new ration book allocated, and it will come to my office. I’ll need your address for my records. When is your guardian due back?’
Ruby scribbled it down. ‘Early evening. I’ve two guardians, and neither one will hesitate to sign. You can leave the papers with me, and we will put them in the post tomorrow. We can manage without his ration book for a few days, but any longer we might have to fetch it from you. Tommy can stay for as long as he needs.’
Evelyn Pearce looked at Tommy, showing she’d like a private word with Ruby.
‘Tommy, go and run with your plane inside the shop. No going out of the door, though.’
Once the noise of whatever aeroplane Tommy was pretending to be reached a loud enough level, Evelyn Pearce rose to her feet. ‘Tommy’s abuser is not able to get to the child, and I think the company of someone such as yourself will be good for him. He’s possibly still light-fingered, as it’s become a daily habit, so please be aware.’
‘Oh, I know Tommy well enough, Mrs Pearce. He’ll be fine with us. Fred, although he’s not my grandfather, he’s taken on that role, will do the same for Tommy while he stays. He takes no nonsense. He’s put me straight on a few things. And Beatty, she’s a natural mother hen. They’ve both got hearts big enough for all the children in need,’ Ruby said, and as she spoke her words resonated with her. Fred and Beatty only ever looked out for her, and she reminded herself to show a little more respect towards the fears they showed whenever she shared her impulsive ideas. A trip to Yorkshire could wait.
‘I’ll leave him in your care. Unfortunately, I have nothing to hand over other than the child. We’ve had a frantic twenty-four hours, and I forgot his wash bag.’
With a shake of her head, Ruby walked the woman to the door. ‘As you can see from the shop, I can find him clothing. And we can buy what he needs on the way home. He’ll not go without.’
Closing the door behind Evelyn Pearce, Ruby looked at Tommy, running around the room. ‘Well, this a surprise.’
Tommy stopped running and looked over at her. ‘I’m sorry we stole from you.’ His voice quivered.
Ruby waved a dismissive hand. ‘I’m more than sorry we didn’t know the truth. I need you to promise you will always tell the truth from now on. And if you are scared or worried, you tell me, Fred or Beatty. You hear?’
‘I hear.’
‘Signed and done,’ Fred said, and handed the papers to Ruby.
‘The lad’s asleep. Tomorrow we’ll have a move around and he can share Fred’s room. Are you sure you’ll be all right down here?’ Beatty addressed Ruby. ‘I’ve set him out fresh clothes for the morning,’ she said as she walked through with Tommy’s laundry.