Read Online The Camberwell Raid by Mary Jane Staples - Free Book Online
Authors: Mary Jane Staples
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a quiet, civilized fashion.
‘A girl.’
‘A girl. I see.’
‘And grown up lovely, believe me,’ said Mr Tooley, ‘but would you mind telling me what business it is of yours?’
‘I’m her father,’ said Major Armitage.
‘God save the perishing Navy, you’re what?’ said Mr Tooley.
Major Armitage unbuttoned his coat, slipped a hand into his jacket pocket and drew out a silver cigarette case. He opened it.
‘A cigarette, Mr Tooley?’ he said. Mr Tooley was more in need of a large brandy than a cigarette, but he took one. A match was struck, and its flame served to light the cigarettes for both men, when Major Armitage then said, ‘Yes, I’m the father of the girl, Mr Tooley. It happened, I’m afraid, at a time when London was full of people intoxicated by the fact that the country was at war with Germany. It was, of course, the intoxication of the self-deluded, and a large number of us lost our heads, including your daughter and me.’
‘Bloody hell, I know Milly lost hers,’ said Mr Tooley.
‘However,’ said Major Armitage, ‘you must believe me when I tell you I hadn’t the remotest idea I’d left your daughter pregnant. I was posted to France with my regiment before August was over, and have to admit I gave no thought to my brief time with her, which was just a matter of a few hours at an early wartime party. I’m sorry, of course, at the way things turned out for her.’
‘Hold on, mister, if you didn’t know you’d left Milly expecting, what’s brought you ’ere now?’ asked Mr Tooley.
‘A friend of mine, a lady who was giving parties daily in her house during the first days of the war, has only just acquainted me with details of the consequences. It was in her house, I’m afraid, that I—’
‘Seduced Milly,’ said Mr Tooley.
‘I’m not here to deny it,’ said Major Armitage.
‘What galled me as much as anything was that Milly didn’t even know your name,’ said Mr Tooley. ‘Or if she did, she couldn’t remember it. Not a nice thing, that, Mr Armitage, a father being told by ’is daughter that she was going to ’ave a baby by a man whose name had passed her by. But it’s over and done with now, so what’s brought you here? An idea you ought to say sorry to Milly?’
‘I imagine too many years have gone by for that idea to be much good,’ said Major Armitage. ‘Can you tell me what the girl is like?’
‘Rosie?’
‘That’s her name, Rosie?’
‘Baptised Rose, but always called Rosie,’ said Mr Tooley, ‘and I can tell you she’s a fine young lady. More, she’s clever too, she’s at Oxford.’
‘Oxford?’ Major Armitage looked astonished. ‘Oxford University?’
‘Sure as I’m sitting here in me own kitchen,’ said Mr Tooley. ‘Mr Armitage, it’s a regretful thing, y’know, a man by reason of being casual missing out the years he could’ve spent with a daughter like Rosie. Still, if you can be blamed for what you did with Milly, you can’t be blamed for what you didn’t know about.’
‘Mr Tooley, this is actually true, my daughter Rosie is an undergraduate at Oxford University?’
‘Some place there called Somerville,’ said Mr Tooley. ‘And if you don’t mind me saying so, I don’t see you as ’er father, just as a gent that played a casual part in the making of her as a babe. Nor would she see you as her father. She’s got a fam’ly, Mr Armitage, one that’s given ’er everything she’s ever wanted, mostly a special kind of affection.’
‘A family? Do you mean her mother and a man we could say was her stepfather?’ said Major Armitage.
‘Milly and ’er husband, you mean?’ said Mr Tooley. ‘Milly never wanted ’er. Understandable in a way, but no credit to her. No, Rosie was adopted years ago. Best thing of her life, that was.’ Mr Tooley looked at his kitchen clock. Twenty minutes to eight. ‘I suppose it was natural, you coming here out of interest, but you can take it from me you don’t ’ave to
‘A girl.’
‘A girl. I see.’
‘And grown up lovely, believe me,’ said Mr Tooley, ‘but would you mind telling me what business it is of yours?’
‘I’m her father,’ said Major Armitage.
‘God save the perishing Navy, you’re what?’ said Mr Tooley.
Major Armitage unbuttoned his coat, slipped a hand into his jacket pocket and drew out a silver cigarette case. He opened it.
‘A cigarette, Mr Tooley?’ he said. Mr Tooley was more in need of a large brandy than a cigarette, but he took one. A match was struck, and its flame served to light the cigarettes for both men, when Major Armitage then said, ‘Yes, I’m the father of the girl, Mr Tooley. It happened, I’m afraid, at a time when London was full of people intoxicated by the fact that the country was at war with Germany. It was, of course, the intoxication of the self-deluded, and a large number of us lost our heads, including your daughter and me.’
‘Bloody hell, I know Milly lost hers,’ said Mr Tooley.
‘However,’ said Major Armitage, ‘you must believe me when I tell you I hadn’t the remotest idea I’d left your daughter pregnant. I was posted to France with my regiment before August was over, and have to admit I gave no thought to my brief time with her, which was just a matter of a few hours at an early wartime party. I’m sorry, of course, at the way things turned out for her.’
‘Hold on, mister, if you didn’t know you’d left Milly expecting, what’s brought you ’ere now?’ asked Mr Tooley.
‘A friend of mine, a lady who was giving parties daily in her house during the first days of the war, has only just acquainted me with details of the consequences. It was in her house, I’m afraid, that I—’
‘Seduced Milly,’ said Mr Tooley.
‘I’m not here to deny it,’ said Major Armitage.
‘What galled me as much as anything was that Milly didn’t even know your name,’ said Mr Tooley. ‘Or if she did, she couldn’t remember it. Not a nice thing, that, Mr Armitage, a father being told by ’is daughter that she was going to ’ave a baby by a man whose name had passed her by. But it’s over and done with now, so what’s brought you here? An idea you ought to say sorry to Milly?’
‘I imagine too many years have gone by for that idea to be much good,’ said Major Armitage. ‘Can you tell me what the girl is like?’
‘Rosie?’
‘That’s her name, Rosie?’
‘Baptised Rose, but always called Rosie,’ said Mr Tooley, ‘and I can tell you she’s a fine young lady. More, she’s clever too, she’s at Oxford.’
‘Oxford?’ Major Armitage looked astonished. ‘Oxford University?’
‘Sure as I’m sitting here in me own kitchen,’ said Mr Tooley. ‘Mr Armitage, it’s a regretful thing, y’know, a man by reason of being casual missing out the years he could’ve spent with a daughter like Rosie. Still, if you can be blamed for what you did with Milly, you can’t be blamed for what you didn’t know about.’
‘Mr Tooley, this is actually true, my daughter Rosie is an undergraduate at Oxford University?’
‘Some place there called Somerville,’ said Mr Tooley. ‘And if you don’t mind me saying so, I don’t see you as ’er father, just as a gent that played a casual part in the making of her as a babe. Nor would she see you as her father. She’s got a fam’ly, Mr Armitage, one that’s given ’er everything she’s ever wanted, mostly a special kind of affection.’
‘A family? Do you mean her mother and a man we could say was her stepfather?’ said Major Armitage.
‘Milly and ’er husband, you mean?’ said Mr Tooley. ‘Milly never wanted ’er. Understandable in a way, but no credit to her. No, Rosie was adopted years ago. Best thing of her life, that was.’ Mr Tooley looked at his kitchen clock. Twenty minutes to eight. ‘I suppose it was natural, you coming here out of interest, but you can take it from me you don’t ’ave to
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