Chapters (73)
- Cover
- Dedication
- PART ONE
- ONE
- TWO
- THREE
- FOUR
- FIVE
- SIX
- SEVEN
- EIGHT
- NINE
- TEN
- ELEVEN
- PART TWO
- TWELVE
- THIRTEEN
- FOURTEEN
- FIFTEEN
- SIXTEEN
- SEVENTEEN
- EIGHTEEN
- NINETEEN
- TWENTY
- TWENTY-ONE
- TWENTY-TWO
- TWENTY-THREE
- TWENTY-FOUR
- TWENTY-FIVE
- TWENTY-SIX
- TWENTY-SEVEN
- TWENTY-EIGHT
- TWENTY-NINE
- THIRTY
- THIRTY-ONE
- THIRTY-TWO
- PART THREE
- THIRTY-THREE
- THIRTY-FOUR
- THIRTY-FIVE
- THIRTY-SIX
- THIRTY-SEVEN
- THIRTY-EIGHT
- THIRTY-NINE
- FORTY
- FORTY-ONE
- FORTY-TWO
- FORTY-THREE
- FORTY-FOUR
- PART FOUR
- FORTY-FIVE
- FORTY-SIX
- FORTY-SEVEN
- FORTY-EIGHT
- FORTY-NINE
- FIFTY
- FIFTY-ONE
- FIFTY-TWO
- FIFTY-THREE
- PART FIVE
- FIFTY-FOUR
- FIFTY-FIVE
- FIFTY-SIX
- FIFTY-SEVEN
- FIFTY-EIGHT
- FIFTY-NINE
- SIXTY
- SIXTY-ONE
- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
- Keep Reading …
- About the Author
- Also by Barbara Taylor Bradford
- About the Publisher
‘Can you go and check for me? Please.’ As he spoke he glanced around again, and frantically, as before.
‘Yes. But is there something wrong?’
‘Not exactly. I went to her house to pick her up, and her mother said she’d already gone to meet me here. But our arrangement was to come together.’
‘I see. Back in a tick,’ Sarah said, and went in the direction of the ladies’ room.
Alf Smithson took a deep breath and shook his head, then said in a quieter voice, ‘Sorry, mates. I got worried when Gwen had left before I arrived. We’d had a bit of a tiff last night.’
Blackie nodded. ‘We understand, don’t we, Finn?’
Finn nodded. ‘Don’t worry about the tiff. Most girls get over ’em real fast.’
‘I hope so,’ Alf said.
Sarah returned, shaking her head as she came back to the group. ‘The room is empty, Alf.’
‘Oh my God, where can she be? Are you sure you saw her, Sarah?’
‘Yes. We said hello, and then she went to get a lemonade at the bar over there, and sat across the room.’
‘Wait a minute,’ Finn said swiftly. ‘I saw her leaving a while ago. Out of the corner of my eye. I was looking around, thinking how empty this place was.’
‘She must’ve left!’ Sarah exclaimed.
‘Certainly I don’t see her,’ Alf cried. ‘I must go and look for her. I don’t know where she might be, but I’ll go through all the streets. Looking.’
‘We’ll come with ye, Alf,’ Blackie said in a strong voice. ‘And ye will, won’t ye?’ He looked pointedly at Finn.
‘I will, mate. Try and stop me.’
‘I’m coming too,’ Sarah told them. ‘But just one question. Could she have gone home?’
‘No, I just left there. I told you, I spoke to her mother,’ Alf answered, the anxiety in his tone apparent, his nervousness visible.
‘Let’s be off, chaps,’ Blackie said, ushering Sarah across the dance floor. The other two followed, all of them going out into the warm June night, wondering where to go first.
SEVENTEEN
By the time the four of them had walked up Branch Road, onto Town Street and headed towards the Barley Corn, Blackie suddenly stopped.
Taking hold of Alf’s arm, he asked, ‘Why are we doing this? Look around, Town Street is empty.’
Alf nodded in agreement, and replied, ‘Better to go into the side streets, don’t yer think?’
Blackie shook his head. ‘No. Why would Gwen be roaming around at night? She must have gone home, sure and she did, where else?’
‘I was just there, talking to her mam, and Gwen wasn’t in the house. I know that for a fact, Blackie!’ Alf exclaimed.