Panic gripped her and it was all the more terrifying because she knew that nothing she said or did could change things now. Her house had always been well ordered and she was quietly proud of this. No matter what occurred outside its four walls – births, deaths, short-time or strikes – inside all was spick and span and her routine never varied. Monday was wash day. Tuesday she ironed even if Monday had been a wet day which had necessitated all the washing hanging on the lines above their heads in the kitchen in order to get it dry in time. Wednesday she cleaned the house from top to bottom, and Thursday she did the windows inside and outside and scoured and bleached the privy in the yard. Friday she shopped and whitened the front doorstep and blackleaded the range, and on Saturday she did her big bake. The birth of her four children had not been allowed to impact on this practice; neither had the death of her two sons or George returning from the war an invalid. But now the front room was topsy-turvy and in disarray, and the kitchen was a mess; Adam’s parents were coming round shortly and normally that would have been incentive enough for her to be putting things to rights, no matter what was going on. But she didn’t care.

She raised her head, her heart beating so rapidly it made her head swim. No, she didn’t care; all the things that were normally so important had ceased to be of significance and this frightened her most of all.

To fight the panic she forced herself to stand up, saying to no one in particular, ‘I’ll make a fresh pot of tea,’ as she walked over to the range. Her life had fallen apart and her family was going to be the talk of the street in the weeks and months ahead, and nothing she could do would change any of it.

Chapter Five

‘This is the room. It’s two bob a week, being the larger bedroom, an’ the rent’s paid a week in advance. I don’t hold with no gentlemen callers or “friends” –’ this was said with a meaningful sniff – ‘and I lock the front door prompt at eleven o’clock. I only take lady lodgers here, it’s a respectable house, all right? I don’t provide no meals but you’ve the fire there to do a bit of cookin’ if you’ve a mind.’