Free A Family Christmas by Glenice Crossland Page A

delirious, but at least she had made her peace with her daughter. The nurse went off to find the doctor. She didn’t bother hurrying. There was little anyone could do for Annie Gabbitas; septicaemia was a killer and the nurse was experienced enough to know that.
    As soon as Lucy arrived home she went upstairs to her mother’s room. She hadn’t been in here since the day she had bought the material for the new dresses. It seemed months away and Lucy couldn’t believe what a happy day that had been; even their Nellie leaving home hadn’t quite spoiled the excitement. Now it was as though the family would never be happy again. How could they be with a mam with only one leg? She wished Annie hadn’t told her about the money. It was as though she thought she was going to die. She opened the top drawer and shifted her mother’s few possessions; a bible handed down from Bill Gabbitas’s family; Annie’s hymn and prayer book; her Sunday gloves, soft kid with a tiny button at the wrist and a fur cuff; a flower, pressed in tissue paper, given to her by Bill on her coming of age. She found the sock, heavy with coins and even some notes, obviously accumulated over a number of years. She found a letter addressed to My Good and Loyal Friend, Enid Slater. Another envelope, To Annie and Bill from Kate. She didn’t count the money, but put it back where she had found it. It would be there when her mam came home. Lucy felt a chill run down her spine – if her mam came home.
    When Annie Gabbitas did come home it was to be prepared for her funeral. Once again the family was grateful that the insurance had been kept up to date, especially as there was an added cost of fifteen shillings this time for the conveying of the body home from Sheffield. The full cost of twenty pounds and five shillings could have been reduced by ten shillings if Ben had not insisted on a wreath. ‘It’ll be in memory of me father as well as me mother,’ he explained to the family. ‘And we’ll be ’aving tea for the mourners this time at the Co-op.’ Lucy wondered if this was the time to tell the family about the money in the drawer, but decided to wait until her mam was buried and resting in peace.
    Almost everyone on Top Row turned out to attend the funeral. Ben arranged for a carriage and two cars to follow the hearse. The Slaters, the Marshalls and Mr Brown joined the family mourners on the journey to Cragstone Church, where Reverend Goodman was to conduct the ceremony. Ben, who had kept his emotions under control as an example to the younger ones, finally gave in to his feelings at the sight of the packed church. The thought of all these friends, neighbours and relatives making a journey of several miles and probably losing a few hours’ work in order to do so brought a lump to his throat and tears to his eyes. Even people Ben hadn’t seen since his father died had turned up like a flurry of rooks in their black coats and hats.
    After the last of the mourners had left for home Lucy asked Mary and Jacob to stay. ‘You too, Nellie. I’ve got something to tell you.’ She mashed a pot of tea and asked them all to sit down.
    ‘You all know I was the last one to see me mam whilst she was still rational.’ Lucy couldn’t help showing off a bit with the new word she’d learned from the hospital doctor.
    She poured the tea and sat down at the table. ‘Well, she asked me to tell you how much she loved you all and apologised for being mean with the money and explained that she’d done it for a reason.’ Lucy paused to take a breath, then continued. ‘The reason being that she was worried about what would become of us after she’d gone. She said her leg had been worrying her even before me dad died.’
    ‘Why didn’t she tell us?’ Jane was in tears. ‘If I’d known how bad it was I’d ’ave gone to visit her.’
    ‘None of us knew, Jane and anyway, me mam understood why you didn’t go. She loved you, she told me she did, and she proved