Anna's Return Read online

  “How long has this been going on?” asked Janek.

  “I don’t know. I only realised yesterday.” Anna quickly explained about Major Dalrymple.

  “So why did you not come to me straight away? Why did you not tell me last night? I presume this is what you were upset about.”

  “I was confused,” said Anna. A tear rolled down her cheek. “Reg threatened me…”

  “He did what? Where the hell is he?” Janek made for the door.

  “No, not physically.” Anna put her hand on his arm to stop him. “Not physically. He threatened me with something that he knows about me.”

  “Anna if it’s about you being illegitimate, I already know that. You told me yourself.”

  Anna shook her head. “No, that’s not it. It’s the real reason I had to leave Silverton Hall. I ran away.”

  “I know that too.”

  “But you don’t know why.”

  “They made you unhappy.”

  “Yes, they did. But … the truth is my brother fell from a tree, and he said I’d told him he could climb it, so my stepmother thinks I tried to kill him. She threatened me with the police and… so I took some money that the butler, Mr. Stephens gave me and ran away with it. I did try to pay him back, but he can’t have received it, as he is still looking for me.”

  “The posters in Hyde Park,” said Janek, thoughtfully.

  Anna nodded miserably. “Reg said my stepmother is still talking about having me arrested for it all. He said that if I told you about the scam, he’d tell you about me. I was going to tell you today. It’s just that last night I was so confused. I’d kept the secret for so long…”

  Janek opened his mouth to speak, but was halted by a knock on the door. “Come in,” he said, abruptly.

  “Sorry to bother you, Mr. Dabrowski,” said Miss Johnson, “but the board of directors have arrived.”

  “I need a few more minutes,” said Janek.

  “Come on old boy,” said a voice from Miss Johnson’s room. Michael Carmichael came bounding into Janek’s office. “We’re waiting for the good news. Oh…” He looked at Anna. “Sorry, Mary did tell me you were dealing with this.”

  “I am,” said Janek.

  “Good. Good man. We don’t want Carmichaels to get a bad name for service now, do we?”

  Janek turned to Anna. “I’ll speak to you after lunch. But…”

  “Oh get it over with,” said Carmichael. “I’ll do it for you if you like. You’re dismissed girl. And don’t think you’re getting a reference either.”

  “Thank you, Mike. I said I’d deal with it.” Janek’s eyes flashed angrily. He turned back to Anna. “I will speak to you after lunch.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Because he did not want to discuss Anna’s predicament in front of Mike Carmichael, Janek had no choice but to follow his friend to the meeting room. As he did so, his lips were set in a tight line. Before they went into the room, Janek put his hand on Mike’s shoulder.

  “What is it, Janek?” said Mike.

  “Don’t you ever overrule me like that again,” Janek said.

  “I’m sorry…” Mike frowned, as if it was no big deal.

  “You should be. I don’t know what you tell your sister or the rest of your family, but it is not for you to decide who stays and who goes on the Carmichaels’ staff. And even if I were thinking of dismissing Anna, or anyone else for that matter, it would not be done in the callous way you just did it.”

  “Yeah, I know Janek.” Mike ran his fingers through is hair. “Sorry, but Mary was upset. And with every right to be, I think.”

  “Oh her skirt was ruined. The poor thing. But what is a ruined life against a ruined skirt, of which I’m sure your spoilt sister has many all in the same style? Mary has even less say in this hotel than you do. In fact she has no say at all, and I’ll thank you to remind her of that next time you speak to her.”

  “I’m still a majority shareholder, until the bank says otherwise,” said Mike.

  Janek shook his head. “They’ve already said otherwise this morning. The transfer of shares should have gone through. Has your broker not told you?”

  “No. No he didn’t. But I have been travelling.” Mike took a deep breath.

  “It was your decision to cash in,” said Janek.

  “I know that.”

  “So your dismissal of Miss Palmer is not valid. You had no right to do so. You knew the transfer would be going through soon anyway and you’d already decided to have no further say in the business.”

  “Right… okay. So I spoke out of turn. Look Janek, don’t you think you’re making rather a fool of yourself over this girl?”

  “It’s either that or make a fool of myself over your sister, and I know who I’d rather be a fool for. You think I don’t know that your sister wants a title? Well let her have one, but if she thinks this … foreigner … has fallen for her little trap, she has another think coming.”

  Janek did not tell Anna, but he had heard everything Mary said, due to the room door being open. He had seen Anna struggle to contain the cup, but he could not understand why she did not tell the truth about what Mary said. Did she not care if he was hurt? Not that he was, but he would like to think Anna wanted to protect him. It was at that moment he realised that was exactly what she was doing. Protecting him from being hurt by Mary’s words. She obviously believed that he was in love with Mary.

  He wished he could go and talk to Anna, but the board meeting was due to take place and he could not get out of it.

  He took a deep breath and entered the room, standing at the head of the table and composing his thoughts. He would speak to her after lunch and help her to sort things out. “Ladies and Gentleman,” he said. “I’m pleased to announce that from today Carmichaels hotel will officially change its name to Dabrowskis.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Anna looked down at the scrap of poster that she had kept since she found it two years previously. It had a Filey telephone number. She wondered if she should phone from London or go straight to Filey.

  Wanting to put as much distance between herself and London as possible, she caught a train to Filey. At least if she was there when she telephoned, Mr. Stephens might not refuse to see her. She wanted to put things straight with him at least, and maybe he would tell Mrs. Palmer. She had enough to pay him back the ten shillings. In fact she had enough to live for a month or two if necessary. She had saved all the money she earned whilst working for the Voronins and at the hotel, because there was very little she needed.

  She had not waited until Janek came back from lunch. Believing, with good cause, that she had been dismissed by Mr. Carmichael, she went straight to her room and packed a few things, before leaving the hotel by the back door. She did not want Reg or Florentyna to know that she had left in case it alerted them. Reg might contact her stepmother out of spite and tell her where Anna was. She had to get as far away as possible before they realised she had gone.

  Anna knew she could face Mr. Stephens, but not her stepmother. If she could just convince the old butler that she had not stolen his money, at least if she ever was arrested it would not form part of the charges.

  She slept part of the way to Filey, only waking when the train reached the Yorkshire moors. It was a beautiful place, and brought home to her how very little of Britain she had seen since arriving in nineteen-forty. Though not a prisoner at Silverton Hall, her circumstances had not allowed for her to go very far. She had never been invited on family holidays with her father, his new wife and her half-brother, and the staff did not get enough time off to go very far.

  When she worked for the Voronins, their trips out were severely limited by having to get permission from the Russian government. She did not know for certain, but she assumed that even the pretended day trip to the seaside had to be applied for in advance in order to keep up the pretence of them going. She often wondered about them. They had not written to her and she supposed that they were not allo
wed to. There had been something in the news about Mr. Voronin’s defection, but it had said their whereabouts were secret. She hoped they were safe and well somewhere. If they had been taken back to Russia, she felt sure there would have been something in the news about it.

  Now for the first time she was seeing Britain, and she loved it. She decided that even if she were not able to see Mr. Stephens she might stay in the area for a short while and explore. At least for a week or two until she had to find another job. That would be harder, given that she had no references and did not want Janek to know where she was. He had looked furious when she told him about Teddy’s accident. Was it because she had lied to him? Or was he as horrified as she always believed he would be?

  The train pulled into Filey station late in the evening. Anna decided it was too late to contact Mr. Stephens. He might not want to be disturbed. So she found her way to the nearest guesthouse. Not far from the station it was called Dunromin. She had to listen to a list of orders from the landlady, Mrs. Green, before being allowed to her room.

  “We’re short staffed,” said Mrs. Green. “My last girl walked out this morning, so we have to make do and mend. So no smoking in your room.”

  “I don’t smoke.”

  “No food, and your bedding won’t be changed daily. It’ll be changed every other day.”

  “I see. Well I doubt I’ll be staying that long,” said Anna.

  “That’s up to you,” Mrs. Green sniffed.

  Anna spent an uncomfortable night trying to sleep on sheets that had clearly not been aired properly. Everything in the bedroom had a greasy feel to it, and it did not smell much better.

  The following morning she went down to breakfast only to find chaos. Some of the guests were stood at the dining room door, complaining to Mrs. Green. “We paid for breakfast,” one man said, “so we expect to get it.”

  “You’ll get shown the door, that’s what you’ll get,” said Mrs. Green. “If you continue to talk to me like that. I’ve already explained to you that my girl has left me. I’m having to cook all on my own. So you’ll just have to wait.”

  “You’re the one who told us to be down for breakfast by eight o’clock or we’d miss it,” said the man. “The least you could do is have it ready.”

  “Can I help?” Anna asked.

  “Why?” said Mrs. Green. “What can you do?”

  “I’ve worked in a hotel and I’ve prepared breakfasts in another post. I’d be happy to help you in the kitchen, if you like.”

  “I suppose it won’t hurt,” said Mrs. Green.

  Anna turned to the guests. “We’re very sorry for the delay. If you’d like to wait, I’ll see to it that some tea and toast is brought to you whilst the main breakfast is prepared.”

  Mollified by Anna’s youth and charm, the guests went back to the dining room.

  “You’ve no rights to offer them that,” said Mrs. Green.

  “If I don’t, you’re going to lose them all, and they may even leave without paying.”

  That prevented Mrs. Green from complaining any further. It seemed to Anna that the lady cared more about the money she made than making sure the guests were happy.

  An hour later, all the guests had been fed, but Anna still had not eaten. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to have some breakfast now,” she said to Mrs. Green.

  “Don’t think you’re getting it or your room for free just because you’ve helped me,” she replied.

  “Of course not,” said Anna. “I don’t suppose you’ve eaten either. Can I get you something?”

  Mrs. Green nodded grudgingly and let Anna prepare her some breakfast. “What brings you to Filey then?” she asked, once they had eaten.

  “I’ve come to look for some friends,” said Anna.

  “Men friends?”

  “No, nothing like that,” said Anna. “I’m also looking for work.”

  “What do you do?”

  “As I said I worked in a hotel.” Anna avoided saying she was the housekeeper, as she feared that the terrifying Mrs. Green would think she was trying to be too grand. “Perhaps I could help you. Until you found someone better.”

  “Yes, perhaps you could. Doesn’t mean you’re getting your room for free though.”

  “I wouldn’t dream of it,” said Anna. It seemed odd as the live in staff at Carmichaels always had free board and lodge but she supposed things were done differently in small hotels.

  “Excuse me,” Anna said, as they washed the dishes a short time later. “Do you know of a Mr. and Mrs. Stephens who live in this area?”

  “No. Never heard of them.”

  “Oh. It’s just that they were friends of mine, a long time ago. We used to work at Silverton Hall together.”

  “Just a minute. Are you Anna?” Mrs. Green peered at her suspiciously. Anna had only signed her name as Miss A. Palmer.

  “Yes, that’s right. Do you know me?”

  “Yes, I’ve heard of you.” It seemed to Anna that Mrs. Green was a bit vicious when she spoke next. “I wouldn’t bother finding them if I were you. I’ve heard all about what you did. I’m Polly’s sister.”

  “Elsie?”

  “Mrs Green to you.”

  “Of course, I’m sorry.”

  “You’ll not get a welcome there,” said Mrs. Green. “Our Polly said that if she ever set eyes on you again, she’d have you arrested. Stole some money didn’t you? Harmed a child?”

  “No, that’s not true,” said Anna. “In fact I wanted to see Mr. Stephens to explain to him. Did he come here too?”

  Mrs. Green sniffed. “Don’t know.”

  “I thought you and Polly were going to run a guesthouse together.”

  “We had something of a falling out. Not really any of your business. You can work here, but I’ll be deducting your board and lodge out of your wages. I don’t really care what you did as long as you work hard. Stay off the street and they’ll not find you. I expect you to be up at six in the morning to start the breakfasts.”

  And just like that, Anna had a job. She felt she had very little choice but to do what Mrs. Green said, even though she did not like the lady very much. Elsie Green could not have been more different from the warm-hearted Polly Palmer.

  When Anna was finally allowed to go to her room, after Mrs. Green had kept her busy all day, she sat on the bed feeling miserable. It seemed that Polly was not so warm-hearted anymore. At least not towards her. She must have been very angry when Anna left.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  “It makes sense that she would be at Carmichaels,” said Teddy. “She knows Janek Dabrowski. He’s the young man who helped her to escape from Europe. I don’t know why I didn’t think of that before. She always used to talk about him coming back to get her.”

  Teddy and Izzy stood together looking up at Carmichaels hotel. “I wish I’d known that when I was here last time,” said Izzy. “It would have saved a lot of time.”

  “Oh don’t worry. You weren’t to know. Shall we go and speak to Mr. Dabrowski?”

  “Yes, let’s do. I do hope it was her, Teddy.”

  “Me too.”

  Both young people felt a little bit shy going into Carmichaels. Izzy was pleased to see that Teddy did not strut in as though he owned the place, in the way George had. Teddy had grown taller since the last time they met, and even though he was still only eighteen, medical school had matured him. He was already becoming a very handsome young man. Izzy felt a pang of regret. Because she had started to like him, she had convinced herself that he could not possibly still like her.

  The man in the desk was different to the one that Izzy had spoken to the last time.

  “I’m afraid Mr. Dabrowski is out of the country,” he explained.

  “Oh, I see,” said Teddy. “Can you tell me when he’s due to return?”

  “It’s hard to say. He spends a lot of time away nowadays.”

  “The last time I was here,” said Izzy, “I spoke to someone called Reg. About a girl called Anna S
ilverton.”

  “Reg no longer works here, Miss. And the only Anna we had working here was Anna Palmer.”

  “That’s her!” Teddy exclaimed. “That’s my sister. I just know it. You say ‘had’ working here. What do you mean?”

  “I’m afraid she left too.” The desk clerk lowered his voice. “There’s been something of a shake up. Four members of staff, dismissed. Miss Palmer, Reg the desk clerk, and two of the room service staff.”

  “Anna was dismissed? Why?”

  “Tipped a cup of coffee over one of our most important guests, I hear. That’s not all. Before Reg left, he told me that she’d tried to murder a child years ago. Might even have killed him for all I know,” the desk clerk added salaciously. “I know the kid’s mother is still looking to have her arrested.”

  “How do you know that?” asked Teddy.

  “She told Reg when he spoke to her. Next thing you know, Anna’s off like a shot. So there must be something in it.”

  “Actually there’s nothing in it,” said Teddy, clenching his hands into a fist. “The child she’s supposed to have hurt is perfectly well and standing before you now. She never laid a finger on me, nor did she ever do anything else to hurt me. Perhaps you can add that to your repertoire the next time you tell this ridiculous story.”

  Teddy stormed out of the hotel, closely followed by Izzy.

  “Teddy,” she said, catching up with him a hundred yards up the street. “I’m so sorry. I should have followed her and spoken to her. She’d know then that you bear her no malice.”

  “It’s not your fault, Izzy. I’d have probably hesitated too in your place. Poor Anna, thinking that the whole world is against her. Do you believe that rubbish about her tipping coffee over a guest?”

  “I don’t know, and even if she did, it’s not the worst thing anyone has ever done.”

  “I can’t believe Janek Dabrowski let her down the way he did. He was supposed to be her friend. Believe me, if I ever meet that man I shall give him a piece of my mind.”

  “Come on, Teddy, you don’t know the whole story.”