Full Circle: Hidden Secrets

By Daphanie Carol Taylor

Maud and Sara Richards lived in a cotton mill town in the foothills of the Rossendale Valley Lancashire their parents wanted to give the two sisters the best opportunity they could have there parents had sacrificed a great deal to give them the best education possible.

After fulfilling their education Maud went into the world of teaching that had always been her dream she then meets a solicitor called John Howard she was in love with him, it was the perfect marriage or so she thought.

For Sara, it took her sometime to realise her potential as she was head over heels in love with Tommy Foster who was from the wrong side of the track with a bad reputation, however, she eventually joins the Royal Navy for adventure and excitement only to become entangled with a Dave Phillip who liked to be in control.

For the girls their journeys takes them into a sordid world of deceit and danger.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Feb 7, 2018
• ISBN: 9781546282082

Daphanie Carol Taylor

Daphanie Carol Taylor was born in Australia to English parents and lived in Melbourne and Sydney. Her parents came to live in England after World War II. Daphanie now lives in England with her own family. She visits Australia frequently to see her twin brother, Robert, who now lives in Perth.

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

As Maud lay in the hospital bed, drifting in and out of consciousness, the nurses rushed around like scolded peacocks. All this fuss amused her. What would Elle think? Maud said to herself.

Then the doctor appeared. He nudged Maud slightly. Maud opened her eyes and tried to focus. Well, Maud, we have been ordered to take diligent care of you by you-know-who, said the doctor with a smirk on his face.

Maud’s face beamed as much as it could, and she nodded in approval as the doctor made his way towards the door. Maud’s mind began to drift.

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Maud Richards was in her first year at a teacher-training college up in Newcastle. She was an excitable girl, full of expectations for what the future held for her, and she knew she wanted to teach. Her family was so proud of what she had already achieved because no one in their family had ever gone to college before. Most of the girls who came from a Lancashire town, as she did, were destined for the cotton mills, and most of the lads were destined for the coalfields or factories. It was natural to assume all of them would follow the family tradition, but not Maud or her younger sister, Sara. Their parents wanted them to have what they could not: a good education.

Fortunately for the two girls, their aunt Cissy and uncle Albert were able to help their mother, named Peggy, and father with a little bit of financial support. Their uncle Albert was a turf accountant. He had many a youth who worked as bookie runners, coming back with illegal betting slips from millworkers and miners. His line of work involved a lot of money—legally or illegally.

When school was out, Maud would help her uncle Albert in his betting shop, working out the calculations after races so that they had the winnings ready to pay out. The workers knew to the exact halfpenny how much each person should receive, and boy, was there hell to pay if they made a wrong calculation. Maud loved working for her uncle Albert. Sara, of course, was just a tad too young to help.

On Sundays, the whole family would visit Aunt Cissy, Maud, and Sara’s mother’s sister. Sara never wanted to go. She stayed too busy chasing boys. She still had two years left at school and did not have a clue about what she wanted to do when the time came to leave. Her head was always in the clouds as she drooled over famous film stars and read the Picture Post. Her mother and father used to get exasperated, with her and chastised her on many occasions. It made no difference to Sara. She would just switch off at her whim.

Usually before they visited Aunt Cissy, the girls and their mother would go to Sunday service at the local church, and afterwards, their mother would visit the cemetery and lay flowers. This used to upset the girls, as it reminded them of Teddy, their older brother, who died from tuberculosis. It took their mother and father years to get over his death—if they ever did. On a Saturday night, their father would have a skinful of ale at the local pub. Their mother was glad to have the peace and quiet, till he came home, of course. Then he would talk so loudly all the neighbours would hear him.

It was a ritual, really. Their mother, Peggy, would return from the Sunday morning church service and deliberately put the radio on so loud that the family could not hear themselves speak to this, their dad would eventually come downstairs with the fiercest hangover, looking the worse for wear. He would then wink at the two girls. This amused the girls so much they would giggle.

The two sisters were as different as chalk and cheese. Maud was the ambitious one. Sara was the opposite. She just wanted to have an enjoyable time, and never gave her future a thought. She was bright like Maud but could not wait to leave school. She was not remotely interested in college. Their mother took in sewing and ironing to support the family budget. Their father, who worked in the mines, was in poor health. At times, he was too sick to work because the coal dust had damaged his lungs. Maud and Sara helped as much as they could to give their mother a break.

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When Christmas was not far off, anticipation and excitement filled the air. Everyone busily bought what they could afford. Mrs Richards, like most of her neighbours, would pay into a Christmas club every week, giving what their family could to enable them to have some money for presents and turkey. Maud would also save up some of her money from Uncle Albert. She would buy a hamper for Christmas. Sara would try to contribute, which, was not that often, the arrangement was, that after Christmas, when Maud went back to college, Sara would help at the betting shop.

During this time, the girls would take themselves to Manchester. Maud would treat Sara to lunch, either at Lewis’s or Paulden’s, depending on how they felt. Sara noticed that Maud began to change in attitude and dress sense. She longed to buy the most expensive suits and perfume. Sara was different. She would go for cheap dresses and skirts that would attract the opposite sex, much to Maud’s displeasure. Sara called her sister an inverted snob.

Christmas and New Year’s Eve, flew by. It was back to college for Maud and back to school for Sara. Maud felt hesitant to leave because of their father’s worsening health. He had to accept that he was suffering from lung disease. He did not receive a good prognosis. It was a common ailment in the mining community.

I think I will stay and help out here. I can take my final exams in the summer instead of at Easter, said Maud to her mother, Peggy.

Peggy would have none of it. Our Sara’s here. She will help me with Father. You just pass your exams; then come back home to us as soon as you can.

Maud just looked at Sara. The last thing she wanted to do was return to the Rossendale Valley, even though it was a beautiful part of Lancashire in the foothills of the Pennine Chain and it had opened Maud’s eyes to another world. Maud now felt torn between duty and ambition. Her goal was to teach at a grammar school. She had stayed on another year to obtain a degree in maths.

It was with the help of her aunt Cissy and uncle Albert that she was able to carry on at college. They were very supportive and paid for all her extra tuition fees, so she could achieve her ambition. At times, Maud questioned their involvement in helping her with financial support, and quite often, she questioned her mother on the subject. But her mother dismissed this with something like Well, it is because they have no children, and left it at that.

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As Easter neared, Maud was sitting her finals. She had revised till she felt dizzy. She had put all feelings of home on hold. But she kept looking at a new, unopened letter on her kitchen table. She pondered whether to open the letter or leave it till after she had finished her finals. She decided to leave the letter till after her exams the next day. All thoughts of the letter went into her subconscious.

Of course, putting off opening the letter did not work. The morning after receiving it, Maud opened the letter. It read, Your father is seriously ill. Floods of tears flowed down her face, as she felt guilty for not being there to help. The letter also featured a footnote from Sara. It just read, Where the hell are you? We need you here! I cannot do this on my own! The message was fractious.

After reading it, Maud pulled herself together and made her way to the college hall to take her finals. She knew that she had to achieve her certificate. Her whole life depended on it. If she could set the world on fire and reach her goals, after all it had taken five years of her life.

Sara was furious with Maud. But her mother and aunt Cissy assured Sara that it was important for Maud to finish her exams. Then, she would come home to take on the responsibility of the main breadwinner. Sara was not so sure. She said to herself, why do they not see that Maud has changed? However, her aunt Cissy had noticed a profound change in Maud’s attitude, and she did wonder if their family had done the right thing in giving her a college education.

Currently, Sara was working on an agenda for herself. She had met young man called Tommy, who was a couple of years older than her. She was smitten with him and dreamed of him sweeping her off her feet. He was, from all accounts, a bit of a womaniser, but Sara had set her stall out. Tommy worked in a solicitor’s office a few streets down from the one where Sara worked. Sara sometimes had to take divorce documents to his office. He was a handsome bloke and knew it. Very confident in his ways, he had plenty of attitude.

Didn’t see you at the Pally on Saturday with the girls, Tommy told her when she came by his office.

No. My father is rather poorly. There is nothing doctors can do for him. We are waiting for my sister to arrive home from college, so we can both help Mother. I am hoping it will give me more free time, replied Sara.

Blimey. Sorry to hear that, Sara. My father croaked about two years ago. My mother still cries over him. Can’t think of why—he was a bastard to her, he said in a cold way.

I have to get back now, Tommy. See you around, Sara replied and left his office.

When Sara arrived back at her