table before turning to face his father.
‘I said no and I meant it,’ he shouted. Pulling his wage packet out of his trouser pocket he shoved it into his mother’s hands. ‘This is for you, Mam. My first week’s wages and I want you to have them, not him.’
Roughly, Michael Quinn pushed his son to one side and tried to snatch the pay packet from his wife’s hand.
‘Give it here, woman! Any money that comes into this house is mine,’ he growled angrily.
Annie shook her head. ‘I don’t think so. Our Eddy has worked all week to earn this money so he has a right to say what he wants to do with it.’
Mike Quinn’s vivid blue eyes glinted nastily. With a deep growl he lunged towards her, intent on grabbing the wage packet. When she still resisted he slapped her across the face so hard that she was sent reeling backwards.
Pandemonium reigned. Vera came into the room and found Benny howling with fright in the armchair. Her mother was half lying on the floor, sobbing uncontrollably. One hand was held to the rapidly swelling red weal on her face, and the other was still tightly clutching Eddy’s wage packet. Mike was standing over her, looking livid.
As he reached out again to snatch at the wage packet Eddy darted into the shop and picked up a hammer lying on the workbench. As he raised it threateningly, Vera screamed a warning, and Mike swung round in time to catch hold of Eddy’s arm. He twisted it savagely until Eddy, sobbing with pain, was forced to drop the hammer.
Then, without a word, Mike Quinn walked back into his shop slamming the door so hard that the whole building shook.
Chapter Seven
The fight over Eddy’s wages caused such bad feeling between him and his father that they didn’t speak to each other for several months. This resulted in tension between everyone else in the family all over Christmas, except Benny, as he was too young to understand what was happening.
Vera made it her New Year resolution to get them to talk to each other again, but it was no good, Eddy sulked and Michael scowled.
‘Leave them alone, luv,’ Annie warned her. ‘You’ll only set them at each other’s throats otherwise. Give it time and they’ll both simmer down and forget about it.’
Vera sighed. ‘I suppose you’re right, Mam. Anyway, the important thing is that you now get Eddy’s wages!’
Her mother gave a wry smile. ‘Yes, but your dad’s cut my housekeeping back. He doesn’t think he needs to give me as much now that Eddy’s working and turning up some money each week.’
Vera didn’t know what to say. In silence she hugged her mam, vowing to herself that when she started work in a few years’ time she wouldn’t tell her dad how much she earned. What was more, she’d also make sure that her mam got every penny that was in her wage packet.
It had been tough luck on all of them that her dad had twigged who it was that the boss at Sunbury’s had been talking about when he’d been in the pub.
With extra money in his pocket, Michael Quinn spent even more time out drinking. Always worried about what mood he would be in when he came home, Annie tried to make sure that Vera and Eddy, as well as little Benny, were safely in bed.
Lying upstairs in the dark, afraid to light a candle in case it might enrage their father, Vera would listen in dismay as the rows went on in the room below. More often than not there would be the sounds of a scuffle, of furniture overturning, or a hastily suppressed scream from her mother.
Sometimes the noise would waken Benny, so Vera would tiptoe to his cot and try to quieten him before their father heard him crying. Quite often the only way she could comfort him was to take him back into her own bed.
Frequently she found Eddy crouched on the landing, listening to what was going on downstairs. She would warn him that if he went down and tried to interfere their mam would only get more of a beating.
‘I’d sooner he was hitting me than her.’
‘Don’t tempt
‘I said no and I meant it,’ he shouted. Pulling his wage packet out of his trouser pocket he shoved it into his mother’s hands. ‘This is for you, Mam. My first week’s wages and I want you to have them, not him.’
Roughly, Michael Quinn pushed his son to one side and tried to snatch the pay packet from his wife’s hand.
‘Give it here, woman! Any money that comes into this house is mine,’ he growled angrily.
Annie shook her head. ‘I don’t think so. Our Eddy has worked all week to earn this money so he has a right to say what he wants to do with it.’
Mike Quinn’s vivid blue eyes glinted nastily. With a deep growl he lunged towards her, intent on grabbing the wage packet. When she still resisted he slapped her across the face so hard that she was sent reeling backwards.
Pandemonium reigned. Vera came into the room and found Benny howling with fright in the armchair. Her mother was half lying on the floor, sobbing uncontrollably. One hand was held to the rapidly swelling red weal on her face, and the other was still tightly clutching Eddy’s wage packet. Mike was standing over her, looking livid.
As he reached out again to snatch at the wage packet Eddy darted into the shop and picked up a hammer lying on the workbench. As he raised it threateningly, Vera screamed a warning, and Mike swung round in time to catch hold of Eddy’s arm. He twisted it savagely until Eddy, sobbing with pain, was forced to drop the hammer.
Then, without a word, Mike Quinn walked back into his shop slamming the door so hard that the whole building shook.
Chapter Seven
The fight over Eddy’s wages caused such bad feeling between him and his father that they didn’t speak to each other for several months. This resulted in tension between everyone else in the family all over Christmas, except Benny, as he was too young to understand what was happening.
Vera made it her New Year resolution to get them to talk to each other again, but it was no good, Eddy sulked and Michael scowled.
‘Leave them alone, luv,’ Annie warned her. ‘You’ll only set them at each other’s throats otherwise. Give it time and they’ll both simmer down and forget about it.’
Vera sighed. ‘I suppose you’re right, Mam. Anyway, the important thing is that you now get Eddy’s wages!’
Her mother gave a wry smile. ‘Yes, but your dad’s cut my housekeeping back. He doesn’t think he needs to give me as much now that Eddy’s working and turning up some money each week.’
Vera didn’t know what to say. In silence she hugged her mam, vowing to herself that when she started work in a few years’ time she wouldn’t tell her dad how much she earned. What was more, she’d also make sure that her mam got every penny that was in her wage packet.
It had been tough luck on all of them that her dad had twigged who it was that the boss at Sunbury’s had been talking about when he’d been in the pub.
With extra money in his pocket, Michael Quinn spent even more time out drinking. Always worried about what mood he would be in when he came home, Annie tried to make sure that Vera and Eddy, as well as little Benny, were safely in bed.
Lying upstairs in the dark, afraid to light a candle in case it might enrage their father, Vera would listen in dismay as the rows went on in the room below. More often than not there would be the sounds of a scuffle, of furniture overturning, or a hastily suppressed scream from her mother.
Sometimes the noise would waken Benny, so Vera would tiptoe to his cot and try to quieten him before their father heard him crying. Quite often the only way she could comfort him was to take him back into her own bed.
Frequently she found Eddy crouched on the landing, listening to what was going on downstairs. She would warn him that if he went down and tried to interfere their mam would only get more of a beating.
‘I’d sooner he was hitting me than her.’
‘Don’t tempt
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