Read Road to Berry Edge, The for Free Online Page A

demanding he should come back to Durham.
    â€˜Who is this young man you’ve brought with you?’
    â€˜Harry is very clever. I thought he might be able to help.’
    â€˜Really, and what is his particular field?’
    â€˜He’s an engineer, but he’s good at most things.’
    He had to be, living with Vincent. If you weren’t good at things you soon learned to be, because Vincent wouldn’t tolerate incompetence of any kind, especially from his son. If Harry had not been as good as he was he would never have survived. But Rob knew also that privately Vincent was very proud of his son, so perhaps had Harry not been precociously clever, Vincent might have behaved differently towards him. Harry was strong and bright and totally capable, and it was just as well. Since Sarah had died his parents’ love might have suffocated him otherwise, even though they pretended it was not so. One of the reasons Rob had allowed Harry to come with him was that Harry needed to get away for his own sake.
    â€˜An engineer? Really? And what kind of work are you doing to bring you into the company of an engineer?’
    Rob had long imagined what it would be like if and when he ever did come home and told his parents how well he had done, that he, Vincent and Harry had bought a house with rolling acres, gardens which had fountains and waterfalls, rooms with paintings and books, and good furniture, crystal and silver, everything of the best. A house built of honeyed stone, filled with music and books and, until Sarah had died, laughter and good conversation and many friends. The place where he had spent the happiest times of his life. He had thought he would be able to tell them that he had prospered beyond anything they could imagine, that his ideas and designs were respected and sought after by people not just here but in other countries. He had imagined bringing Sarah here and letting his parents see the kind of woman who had agreed to become his wife, so that they would see how beautiful and educated she was and how much she loved him, that he was worth someone like Sarah loving him. He wanted to show them what he had done, the huge achievements, the monumental successes sothat finally they would know he was no longer the stupid, disgusting, small boy of ten who had to be beaten into submission. Only he couldn’t say any of it.
    â€˜I work in a bicycle factory,’ he said.
    *
    Mr Berkeley did not come out of his bedroom so Harry didn’t meet him. Another shock awaited him at dinner. There was no wine, nothing but water on the table, and it was the plainest dinner that he had ever seen with stark-looking vegetables unrelieved by even a teaspoon of butter. Nancy served it. There seemed to be no other servants. After dinner Harry cornered Rob in the hall.
    â€˜I need a drink.’
    â€˜So do I. Let’s go.’
    Harry thanked Mrs Berkeley for the dinner and they went out. It was a cold dark night and the wind swept through the small town. The first pub they came to was the Station Hotel.
    â€˜We can’t go in there,’ Rob said, ‘the men drink there.’
    â€˜Does it matter? This is a small place. Won’t some of the workmen be in every pub?’
    â€˜How keen are you?’
    â€˜Keen enough,’ Harry said and opened the door.
    He instantly regretted it. As they walked in the hum of voices ceased. Silence fell. At least he had enough sense to let Rob order the drinks but as he listened to the sound of Rob’s voice he realised something else. Rob no longer spoke as the people of Berry Edge did. His accent was flawless, he spoke like the Shaws. Harry stood close beside him at the bar. There was a very big man near them; Harry nodded towards him and then said in a low voice, ‘Christ, I hope he’s on our side.’
    Rob took one look at the man and was instantly transported into his childhood.
    â€˜Mickey?’ he said. The man turned to him, and Rob