Scene Thirty-Four
George had a subsidiary reason to be grateful for the Howard league of Penal Reform AGM as it enabled both her and Alice to temporarily push the Becky problem to the background. She knew very well that this was unresolved and now that she'd heard the grossly improbable truth about Becky's sexuality, just what in hell should she do with this knowledge? She was highly aware that only John's considerable power of persuasion and his honesty had got her to accept this most grotesquely improbable story as fact. Telling this third hand account to Alice without an atom of objective proof to back it up felt utterly impossible. What made it worse was that Alice had slept with the woman so first hand experience was on her side. The final reason for her restlessness was that it was nearly ten days since she'd heard this story from John and sitting on this story threatened the strongpoint of her relationship with Alice, total honesty between them. The only solace was the shaft of wisdom that John had offered to her Then say to her that if she really wants you to do the job as the caring consort in the run up to the trial, your own peace of mind is owed the need to talk to her so you know what she's dealing with.
In the meantime, Alice went back to her work and tried to stay out of the limelight. The official reprimand from her manager had hurt her self-esteem and she could sense the controversy that buzzed around in a low-key fashion as the story about her client being stabbed by her daughter while she was present. All knowing eyes were bound to find out sooner or later that she'd been in a sexual relationship with her client's daughter and she was required to attend court as a witness. It threatened to undo her patient steady work of having her sexuality accepted where it had intersected with her professional obligations. She knew better than to expect that a profession dedicated to helping out the weak and the vulnerable would be necessarily immune from the 'nosy parker' syndrome. She became more guarded, more wary and she bottled up her feelings and that didn't feel good. When the time came to go home and she hadn't got a visit to a client, she clicked off her computer, watch the screen fade to black, took the warm winter coat from off the coat rack and said a perfunctory goodbye to the others. She could deal with the icy blast of wind and rain until she could drive on home to be greeted by her lover.
George had been Alice's lover for over a year now and time had only deepened the nature of their relationship and their opposite characteristics had only drawn them closer. George had loved the way she could be natural and loving with Alice without abandoning her theatrical nature while Alice had found someone that was worthy of her warm-hearted nature, someone that she admired and loved. However, George had come to think, deep down, that Alice's very qualities threatened to be her undoing and , in this situation, she hadn't thought with her head as well as her heart. It was sheer loyalty and love that held George in there but she knew that her own seemingly guilty knowledge was making her constrained in her manner. She also knew that Alice's perceptive nature not to say her professional skills couldn't fail to pick up on her was running out on George and she knew it.
George had her own complications in her professional life. She'd witnessed the argument between Jo and Nikki and how John had taken Nikki's side, not Jo's, had heard quickly enough through the grapevine how Jo had compounded her blunder in rowing with Helen. This had meant that the atmosphere between John and Jo had been poisoned, professionally speaking and, as ill-luck would have it, both George and Jo appeared together before John in court that day. Right through the trial, Jo's manner was more peremptory than normal while John ruthlessly cut down her submissions on points of law and was in severe danger of favouring George by comparison. It had taken all of George's newfound skills in diplomacy to weave her way through the trial drama, in more sense than noted ironically how the subject matter of the trial was threatening to become incidental to the real proceedings.
Right at the end of the first day of the trial, George found herself in the locker room with Jo, a heavy silence hanging on the air when Coope came to pass a message. She hadn't been in the courtroom that session but she could feel the tension in the atmosphere immediately.
"Mrs Mills, the judge requests your presence in his chambers," she said in as neutral a tone of voice as she could conjure up
"What about Mrs Channing?" Jo demanded in peremptory tones.
"He made no mention of her."
"Then you know as well as I do that such a request is impossible, unethical and completely contrary to the rules of etiquette. Either both of us or nothing," Jo retorted to the woman, slamming shut the metal door to her locker. George glared in Jo's direction as she well knew that Coope couldn't answer back in a similar vein.
"I'll pass the message back to the judge," Coope replied with an audible effort at self-restraint. Scarcely had the sounds of Coops heels died in the air when George let fly.
"What the hell is up with you, Jo? What on earth have you got against John? You've dug yourself in deeper and deeper since you put your foot in it at that Howard League Conference, rather than just make a one off gaffe."
"That's none of your business," Jo said in a low tone of voice, visibly colouring.
George opened her mouth in was something here that she didn't understand. Her mind was starting to work at a furious pace as she strove to
In the past, the invariable pattern of any conflict between Jo and John was that somehow, John had made an idiot of himself in his personal life and Jo was the injured party. All the time that Jo had worked away up North, John had surprised George by leading an apparently blameless life. Of course, he had his affairs but nothing that would bring him to public censure as he had in the past. Lurid scandals came to her mind, when John slept with a litigant before giving judgment against her, when he had allowed himself and Jo to be photographed in bed together at the digs and Jo was hauled before the Professional Conduct Committee. In fact, John's warm friendship with Nikki and Helen had effected a change for the better, making him more sensitive and willing to admit mistakes. The Helen Stewart trial had brought her and Jo to a very amicable working relationship and had seen Jo and John move back towards the sort of relationship she was having with Alice. Now this world was being unaccountably turned upside also noticed that Jo was looking more tired than she was used to, as if she were burning her candle at both ends, George dismissed that possibility as she knew that Jo lived in the country in the house she'd always lived in. The only thing that George knew about Jo's home life was a stray reference to the arrival in the area of an old promise to John a week or so to intercede with Jo came back to her and she decided to grab the opportunity straightaway.
"Is there something going on that I should know about Jo?" George asked gently, feeling her way.
"Whatever problems there may be between John and I, we are best placed to deal with them. Thank you for your interest but no thanks. If you excuse me, I have to get ready for tomorrow,"Jo replied shortly, her face like a mask. With that, she shot off out of the room, leaving George to consider that months away from Neil Haughton's presence made it harder to disentangle politicianspeak when she came across it. She resolved to drop the matter until she and Jo were away from this contentious trial
No matter how down in the dumps Alice felt, she always loved the immediate feel of embracing her lover after a hard day's work as it made her feel free and wanted. Nevertheless, she couldn't stop herself sliding back into a morose, uncommunicative manner, knowing that her impending presence at Becky's trial was inching ever closer. This time, she noticed with surprise that George's welcome cup of tea on bone china had no milk with it. She immediately laid it down on the side her but was astonished to hear her partner exclaim with disgust that she'd done the very same thing for herself.
"What's going on darling? I've never known you to be so absent minded. The heavens will fall in before the Channing gene gets the cup of tea wrong."
George laughed lightly at Alice's little joke which was also an incisive doodle on George's personality.
"I've been spending my time being tactful and diplomatic while Jo's been acting like a bear with a sore head with John.I was going to ask you a question as you have more experience of the 'gay scene' and that is, could a straight woman like Jo Mills be tempted off her very fenced in beaten track to have a dalliance with another woman?"
This took Alice aback. She started to think back of all the women she'd met at Chix and suddenly realised the two women right under her very nose that fitted the bill admirably.
"When I think of all the women who I've known at Chix, some started on the scene even though there was a boyfriend in the background. In that situation, sooner or later they've either dropped back into the straight world or finished with their boyfriend. Then again, there are women like you and Karen who've grown up straight, got married, had children and then realised just where their real sexual orientation is. As for Jo Mills, perhaps still waters run what's sparked off this question anyway, darling?"
"I had a long talk with John a week or so ago and he couldn't work out why Jo was holding him at arm's length despite him being incredibly patient. He got to talk about her old schoolfriend called Mel who moved to her village and pretty well monopolises her time so he feels frozen out. John even asked me if in my expert opinion there was anything going on between them and I laughed that one out of court, so to speak. However, after having an argument with Jo about her recent bad behaviour, I felt strongly that any problems are down to Jo, not John this time and I ought to rethink my ideas."
Alice had felt tired and dispirited when she got home but George had sparked off an interesting relationship question that was dear to her professional instincts and involved people she knew. Looking at her lover's impeccable smart blue suit, slightly above the knee, crisp white shirt and high heel shoes inspired amorous feelings in her. This prompted her to appraise Jo by comparison. Her first instinct was to consider that, yes, Jo was an attractive woman but not one who floated her boat. Finally, her thoughts were settled into place and she delivered her verdict.
"I couldn't quite imagine Jo Mills coming to Chix like you and Karen did as I swear to God that you looked so luscious that I snapped you up in double quick time. Beth made sure of Karen for the same reason so that no other woman could get their hands on her. You are both babe material to another woman," Alice said in that soft, clear fashion that did wonders for George's lively imagination.
"You say the most delightful things, darling," George purred as she let Alice's dextrous fingers reach out to her from behind, slip a few shirt buttons loose and gently stroke her skin. "You and I might not fancy Jo but there might be a woman on this earth that might and, who knows, Jo might wonder about all the fun she's missing out all her life, mightn't she."
"Perhaps," Alice murmured, starting to kiss George's neck and start exploring a little further. "Perhaps she's gay, perhaps she's bi, perhaps she's super straight. Who cares? I have enough problems to deal with."
It was at this point that George could feel herself tensing up inside. She was edging closer and closer to the point of decision as to whether or not to drop the bombshell about Becky on her lover so that she could be honest with her lover and risk her freaking out. Alternatively, she could opt to maintain the peace over a matter that might never get out. What was nagging at her was the knowledge she'd obtained that Brian Cantwell had taken on the prosecution and had dispensed with the firm of solicitors which included Nikki's useless brother. George was very fearful that what she'd found out through circuitous means, so could a halfway decent solicitor who was prepared to dig around and this could be dropped on Alice during cross was nothing for it, she would have to tell Alice. Too much time had elapsed already.
"Something's wrong darling," Alice said in a concerned tone of voice with a curious edge to it, "I can feel it in you."
George fumbled for her cigarette case. This was going to be one of the hardest things she'd ever said in her life. Just because they'd not talked about this frightful woman for a fair while didn't mean that Alice would take this in her stride. She wanted to rearrange everything in the room to their liking before she started to speak.
"Before I say what's on my mind, I insist that you sit down on the settee. Believe me, this is for the best and might not be easy on the ear. This doesn't directly involve us- or it needn't do."
"What on earth are you saying," Alice said, breaking free, a sense of alarm starting to spread through her nervous system. She followed George's instructions unthinkingly.
"I came across some more news from John which I have to tell you which you won't like to hear," George said in slow deliberate tones, standing over Alice as she spoke. "As I said earlier, I got to talking to John about his troubles with Jo and his inquisitive self noticed that I wasn't exactly in glowing spirits myself. He prized out the whole story of Becky Elliott and we talked about her court case coming up."
"Why did you have to tell him? I mean that was private any case, you could have talked to Nikki or Helen or any of the ladies?" protested Alice angrily.
"Why indeed? Why John? Because he's my ex-husband, he's a friend of mine who's known me for a long time. Because my thoughts about Becky could be considered mean, vindictive and nasty and John's seen me at my best and at my worst. Because I value his expert legal mind when you come to take the stand at your ex's trial. I know how Nikki, Helen and the rest of the gang would have emotionally rallied round me when what I need is someone who can be emotionally detached from the situation. Because, well he's a man and sometimes they help..."
"So what happened next?" Alice said, trembling all over and trying to slip into social worker questioning mode.
"John asked me the craziest question, like do I have a picture of that woman. Only he would think of that and, as it happens, I did."
"What?" Alice exclaimed in horror. This was more unbelievable than anything she came across in her professional duties.
"Don't worry, I've not gone mad. The logic of it is for me to know my enemy so I can deal with her better, emotionally speaking. Anyway, whatever the reason, I showed him the photograph." At this point, George paused and ran her tongue across her lower lip. Her nerves were pulsing all over her body and she felt worse than any trial she had conducted as her honour and love were both at stake. Finally, she willed herself to continue. "This is the part of the story where you need to prepare yourself for a shock, darling. John recognised the woman. He remembered going to the sort of singles bar he used to frequent and meeting her. They went onto a discreet hotel and ended up sleeping together for the night. She was gone in the morning before he woke up."
Alice opened her mouth as her world fell in. This was the one side of her ex that Alice was sure of and now George was pulling her foundations down on what had been precious between the two of them, no matter how badly she had behaved.
"If you've got some grand scheme to discredit Becky, you will have to do better than 're overlooking one very obvious problem. The woman is gay, absolutely one hundred per cent gay. Watch my lips move. I went out with her for months. I should know."
"That's the very first thing I shouted at John except the last bit," George said in unexpectedly subdued tones, looking Alice straight in the eye. She had picked up the undertone of bitterness in Alice's shouting and became unnaturally calm. She did not know where she had got this mood from but she blessed whatever it was that made her feel that way.
"Why on earth would a woman who had got used to sleeping with other women suddenly want to hang round some straight pickup joint waiting for John to pick her up? This is totally crazy."
"That's the second point I hurled at John with the full force of what I am capable of," George said in level, clear tones, never dropping her gaze away from Alice for one moment. "His reply convinced me when he said that he didn't doubt that you are being honest with me but, if this woman is as devious as she is made out to be then who can tell what sort of life she leads that you don't know about?"
"I can't get my head round this," Alice said, her long hair all awry, putting her hands to her head. "What if this is some scheme by John to blacken Becky's name to me or to you for the same purpose. You must look at this from my point of view."
"All right," George said in forceful tones as the block on her feelings of detestation of Becky suddenly came to the surface in terms she could articulate. The words she had held back poured out in measured tempo. "I've held off saying what I really feel about her. I'll tell you what I think about Becky Elliott. She's a sly, conniving, drunken, manipulating tart who had consistently exploited your kind hearted nature for her own ends and would drag you down given half a chance. I've done my best to stop you being sucked up into yet another drama of her own creation. That is quite enough to blacken her name so for me to accuse her of lying about her sexuality is only icing on the cake. You look at this from my position. I have no motivation in pushing my knife further into her than it is already and, believe it or not, John's view of our relationship is entirely benevolent and well meaning. He has no axe to grind and you'd better start believing it."
For the first time, Alice became fully aware of her partner's manner. She was only standing up to keep the weight of her worries bearing down on her. She knew also that George could only mean well for her and it was time for her to expunge from her system the tail end of this obsession for Becky, the existence of which she'd been denying to herself. At last she was starting to see. Suddenly the whole emotional force of the way she'd been manipulated, lied to and betrayed by this deceitful cow. The sudden upsurge of stress that built up inside her like an exploding volcano was making her in danger of hyperventilating. Finally, the obvious answer opened up in front of her eyes.
"Do you mind if I go into the kitchen and have you any china I can safely break?"
""Top cupboard on the left, Please feel free to take as much time as you like," George replied pleasantly. She sensed that she would see an entirely new and pleasing side to Alice's personality and took Alice's place as the dark-haired woman strode purposefully towards the kitchen.
A minute later, some of the most colourful, vengeful, vitriolic language turned the air blue all focussed on Becky Elliott with the white hot heat of a flamethrower followed by two sharp crashing sounds of broken china. It did George good to see her partner show some real spirit and she liked her partner's might have done the same if she was in Alice's shoes. After all, she'd once been incensed enough to throw a glass of wine in John's face at a crowded party.
"Do you feel a lot better darling?" George asked with her drawling tone and wide smile as a dishevelled looking Alice returned, her chest heaving with the sudden outburst of physical and emotional energy. "By the way, I thoroughly approve of your actions."
"Never felt better," Alice said in slightly husky tones before she started to get a grip of her surroundings. "You need a drink George and so do I. Can I fetch you one?"
A blessed feeling of relief spread through George's system at the way Alice's anger had dissipated and she was returning to normal. With a shaking hand, George poured an extremely large dry Martini and a splash of lemon which she repeated to dose Alice's vodka. She placed the glass in Alice's hand, the contents of which was swiftly downed. George sat down and drank hers nearly as fast. It had been a rough day.
"George, darling. Can I apologise enough to you. I've been really horrible to you," Alice said in trembling tones, looking George in the eye. George's incredible loyalty to her suddenly hit home with the force of a sledgehammer, that she had been there for Alice all along. The dark- haired woman who was sprawled on the sofa looked beautiful to George's eyes as she apologised with tears in her eyes.
"Of course you can. Mind you, I've got the same to do for John but not in the same way as I want to do for you right now."
Alice flung her arms round George's neck and they both embraced passionately. George's instant forgiveness and touch of humour was inexpressibly endearing right now. In turn, the fair-haired woman could feel her lover's long fingers running through her hair and her lips against her neck. The outburst of righteous violence, the shot of alcohol and the glorious clearing away of the emotional darkness was precious deliverance for both of them.