The Napier Conflict And Queenie's Sacrifice

The buried conflict at the brewery: Napier's cruelty, Harold's vandalism, Queenie's self-blame, and Maureen's suppression of the truth.

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Napier's Contempt

Napier's Contempt The Vicious Boss Mr Napier is a wily man in a shiny suit who believes women are ticking hormone bombs. He is rumored to have had people kneecapped and to have fired a secretary for touching his desk. The Glass Clowns His prized possession is a collection of Murano glass clowns, hideous, misshapen figures that Harold feels are mocking him. Napier warns him not to touch them. The Atmosphere Of Fear Harold spends his working life avoiding Napier's attention. Queenie's arrival as a professional woman in finance makes her a target for the boss and for the mocking men.

The Stationery Cupboard

The Stationery Cupboard The Sound Of Weeping Harold finds Queenie crying behind a cupboard door, pressed against the wall, her jacket tugging at the seam. She says she is good at her job but is ready to resign. A Palm Offered Harold holds out his hand, and she takes it. He tells her it will get better. The gesture is small, but it is the beginning of a private bond. The Seed Of Loyalty Queenie never forgets Harold's kindness. When the time comes for sacrifice, she will remember the hand in the stationery cupboard.

Harold's Destruction

Harold's Destruction The Drunken Grief Harold tears down the garden shed, and when that is not enough, he breaks into the brewery. He smashes Napier's Murano glass clowns to smithereens, his hands sprouting blood over colored pins. The Cry For Punishment In smashing the clowns, Harold is deliberately challenging Napier to do his worst. His grief has turned self-destructive; he wants to be caught, confronted, perhaps destroyed. The Witness In The Car Queenie has seen Harold sitting outside the brewery earlier that evening. She does not intrude because she thinks he might be crying. The next morning she knows.

Queenie Takes The Blame

Queenie Takes The Blame A Duty To Dust Queenie tells Napier that she accidentally knocked the clowns while dusting. Because she is plain and unexpected, he is thrown off balance. He fires her on the spot. The Thunder Of Abuse Napier's shouting is heard across the brewery. Queenie stands her ground and says she was only trying to help. If she had been a man, Napier would have kicked the living shit out of her. The Vanishing Friend Queenie leaves the South West without saying goodbye. She takes Harold's shame as her own last gift to him. The conflict is buried, but not resolved.

The Suppressed Message

The Suppressed Message The Last Visit Queenie comes to Fossebridge Road with flowers and a message for Harold. She tells Maureen that Harold broke the clowns, that Queenie took the blame, and that he should not worry. The Binned Flowers Maureen puts the flowers in the bin and never gives Harold the message. She is angry and jealous: Queenie was kind to Harold when she could not be, and she does not want him to find comfort. The Unknowable Cost The suppressed message becomes one of the unspoken things that drives Harold and Maureen apart. Queenie's sacrifice is doubled by Maureen's silence, and the conflict is inherited by the marriage.

Years at the brewery, before David's death

Queenie's first months at the brewery

The night after David's death, twenty years before the story

The morning after the vandalism

The day Queenie leaves, twenty years before the story