A Winter Baby for Gin Barrel Lane

by Lindsey Hutchinson

  ‘Did he leave any documents for me?’

  ‘Not that I know of.’

  The conversation between Dolly and Moreton was being watched with interest by the others, who were eagerly awaiting the outcome.

  ‘Ah well, he should have left me the deeds to this place, so I’ll need to find those immediately.’

  ‘Why would he have left you those?’

  ‘We had a deal. He was selling this,’ Ezra swung his stick around the room with a grimace on his face, ‘to me.’

  ‘I’m afraid I can’t shed any light on that, Mr Moreton. Mr Freeman didn’t mention it.’

  ‘I must confess I’m at a loss as to why you are all here.’

  ‘Yes, I was thinking the same thing about you,’ Dolly said bravely.

  ‘I’m here because I own it,’ Ezra snapped.

  ‘I’m afraid that’s incorrect. You don’t own it, Mr Moreton, because I do,’ Dolly replied coolly.

  The look of shock on Moreton’s face was priceless and Nellie and Nancy could barely contain their laughter.

  ‘That’s not possible!’

  ‘It is. The business was conducted yesterday.’

  ‘How? I mean, where did you get the money to…?’

  ‘Well, that’s none of your business, Mr Moreton. All you need to know is that this building belongs to me now. Jack is the manager and these men are his staff.’

  The two big bodyguards who had followed Ezra indoors tittered nervously, and their employer shot them a look which could fry bacon.

  ‘What do you want with a pub?’

  ‘Again, sir – that is my business.’

  For a moment, the only sound was Nellie tapping her foot on the flagstone floor.

  ‘I see. It’s to become yet another gin palace, I presume!’

  Dolly shrugged.

  Moreton took a step forward and pointed the top of his cane at her. In the same instant, the men surrounded her in a protective huddle.

  Ezra looked at the men and lowered his cane.

  ‘You have not heard the last of this!’

  ‘I guessed as much, which is why I have the constabulary on my side.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘The police will be keeping a keen eye out for any, let’s say, wrongdoings.’

  Dragging a deep breath in through flared nostrils, Moreton turned on his heel and stamped away, his two guards following closely behind, a grin splitting their faces.

  ‘That ain’t strictly true, about the coppers I mean,’ Nellie said.

  ‘Ah, but Ezra doesn’t know that does he?’ Dolly replied with a smirk.

  Spontaneous applause broke out as Dolly was congratulated on how she had dealt with the precarious situation, but out in the street Ezra Moreton fumed.

  Climbing into the waiting cab, full of fury, Ezra snapped at the two men who had accompanied him, ‘You two can walk!’ He slammed the cab door and banged his stick on the floor twice.

  The bodyguards looked at the cabbie who shrugged and flicked the reins, then they turned their gaze to each other.

  ‘That’s bloody nice ain’t it?’ one said.

  ‘Miserable old sod!’ the other answered.

  Then, with a sigh, they began to walk back to the brewery on Nova Scotia Street.

  ‘Well, you certainly told him!’ Nellie said as the applause melted away.

  ‘I learned it all from you, Nellie,’ Dolly replied. ‘Jack, don’t you think it’s time to ask your barmen to open up? Then I suggest you visit the Servants’ Registry to hire a cook and maid.’

  ‘Oh, blimey!’ Jack said to everyone’s amusement. Then he confidently began issuing orders to his staff. ‘Throw open the windows for some fresh air. Sweep the floor, wash the glasses…’

  Nellie and Nancy said farewell before returning to the Crown, and Dolly pulled Jack aside. ‘We’ll work out the wages tomorrow, shall we?’

  ‘Yes, I’ve enough to be thinking about right now. Will you help me with, you know, a cook and maid?’

  ‘Of course. Ask them to send the applicants here tomorrow and we’ll interview them together.’

  ‘Thanks. I’d better get on, then.’ With that he raced away, leaving Dolly to supervise the cleaning.

  Looking around her, she smiled. This was hers now and it was all down to her mother. Dolly’s mind slipped back to when she had inherited a necklace which she had sold to help Nellie pay off what was owed to Ezra Moreton. Then, between them they had a mortgage and the rest of the money from the sale to buy what had become the Daydream Palace. Now she had a second property, and finally this one was all hers.

  ‘Place is all ready, miss,’ Joey said, breaking Dolly’s reverie.

  ‘Thank you, and the name is Dolly.’

  The barman knuckled his forehead and went to open the doors wide.

  Dolly went to the kitchen to wait for Jack and began nosing into cupboards to ensure there was everything a cook might need. Satisfied with what she found, she limped up the stairs to take another look at the rooms where the cook and maid would be living once they’d been appointed.

  She moved to the window of one room which looked out onto the yard below, and she was horrified to see a rat scuttle away. With a shudder, she made her way back downstairs.

  ‘Joey, do you know where the rat-catcher lives?’

  ‘Yes, Dolly.’

  ‘Would you be kind enough to have him call round straight away, because I’ve just seen one in the yard.’

  ‘Will do. Some of ’em are as big as ’osses,’ he quipped.

  ‘I suggest you get hold of a couple of cats – good ones – or terriers, they would do the trick.’

  ‘I’ll put it to Jack, shall I?’

  ‘Of course, but in the meantime – the rat-catcher, please.’

  It was one of the men who was a barman for Freeman, called Frank, who ran the errand and swiftly brought back a stick-thin man dressed all in black. He wore a tailcoat, breeches and a top hat, which he lifted in greeting.

  ‘I hear as you’ve a problem with rats,’ he said with a raspy voice.

  ‘That’s correct. Out in the yard,’ Dolly answered, barely able to suppress a shiver.

  ‘I’ll do the necessary, then,’ the man said with a grim smile. ‘Powder, that’ll do the trick. Poison in powder form so they haves to eat it there and then. Can’t carry it back to the nest, see? Then the thirst gets ’em and they have to find water. So, any of ’em lurking about will move away, do anything for a drink by then they will.’

  This time Dolly could not hide the shudder and the rat-catcher laughed before going about his grisly business outside.

  ‘Joey, let everyone know so they steer clear of whatever he’s doing and wherever he’s doing it.’

  ‘Righto, Dolly.’

  Another shiver took her and Dolly moved to the fireplace. A nice fire would take the chill off and make the room feel more homely and inviting. It wasn’t long before roaring flames leapt up the chimney and she began to relax and imagine the look of the place once it was finished.

  A shout and a satisfied holler, followed by a clang, had her on her feet, and in a quick hobble she made her way to the scullery. There she was faced with the thin man in black holding up a dead rat by its tail, a gratified smile on his face.

  15

  The following day saw a flurry of activity, starting with a visit from Ezra’s draymen arriving to collect the empty barrels.

  Jack, having spent his first night in his new home, was woken early by the rattle of the cart and clip-clop of horses’ hooves.

  ‘Is this usual?’ he asked Joey, who stood rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

  ‘No, boss, they normally only come to deliver and collect the empties at the same time.’

  ‘I thought so. Ezra’s making sure all his property is returned. Get the kettle on, I’m parched.’

  Hot tea was soon made and Jack, cup in hand, watched the cart roll away.

  After a breakfast of bacon and eggs floating in a sea of greas
e cooked by Frank, they set to cleaning the bar. The doors were propped open in readiness for any customers who might grace the premises with their presence that day.

  Jack was out the front, gazing at the façade, when Dolly arrived by cab. ‘I was just trying to imagine what it will look like after the Hodges have finished with it,’ Jack said to his friend by way of greeting.

  ‘It will be grand, I’m sure. Any customers yet?’

  ‘No. Not a single one.’ Jack shook his head.

  ‘That will change once it’s transformed, I’m sure of it.’

  ‘I bloody hope so!’ Jack replied with a laugh.

  Going indoors, Dolly asked, ‘How was your first night away from home?’

  ‘Strange. It took me forever to get to sleep, but once I did, I slept like the dead. Ezra’s cart woke me early, though; they came for the empty barrels.’

  ‘He’s just letting us know he’s not best pleased that we pulled a flanker and beat him to the sale.’

  ‘Yes, I thought that too.’

  ‘It’s cold in here,’ Dolly said with a shiver.

  ‘I’ll get a fire going. Everybody else is busy in the cellar and the yard.’

  It didn’t take long for the hearth to become a place of heat and brightly dancing flames, and Dolly sat close to it to warm her cold hands.

  ‘I’m looking for Jack Larkin.’ A woman’s voice sailed across the room.

  ‘That’s me.’

  ‘I’ve been sent by the Registry. I’m a cook. I’ll need to see the kitchen and my bedroom before I decide whether to accept the post.’

  ‘You ain’t been offered it yet!’ Jack retorted with a snort.

  ‘You can please yourself. Do you need a cook or not?’

  ‘Yes, but the more pressing question is – do you need a job or not?’

  ‘Don’t play games with me, young man!’

  ‘I’m not. I need a cook who can feed us men well, who can live with the mess while alterations are underway and who won’t give me any grief. Now, how desperately do you need this job or do I wait for the next person to apply?’

  Dolly watched with a smile on her face, amazed at the difference in Jack’s confidence in such a short time. In just a couple of days he had shown his mettle, now he was no longer living with his mum, and he was already acting like a boss. Dolly had always known it was within him and he had simply needed the opportunity for his talents to shine out.

  ‘I’m here, ain’t I? Don’t that tell you as I’m in need?’ the woman said curtly.

  ‘I don’t know how you think you’ll get a job with an attitude like that!’

  ‘I will because you need me!’

  Jack sighed and glanced at Dolly who shrugged and smiled. Turning back to the woman, who wore a self-satisfied smile, he said, ‘Let’s start again, shall we? What’s your name?’

  ‘Bess Knight.’

  ‘Tell me about yourself, Bess,’ Jack said, having bitten back his surging frustration.

  ‘I’m here, I need the job and the room.’

  ‘Where do you live now?’

  ‘Across town.’

  Jack’s sigh was loud enough to reach Dolly, who was listening from the fireside.

  ‘Jack, maybe Bess would appreciate a cup of tea in the kitchen? I’d be happy to help out,’ Dolly said.

  ‘Good idea,’ he replied, leading the way.

  ‘Who’s that? I hope it ain’t the maid. I can’t have a hoity-toity wench working under me.’

  ‘That lady is Dolly Perkins, and she is the owner of this establishment,’ Jack enlightened her.

  ‘Oh, right. This ain’t a bad kitchen, nice and big, but I’d have to change it around a bit.’

  ‘All good chefs arrange their surroundings to suit themselves and we would expect no less from you,’ Dolly said with a smile.

  Bess plumped up her ample chest and directed her next words to Jack. ‘That is how to treat a person who you need on your staff!’

  ‘Dolly, I’ll leave you to it. I’m going to check on the rat problem,’ Jack said, looking to frighten the woman now sitting at the table.

  ‘Rats don’t scare me,’ Bess said with a grin.

  No, but I’d guess you scare them! Jack marched away with steam coming out of his ears.

  ‘Jack is my new manager and he’s just settling in, but he is excellent at his job,’ Dolly explained.

  ‘A bit young, ain’t he?’

  Dolly sighed. Here was another woman who spoke her mind. What was it with cooks? She could see Sadie and Bess getting on famously.

  ‘We all have to start where and when we can, don’t you agree?’

  ‘I suppose so.’

  Dolly continued to put Bess at her ease, informing her of the changes they were making, and saying she needed a reliable chef to feed the workers well.

  Bess, in turn, related how she was lodging in a room which was cold and damp, how her savings were all but gone, and how she desperately needed to find live-in work.

  ‘Can I ask what the wages are here?’ Bess asked at last, much softer now.

  ‘Same as my cook over at the Daydream Palace, twenty pounds a year.’

  ‘Bloody hell, that’s good!’

  ‘I like to reward hard work and loyalty. Come with me and I’ll show you your room,’ Dolly said.

  ‘You mean I’ve got the job?’

  ‘Yes, welcome to your new family.’

  Bess left soon after to collect her few paltry belongings and her seat at the table was taken up by a young girl called Gwen Calvert. Gwen had arrived to apply for the post of maid and Jack again deferred to Dolly, preferring instead to be in the cellar with the other men.

  Dolly explained carefully and gently that the building would be transformed and that she was paying ten pounds a year wages, as she did with her own maid. ‘It’s a live-in position and our new cook Bess has gone to fetch her things.’

  ‘Ten quid a year, blimey!’

  ‘It’s more than average because I only employ the best.’

  ‘I’ll work ever so hard if I’m given the chance,’ Gwen said, her blue eyes glistening.

  ‘What’s your story, Gwen?’

  ‘I live at home, but with fourteen brothers and sisters I think it’s time to move out and lessen the stress of my folks trying to feed us all.’

  ‘Goodness, that’s a big family,’ Dolly couldn’t help but remark.

  ‘Mum and Dad love each other – what else can I say?’ Gwen grinned, seeing Dolly catch her meaning.

  Dolly showed the girl to the room next to the one Bess had chosen and Gwen marvelled at the size. ‘Will I be sharing?’

  ‘No, Bess is next door and the men are at the other end of the landing. There’s a lock so you can feel safe at night.’

  ‘Thank you. I can’t imagine having all this space to myself.’

  ‘Fetch your things and get settled in then, and we’ll all get acquainted later over lunch.’

  After Gwen had left, Dolly began preparing food. She was sat peeling potatoes when she heard Bess’s voice. ‘Yoohoo! I’m back!’

  ‘In the kitchen,’ Dolly returned.

  ‘Here, now, you shouldn’t be doing that.’

  ‘I thought I’d get started.’

  ‘Ar, well, you make a brew and I’ll do the spuds.’

  Dolly obliged and then set to telling Bess about the new maid, Gwen.

  ‘I got some sausages from the market on my way and a couple of cabbages. With a nice onion gravy – what do you say?’

  ‘May I stay for lunch?’ Dolly said, prompting Bess to laugh loudly.

  Gwen returned a short while later loaded down with bags, and Bess helped her to take them to her room.

  The two men Dolly had brought across to help were returned to the Palace, where there was plenty for them to do. Gwen arrived back in double-quick time and with no customers as yet, all sat around the kitchen table to get to know each other.

  ‘Frank and Joey are the barmen, Jack is the manager, Bess is th
e cook and Gwen is the maid. Respect the women, gentlemen, and they will look after you well,’ Dolly said to the gathered group.

  Jack shot Bess a sour look, which she sent back tenfold.

  ‘You must all get along because you’re a family now. There can be no fallings-out – you have to watch each other’s backs and work together.’ Dolly had caught the black look between Jack and Bess and felt she could not allow it to fester. Their initial meeting had not gone well, but if these people were to gel then it must be understood that silly misunderstandings would not be tolerated. So she told them so.

  It was mid-afternoon when Eli Hodges turned up with papers full of sketches and calculations of costs.

  That was when Dolly wished she drank gin.

  16

  ‘It’s a lot of work,’ Eli said as he watched Dolly and Jack look over his sketches.

  ‘It’s a lot of money an’ all!’ Jack replied.

  ‘Speculate to accumulate, ain’t that what folks say?’

  ‘It is, Mr Hodges, that it is,’ Dolly answered.

  ‘Eli, call me Eli. I’ll leave all that with you and you can let me know what you think.’

  ‘Before you go, Eli, would you be kind enough to come to one of the bedrooms with me? There’s something I want your opinion on.’

  Jack stared open-mouthed and Frank and Joey laughed and whistled. For a moment Dolly wondered what was going on, then Eli’s words gave her an explanation.

  ‘That’s the best offer I’ve had in an age, lass!’

  The penny dropped and Dolly flushed scarlet. ‘No, no – I meant…’

  ‘It’s all right, gel, we’re only having a little laugh at your expense.’

  ‘Oh, I see,’ Dolly said before she joined in the hilarity.

  Eli and Jack followed her to a room right at the back of the building which was stacked with spare furniture.

  ‘Can you smell that?’ Dolly asked.

  ‘I can. I did notice it before when I had a quick gander around the place,’ Eli said as he moved further into the room, shifting chairs as he went.

  ‘What is it, do you think?’

  ‘Sewerage, maybe?’

  Dolly grimaced. ‘Is it somehow getting into the building?’