The Christmas Card

by Dilly Court

  ‘Lawks, miss. What’s happened to the silly girl now? She has more falls than a tumbler in the circus.’

  ‘I thought I was going to be struck down,’ Clara said, sniffing. ‘Such a to-do above stairs, Mrs Jugg. You never heard the like.’

  Alice guided her to a chair. ‘Sit down and rest, Clara. I don’t imagine you’ve broken any bones.’

  ‘I never knew a girl to make such a fuss about nothing.’ Mrs Jugg sighed and shook her head. ‘But I’ll see to her, Miss Alice. There’s no need for you to worry your head about us below stairs.’

  ‘The missis is throwing them out,’ Clara said, stifling a sob. ‘It ain’t fair.’

  Mrs Jugg shot a sideways glance in Alice’s direction. ‘It’s none of our business, Clara. We don’t gossip about our betters.’

  ‘It’s all right, Mrs Jugg.’ Alice laid a comforting hand on Clara’s shoulder. ‘Clara only spoke the truth. I have to find somewhere to live and find it very soon.’

  ‘I’m sorry to hear that, miss. Have you anywhere in mind?’

  Alice shook her head. ‘I don’t know where we’ll go, but something will turn up.’

  With virtually no free time it was impossible for Alice to look for cheap accommodation, and their lack of funds made it even more difficult. They would have to live on the meagre wages paid by the Dearborns, and even then Alice’s earnings would barely cover the rent. She kept the truth from her mother as long as possible but Jane decided that they must be out of the house by New Year’s Eve, and Beth had to be told. She took the news with little show of surprise.

  ‘I knew we would end up in the workhouse,’ she said sadly. ‘I suppose it was inevitable.’

  Alice went down on her knees at her mother’s bedside. ‘That won’t happen, Mama. I’ll find a way, I promise.’

  Help came from the most surprising source. Alice had just returned from work on Monday evening, and once again she was certain that she was being followed, but every time she stopped and looked over her shoulder there was no sign of anyone. She arrived home shaken and anxious, and was in no mood to find Horace waiting for her in the entrance hall.

  ‘Haven’t you done enough harm?’ she said angrily. ‘Have you come to gloat?’

  He sidled towards her, clutching his top hat in his bony fingers. ‘I was about to leave, Alice. I’ve just been talking to your mama. She’ll give you the news.’

  ‘What news? What are you talking about? I’ve had a very trying day and I’m not in the mood for games.’ It was true. Flora had been fractious because the snow was melting and Alice had not allowed her to go out into the square.

  Horace did not seem able to look her in the eye. He stared down at his boots. ‘I should not have run to Aunt Jane like that. I know what happened afterwards and I’m sorry.’

  ‘So am I, but I knew what the outcome would be if I refused your offer, Horace. You need not feel that you’re to blame.’

  He looked up, gazing at her in surprise. ‘You’re very generous to say so, Alice. But what I came to tell you is that my aunt has invited me to live here, with her.’

  ‘How kind of her.’

  A faint smile flitted across his face. ‘Precisely, but that leaves my room vacant in Half Moon Passage. It’s off Aldersgate Street and not too far from here so you could still walk to your place of employment. It’s not what you’ve been used to, but I thought it might suit you and your mama, if only as a temporary measure.’

  ‘It might, but I’m not sure I can’t afford the rent, at least not until I get my wages from the Dearborns.’

  ‘The rent is paid until the end of January. It would give you a roof over your heads and time to look round for something more suitable.’

  ‘Why would you do this for me when I’ve lost you the chance of a house of your own?’

  ‘I’m not a monster, Alice. I know you were being coerced into a marriage of convenience and it was unfair. I’m not the marrying kind. I’m a confirmed bachelor and to be honest I want to keep it that way. If I have to put up with Aunt Jane’s foibles it’s a small price to pay for living in a house like this. I hope she’ll forget about the continuation of the Hubble name in time.’

  Alice reached out to shake his hand. ‘I don’t know what else to say other than thank you, Horace.’

  The year did not start well for Alice and her mother. Jane would not allow them to remain in Queen Square until Alice’s only day off, which was Sunday. ‘We’ll have to take Flora with us today, Mama,’ Alice said as she packed her mother’s valise. ‘I tried to ask Mrs Dearborn for time off but she wouldn’t hear of it, and we’ll need to take a cab. I know it’s an extravagance but you can’t walk that far.’

  Beth tugged at her wedding ring and it slipped easily off her thin finger. She held it out to Alice. ‘I’ve nothing left of value other than this, but it should fetch enough to pay for a cab and keep us in necessities for a few days.’

  Horrified, Alice shook her head. ‘I can’t allow you to pawn your ring, Mama.’

  ‘I carry the memory of your father in my heart. I don’t need a band of gold to remind me of him. Take it, Alice. We can’t exist on your meagre wages.’

  Alice frowned but she took the ring and slipped it into her pocket. They would have barely enough to live on as it was. Much as she loved Flora and hated the thought of leaving her to the mercy of her uncaring adoptive mother, she knew she would have to find a position that paid better if they were to survive.

  ‘I’ll take it to the pawnshop, Mama, but I’ll buy it back as soon as I’m able.’

  ‘It’s not important, my darling. We’re together and that’s all that matters. When I’m well again I’ll find work, even if it’s taking in sewing. I’m good with my needle.’

  ‘Just concentrate on getting better. I’ll look after you, Mama.’ Alice put on her bonnet and tied the ribbons under her chin. ‘I won’t be long.’ She reached for her mantle and shrugged it on as she hurried from the room. Suddenly the cold unfriendly house seemed more like home, and it felt as though they were plunging into a bottomless abyss. Alice braced her shoulders. She was young and strong and would find a way out of the difficulties that had been thrust upon them. Opening the front door she stepped outside in the bitter cold of a January day. Her first stop was the pawnbroker in Guildford Street, where she was forced to accept less than she had expected. She left with money in her purse, but it was not sufficient to keep them for more than a few days. As she made her way to Russell Square she tried to convince herself that all would be well, and that this was a new beginning and not a sad defeat.

  To make matters worse, Mrs Upton greeted her with a lecture on the evils of unpunctuality, and a stern warning that if she was late again it would be brought to Mrs Dearborn’s notice. Alice apologised humbly and hurried upstairs to the nursery where Flora was pacing the floor like a caged tiger.

  ‘Where were you, Alice? I thought you weren’t coming.’

  ‘I’m sorry I’m late, Flora, but I had an errand to run.’

  Flora’s lips formed a sulky moue. ‘The snow is melting and my snowman is disappearing so fast that soon there’ll be nothing left but a puddle.’

  ‘Well, I’ve got a surprise for you today,’ Alice said with an attempt at cheeriness. ‘We’re going out on the little adventure.’

  Flora’s pout relaxed into a broad grin. ‘Really? Where are we going?’

  ‘You’ll see when we get there,’ Alice said mysteriously. Never having been to Half Moon Passage she was not in a position to describe it to Flora, but the name sounded romantic and exciting.

  Needless to say, the reality was far different. As the hackney carriage made its slow progress through the crowded city streets of West Smithfield Alice realised that she had been deluding herself. After their experiences in Blossom Street she should have known better, but as always she lived in hope, though disappointment and disillusion were never far behind.

  The cab drew to a halt in Aldersgate Street and Alice climbed out first.
‘This isn’t Half Moon Passage.’

  The cabbie pointed his whip at a narrow opening between a pub and a taxidermist’s shop. ‘Can’t drive down there, miss. It’s too narrow.’ He leaned down from the box, holding out his hand. ‘That’ll be one shilling, if you please.’

  She paid him although it felt like an exorbitant amount to pay for a relatively short journey, but as she helped her mother from the cab she realised just how frail and delicate she had become.

  Flora leaped to the ground, her golden curls bobbing as her bonnet slipped to the back of her head. ‘What an exciting place,’ she breathed, staring wide-eyed at the stuffed fox in the taxidermist’s window. ‘Is it real? Will it bite?’

  ‘Not now,’ Alice said, laughing. ‘His biting days are well and truly over.’

  Beth shuddered. ‘Poor thing, to come to such an undignified end, and I can’t bear to look at the poor little pussycat. Who would want a thing like that in their parlour?’

  ‘The previous owner, maybe?’ Alice suggested, picking up the cases. ‘Although it’s not something I would choose to have. Come along, Flora. This way.’

  Half Moon Passage was narrow and dingy, lined on both sides with a hotchpotch of workmen’s cottages, workshops and run-down lodging houses. The cobblestones were slippery with slush and ankle-deep in straw and all manner of detritus that had been carelessly tossed away or had blown in from Aldersgate Street. It appeared that none of the residents possessed a broom, and if they did they had no intention of putting it to good use. Alice consulted the slip of paper that Horace had given her, hoping desperately that the shabby four-storey building with cracked stucco and blistered paintwork was not their actual destination, but there was only one way to find out. She sent Flora up the steps to knock on the door and they waited. Beth was leaning tiredly against Alice while Flora danced up and down with excitement.

  ‘It’s like Blossom Street,’ she said eagerly. ‘Do you think your room will be in the cellar with lots of strange people?’

  ‘I hope not,’ Alice said with feeling. ‘I’m sure that Horace wouldn’t send us anywhere that was unsuitable.’

  Beth sighed. ‘I just need to sit down, dear.’

  Alice was going to urge Flora to knock again when the door opened a crack and a beady eye glared at them.

  ‘Who’s there? I don’t take kids in.’

  ‘Mr Hubble sent us,’ Alice said hastily. ‘He said we can have his room until the end of the month.’

  The door opened a fraction wider. ‘Did he now? How do I know that you’re telling the truth?’

  Alice gave the slip of paper written in Horace’s neat copperplate to Flora. ‘Pass this to the lady, if you please.’

  After the briefest scrutiny, the woman opened the door and stood aside. ‘I suppose you’d better come in. Wipe your feet on the mat.’

  It was hardly the warmest welcome in the world and Alice stepped inside with a feeling of foreboding. The narrow entrance hall smelled of carbolic and boiled cabbage, but at least it was spotlessly clean. The floorboards had been scrubbed until they gleamed palely in the dim light and the landlady’s gaze followed their steps as if waiting to pounce on the first sign of a muddy footprint.

  ‘Follow me.’ She picked up her black serge skirts and headed up the twisting staircase with surprising agility for someone of advancing years.

  ‘Are you all right, Mama?’ Alice asked anxiously. ‘Can you manage the stairs?’

  ‘She’ll sleep in the coal hole if she can’t.’ The landlady’s voice floated down from the first landing. ‘Hurry up. I haven’t got all day.’

  ‘Lean on me, Mrs Radcliffe,’ Flora said eagerly. ‘I’m much stronger than I look.’

  ‘Thank you, dear.’ Beth accepted her offer with a smile. ‘I’m fine, Alice. Flora is looking after me.’

  By the time they reached the top floor Alice felt as if her arms were being dragged from their sockets by the weight of the two cases. It seemed unlikely that Horace would have rented an attic room, and she was beginning to think that they were being duped. ‘Are you sure this was Mr Hubble’s room, Mrs … I’m afraid I didn’t catch your name.’

  ‘Mrs Leech. You didn’t catch it because I didn’t toss it to you. I’m choosy as to who I take into my establishment. This is a respectable house. No hanky-panky permitted.’ She unlocked a door at the end of a dark passage. ‘This is yours. Take it or leave it.’

  Chapter Nine

  One look inside the room was enough to convince Alice that Mrs Leech was trying to cheat them. Horace, for all his shortcomings, seemed to be a fastidious man. She could not imagine him living in a cold, draughty attic with only a little roof window for light, and a fireplace so small that even when lit would barely relieve the chill.

  ‘Mr Hubble’s room was paid for until the end of January,’ she said firmly. ‘This can’t be his.’

  ‘How d’you know? You ain’t been here afore so you ain’t in a position to argue. If you don’t want it there’s plenty who do.’

  A cry from Flora made Alice turn to see her mother collapse to her knees as she reached the top of the stairs. ‘All right,’ she said hastily. ‘We’ll take it, but as it’s obviously a cheaper room I expect you to supply coal and kindling free of charge.’

  ‘Just to show that I’m a fair woman I’ll allow you a sample today, but after that you’ll pay like the rest of my tenants.’

  Alice did not stop to argue. She hurried to help Flora, who was struggling to get Beth to her feet. ‘Come along, Mama. Almost there.’

  Mrs Leech sidled past them, eyeing Beth with pursed lips. ‘She don’t look too good to me. If she’s sick she’ll have to go to hospital. St Bart’s is just round the corner.’

  ‘I’m not ill,’ Beth said breathlessly.

  ‘Ignore her.’ Alice slipped her arm around her mother’s waist. ‘She’s undoubtedly a crook, but at least we’ve got a roof over our heads and time to look around for something better.’

  Beth bowed her head. ‘I’m so sorry, darling girl. I’m holding you back, I know it.’

  ‘Don’t say that, Mrs Radcliffe.’ Flora patted her on the shoulder. ‘You’re a nice lady. We’ll take care of you.’

  Between them Alice and Flora managed to get Beth into the room and onto the bed. Alice unlaced her mother’s boots and pulled them off, covering her with one of the moth-eaten blankets that lay folded on the flock-filled mattress. ‘At least we’re used to Spartan living,’ she said with a wry smile. ‘A stay with Aunt Jane has taught us to be resilient.’

  Beth managed a weary smile. ‘It’s not so bad.’

  ‘There’s not much furniture,’ Flora said, moving away to explore the dark corners beneath the sloping ceiling. ‘I can see the sky in the gaps between the roof slates. I think it’s snowing again.’

  ‘I’ll get a fire going and I’ll see if Mrs Leech will let us have some more blankets.’ Alice tried to sound positive. ‘And we need candles and matches too. I’m going downstairs to face the Gorgon.’

  ‘What’s a Gorgon?’ Flora asked innocently. ‘Can I come, too? I’ve never seen one of those.’

  ‘I think we should add Greek mythology to our curriculum,’ Alice said, chuckling. ‘The Gorgon was a mythical monster, Flora. I’m afraid I was being rather unkind about Mrs Leech, who is probably very nice when you get to know her.’

  ‘I doubt that very much.’ Beth lay back against the pillows with a sigh.

  ‘I’ll go downstairs and see what I can do.’ Alice laid the second blanket over her mother, but it was impossible to ignore the smell of stale tobacco that clung to the material and she wrinkled her nose in distaste. ‘I’d be grateful if you’d stay and keep my mother company, Flora. Mrs Leech obviously dislikes children so we don’t want to get on the wrong side of her.’ She hurried from the room without waiting for an answer.

  Mrs Leech’s parlour was warm to the point of stuffiness. With heavy velvet curtains half drawn and dark mahogany furniture that was too large for the size
of the room, the atmosphere was claustrophobic and oppressive. Although partially illuminated by half a dozen expensive wax candles, Alice found it hard to accustom her eyes to the gloom, but she could see that every available surface was covered in bric-a-brac of one sort or another, mostly the type of fairings purchased from fairground stalls.

  ‘I ain’t your servant,’ Mrs Leech said tersely when Alice enquired about the coal and kindling. ‘If you want it you get the cellar key from me and you go down and fetch it yourself. One scuttle a day and a bundle of kindling will cost you threepence a week.’

  ‘But that’s too dear.’

  ‘Take it or leave it.’

  This seemed to be the answer to every question. Alice tried again. ‘The attic room is very cold. Might we have some more blankets, please?’

  ‘That’ll be a penny a week for each extra piece of bedding.’

  Alice opened her mouth to protest and thought better of it. ‘If you say so. Where do I find them?’

  Mrs Leech rose from her chair by the roaring fire and opened a wall cupboard from which she produced a large iron key. ‘The cellar,’ she said succinctly. ‘I’ll fetch the blankets and you can collect them on your way upstairs.’ She reached in again and produced a book of Vestas. ‘That’ll be an extra farthing, and meals is extra.’

  ‘But I assumed that was included in the rent.’

  ‘I ain’t a charity, miss. You pay for extras and food is definitely an extra.’

  ‘I think we’ll manage on our own.’

  Alice managed to get a fire going and even if it did not provide much warmth it made the room seem a little more cheerful. Exhausted by her efforts, Beth was soon asleep and although Alice was reluctant to leave her mother she had to get Flora home before they were missed. She had hoped to return to Russell Square in time for luncheon, but everything had taken much longer than she had expected and now they would have to hurry.

  As Flora had observed, it was snowing again and walking any distance was out of the question. Simply keeping their balance proved a challenge and the few hansom cabs and hackney carriages they saw passed them by without stopping. Alice had planned to walk in order to save money, but she was unfamiliar with this part of the city and soon they were lost. The swirling, whirling snowstorm was disorientating in itself, and only the foolhardy or those on an urgent mission were outdoors in such weather. People hurried by with their heads down and were reluctant to stop when Alice tried to ask the way.