The Workhouse Girl

by Dilly Court

  She moved towards him, her eyes narrowed to slits. ‘So you’re washing your hands of me, are you, George? You’ve landed me in trouble and now you’re going to put the blame on Trigg and me.’

  He looked her up and down. ‘It’s obvious to everyone here that you are as much a criminal as your husband, wherever he may be at this moment. You’ve been cheating me for years and no doubt creaming off rent money in the process.’ He turned to Bertram, his eyes flashing dangerously. ‘As to you, sir, that will is useless unless you find Elsie’s illegitimate child, which you won’t because she’s dead. This whole thing is a farrago of lies. My sister was mad. Anyone will tell you that.’

  ‘No, she wasn’t.’ Sarah had been standing quietly beside Mrs Arbuthnot but she could keep silent no longer. ‘Elsie was as sane as you and I, maybe more so. She spent her whole life helping people and healing the sick.’ She broke off, choked with tears.

  ‘Fitch is a lying sod. He’s the one who deserves to rot in jail.’ Mrs Trigg turned to Bertram with an ingratiating smile. ‘What you just said was true, mister. George Fitch took the baby from his sister and brought her to the workhouse. That’s when we first got caught up in his wicked schemes. He told us that his sister had died in childbirth but her baby was born on the wrong side of the blanket, and he didn’t want a little bastard disgracing the family name.’ She grabbed Nettie by the arm and shoved her towards Fitch. ‘This is your niece. I raised that sickly, mewling baby and I’m telling you that this is Nanette Fitch. We had to call her something, and when pressed you told us that her mother’s dying wish was to name her Nanette after her grandmother. We registered her as Nanette Bean because Fitch didn’t want anyone to be able to trace her true identity.’ She shook her fist at George. ‘Ain’t that a laugh? She owns your bloody house now, not you.’

  Nettie pulled away from her. ‘What are you saying, you mad woman? I’m still Nettie Bean. I’m an actress and I’m going to be famous. I don’t want to be related to him. It can’t be true.’

  ‘I knew it,’ Sarah cried triumphantly. ‘Grey tried to tell me your name. It was the last word on his lips, and you are a lot like her, Nettie. I don’t know why I didn’t see it from the beginning.’ Sarah rushed to Nettie’s side and wrapped her in a warm embrace. ‘Don’t be upset, love. You’re still you, no matter what it says on a bit of paper.’

  Moorcroft beckoned to Constable Barley. ‘I suggest you take this man and this woman into custody, officer. There are witnesses aplenty to uphold your version of events. My brother will come with you and explain matters to your superior officer.’

  ‘Yes, sir.’ Constable Barley saluted smartly and produced a set of handcuffs from his belt, which he proceeded to clip onto Fitch’s wrist. He was about to do the same to Mrs Trigg but she drew herself up to her full height, thrusting out her bosom and fixing him with a defiant stare.

  ‘I’ll come quietly, constable. I’m the innocent party in all this.’ She turned her head to give Sarah a vicious look. ‘I’ll get the cops to search the grounds. You won’t get off easily, miss. I know that Trigg is here and when I find out what happened to him I promise you that you’ll suffer for it.’ She marched out of the room followed closely by Fitch handcuffed to the police officer, with Bertram bringing up the rear.

  The door swung shut behind them and an audible sigh of relief rippled round the room. ‘Well!’ Mrs Arbuthnot looked up at Moorcroft. ‘Who would have thought it, Martin?’

  He sat down beside her, taking her hand in his. ‘It’s quite breathtaking, my dear, but a happy outcome – at least, so far.’

  She eyed him curiously. ‘I’m not sure what you mean, Martin.’

  He patted her hand. ‘I’ll explain in a moment.’

  ‘Does this mean that she owns the house?’ Lemuel jumped off the window seat and came to stand beside Nettie, tugging at her skirt. ‘Are you going to let us stay here, miss?’

  Mary hurried over to lay her hand on his shoulder. ‘Leave the lady alone, Lemmy. She’s a bit overcome with it all.’

  Nettie wiped her eyes on her sleeve and sniffed. ‘I’m fine, really I am, but it’s been a shock, I’d admit that.’

  Sarah passed her a clean handkerchief. ‘But a good one for all that, Nettie.’

  ‘I had a mother and we never knew each other. I don’t even know what she looked like.’

  ‘I knew her well and I loved her as you would have done, given half a chance.’ Sarah grasped Nettie’s hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. ‘She was a wonderful person. She had red hair just like you, and she was funny and a bit wild, just like you. She didn’t give a jot for convention . . .’

  ‘Just like me,’ Nettie said, smiling through her tears. ‘At least you had her to take care of you. It could have been me that ended up living as you did and I would have been with my own mother. That’s very strange.’

  ‘And she would have loved you. She was fond of me but she never loved me, but I think you were always in her heart. She would have been so proud of you, Nettie.’

  ‘And I’ll work even harder,’ Nettie said, dabbing her eyes with a lace hanky. ‘I always said I’d be rich and famous and I will. You’ll see.’

  ‘You’re already rich, Nettie. You own this lovely old house and the grounds, not to mention the income from the properties in the village.’

  ‘Gawd almighty, I’m an heiress,’ Nettie said, chuckling. ‘I’m a rich woman and I don’t need to tread the boards for nuppence a week.’ She frowned. ‘But I’ll still keep on with my career. I won’t always be a walk-on. I’ll be a famous actress and an heiress at the same time. My ma will look down from heaven and cheer me on.’

  ‘Of course she will, my dear.’ Moorcroft cleared his throat. ‘I knew your mother, Nettie. She was a fine woman, and there are things that you should know.’

  Sarah’s hand flew to her lips. All her instincts warned her that this was neither the time nor the place for further revelations. She caught Moorcroft’s eye and shook her head. ‘Perhaps later, sir.’

  ‘I really would like to get everything out in the open,’ he said, rising to his feet, but at that moment the door opened and Bertram rushed into the room.

  ‘The truth has come out, Martin. They’re searching for a body,’ he said breathlessly. ‘You’d better come quickly.’

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  SARAH WAS THE first to reach the kitchen. Fitch remained handcuffed to Constable Barley and Mrs Trigg was seated at the table opposite the two men who had been witness to Trigg’s demise. Sarah recognised them instantly and her heart sank. They were bound hand and foot, and she could tell from their grim expressions that they knew their days of freedom were at an end. They might decide to tell the truth or it could be a pack of lies if they thought that Mrs Trigg would stand by them. She looked for Davey and saw him standing at the back of the room being interrogated by two uniformed revenue men. Davey met her anxious glance with a barely perceptible shake of his head, as if warning her to say nothing, but there was a hint of a smile in his eyes that was for her alone and it gave her courage.

  Nettie had followed her into the kitchen together with Moorcroft, Bertram and Mrs Arbuthnot, who had Lemuel and Jonah clinging to her hands. Mary moved swiftly to stand beside Sarah, giving her an encouraging smile. ‘I’m with you,’ she murmured. ‘I won’t let no one take you away from us.’

  ‘Don’t worry, Mary,’ Sarah said with more confidence than she was feeling. ‘Everything will be all right.’

  ‘What’s going on, officer?’ Moorcroft demanded. ‘I understand that you’re looking for a body. Is that correct?’

  The most senior police officer stepped forward. ‘And who are you, sir?’

  ‘My name is Martin Moorcroft and I am, or rather I was, Mr Fitch’s solicitor.’

  ‘I am Inspector Giles of the Metropolitan Police. Following information received we are investigating Mr Fitch’s affairs.’ He jerked his head in the direction of Trigg’s men. ‘We came to investigate a smuggling ring but this is n
ow a case of murder. According to these men Mr Thaddeus Trigg met his end at the hands of one Tobias Grey.’

  ‘That’s not true.’ Sarah could keep silent no longer. ‘Trigg had a gun. I witnessed the whole thing. He was going to kill Grey: there was a struggle and he fell on the knife.’

  Mrs Trigg let out a howl of anguish. ‘Murdered.’

  ‘It was self defence.’ Sarah turned to Trigg’s men. ‘Tell them, please. You saw it all. Tobias Grey is dead now, but he was no murderer.’

  The man who had intervened on that fatal day nodded his head. ‘That’s the truth, guv. She saw it all. Trigg was acting like a madman and he went in on the attack. What happened was an accident.’

  ‘What were you doing at the time of the murder?’ Inspector Giles fixed him with a gimlet stare. ‘What was your business here?’

  ‘We was only following orders to collect goods and transport them to Mr Fitch’s warehouse in London. It weren’t our business to ask where the stuff come from.’ He turned to his mate. ‘Ain’t that so, Kelly?’

  ‘That’s the size of it.’ Kelly cast a look of pure malice in Mrs Trigg’s direction. ‘She’s as bad as her old man was. She gave the orders and she paid us for our trouble. We never asked no questions.’

  Mrs Trigg leapt to her feet. ‘They’re both lying. I didn’t know that the goods were contraband. I was just following instructions from my employer, Mr Fitch.’ She pointed at George, shaking her finger at him. ‘He’s the villain, not my poor hubby, nor me. We was just dupes in the game he was playing.’

  ‘The woman is lying,’ Fitch said angrily. ‘You surely don’t believe her. She’s from the criminal classes. You only have to look at her to see that.’

  ‘I will have me say.’ Mrs Trigg’s voice rose a pitch or two. ‘That devil thinks he can treat people how he likes because he’s a toff, but he’s no better than anyone here. He abandoned his own flesh and blood to the workhouse. That’s her, over there – the carroty one with the skin the colour of whey. She’s the real owner of this old pile of shit and much good it will do her.’ She sank down on her seat as one of the constables made a move to restrain her. ‘All right, son. I ain’t going nowhere.’

  ‘It’s a pack of lies.’ Fitch glared at Mrs Trigg as if he would like to throttle her. ‘I’m a respectable businessman who’s been taken advantage of by a gang leader and his woman.’

  ‘That’s enough, sir.’ Inspector Giles stepped forward, holding up his hand. ‘You’ll have your chance to prove your innocence in court, but this is neither the time nor the place.’ He turned to Constable Barley and his two subordinate officers. ‘Take them to the Black Maria. This matter will be dealt with in the London courts.’

  Fitch was still protesting his innocence as Constable Barley led him from the room.

  ‘I ain’t going nowhere with him,’ Mrs Trigg said, folding her arms across her bosom. ‘He’d slit me throat as soon as look at me, and I ain’t leaving until I’ve seen the body. I won’t believe that my Trigg is dead unless I see him with me own eyes.’

  Inspector Giles shook his head. ‘You’re under arrest, madam. You have no choice in the matter. Take her away.’

  ‘Mr Moorcroft, sir. Don’t let them do this,’ Mrs Trigg screamed as she tried to fight off the two young constables who tried to lift her to her feet. ‘You’re a man of the law. Do something.’

  Nettie shook her head. ‘You don’t deserve anyone’s sympathy. You and that evil husband of yours made our lives hell in the workhouse. Not just me and Sarah but all the hundreds of men, women and children who passed through your hands. You knew who I was but you kept me a prisoner until you sold me to Mr Arbuthnot. You didn’t know it then, but that was the best thing that ever happened to me. Now I want you to pay for what you did to us, you wicked old witch. I hope you rot in prison for the rest of your miserable life.’ She turned on her heel and ran from the kitchen.

  ‘Go after her, Sarah,’ Moorcroft said urgently. ‘I’ll look after things here.’

  She hesitated, casting an anxious glance at Davey. ‘You won’t let them take Davey away will you, Mr Moorcroft? You know that he didn’t do anything wrong, nor did Parker who was just following orders.’

  ‘I’ll do everything I can to stop that happening,’ Moorcroft said with a reassuring smile.

  ‘We’ll leave the gentlemen to settle matters.’ Mrs Arbuthnot shooed the children into the passageway. ‘Go along, my dears. As soon as the kitchen is free we’ll have some breakfast. I’m sure you must be starving.’

  Sarah found Nettie in the small parlour where the children kept their toys. She was sitting on the floor, cuddling Mary’s doll and rocking to and fro with tears running down her cheeks. Sarah knelt down beside her. ‘Don’t take on so, Nettie.’

  ‘I don’t know who I am now. I’ve got used to being just Nettie Bean, a nobody from nowhere, and now suddenly I’m someone else.’

  ‘At least you know who your mother was, even if you never met her. She loved you always, and she proved it at the last when she changed her will in your favour. She wanted you to have what was rightfully yours.’

  ‘I suppose so, but I’m still an orphan. I’ll never know who my father was.’

  Sarah looked up to see Moorcroft standing in the doorway and she scrambled to her feet. ‘I think Mr Moorcroft might be able to help you there, Nettie. I’ll leave him to explain.’

  Moorcroft ran his finger round the inside of his stiff shirt collar. ‘I’m sure that Nettie won’t mind if you stay, Sarah. You two have been friends for a very long time.’

  Nettie brightened visibly. ‘What’s all this about? I do love a mystery.’

  The timbre of her voice and the way Nettie held her head brought Elsie vividly to mind, and glancing at Moorcroft Sarah realised that he was experiencing something similar. He had the look of someone who had discovered something so utterly wonderful that he could scarcely believe his eyes. She smiled to herself as she left them to get to know each other, and went to find Davey.

  Grey’s funeral, no longer a secret affair, was conducted next morning and to Sarah’s amazement the village church was packed with people wishing to pay their respects to someone they had known since he was a child. The churchyard was blanketed with snowdrops, a sea of white shimmering in the sunshine, and there was a breath of spring in the air. The mourners crowded round the grave to toss handfuls of soil onto the coffin in their final farewell to a member of the Fitch family, and Sarah realised suddenly that the strength of their feeling was as much for the dynasty as it was for Grey. People came up to her, holding her hand and telling her how much Elsie was missed, and they begged her to take over where Elsie had left off in her mission to heal the sick.

  ‘You can’t trust them fancy physicians,’ Old Mother Perks said, shaking her hand. ‘They take your money and stick leeches all over you, but that don’t do no good for a bellyache or a sore throat. The sooner you set up again the better for all of us.’ She hobbled away to join her family, who were nodding with approval.

  ‘I never knew that you were so popular,’ Nettie whispered.

  ‘It wasn’t me, it was Elsie. Your mother was a remarkable woman.’ Sarah looked round at the expectant faces of the people she had known since she was a child. ‘I think they’re waiting for you to invite them back to the house. You represent the Fitch family now and it’s quite a responsibility.’

  ‘I’m scared, Sarah. I’m a stranger here. They don’t know me and I certainly don’t know them.’ Nettie clutched her hand. ‘What shall I do?’

  Moorcroft moved to her side. ‘Will you allow me to do the honours, my dear? I think that you ought to be introduced to your audience.’

  A smile banished Nettie’s worried frown. ‘My audience. Of course, I hadn’t thought of it that way. Go on then, Pa. Introduce our double act.’

  Moorcroft stepped forward. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, you’ve probably heard that this young lady is Elsie’s daughter, and I’m proud to announce publicly that she is my daug
hter too. Sadly we have lost Elsie and Tobias, but their spirit lives on at Blackwood House and I hope you will follow us there now so that we may raise a glass to those who are no longer with us.’ He held up his hand as a murmur of assent rippled round the congregation. ‘And you all know Sarah, who learned everything she knows about herbal medicines from Elsie. She tells me that her dearest wish is to become even more proficient as a pharmacist so that she can come back and work amongst you when she is fully qualified. Knowing Sarah I don’t think it will be long before she returns to Blackwood to continue Elsie’s good work.’

  A round of applause sent a clamour of rooks flying skywards from the tall elm trees that surrounded the church, protesting noisily.

  Sarah felt the blood rush to her cheeks. ‘You shouldn’t have said that, sir. I have to earn my living. I can’t afford to study for the examinations that will soon become compulsory before anyone can practise.’

  ‘We’ll talk about that later, Sarah.’ He glanced over his shoulder. ‘But in the meantime I suggest we lead the way back to the house. These people look in need of refreshment.’

  ‘But Pa,’ Nettie protested, tucking her hand in the crook of his arm, ‘we haven’t anything to give them. Not like Mr Arbuthnot’s wake where Cook had been slaving away in the kitchen for a couple of days.’

  ‘Why do you think that Sophia and Mary remained at home, my dear? Parker liberated a keg of brandy and one of sherry wine before Mrs Trigg’s ruffians arrived at the house, and Sophia will have mastered the range by now and no doubt created some little fancies to feed the masses.’ He beckoned to Davey who had been standing at a respectful distance. ‘Come along, my boy. You and I have matters to discuss that will not wait.’

  Davey fell into step beside them as they left the churchyard. ‘Really, sir? I can’t think what interest you might have in what happens to me and my family.’

  ‘I already think of Sarah as my daughter and we had a long talk last night, after the police had taken the villains away.’