She shook her head at the door that was now propped up against the wall, and poked at it with the toe of her slipper. ‘It’s fallen right off its hinges. Shoddy workmanship, that’s what it is. At least that old terrace of ours had to be pulled down; it didn’t just go and fall over. Disgusting, that’s what it is, when there are so many skilled fellers out of work who could have done a proper job of it. Not like this flipping rubbish.’
Nell could have hugged her for her easy complicity in what they both knew to be a lie.
‘So it’ll be all right if Joe comes over then?’
‘I’d appreciate that so much, Mary. Thank you. You’re always being so kind to me.’ Nell lowered her head, and apparently became intrigued by a loose thread dangling from her apron pocket. ‘Mary, do you think Joe would think it was too much of a cheek if I asked him to do it as soon as he can?’
She wound the thread tightly around her finger until the tip went bright red, and then she tugged at it. As the thread snapped the pocket puckered into a row of tight little pleats.
‘It’s the kids see, Mary,’ she said, continuing the lie as she fiddled around flattening out the pocket. ‘If there’s no door to keep them in of a night they could just wander off without me knowing, and I’d never be able to forgive myself if they got down on the road in the dark. They could get themselves knocked over – you know what the traffic’s like down there – and then what would the poor driver say?’
Nell scratched her nose to distract herself. What was wrong with her? Why couldn’t she just shut up?
‘Of course, and I agree with you, love,’ Mary colluded. ‘The kiddies’ safety has to come first, and I know Joe’ll be only too pleased to do it just as soon as you like. Tell you what, how about if I go and ask him to do it right now? This minute. I bet he’ll be over here before the cat can lick its ear.’
Mary wanted to know so badly, but didn’t think it would be a very good idea to ask what Martin’s part was in all of this. Some things were best left unsaid.
‘You did a really good job there, Joe, thank you ever so much.’ Nell stood next to him in the passageway admiring the repaired and now mercifully closed front door – it was as if nothing had ever happened to it. Stephen wouldn’t be able to complain about it now; there was nothing to complain about. Or so she hoped.
Joe ran his hand up and down the wood of the jamb. ‘It wasn’t much of a job, girl. It only needed the hinges moving a bit, then a quick fill and repair with a touch of putty, and then rehanging. Easy as anything. I could have done it in my sleep. My old dad, he was a carpenter, see, and I used to help him out of an evening after school and at weekends.’ He nodded at the canvas toolbag at his feet. ‘They’re his tools I used. And do you know what, Nell, I treasure them, I do. Better than the crown jewels to me, they are, because they’re a memory of my dad. He was a good old boy. The things he made out of old bits of wood with those tools – you wouldn’t believe.’
Joe chuckled grimly. ‘Truth to tell though, Nell, I’ve been tempted once or twice to pawn them. Especially lately, but I never have. And I hope I never will. But I tell you what, I wish I’d have listened to him and done an apprenticeship, trained to be a proper carpenter like him. But no, not me, not know-it-all Joe. You know how it is when you’re a kid. Would I listen to him? No, course I wouldn’t. What did I do? I followed his flash brother’s advice and went into the docks. I listened to all his stories all right. All about earning big money and living the high life. And he was right as well, there was good money – for a while. But that was before things got hard. Mind you, times change, and let’s hope them good times come back again. But even if they do, it’ll be too late for me. Now I’m too old for them to even consider taking me back on, no matter what work there is about. If I’d served my time with my old dad’s firm like he wanted, perhaps I wouldn’t be in the state I am now. They say there’s loads of work going in the house-building game these days. All over the place they’re putting houses up, so it’s good regular work. And making something that a feller could be proud of – homes for people to live in. That’s a proper job. But muggins here, I’ve got no papers, have I? So who’d want me?’
He picked up the toolbag. ‘I went to this meeting a little while ago and the bloke there, he told us that Stepney’s got nearly twice as many people out of work as the rest of the whole of London. What do you think about that then? Shocking, eh? It’s like we’re not worth a light.’
Nell nodded and smiled sympathetically, but she wasn’t really listening to what he was telling her. She wanted to hear what this kind, unhappy man had to say, of course she did, and she would have loved to have told him that she understood about the importance of the tools. How could she not, knowing how she felt about her brooch? And she of all people understood how it felt to wish you’d listened to someone, but had been too obstinate, and then wound up ruining everything. But she was itching to get him out of the flat before any of them came home and found him there. Especially after the business with Martin.
‘I wish I had something to give you, Joe. You know, to say thank you for everything you’ve done for me.’
‘That’s all right, girl, I was glad to be of help. It’s a long time since I’ve felt useful to anyone.’
What was she going to do? He still wasn’t making any attempt to go. She’d just have to come up with some excuse to get rid of him.
The children. That was it – Tommy and Dolly.
‘You’ll have to excuse me, Joe, but I’m going to have to go down and bring in those kids of mine in a minute,’ she said, keeping her voice light despite the rising panic that Stephen or the twins might be back at any moment. ‘It’ll be getting dark out there soon and they’ll be needing to go to bed. The little monkey brands would stay out playing all night if they had their way.’
‘Aw, yeah, course, sorry, Nell. Don’t know what got into me going on like that. But it was just sort of nice, having someone else to talk to for a change.’ He winked and smiled. ‘Someone who hasn’t heard it all a hundred times before, eh? Not like my Mary; seems like she’s fed up with listening to me lately. But you’re a good girl, Nell, and Stephen’s a lucky man. I only wish he realised it.’
Nell looked away, not knowing how to reply.
Joe opened the door. ‘Any time you’ve got any other jobs want doing, you promise me you’ll let me know, all right? And I’ll be straight over with my toolbag. It’s always nice to be able to help a neighbour.’
‘I will, Joe. Thank you.’ She couldn’t face him as she spoke.
He stepped out onto the landing, leaving Nell feeling relieved but embarrassed – not only by her behaviour, but also by what her neighbours so obviously knew about her and Stephen. ‘I didn’t even make you a cup of tea.’
‘Next time, eh?’
‘Yeah, next time. And thanks again, Joe.’
‘Any job, doesn’t matter how little.’ He held up the bag. ‘I’ll bet I’ve got a tool in here to tackle anything you can name.’ He let out a long, sad sigh. ‘Except life, eh, Nell? If I had a tool to sort that out I reckon I’d be a stone rich man. I’d have everyone after me then.’
Chapter 35
Nell rounded up the children, helped them wash and get into their pyjamas and then put them to bed in the front room. She kissed them both on the forehead, sat down beside them and took a deep breath.
‘There’s something important I want to say to you two.’ She hesitated, not knowing how to put her thoughts into words that wouldn’t scare them. ‘You do both know how much I love you, don’t you? No matter what.’
Tommy and Dolly nodded gravely. This sounded as if they might be in trouble.
‘Good. Because I want you to know that as long as we love each other that’s all that matters, and whatever happens I’ll always be here to look after you. I know your dad is an angry man, and I know he sometimes scares you, but you don’t have to be scared, because I’m here. You just keep out of his way and everything will be all right. OK?’
The look on her children’s faces, as they nodded silently at her, was almost enough to break her heart.
Even though the nights were beginning to draw in and the curtains were shut tight, Nell still couldn’t sleep, she just lay there waiting and dreading the moment Stephen would eventually come home. He must have had a right skinful. She looked at the alarm clock: it was gone eleven o’clock yet there was still no sign of him, and she didn’t feel in the least tired. It was a wonder she ever slept a wink with all the things that she had going around in her head. But tonight her terrors were increased. The thing that had wormed its way into her mind was nothing to do with the physical pain she was feeling, she’d grown used to that and all its horrors – for Nell, the abnormal had become the normal, as far as Stephen’s treatment of her was concerned. No, what was terrifying her now was the idea that he had somehow crept into the flat without her realising it – maybe she had nodded off for a few minutes – then, just to punish her for what had happened between him and Martin, he had hurt her children, had beaten them, or, God forbid as Sarah would say, he had done something even worse to them.
What was it Florrie Talbot had said about the cupboard door maybe one day hitting the children?
It was no good, scared as she was, she had to go and look in on them and risk him losing his temper if he caught her. She had to make sure that not a single hair on her precious babies’ heads had been harmed.
Nell eased the covers off her body, worried that they might make a sound that magically – no, wickedly – would somehow cause Stephen to appear. Then she swung her legs off the bed and stepped quietly onto the rug. If she was careful she could have a quick look in the front room, make sure the children were sleeping safely, and be back in bed before anyone noticed what she’d done.
She didn’t dare turn on the light in the passageway – how could she be sure that he hadn’t come in and fallen asleep in the kitchen? So she limped painfully but as lightly as she could towards the front of the flat, feeling along the wall to reach the door on the right – the door that separated her from her children. She could just make out the brass doorknob in the dark.
It was as if she was being watched: the moment she touched the handle, she heard a key being slipped into the lock of the front door.
Nell froze, knowing that she was now unable to let herself into the children’s room. She couldn’t give him a reason to go in there after her, definitely not when he’d been out this late. She could only imagine what state he was going to be in.
The front door opened, and, almost with relief, she heard George’s voice.
‘I don’t know about you not liking the film, and having a rotten time, Lil,’ he complained, ‘cos you certainly made up for it afterwards. You were knocking back them port and lemons in the pub like there was no tomorrow. I don’t know how you stay so skinny the way you eat and drink. Bloody navvy’s appetite, that’s what you’ve got. Maybe if you were a bit more ladylike, you’d be able to get yourself a bloke.’
‘Charming. I suppose me being skinny is nothing to do with how hard I bloody work. Well, next time I am not going to see a cowboy, I am—’ Lily’s words fizzled out as she turned on the light in the passageway, and saw Nell standing there flattened against the wall. ‘What’re you up to creeping about in the dark? You’re not after nicking anything are you? Cos if you are . . .’
‘No, I’m not up to anything,’ said Nell, moving sideways away from them, her back still to the wall. ‘I thought I heard one of the kids calling out for me, that’s all. And I’d never steal anything. Never.’
George loomed over her. ‘And what’s Dad got to say about you messing about at all hours?’
‘Nothing. He’s got nothing to say. He went out. Ages ago.’
Lily looked her up and down. ‘And who could blame him?’
‘I thought you were him coming home.’
‘Fascinating.’ Lily shoved past Nell, deliberately knocking into her. ‘I’m off to bed. See you tomorrow, George.’ Then, without turning to look at Nell, Lily said to her, ‘And you’d better make sure you’ve got my breakfast ready on the table before you wake me up in the morning.’
If it hadn’t been for George standing there looming over her, Nell would have checked the children, but there was something about the way he was staring at her that told her she had to get away from him as soon as possible, and the only place she had to go was Stephen’s bedroom.
Chapter 36
Martin sat there on the shore, his legs bent up and his chin resting on his knees, waiting for Stephen to move, ready to give him another clout. Stephen would learn a lesson tonight about what it felt like to be frightened if it was the last thing that Martin ever did. If the man had a single ounce of sense in him, after what had happened tonight he would never touch Nell again.
‘You’re a bad man, Stephen Flanagan, do you know that? A really bad man, and you don’t see really bad people that often in life. Normal people might make mistakes, do or say stupid things, or even act like idiots, but normal people don’t behave like you, Flanagan, and normal people don’t understand why you think it’s all right to do what you do to a woman. It’s only a pity that more of them don’t speak up about it, because that’s how the likes of you get away with it. But me, I say what I think, and, do you know, I think you’re worse than an animal. No man should hit a woman, especially someone like Nell. Think about it, Flanagan – she’s kind, she’s beautiful and she loves those kids. And from what Mum says she looks after you lot like you’re all made out of gold or something. It’s not right, it’s just not bloody right. Any other bloke would treat her like she was the special one, not expect it to work the other way round.’ He rubbed his hands over his face. ‘And that’s what she is – special. A little gem swamped by all the muck surrounding her. You and George and Lily should appreciate that girl, realise what you’ve got. Not treat her like shit.’
Martin had been watching Stephen’s chest rising and falling as he took slow shallow breaths, but now it was too dark to make out such small movements, and to his surprise the tide had turned and the water was lapping at his feet. He hadn’t realised that they’d been down there so long. It was time for them to get moving.
Against his better judgement, he hauled himself to his feet so that he could drag Stephen off the shore and away from the surging river. Bracing himself, with his feet planted firmly apart, Martin gripped Stephen by the arms.
He immediately let go of him.
Something about Stephen Flanagan didn’t feel right.
Martin squatted down and touched Stephen’s face and then his neck. He was cold, and sort of clammy. Definitely not right.
Martin dragged his fingers through his hair, wondering what to do next. He lifted one of Stephen’s arms and let it fall. Lifeless.
It was over. Stephen Flanagan was dead.
Slowly, Martin stood up and backed away, stumbling and slipping on the stony foreshore, his eyes fixed on the shadowy outline of the motionless form before him. When he reached the waterman’s steps leading up to the alley, he took them in just three leaps.
Back on the roadway, Martin sprinted towards home as if the lost souls of every cutlass-wielding pirate who had ever sailed up the London river were all chasing after him.
Chapter 37
The moment the alarm went off, Nell’s eyes blinked open and she was immediately thinking about her children. The ringing of the clock and the clattering of the marbles on the tin plate hadn’t disturbed Stephen, but still she moved slowly as she turned to look at his side of the bed – just to make sure that he was still asleep.
She frowned, puzzled. Stephen wasn’t there. And not only was he not there, there wasn’t even a dent in his pillow. What was going on?
Nell pushed herself up on her elbows to look more closely, wincing at the soreness of her bruises, but distracted from the pain by the mystery of where Stephen could be. Since the twins had taken over the stalls he never got up before half past ei
ght at the earliest.
All she could think of was that he couldn’t have come home last night.
Maybe Ada Tanner was telling the truth for once in her life, and he really was going with someone else. Her first reaction was to hope that it was true, hope it was true with all her heart, as maybe that would mean he would lose interest in her once and for all and she’d be free at last from his groping hands, even when he was drunk. But she had to be sensible. Say he did decide to move another woman into the Buildings? What would it mean for her and the children? Would Stephen throw them out? He was certainly heartless enough; and if he did, where would they go? How would they live?
In moments of wild fantasising about running off and leaving him, Nell had checked in the East London Observer to see how much it would cost to rent a room for her and the children. The fantasy hadn’t lasted very long. Because they had nowhere to go, the welfare people would be sure to start prying. Then they’d take the children away from her and put them in some terrible place like the home that she had so hated, but which had been the only home she had known throughout her childhood, and, in the end, had not wanted to leave. Say her children felt the same and they didn’t want to leave the place they were sent to, even if she did eventually find somewhere for them all to live together?
Nell threw back the covers and sat on the edge of the bed, fighting to keep her panic under control. She would not let anyone take Tommy and Dolly from her, she’d make sure of that. So she would keep Stephen happy, do whatever he wanted, and that way she would keep a roof over her children’s heads. And she would make sure she was nice to Lily and George. They could be so vicious, but she would get them on her side. That could make all the difference, because if they weren’t kicking up a fuss, Stephen didn’t pay them much attention. So she’d make sure they had nothing to make a fuss about.
Rough Justice Page 17