by Anna King
Rebecca stared back as if she hadn’t heard a word Ivy had said. ‘I’ll get out here. Thank you for the lift, Ivy. And I wish you a happy new life, wherever you decide to go. Goodbye.’
Helpless to stop her leaving the carriage, Ivy bit hard on her bottom lip as she watched the slim figure walk away.
A good five minutes passed before Ivy instructed the cabbie to drive on. There was nothing more she could do, and she had her own life to live. A bright future was beckoning her, but as she drove off, instead of the heady feeling she had expected to experience at having finally escaped from Richard’s clutches, Ivy had only a bitter taste in her mouth, and one that would stay with her for a very long time.
*
Rebecca walked on, her eyes unseeing as she negotiated the familiar journey by instinct. She was feeling very strange. She had imagined that after hearing what Richard had tried to do to Amy she would have been burning up with hatred, but she felt so calm it was as if she had been transported outside of her own body and was watching herself from above.
The front door to Jimmy’s house was open, allowing Rebecca to slip inside without announcing her arrival. The first sound she heard was the now all too familiar strident tones of Bessie. ‘I don’t care what yer say, lad. I ain’t ’aving that thing in the house. What if the child got ’is ’ands on it? Nah! I ain’t changing me mind, Jimmy, so yer can take it back from wherever yer got the blasted thing from.’
Climbing the stairs, Rebecca felt a smile tug at her lips. Dear Bessie. She had become very fond of the irrepressible woman, who would soon become her surrogate mother-in-law.
‘Now look here, woman, I’m not taking it back, so you can stop going on about it. Bloody hell’s bell’s. I’d’ve thought you’d be pleased to have some kind of protection in the house after what happened. I can’t be here all the time, and until they catch the men responsible for what happened to Charlie, I ain’t gonna be happy leaving you on your own; especially with James to worry about as well.’
‘Yer can talk till yer blue in the face, lad. It’s been over a month now. Those men ain’t coming back an’ yer know it. Yer told me yerself it was Big George that organised the whole thing, an’ he’s gorn missing, ain’t he? We ain’t gonna see him around these parts for a good time, if ever. And after the palaver yer made, no one in their right mind’s gonna risk breaking in ’ere again.’
Pushing the living-room door ajar, Rebecca saw Bessie and Jimmy glaring at each other, neither one of them willing to back down.
Looking over Jimmy’s shoulder, Bessie exclaimed loudly, ‘Ah, hello, love, maybe you can talk some sense into that thick head of this obstinate bugger, ’cos he ain’t taking any notice of what I say, not that he ever did.’
Distracted, Jimmy turned, running his hands through his thick hair in a rare display of agitation. Throwing out his arms, he cried in relief, ‘Hello, sweetheart.’ Striding forwards, he put his arm around Rebecca’s waist and kissed her lightly on the lips. ‘Would you please talk some sense into the old trout, before I bleeding well strangle her?’
Rebecca laughed, but it wasn’t a merry laugh.
Instead the sound was tinged with hysteria.
‘What’s the matter, love? Yer look as white as a sheet.’
Bessie was examining Rebecca closely, her keen eyes missing nothing.
A warning light came on inside Rebecca’s mind. Careful. Careful, you don’t want to get them suspicious, now do you?
At Bessie’s words, Jimmy became all contrition. ‘Are you all right, sweetheart?’
A serene smile on her face, Rebecca answered calmly, ‘Of course I am. I’ve just been to see Ada Gates to invite her and Billy to the wedding and I bumped into Maude.’ She tried to laugh, but the sound caught in her throat. Still maintaining a calm exterior, she added, ‘I also saw Ivy. She’s left Richard, only he doesn’t know it yet. We had a little chat, and it seems she’s not only left him, but taken all his money as well.’
Bessie gave a loud grunt. ‘Well, it’s no more than the bugger deserves. Slimy little git.’
Jimmy shook his head. ‘You’ve never even met him.’
Bessie snorted. ‘That’s as may be, but I’ve heard enough about the fellow ter make up me mind about him. Anyway, it looks like he’s gonna get a surprise when he gets home, don’t it?’
Rebecca’s lips twitched. ‘Oh, yes, Bessie. I’d say Richard has a few surprises coming to him today.’
Grabbing his coat, Jimmy said, ‘Look! I’ve got to go and see Charlie. We’ve got some unfinished business to sort out. There’s still a lot of loose ends need tying up before I can concentrate on setting up any new ventures. Stay and talk to Bessie, will you, sweetheart? Try and make her see sense.’
Darting an exasperated look at the grim-faced woman, Jimmy shook his head in bemusement and left.
‘Well, don’t yer come crying ter me when yer come home and find James with his little ’ead blown off… Oh, sod it!’
Rebecca had walked over to the bureau and was looking down at the cause of the heated argument. Bessie noticed the focus of her attention and said bitterly, ‘Gawd knows what he’s thinking of. We’ve lived in the East End all our lives, and we’ve never had any reason ter get a gun before now, but there’s no arguing with Jimmy when he gets a notion into his head – bloody stubborn git. Here, let me lock it away before James gets in ’ere.’ Bessie slammed the drawer shut and locked it, placing the key on a high shelf overhead. ‘There, at least I ain’t gotta worry about the little ’un getting his ’ands on it.’
Rebecca’s eyes seemed riveted on the locked drawer. ‘I wouldn’t mind a cup of tea, Bessie. If it’s not too much trouble.’
Bessie snorted loudly. ‘Get away with yer, yer daft mare. ’Course it’s no trouble. I’ll be glad ter be doing something ter take me mind off that bloody thing.’
Left alone, Rebecca quickly took the key down from the shelf and opened the bureau drawer. Without stopping to think, she placed the small, pearl-handled pistol into her bag. As if in a dream, she turned and left the room, walking quietly down the stairway so as not to alert Bessie of her departure.
She was at the front door when Amy and James appeared.
‘Hello, Becky. I didn’t expect to see you until later. I thought you were going home to finish that costume you’ve been working on.’
‘Becky, Becky. We’ve been over the park. Look, Becky, my dad bought me a new ball.’
Rebecca glanced down at the smiling boy and absently patted his head before turning to Amy. Staring lovingly into her sister’s heart-shaped face, Rebecca lifted her hand to stroke the soft cheek, murmuring softly, ‘You should have told me, love. You should have told me. I knew something was wrong at the time. You poor love. Don’t worry, he’s not going to get away with it.’ Patting her handbag, she added mysteriously, ‘I said he’d pay if he ever laid a finger on you, and now I’m going to carry out my promise. It’s lucky I’ve still got my key. I can surprise him; and what a surprise I’ve got lined up for him.’ Shaking her head in quiet amusement, Rebecca gently pushed Amy to one side and walked on.
Amy stood rooted to the spot, her heart racing as the full horror of Rebecca’s ominous words sank in.
‘Where’s Becky going?’ James was looking up at Amy, his small face troubled. ‘She didn’t even say hello to me. Is she upset with me, Amy? Did I do something wrong?’
Shaken out of her reverie, Amy said quickly, ‘No, love. You haven’t done anything wrong. Look, let’s go and find Bessie and see if there’s anything to eat.’
Brightening up at the thought of food, James bounded into the house, his high voice calling out for Bessie.
Amy’s head was whirling. Rebecca knew. Somehow she must have found out, but how? And she had looked and sounded so strange. If her elder sister had been shouting and filled with anger, Amy wouldn’t have felt so scared, but Rebecca had been so calm – unnaturally calm, almost as if she had become devoid of all emotion. And in that state, her sister was
capable of anything.
Running into the kitchen, while James went up to the bathroom to wash his hands, Amy cried to a startled Bessie, ‘Where’s Jimmy, Bessie?’
‘He’s gone out ter see Charlie, love. Why, what’s the matter?’
Knowing that it was useless to continue the pretence, Amy blurted out what had happened with Richard, and her fear that Rebecca was going to do something terrible.
Bessie’s face stretched in disbelief, her expression swiftly turning to one of deep rage as she listened to Amy’s tearful, heart-rending confession.
‘Why, the dirty bastard. And you’ve keep quiet all this time. In the name of God, why, love?’
Babbling now, Amy sobbed fearfully, ‘Because I was frightened of what Becky would do if she found out. She’s always hated Richard, and… and even though nothing happened… Oh, Bessie, I’m scared, I’m really scared. And… and she said he was going to pay, then she patted her bag… I don’t know what to do, Bessie. What if she’s got a knife in her bag? Oh, Bessie…’
Bessie clutched at her throat, her eyes gazing upwards, a sudden thought entering her stricken mind. ‘Oh, my Gawd!’
Dashing past Amy, she ran up the stairs as fast as her aged legs would carry her, with Amy close behind. Running to the bureau she saw at once that the drawer was open – open and empty.
‘She’s taken the gun. Oh, I thought there was something wrong with her the minute she walked in, but I was so busy arguing with Jimmy, I didn’t take much notice.’ Pushing Amy from the room, she shouted wildly, ‘Go after Jimmy, quickly. You’ll be able to catch up with him if you run… Go on, then, love… Run… Run, like you’ve never run before.’
Needing no extra bidding, Amy sped down the stairs and out into the street, all the while her mind pleading, Please God, don’t let her do anything. Please God, don’t let her use the gun on Richard, because if she does then she’ll hang, and it’ll be all my fault.
Billy Gates had just got in from work when he happened to glance up and see Rebecca walking past his window. Smiling, he hung his coat up and opened the front door.
‘Hello, Becky. Twice in one day. Mum said you’d been round earlier. Did you forget something?’
Momentarily distracted, Rebecca turned to Billy, and the dead look reflected in her eyes caused Billy’s stomach to twist in alarm.
‘What’s up, Becky? What…’
But Rebecca seemed not to have heard him. Walking past the startled man, she calmly took out a key and opened the door of her former home, just as Billy had seen her do a hundred times before.
His blunt face puzzled, Billy quietly closed his own door, but he remained standing. Deep in thought, Billy called through to the scullery, ‘Mum! Mum, Becky’s just gone in next door. She didn’t look right ter me. D’yer think I should go and see if she’s OK?’
Ada Gates appeared, wiping her hands on her apron. ‘Becky’s gorn in next door! What would she be doing in there? You sure, lad?’
Impatiently Billy clicked his tongue. ‘’Course I’m sure, I…’ He broke off as Richard’s voice, high with rage, could be heard clearly through the wall. Then both Billy and Ada jumped in fright as they heard Maude scream. Rushing out into the street, Billy pressed his face up against next door’s window, and what he saw brought his eyes out on stalks. Without pausing to think, he lifted his heavy-booted foot and kicked in the door.
*
‘You stupid bitch. You mean to say you just stood by and let her walk out without trying to stop her?’ Richard was pacing the room like a man demented. ‘She’s cleaned me out, d’you hear me, you fat old cow, Ivy’s taken every penny I have. The vicious bitch has left me without a penny to my name. Well! Don’t just sit there like a stuffed pig, you stupid cow. Don’t you realise what this means. I’m ruined… ruined. Didn’t she say where she was going? Think, woman, for fuck’s sake try and think if she said anything…’
Maude stiffened in her chair, her fat face dissolving into lines of anger. ‘Don’t you use that sort of language to me, Richard, I won’t stand for it. It’s not my fault you married that trollop. I warned you not to go through with it, but oh, no, you wouldn’t listen to me, would you, and now you’re paying for it.’ She squinted up at the distraught face, her nose curling with distaste at the pitiful figure her brother presented. Any other man, a real man, in his position would be out doing something, but not her dear brother. Oh, no! Instead he was doing what he’d always done. Blustering and posturing, not resourceful enough to try and sort his own mess out by himself. He was a lot like Phil in that respect. Neither of them had ever had any gumption.
Settling herself more comfortably in her armchair, Maude’s furtive mind began making plans. Now that Richard’s money was gone, she wasn’t going to hang around. She had her secret hoard under her bed, minus what that deceitful cow Rebecca had stolen from her. Fortunately her cousin hadn’t taken much, and she still had some of the money her parents had left in trust for her safely put by in the bank; with interest, it must be worth a tidy sum by now. Oh, yes, she was going to be all right. The first chance she got, she was going to follow in Ivy’s footsteps and leave. She would easily find a place to stay, and in due course she would advertise for a companion. There were plenty of women in dire straits who’d be only too pleased to look after her in return for a roof over their heads and food in their stomachs, together with a small allowance – a very small allowance. She wasn’t going to throw her money away. With careful handling it would last her her lifetime. She wasn’t going to waste any sleep over her brother; he could fend for himself.
*
When the front door opened and Rebecca appeared, both Maude and Richard were stunned into silence. Then Richard, glad of the opportunity to vent his spleen onto somebody else, pulled himself upright and spat out viciously, ‘I don’t know why you’ve come round here, madam, but you can sling your hook. You’re not welcome in this house, and that goes for the rest of your good-for-nothing family. And I’ll have your key back too, you little guttersnipe.’ Richard swayed on his feet pompously, his haughty demeanour turning to stark fear as Rebecca produced the gun.
Her pale face betraying no trace of anger, Rebecca said calmly, ‘Remember what I said to you on Christmas Eve, Dick? Well, now I know what happened. You tried to rape my Amy, didn’t you, you disgusting little man. Maybe you thought I’d never find out, or maybe you imagined my threat was an empty one. If that’s the case, then you’re very much mistaken. I said I’d kill you if I found out you’d laid a finger on Amy, and now that I know for sure, I intend to carry out my promise.’ Lifting the gun, she aimed it directly at Richard’s chest.
Terrified, his eyes bulging, Richard staggered back, his hands held out in a defensive gesture. ‘No! No, you’ve got it all wrong, Becky. I never harmed Amy… Oh, please, don’t hurt me… Please… don’t hurt me… I’m sorry… I’m sorry…’
Rebecca watched Richard dispassionately. She didn’t feel anything towards him any more. No hate, no anger, just a determination to avenge Amy and the horror she’d endured. She sensed Maude’s presence, but ignored her. She no longer had any quarrel with Maude. It was Richard she’d come for. Steadying her arm, she locked her finger around the trigger. Maude screamed in terror, but Rebecca didn’t even flinch. Looking into the pale, sweating face only a few feet away from her, she squeezed the trigger just as Richard dived to the floor.
Then two things happened at once. The sound of the gun going off seemed to snap Rebecca out of her trance-like state, just as Billy Gates kicked in the front door. Then she was being held firmly, a strong hand trying to prise the gun from her fingers. With a soft groan, she dropped the small pistol, her body collapsing against the safety of Billy’s comfortable, broad chest. She was vaguely aware of Richard screaming, his voice, high-pitched with fear, sounding like an old woman. Then more people entered the house, and she found herself being transferred from Billy’s grasp into the protective arms of Jimmy.
Dimly, as if from a long way o
ff, she heard Jimmy say gruffly, ‘Thanks, mate. Thank God you were here. I owe you one for this, Billy. Thanks again.’
‘No need ter thank me, Mr Jackson. I’d do anything fer Rebecca, anything. Yer a lucky man, Mr Jackson. Take good care of her, won’t yer?’
The two men clasped hands before Billy, his entire body filled with well-deserved importance, ushered his anxious mother back into the privacy of their home.
Rebecca was crying freely, the salty tears running into her open mouth as she wept and clung to Jimmy, shocked back into reality at last.
‘I’ll have the law on her, you see if I don’t. Bursting into my house and threatening me…’
Jimmy whirled menacingly on the sweating Richard. ‘You do that, Fisher. I’m sure the police would be very interested to know the reason why Rebecca came here. In fact I’ll save you the trouble. I’m going there myself, right now, and I’m going to tell them how you tried to rape a fifteen-year-old girl – a girl who trusted you, a girl who looked on you as an uncle. You filthy bastard. I hope they lock you up and throw away the key.’ With one last murderous look in Richard’s direction, Jimmy carried the weeping Rebecca from the house and into a waiting carriage.
*
Word of the unfolding drama had quickly spread through the small street and as Richard walked unsteadily over to close the door he saw small groups of people out on the pavement, their heads nodding towards the house, their faces alive with ghoulish curiosity. With a vile oath, he slammed the door shut.
Badly shaken, he staggered to the sideboard and poured himself a large brandy. During all this time Maude hadn’t said a word. She was too busy thinking how this latest incident would benefit her. Until Rebecca had shown up, all Richard’s troubles had been down to lack of funds. Now, not only was he ruined financially, but his entire life was destroyed beyond repair. No money could help him now, even if he had any.