by June Tate
Flo arrived at the Solent Club early that evening and drew Stella aside. ‘I need to talk to you,’ she said, and walked to a table and sat down.
‘What is it?’ Stella asked.
‘It’s young Daisy. Her employer has heard she’s been working here and fired her. Now the girl has been paying fees at a private nursing home for her father who hasn’t long for this world and now she’s up the creek without a paddle.’
‘Oh dear,’ said Stella, ‘but what do you want me to do about it?’
‘She’s coming in a bit later. I want you to talk to her, and get her to work with you and the other girls.’
Stella was shocked. ‘You want her to become a brass?’
‘I want her to earn the money she needs!’
Stella gave Flo a knowing look. ‘Don’t give me that, you know how much she’d earn for you. Well I’m not sure I want to help you. She’s a lovely girl, innocent as the day is long and you want to destroy her!’
Flo gave a disdainful laugh. ‘It hasn’t ruined you has it?’
‘No, but I made my own decision to make money lying on my back. Daisy isn’t that kind of girl.’
‘Listen to me, Stella; we are all that kind of girl if we have nowhere else to turn.’
‘I’ll certainly talk to her because I like her and see what she says but I won’t push her into working for her money like I do. That will have to be her decision.’
‘Fair enough! If she’s desperate enough she’ll do it. What with the war, there are not many establishments around wanting her skills. She’ll come round to it in time. All her money will have gone on her father’s bills. She’ll need more money and soon. I can wait.’
Stella watched Flo walk away and thought what a hard bitch she was and with a heavy heart wondered what she would say to Daisy when she came in later. The last thing she wanted was for Daisy to become one of the girls and honestly she couldn’t imagine her contemplating such a thing, no matter what her situation was. She walked over to the bar and ordered a drink, pondering over the problem she’d been handed. You had to be hard to be a brass, to let men paw you and use you. However hard she tried, she couldn’t envisage Daisy in that situation. The girl was a virgin for Christ’s sake! Her mind was as pure as her body. To set her down this road was a sin, but she had no choice but to do Flo’s bidding. She hoped that Daisy would send her packing with a flea in her ear.
Eight
When Daisy arrived at the club a little later, Harry greeted her warmly. ‘Hello, love, can’t you keep away then?’
‘I’ve come to see Flo; do you know where she is?’
‘She was here a while ago. Hey, Stella, seen Flo?’
Stella walked over and said, ‘She had to go out, Daisy, but she asked me to talk to you. Come on up to my room, I’ve got a bottle up there.’
Daisy followed Stella up the stairs and into a larger room than she’d imagined. It was tastefully furnished, if not simply. There was a small washbasin in the corner, a dressing table, side tables with lamps and the bed had a brightly coloured cover with several small cushions on it, giving it a mildly exotic look.
Stella poured them both a gin and tonic and sat beside Daisy on the bed. ‘Flo told me about your problem. I’m really sorry you lost your job, love.’
‘I was so shocked when Madam fired me,’ Daisy told her, ‘for a minute I couldn’t speak. I’m hoping that Flo will let me work behind the bar, full-time.’
‘That’s what she wanted me to talk to you about,’
Daisy felt her stomach tighten and her heart beat faster. She had the feeling that Stella was going to give her bad news.
‘Flo is unable to take you on behind the bar for the week. She said it wouldn’t pay her to, I’m afraid.’
Daisy’s shoulders slumped.
‘However she did suggest another way for you to earn the money you need.’
‘Did she? That’s wonderful; I knew she wouldn’t let me down.’
Stella wondered how the girl would feel when she realized that Flo wasn’t quite the friend she thought. How could she put this so as to soften the blow?
‘As you know and as I’ve told you often, the effect you have on our clients since you’ve been working here is really something.’
The eager expression on Daisy’s face changed to one of suspicion. ‘Go on.’
God, this is going to be hard, thought Stella, and she hated to be the one to put this proposition to this lovely girl of whom she’d grown really fond. ‘Flo suggests that if you were to work the other side of the bar, you could make a great deal of money.’ There, she’d said it!
Daisy looked at Stella in disbelief. ‘Flo knows I’m not into all that. I made that clear to her when she took me on!’ she cried.
‘I know, love, and I told her I knew you wouldn’t be interested and in my opinion she’s out of line to even suggest such a thing. If I were you I would go and look for another job in the meantime. You’ll still be behind the bar at the weekends, getting paid and collecting tips. If you get another job real soon, you’ll be fine.’
‘I don’t have much time,’ Daisy told her. ‘Nearly all the money I have will be spent this week and I have to pay the rent and buy food for Mum.’
‘You could bring your dad home,’ Stella suggested.
Daisy shook her head. ‘He doesn’t have much time left, he’s deteriorating each day. If he was at home, he wouldn’t get the right care. Mum and I can only do so much, but where he is, they have everything to hand and trained nurses which he really needs at this moment. I’ve got to keep him there, Stella, I’ve got to!’
‘Well, darling, you must go out tomorrow morning and try and get another job. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you. Now drink up, I’ve got to get to work.’
As Daisy walked home she was more than a little confused. How could Flo even consider asking her to become a whore? She didn’t think any the less of the girls who worked the tables in the club. She’d taken their profession for granted, after all it was their choice and she’d got to know them and they were nice to talk to. But to become one of them – to have men touching her – and to have sex with a stranger. She remembered the young man who said he would pay twenty pounds to take her to bed. That was a great deal of money. But she just couldn’t do it!
The following morning, she was up early and out of the house. She called in at all the places she thought might need a good needlewoman. Stores that sold garments and who did alterations, but without success. Tailors, who told her that they had their own staff, even dry-cleaners who might take in alterations, but to no avail. There was one vacancy in a gown shop but not for a month hence when one of their seamstresses retired. A month was far too long to wait and she had to refuse.
She even went along to the tram depot to see if there was a vacancy as a conductress, but there were no jobs on offer. Eventually she tried one of the factories, but they too were full. The manager explained his position.
‘We’ve been inundated with women wanting to earn while their husbands are at the front,’ he said. ‘I’ve never known anything like it. It’s like the emancipation of women! They’ve never been so free to earn, apart from going into service.’
That gave Daisy another idea and she went to an agency for domestics, but again was met with a refusal. With the men of the households away at the war, domestic service had been cut back, except in the big houses of the rich who were well served already.
By Thursday evening as she walked towards the Solent Club, Daisy was beside herself with worry. She’d spent every moment out looking for work, but the war had taken its toll. Jobs that men had vacated and could be done by women had been filled, but businesses were suffering with the shortages that war brings to a country and that meant cutting back on staff. Daisy couldn’t have picked a worse time to be unemployed.
As she walked upstairs to get changed for the evening, Stella came up to her and asked, ‘Any luck with a job, Daisy?’
‘I can’t find anythi
ng, anywhere. It’s like someone has shut every door in my face. What am I to do, Stella?’
‘Bring your dad home, love. You don’t have any choice do you?’
‘I do have a choice, but I honestly don’t know if I could do it.’ She looked at her friend with such anguish that Stella wanted to cry.
‘Then don’t. For God’s sake, don’t go down that road, you’ll never forgive yourself.’
‘Is it really so bad?’
Stella was at a loss. For her it wasn’t a bad life because she had a goal. When she’d saved enough money she had plans and she knew that in the future she could look on the days spent in the club just as a means to an end. It would not fill her with a life of regret. But what of Daisy? Could she be that strong? She doubted it. Daisy should be married, surrounded by children and with a loving husband. Not working for Flo, catering for men’s sexual favours. But she had to help this girl.
‘It all depends how you look at it,’ she said. ‘When a man comes into my room, I look on it as being a job for which I’m paid. No more, no less.’
Daisy closed her eyes in despair. ‘But you have to get undressed and have sex with a stranger. How on earth do you do that?’
‘I just get on with it and think of the money.’
‘Oh, Stella, I don’t think I could be that brave.’
With a laugh, Stella said, ‘Look, love, bravery has nothing to do with it. You’d be surprised how quickly it’s all over.’
Quietly Daisy said, ‘But I’ve seen some of the men you’ve had to take to your room. They don’t all look particularly nice.’
Stella was highly amused. ‘I don’t always take that much notice, but then I’ve been at it a long time. Mind you I make it a rule not to kiss them!’
Daisy’s eyes widened. ‘Why ever not?’
‘Nah. Don’t fancy that. Look, Daisy, they may pay for my services, but they don’t pay for my soul. Kissing to me is for someone special that I fancy – not for my punters.’ She gazed at the girl and said, ‘You would be such a catch that if you did decide to become one of us, you could lay down a few rules to Flo.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Flo gets a cut of all our takings which pays for the use of the room. She gets four shillings out of every pound and of course the profit on the drinks they buy. You being an innocent could make bigger money to start with. Especially the first man who took you.’
‘One young man told me he’d be willing to pay twenty pounds to take me to bed when he knew I was a virgin,’ Daisy told her.
‘There you are, what did I say and you could demand that she chooses carefully the punters she sends you. Not every Tom, Dick or Harry.’
‘Oh, Stella, you make it sound all so easy. I’d be terrified.’
‘Come on, it’s time to go downstairs. You don’t have to make a decision now.’
Daisy was getting desperate, especially when she went to visit her father the next afternoon and was handed another bill for medication, morphine for the pain and extra nursing. After paying that, she had very little money left until her stint in the bar at the weekend. But she wouldn’t have enough to cover the bill the following week with all the extra charges. She didn’t have a choice; she would have to bring him home. But when she spoke to her father, she was in a bigger dilemma than ever.
Fred took Daisy’s hand as she sat beside his bed. It broke her heart to feel the bones in his hands where he’d lost so much weight.
‘You know, Daisy,’ he said, ‘I’m so grateful to the doctor for sending me here. The nurses really know what they’re doing and take such care of me. Your mother could never manage me now, it would be far too much for her, but at least I don’t have that to worry about.’ He gave a wan smile. ‘This is not a bad place to finish my days you know.’
She knew then she would have to let him stay in the nursing home and would have to find the money to pay the bills. There was no other option open to her. She would have to accept Flo’s offer. Her heart sank at the very idea, but now she really had no choice.
The following day she went to pay Flo a visit at her private address and stood waiting for the door to open, her heart pounding, her hands trembling.
‘Come in, love,’ said Flo when she saw who was waiting. So, as she thought, young Daisy needed money real bad. ‘Sit down,’ she said as they walked into the living room.
‘So, Daisy, I assume that you have come about my offer?’
‘I need the money,’ Daisy said. ‘But I want to know just how much I’ll earn. I’m not selling myself to anyone unless I know it’ll be worth every penny!’
There was a definite tone of defiance in her voice and Flo knew that her proposition would have to be a good one. ‘Well, Daisy, in as much as you are a virgin, I want to get the best price from my punters.’
‘You’re not putting me up for a bloody auction I hope!’ Daisy was appalled.
‘Not exactly. But I’ll make it known among a selected few and we’ll see what transpires. Believe me, there’ll be no shortage of punters.’
‘But that’ll take time and I want the money now. I can’t afford to wait.’
‘I’ll give you some money up front.’ She took a ten-pound note out of her wallet and held it out.
Daisy was not a fool. She’d given the matter a great deal of thought once she’d decided to go down this road and she was going to get as much money as she could. Once her father had ended his days, she was not going to work for Flo a minute longer than was necessary. She intended to make enough money so that eventually she would be able to open her own business. Stella was saving for a future and so would she. After all, she was making the supreme sacrifice in her eyes, so it had better be worthwhile!
She looked straight at Flo and said, ‘Oh, no. That’s not nearly enough!’
Flo Cummings was taken aback. She thought she was on to a good thing. Young Daisy, sweet and innocent, she’d make a packet from her while she could. After all, once her virginity was sold, being new to the business only held a certain cache for a while. After that she would be a whore just like all the others.
‘What do you mean, it’s not enough?’
‘One of those young officers once told me he would be willing to pay twenty pounds to sleep with me when he realized I was a virgin and I’m sure you could find a man who would pay more. No, ten pounds is not nearly enough.’
‘Considering you’re new to the business, you’ve got some nerve, laying down the law to me.’
Daisy wasn’t at all thrown. ‘I may not know about being a whore, but I’ve learned enough being behind the bar to know what goes on and what men want. I’ve been propositioned enough times. And the moment I step from behind the bar and sit with the others, I know I’ll be in demand. And you know it too!’
Flo started to laugh. ‘Well, I never did! Daisy Gilbert, I didn’t know you had it in you.’ There was a look of admiration in the older woman’s eyes as she asked, ‘Is there anything else?’
‘Yes,’ said Daisy. ‘I don’t want the butcher as a client. I refuse to let him touch me.’
With raised eyebrows Flo said, ‘He’s never allowed near my girls. Don’t you worry, girl, I’ll be very particular as to who I’ll choose as your punters.’ She looked knowingly at the girl and said, ‘Of course you know that I take a cut from your earnings?’
‘How much?’ demanded Daisy.
‘You don’t beat about the bush do you?’ said Flo with a chuckle.
‘How much?’ Daisy repeated.
‘Four shillings in the pound. After all, I supply the room and the bar, and make sure before you take them to your room that they spend a lot on drinks. You ask for a gin and tonic and—’
‘I know, I’ll be served straight tonic water with a slice of lemon. Don’t you think I’ve served up enough drinks to know that?’
‘Of course you have, I’d forgotten. Now what I want you to do is continue to work behind the bar all this week while I sort you out a rich punter.’
‘All right but I want some money up front to pay my dad’s bills.’
‘How much?’ asked Flo.
‘I want twenty pounds and not a penny less.’
Flo took another ten-pound note from her wallet and handed them both to Daisy. ‘Now you are committed. There’s no backing out, I hope you realize that?’
‘Yes, I know that,’ and she put the money away, stood up and said, ‘I’ll be on duty in the bar as usual on Thursday evening.’
Flo rose to her feet and walked her to the door. ‘No, you start on Tuesday. You won’t regret this,’ she said. ‘I’ve been down this road and it’s not all that bad, honestly.’
Daisy didn’t answer. But as she walked down the street, she felt sick. What had she let herself in for? And having done so, how could she find the courage to keep her bargain? She knew that she was now committed to becoming one of Flo Cummings’ girls. She had no other choice.
Nine
As Daisy walked away, she felt as if a wet blanket of despair had enveloped her. She had now made the choice to walk down a road full of unknown dangers. Whatever Stella had told her about being a whore and had implied it wasn’t as bad as she imagined, Daisy’s mind was full of pictures of the men she would have to take to her bed in a strange room at the club. She was terrified. What did she know about sex? Absolutely nothing! Yet here she was waiting for Flo to find a man who would pay the highest price to take her virginity! How strange, she thought. Her purity had never meant anything of great importance before. She’d never even thought about it, yet it was obviously something of great value … but for all the wrong reasons.
It would destroy her mother if she ever discovered that her daughter was to become one of Flo’s girls. Tears welled in her eyes as she imagined her mother’s shame if she ever found out. But taking a deep breath she told herself that it didn’t matter, as it was for her father and the end justified the means. But it didn’t really make her feel any better.