Nobody’s Darling

by Nobody’s Darling (retail) (epub)

  ‘Until Sunday then?’ he teased.

  ‘Oh, that will be lovely,’ she said shyly. She fussed and blushed and thanked him for being so kind and thoughtful, then she reluctantly escorted him from the house, waving her little white handkerchief at him from the doorstep as he climbed into the waiting carriage.

  In a moment he was being driven away, leaving her to return to the drawing-room where she paced back and forth, her hands to her mouth. ‘Oh, Luke, I do love you so,’ she murmured. In years to come, those words would return to haunt her many times.

  * * *

  ‘Oh. Lowered yourself to come and see us have you?’ Cook was hanging the big copper pan on the wall above the great range when she heard the door swing to. She seemed surprised to see Ruby. ‘Well, now,’ she said, looking from the new maid to the wretched girl, both of them cleaning silver at the table. ‘Look who’s ventured below stairs.’ She made a stiff little bow from the waist. ‘What can we do for you, m’lady?’ she asked sarcastically, looking pleased with herself when the other two began giggling.

  Ignoring the jibe, Ruby came into the room and seated herself at the table. ‘Can’t I come and see you when I like?’ she asked. After Luke had left the house, she had crept back to the drawing-room, where through the half-open door she had seen how agitated and lovestruck Cicely was. It worried her more than she could say. What was more, she had missed her tram. It always left at precisely five-forty and not one minute later. It was now almost quarter to six. ‘I thought I might be offered a cup of tea,’ she said hopefully. ‘I’ve missed the tram, and the next one isn’t for fifteen minutes.’

  ‘Oh? So that’s the reason for this little visit. I don’t suppose we should have seen you at all if you hadn’t missed your tram then?’

  ‘That’s not fair, Cook,’ Ruby told her, ‘I come and see you as often as I can.’

  ‘Well, that ain’t too often neither,’ came the haughty reply. ‘Since you’ve been got up to lady’s maid, you can’t seem to drag yourself away from up there.’ She clenched her fist and jerked her thumb upwards to the ceiling. ‘Too good for us now, that’s the truth of it, I dare say.’ Cook was a spiteful woman when she set her mind to it, and she had set her mind against Ruby.

  Suddenly another voice interrupted. ‘Ruby does come and see us.’ It was the wretched girl. And so astonished were the others that she had spoken out, all eyes were turned on her.

  ‘She’s allus coming down to see if we’re all right, and she helped me the other morning when I dropped the tray outside Miss Cicely’s door…’ She clapped her hand to her mouth, her colour deepening when she realised how she had let the cat out of the bag. Ruby had been shaking her head all the while the wretched girl had been speaking, but the poor little soul didn’t have the brains to know that she was trying to warn her.

  Cook was on her like a mad dog. ‘WHAT!’ She leaned over the table. ‘You dropped the tray?’ she thundered. ‘You little idiot. Can’t I trust you to do anything?’

  Terrified, the wretched thing ran off into the scullery, whimpering and squeaking, ‘I didn’t mean to. There weren’t no harm done.’ The new recruit didn’t know what to make of it all. She stared from one to the other with round frightened eyes.

  ‘She’s right,’ Ruby confirmed. ‘There was no real harm done. The tea-cups were drained and the pot was half empty.’ There had been a time not long back when she would have run a mile rather than argue with Cook like that. But she couldn’t stand by and see the wretched girl frightened half out of her wits for something and nothing.

  Cook was not impressed. She had suffered a long hard day, and her temper was up. She had been waiting for a chance to vent her feelings and this little episode was perfect. Woe betide anyone who got in her way now. ‘I don’t want you interfering in matters that don’t concern you, Miss High and Mighty,’ she snapped. ‘Either get back upstairs where you belong, or get yourself off for the tram. I don’t care which. But I would be obliged if you’d get out of my kitchen this very minute.’

  When she banged the table with her fist, making all the crockery leap up and down Ruby remained in her chair, but the new recruit gave a startled cry and jumped up, rushing to the pantry cupboard and disappearing inside where she could be heard frantically tidying the shelves. It occurred to Ruby in that minute that the poor thing wouldn’t last long in this household, what with the telling-off she’d got from Cicely and now Cook throwing her considerable weight around.

  Ruby glanced at the big round clock over the door. It was gone quarter to six. If she wasn’t careful she’d miss the next tram, and her mam would be worried out of her mind. ‘I’m sorry you feel like that, Cook,’ she replied. ‘I might be maid to Miss Cicely, but I’m no different than I was before. I still have to work for a living, the same as you.’

  ‘Happen you do,’ Cook conceded. ‘But you ain’t the same. You’ve got ideas above your station. You’ve allus had ideas above your station. But let me tell you this – fancy ideas won’t win you any friends, and they’ll get you in trouble before too long. There’s nothing surer than that.’

  Ruby had seen Cook in this awful mood many times and knew from experience that the only solution was to put a distance between them. ‘Goodnight then,’ she said brightly, anxiously glancing at the clock again. All Cook saw was a flurry of movement as Ruby rushed through the door. ‘By! What’s the world coming to when the young ’uns rise up agin the old?’ she asked herself. Then she yelled for the other two to: ‘Come and get on with your work, else feel the weight of a rolling pin round your arse!’

  It was enough. Even before she stopped yelling, the new recruit and the wretched girl were seated at the table, heads down and arms going like shuttlecocks as they rubbed and polished at the silver.

  ‘That’s more like it,’ Cook beamed from one to the other, then went to the cupboard and poured herself a sizeable measure of port. ‘Medicinal!’ she barked when the new recruit dared to look up.

  * * *

  The day had grown bitterly cold and the grey skies heralded a stormy night. Ruby pulled her coat tighter about her as she came up from the house and on to Billenge End. The walk to the tram-stop on Preston New Road would take but a few minutes and already she was thinking of that cosy little house on Fisher Street. In her mind’s eye she could see her mam trotting from the scullery to the table, clearing the plates away and muttering to herself because Ruby was late. No matter, she thought. She should be home in time to enjoy her meal while it was still warm. Afterwards she would make her mam and dad a fresh brew of tea, then she’d wash the dishes and Dolly could dry. On leaving Cicely earlier she had been downcast, and then when Cook ended the day on a spiteful note, Ruby was made to feel miserable. Now, though, with her family in her thoughts, her spirits were lifted and she went down the road with a brisker step.

  Normally there would be others walking down Billenge End to catch the tram. This evening though, apart from a carriage parked a short way ahead, the road was deserted. It puzzled her until she reminded herself that she had missed the earlier tram and the other folks were already on their way home.

  She was nearing a dip where the trees overhung the path, camouflaging the entrance to a dark and narrow lane. The lane cut off to an isolated hamlet and from there to the open fields. She shivered as she came up to it. ‘Spooky’ she murmured, glancing down the cobbled overgrown alley. There were two dogs confronting each other with their fangs bared and hair standing up. Each was threatening the other, emitting low throaty growls and occasionally darting forward combatively. Alarmed, Ruby pushed on, her head down against the rising breeze and her hands jammed deep into her coat pockets.

  ‘My, my! Don’t be in such a hurry.’ The voice broke in on her thoughts, causing her to jerk her head up. Her heart turned somersaults and a scream almost burst from her lips when she saw that it was Luke Arnold. As she made to push by him, he put out his hand to restrain her. ‘I’ve been waiting for you,’ he said gruffly. ‘Waiting to take you ho
me.’ Leaning forward, he pressed his two hands to the wall, pinning her between them. ‘You and I should talk, I think.’ His smile was evil. In the background, the two dogs could be heard savagely fighting.

  ‘We have nothing to talk about.’ Ruby kept her voice calm. Here was a man who would relish the knowledge that he had frightened her. ‘As for you taking me home…’ She gave a small laugh, ‘One sight of you and my mam would send you down the street so fast you wouldn’t know whether you were on your head or your heels!’

  ‘Oh?’ He seemed amused. ‘She sounds like a wise woman. A woman who knows the virtue of keeping gentry away from rabble.’

  ‘It’s you who’s the rabble.’

  ‘That’s what I like about you, Ruby. You say what’s on your mind, and you don’t give a damn.’ Holding her fast, he stared at her for a while before remarking in a sly voice, ‘If your mother is so opposed to the idea of you mixing with the gentry, what did she have to say about your little game on Christmas Eve, I wonder?’ Ruby’s fleeting downward glance told him all he wanted to know. ‘Ah, so you haven’t told her? Well, well. That was deceitful, Ruby. Perhaps it should be you she should chase down the street.’

  ‘Get out of my way.’ She thrust her hands against his chest but he was like a solid wall.

  Inclining his head towards the waiting carriage, he told her, ‘We could go for a ride?’

  ‘I’m going nowhere with you.’ The minutes were ticking away and she was frantic that she would miss her tram. She began to struggle then, but it only excited him the more. Suddenly his hand was gripping the back of her hair, wrenching her head back as he closed his mouth over hers. His kiss was fiery and brutal. Helpless, she could feel herself propelled up the alley into the shadows there. Her feet were off the ground and his arms were wound tight about her. Partway along the alley, he put her to her feet and pressed his body against her.

  ‘You must be a witch,’ he moaned breathlessly. ‘I can’t sleep for thinking of you. I want you all the time.’ He was perturbed by her stony expression and hard condemning eyes. ‘I’m no monster,’ he pleaded. ‘I’d rather you came to me of your own free will.’

  Sensing his confusion, she didn’t answer. Instead she remained silent and passive against him. He was infuriated. ‘I could take you here and now,’ he threatened. She gave him no encouragement, no sign that she was willing. He let out a long sigh but still he held her fast, his arms like iron bands about her and his body pressing her hard into the wall. ‘I don’t want her,’ he groaned. ‘It’s you I need. When I have her where I want her and everything is mine, you and I could have such a good time, Ruby.’

  Still she made no move.

  ‘What is it? What do you want from me?’ he demanded. ‘A place of your own? Fine clothes? You can have them all. Just keep yourself for me and I promise I’ll provide whatever you want.’ She turned away and he boiled inside. ‘Bitch! What other man can offer you all that? It isn’t as if I’m old and ugly. You must feel something?’

  He lowered his head and pressed his open lips against hers, his tongue probing the inside of her mouth.

  Suddenly a huge black shape ran at them, knocking Luke sideways. He yelped and lost his balance as the two dogs raced out of the alley. Grabbing her chance, Ruby took to her heels and followed them. ‘If you hurry,’ she yelled with a chuckle, ‘you might just get to that bitch before the dog!’

  When she came to the bottom of Billenge End, her ribs felt as though they were coming out of her chest, she was hot and breathless, and to her horror the tram was just pulling away

  ‘WAIT!’

  Her cry sailed out, alerting the conductor who rang the bell and delayed the tram’s departure while she ran full pelt down the road.

  ‘Oh thanks,’ she gasped, leaping on to the platform. ‘You saved my life.’

  Whether he had or not, she would never know. But this much she did know: all her suspicions about Luke Arnold had been proved correct.

  * * *

  On the journey into Blackburn centre, Ruby relived the ordeal in the ally. She recalled his words. ‘You can have everything you want… a place of your own… fine clothes.’ He had meant every word, she knew. All the things she had ever wanted, had been offered to her on a plate. But at what price? she asked herself.

  It was one she would never pay. Even though Cicely had threatened to send her back down below, and though lately she had been harsh and even cruel when Ruby had tried to make her see what a villain that man was, she still loved her mistress dearly.

  Luke Arnold was the worst kind of man, a base and greedy creature without conscience or compassion. A man who would trample over others to get what he wanted. Desperate as she was to get out of Fisher Street, she could never deliberately hurt anyone. Oh, but she would get what she wanted. In time. In her own way. And she would get it by working, not by cheating and making others miserable.

  Several times she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. The taste of his kiss was still on her. Soon, much to her disgust, she found herself deliberately reliving the experience. Her feelings were a strange mixture of distaste and curiosity. Surely to God she wasn’t attracted to him, was she? No! Heaven forbid! She loathed him.

  Yet she had to admit that he did have a certain dark persuasiveness about him. She was shocked rigid by her own emotions. All this time she had never been able to understand what the foolish Cicely had seen in such a low creature. Suddenly, in that moment, she understood. And it made her all the more determined to be on her guard against him.

  Part Two

  1892

  Whispers

  Chapter Eight

  On Sunday 24 August 1892, Maureen took her second trip outdoors in a month. ‘Oh, Ruby, I’m so excited, I can hardly keep a limb still!’ she laughed. ‘Last week a wander round the Saturday market, and now – oh!’

  She clasped her hands to her face and stared into the mirror, her brown eyes sparkling as she watched Ruby’s every move. ‘That’s enough,’ she cried impatiently as her friend went on brushing her long brown hair. She couldn’t wait to get out into the fresh air and sunshine.

  ‘Stop moaning, and be patient,’ Ruby scolded kindly. Last week when they had gone to the market Maureen had insisted on having her hair pinned back, and had adamantly refused when Ruby asked if she could wash and brush it.

  ‘You’ve got such pretty hair,’ she had argued, but Maureen was so nervous about her first outing in a long time, she couldn’t wait another minute. When they arrived at the market, she was actually trembling from head to toe. Later, though, she had enjoyed her freedom and seen how, instead of staring at her as though she was a curiosity, folks really cared. Just as her mam and Ruby had said they would.

  This morning it was Maureen herself who had suggested that Ruby should wash and brush her hair. ‘Make me look really pretty, Ruby,’ she ordered. And that was exactly what she had done. So now Maureen had to do as she was told and suffer for the end result.

  ‘Stop fidgeting! You’re not ready yet,’ Ruby ordered. Momentarily resting her hands on her friend’s narrow shoulders, she sighed. ‘Oh, Maureen, I want you to look wonderful. When we go out of this house and down the street, I want people to faint with admiration at the sight of you. I want them to whisper to each other and say, “Well, would you look at that! Whoever said Maureen Ackroyd was poorly must have come straight from a night on the booze. Why! The lass is lovely. She could turn any young man’s head.”’ Gently shaking those pathetic little shoulders, Ruby went on, ‘That’s what I want. For the whole world to know how really pretty you are.’

  ‘You’ll have a long wait then.’

  ‘I won’t, you know,’ Ruby retorted. Undeterred by Maureen’s cynical attitude, she continued to whisk the brush down her brown hair, feverishly trying to coax a shine into the long limp strands. You’ll be the most handsome girl in the street.’ She so wanted Maureen to look special. Though her friend had been declared well enough to take the odd outing, the long debilitating
illness had left its mark. Her cheekbones were high and jutting, and her large eyes seemed unusually dark in that narrow pallid face. Her arms were twig-like, and her hair hung lifeless down her shoulders.

  It was good of Cicely Banks to let me have that dress.’ Maureen’s gaze shifted to the wicker chair and the lovely emerald green dress that was draped over it. ‘It’s beautiful,’ she breathed. You did thank her for me, didn’t you, Ruby?’

  ‘What do you think?’ she answered. ‘Of course I thanked her.’

  ‘And those pretty shoes. Isn’t it strange how me and Cicely Banks have the same shoe size?’ The black patent leather shoes were dainty yet sturdy enough, with narrow cross-over ankle straps that fastened with a little pearl button. The heels were small but chunky.

  ‘Not really,’ Ruby said cautiously. ‘Plenty of ladies have a size five. She lowered her head so Maureen couldn’t see her blushing face. Ruby was ashamed because for the first time ever she had lied to her friend. Knowing she could never have persuaded Maureen to let her buy the shoes out of her own hard-earned savings, Ruby had let her believe that they were a present from Cicely. ‘To go with the dress,’ she’d fibbed, and they were accepted with gratitude.

  On this glorious Sunday morning, she had been getting her friend ready for two hours. She had even ‘borrowed’ some of Cicely’s best shampoo, rubbing it into Maureen’s fine hair with painstaking care. This past twenty minutes and more she had brushed and brushed until her arms felt like lead weights and her shoulders ached all over. But she’d been determined, and now her determination was rewarded when a faint sheen began to creep in. A little more vigorous brushing, then she placed the brush on the dresser and picked up a pretty hair band which she slid over Maureen’s forehead and on to the sweep of hair, drawing it from the temples. She then turned Maureen slightly in the chair so that she could view the results of her handiwork. ‘See the shine?’ Ruby asked, smiling at the girl in the mirror. Her heart swelled with love when Maureen’s face lit up.