The Cockney Sparrow (27 page)

But his warning came too late; Hardiman had her in a grip that made her cry out with pain. ‘I knowed you lot was lying,’ he snarled, twisting Clemency’s arm behind her back. ‘They said as how you wasn’t coming back, but I knowed you wouldn’t leave the cripple boy, not never in a million years.’

Clemency stopped struggling; he would break her arm without a second thought. She made an effort to sound calm. Her heart was pumping wildly but she was determined not to let him see she was afraid. ‘What d’you want, Hardiman?’

‘You know what I want.’ His harsh laugh echoed round the room. ‘You’re coming with me, my girl. I dunno where Edie is, but she was past her best anyway. You and me is going into business.’

‘Let her go, sir.’ Augustus took a step forward. ‘You won’t get away with this. I’ll have the law on you.’

‘That’s right.’ Ronnie’s voice shook, but he
rolled up his sleeves as though he meant business. ‘You’ll have to fight Augustus and me first, mister.’

Hardiman held a cudgel in his left hand. He raised his arm, brandishing the weapon. ‘Take one step nearer and I’ll knock your teeth out. She’s coming with me and no one’s going to stop us.’

‘Let her go.’ Jack raised his voice to a shout. ‘We’ll give you money, anything you like, just let her go.’

‘Do as he says.’ Fancy walked boldly up to Hardiman. ‘I ain’t afraid of you.’

‘Look out, Fancy.’ Clemency had felt Hardiman’s muscles tense. She knew all too well what was coming next, but Fancy took no notice of her warning. Either she had not heard or she was too angry to care. She rushed at Hardiman and he brought the weapon down with force, catching her on the shoulder and knocking her to her knees.

‘I’ll kill you, you bastard.’ Jack hurled a glass ashtray at Hardiman’s head, but it missed and shattered against the wall, sending fag ends and ash flying in all directions. Jack bowed his head, and his shoulders shook.

Blind rage filled Clemency’s heart and she kicked out at Hardiman. He gave her arm a vicious twist and she yelped with pain. ‘Stone,’ she gasped, clinging on to consciousness, ‘I’ll tell Stone what you just done.’

‘What?’ Hardiman pushed her away so roughly that she fell to the ground beside Fancy. ‘What did you just say?’ He raised the cudgel above his head.

She was certain that he meant to kill her, but she was not going to die without a fight. She scrambled to her feet. ‘I said I’ll tell Stone what you just done. He’ll sort you out.’

‘Clem.’ Fancy raised herself with difficulty. ‘Don’t make him madder than what he is. He’ll kill us all.’

‘The trollop’s right,’ Hardiman said, grabbing Clemency by the scruff of her neck. ‘I could finish off the lot of you and walk out of here without anyone being the wiser. And I ain’t afraid of Stone. I ain’t afraid of no one.’ He backed towards the doorway, dragging Clemency with him. ‘Don’t none of you try to follow me, or I’ll wring her neck.’ He had to put the cudgel down to open the door, but as Augustus made a move towards him, Hardiman seized the weapon and hurled it. Moving with surprising agility for a large man, Augustus managed to dodge the missile, and it clattered harmlessly to the floor.

‘Hello, what’s all this?’ Horace Claypole appeared in the doorway, and behind him Clemency could see some of the musicians, straining their necks to get a better view. ‘What’s going on? Who are you, mister?’

‘This girl belongs to me,’ Hardiman snarled.
‘She’s my property and I’m taking her with me now.’

His grip on her had slackened just a little, and Clemency twisted free from him. ‘It ain’t true, Mr Claypole. He’s trying to kidnap me.’

‘She’s me common-law wife.’ Hardiman’s dark eyebrows met over the bridge of his nose in a ferocious scowl. ‘I got me rights.’

‘He’s lying.’ Clemency slipped her hand through Horace’s arm. ‘Don’t believe a word of it, Mr Claypole.’

Horace patted her hand. ‘Save your voice, Clem. You’ll need it for tonight’s performance.’ A trickle of sweat ran down his brow, but he squared up to Hardiman. ‘You’ll sort out your private problems elsewhere, mister. Miss Skinner is under contract to perform in this theatre, and that’s just what she’s going to do. If you continue to create a disturbance I shall have to send for a constable.’

Clemency held her breath. Would Hardiman back down? She had never seen him back away from a fight. He fisted his hands, glowering at the men as if he would like to take them all on, but he was outnumbered, and he obviously knew it. ‘Don’t think you’re getting away so easy, me girl. I’ll be back for you later.’ He pushed past Claypole. ‘I’ve got your card marked, guv.’

No one tried to stop him as he barged his way
through the small crowd that had gathered outside the door. Claypole took a spotted silk handkerchief from his pocket and mopped his brow. ‘Nice company you keep, Miss Skinner. I’d advise you to steer clear of men like him if you want to continue your singing career.’ He turned to leave, clapping his hands. ‘All of you get back to your positions. Curtain up in half an hour.’

‘Damn that vicious bugger Hardiman. I’d kill him, if I had half a chance.’ Jack buried his face in his hands and his shoulders shook with uncontrollable sobs.

Clemency leaned against the door for support, as her legs threatened to give way beneath her. ‘He’s gone, Jack. Don’t take on so.’

He raised a tearstained face, and his dark eyes were filled with anguish. ‘I couldn’t stop him, Clemmie. I couldn’t protect you or me girl. What use is half a man?’

Fancy put her arms around him, cradling his head against her breast as if he were a baby and whispering words of comfort.

Ronnie patted him on the shoulder. ‘We was all bloody useless, Jack. I’d like to see the bloke that could stand up to a mad bull of a fellow like him.’

‘That was a nasty moment,’ Augustus said, straightening his collar. ‘Are you all right, girls?’

Clemency nodded. She was shaking from head to foot but she couldn’t make out if it was from
fear or sheer relief. ‘I am. What about you, Fancy?’

‘I’m fine.’ Fancy grasped Jack’s hand, raising it to her cheek. ‘But I’d like to do for that brute. He deserves to end up at the bottom of the river with lead weights tied to his plates of meat.’

‘What are we going to do?’ Ronnie lowered his voice as the musicians filed into the dressing room. ‘You heard him, Clem. He said he’ll be back, and I believe him.’

‘Excuse us, girls,’ the leader of the orchestra said, grinning. ‘Thanks for the show just now, but hadn’t you better get back to your dressing rooms?’

‘Are you going to be all right, Clemmie?’ Jack’s eyes searched her face. ‘Will you be able to go on stage after all that?’

She managed a smile. ‘I’ll have to, won’t I?’ She went to him, and leaned over so that her lips were close to his ear. ‘Tell the others that I’ve found us a safe place to live. We’ve just got to dodge Hardiman.’ She squeezed his fingers. ‘You’re the best of brothers, Jack. You’re more of a man than the whole bloody lot of them put together.’ She turned away quickly, so that he wouldn’t see the tears that had sprung to her eyes. ‘Fancy, will you come with me? I got something to tell you.’

For once, Fancy did not argue and she followed Clemency to her dressing room. ‘Close
the door, Fancy. I don’t want anyone to hear what I got to say.’

Fancy did as she was asked, staring curiously at Clemency. ‘What’s going on? And where did you disappear to? Jack was worried out of his mind.’

Clemency sat down to take off her boots. ‘Never mind that now.’ She put her hand in her pocket and took out Isobel’s calling card. ‘Don’t ask questions, just go to this address and ask to see Mr Stone. Don’t speak to no one else but him. Tell him that Hardiman has found us, and there’s no way we can leave the theatre tonight if he don’t call off his bloodhound. He’ll understand.’

‘It’s more than I do. What’s going on?’

Clemency handed her some coins. ‘There’s your cab fare. If you really care about Jack, you’ll do as I say. Just give Stone the message and do whatever he asks.’

Fancy stared at the silver coins in the palm of her hand. ‘I thought that Stone was as bad as the other fellow.’

‘He could be the devil himself, but he’s offered us a safe haven, Fancy. If I work for him, he’s promised us a roof over our heads and three square meals a day.’

‘He must want you pretty bad to make such an offer.’

Clemency stripped off her shirt and slipped a cotton chemise over her head. She picked up
a pair of stays, grimacing. ‘He don’t see me as a girl. It’s me nimble fingers that he wants.’ She tossed the stays at Fancy. ‘Here, lace me up and then go, quick as you can.’

Somehow, although she never knew quite how she did it, Clemency got through the evening without either fluffing her words or allowing her fears to spoil her performance. Each time she came off stage, she looked for Fancy’s return, but there was no sign of her. Nagging doubts began to crowd into her mind. Hardiman might have waylaid her as she left the theatre. Perhaps Stone had decided to go out somewhere, and Fancy had not been able to contact him? By the time the last curtain fell, Clemency’s nerves were stretched as taut as violin strings. She sent Florrie away as soon as she had changed out of her costume, and her hands shook as she took off her stage make-up. Why hadn’t Fancy returned? Fretting and fuming, she waited in her dressing room until she was fairly certain that the rest of the cast had left the building. She hurried to the musicians’ dressing room, where she found Ronnie and Jack looking on while Augustus paced the floor, with his hands clasped behind his back.

‘Where’s Fancy?’ Jack demanded. ‘For God’s sake tell me what’s going on.’

‘I sent her to get help, but she ought to have been back long before now.’

Augustus stopped pacing. ‘What do we do then? What about our plans to sleep in the theatre? We’ve nowhere else to go, and I don’t relish the thought of sleeping in a shop doorway. Then there’s that ruffian, Hardiman. I wouldn’t want to meet him in a dark alley.’

Before anyone could answer, the door opened and the call boy looked into the room. ‘Mr Claypole says he wants to lock up. He wants everybody out of the theatre, now. We got homes to go to, even if you lot ain’t.’ He winked at Clemency and sauntered off, whistling.

There was silence and all eyes turned to Clemency. She thought quickly, fingering the coins in her pocket. There was just enough cab fare to get them to Finsbury Circus. They would have to take a chance. She tried to sound confident. ‘I’ve found somewhere for us to stay. We just need to get away without Hardiman seeing us.’

‘I won’t leave without Fancy.’ Jack adopted the stubborn expression that Clemency knew all too well. He met her eyes with a challenge. ‘Where is she? You know, don’t you?’

‘I’m sure she’s safe with Stone.’

‘With Stone? You sent her to Stone for help?’ Jack’s voice rose to a shout. ‘He’s as bad as Hardiman, you said so yourself.’

Ronnie got to his feet. ‘What choice have we got, Jack? We have no money and no place to
sleep. That hairy oaf is threatening to abduct Clem. If she thinks that this fellow Stone is the lesser of the two evils, then I trust her judgement.’

Augustus reached for his opera cloak and top hat. ‘We are but pieces of chaff tossed about on the winds of fate. And I would do almost anything for a soft feather bed, a decent meal and a glass of wine. I say we leave now, and be damned to Hardiman.’

‘I’m not leaving.’ Jack shook his head emphatically. ‘Not without Fancy.’

‘We’ll find her, old chap.’ Ronnie lifted him into his bath chair. ‘Don’t fret.’

Clemency went to open the door. ‘Ronnie’s right, Jack. We won’t find her by hiding in here. We got to make a dash for it.’

‘Come along then, troupe,’ Augustus said, placing his top hat on his head and picking up his cane. ‘Best foot forward.’

After a brief discussion, they decided that, if Hardiman was waiting anywhere, it would be outside the stage door, and they made their way to the front of house. Horace was in the box office, checking receipts, and he gave them a curt nod as they filed past him. The Strand was still busy with traffic and the theatre crowds drifting to restaurants, bus stops, cab stands and underground stations. Ronnie went out first, looking anxiously up and down the street. He beckoned
to them, and Augustus held the door while Clemency pushed the bath chair out onto the pavement.

‘No sign of him,’ Ronnie said, glancing nervously over his shoulder. ‘I don’t think he would try anything with all these people milling about.’

‘Let’s go straight to the cab stand.’ Clemency gripped the handle of the bath chair so tightly that her knuckles stood out like white marbles beneath her skin.

Jack looked up at her, frowning ominously. ‘We got to wait here for Fancy.’

‘I’m sure she’s safe, Jack.’ The words had barely left her lips when Hardiman leapt out from a doorway. He swept Clemency off her feet, taking her so much by surprise that she let go of the chair and it rolled towards the kerb. Ronnie made a dive for the handle, and caught it just in time to prevent Jack from being crushed beneath the wheels of an approaching hackney carriage. As the cabby drew his horse to a halt, Jared leapt out of the cab, followed by Fancy.

‘Put her down, Hardiman.’ Jared seized the coach whip from the startled driver. ‘Put her down, now.’

Hardiman hesitated and Clemency felt his grasp tighten. ‘Keep out of this, guvner. This ain’t no concern of yours. This girl belongs to me.’

She could smell the stale drink on his breath and the rancid odour of sweat emanating from his unwashed body. His lips were pulled back in a snarl. She struggled to get free, but he tucked her beneath his arm as if she weighed less than nothing.

She heard the crack of a whip, and Hardiman let out a howl of pain. Clemency sank her teeth into his hand, and he uttered a string of expletives as he dropped her on the pavement. Before he had time to recover his balance, Jared grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against the wall of the theatre. ‘I would never have employed you if I had known the true extent of your villainy. You’re sacked, Hardiman. Get out of my sight.’

Above Hardiman’s head, Clemency’s likeness on the billboard smiled down at the gathering crowd. Hardiman’s eyes bulged from their sockets and flecks of foam appeared at the corners of his mouth. ‘Give over, guv. This is between me and her. She’s a whore just like her mum.’