The Cockney Sparrow (31 page)

‘I know. I seen him with you, you little whore. Give yourself to him, did you? Crept into his bed and fed him lies about poor old Todd, did you?’

‘Jared.’ She screamed his name, although the sound was lost in the traffic noise and the cries of street sellers, costermongers and bootblacks, and the droning music from a hurdy-gurdy man with a chattering monkey on his shoulder. But, as if by telepathy, Jared stopped in his tracks. He turned round, and even at a distance Clemency saw his expression change as he strode towards them.

Hardiman gave her arm a savage twist. ‘Say anything and it’ll be your neck what gets broken next time we meet.’ He let her go, taking a step backwards as Jared bore down on them. ‘We was just talking, Mr Stone. Just passing the time of day, so to speak.’

Clemency leapt aside as Jared caught Hardiman by the throat. ‘I warned you what would happen if you didn’t leave her alone.’

Hardiman’s eye bulged from his head, and his face turned purple as he gasped for air. ‘I – I never done n- nothing.’

‘You nearly broke me arm, you brute.’
Clemency moved to Jared’s side, enjoying Hardiman’s obvious discomfort. He had hovered over her family like a big black thundercloud for as long as she could remember. He had made Ma give her body to any man that would pay the price; he had kept her fuddled with drink and beaten her into submission. If Clemency had been a man she would have given him what for. She clenched her fists. ‘Sock him in the kisser, Jared. Beat him to a pulp.’

He glanced at her over his shoulder, and his features relaxed into an amused smile. ‘That’s not very ladylike. But I can sympathise with your sentiments.’ He released Hardiman with a shove that sent him stumbling into the gutter. ‘Go on your way, and don’t come back. If you show your face again or come anywhere near this young woman, I’ll see that you end up at the bottom of the river. D’you understand me, Hardiman?’

‘Aye, guv.’ He scrambled to his feet and, with a final malevolent glance in Clemency’s direction, Hardiman shuffled off towards Ludgate Hill.

Jared eyed her with some concern. ‘Did he hurt you?’

She rubbed her arm. ‘A bit.’

‘I want you to promise me that you won’t venture out on your own. And that you’ll keep away from this area in particular. I can arrange
for your friends in the pub to come and visit you in Finsbury Circus, and your mother is welcome at any time. Is that understood? Will you give me your word?’

Clemency crossed her fingers behind her back. ‘Yes, Jared.’

‘Good. Then we’ll go to the house in Hog Yard. The owner owes me a few favours, and we can practise the art of picking pockets undisturbed. Some of the most skilful dips and sneaks doss there.’

‘So that’s why you were in such a hurry.’

He smiled. ‘This is our business, my dear. The lessons you learn from my sister and grandmother are the icing on the cake. This is what it is really all about. And not a word to Izzie.’

In the days that followed, Clemency scarcely had time to breathe. There were lessons in elocution every morning with Lady Skelton, who was an exacting teacher and not particularly patient. She made Clemency stand in front of her with a book perched on her head to improve her deportment, while she repeated words over and over again until she had achieved the correct enunciation. Even worse, she was made to read long passages from books that were so boring she could have tossed them out of the window. Although her reading skills were improving, this was largely due to Ronnie, who coached her in the evenings
after supper, when they relaxed around the kitchen table.

Augustus had fallen into the ways of a butler as easily as if he had been born to the position, although he still pined for his errant daughter. Ronnie and Jack were not needed in the house, but they had found temporary jobs in the band that played in the Circus gardens at lunchtimes, and all day at the weekends. Clemency knew that Jack still missed being in the large orchestra, but he never grumbled. Jared had arranged an appointment for him to see Mr Chance, the senior medical officer at the City Orthopaedic Hospital, and both Jack and Fancy were convinced that he would soon be able to walk again. Clemency was not so sure, but she did not want to cast a shadow over their optimism. Fancy had proved to be a reluctant and incompetent lady’s maid, and had been swiftly relegated to work in the kitchen. She did not seem to mind the demotion, and went about her duties with a cheerful face. Although, Clemency thought, Fancy’s change of attitude could have something to do with the ring that Jack had bought for her from a market stall in Petticoat Lane. It might just be made of gilded base metal, with a lump of blue glass for a stone, but Fancy wore it with as much pride as if it had been part of the crown jewels.

Afternoons were spent either with Jared in
Hog Yard, or with Isobel, who took the task of outfitting her very seriously indeed. If the weather was inclement, they pored over fashion magazines, and on fine days they toured the department stores in Oxford Street. Despite her comparatively wealthy lifestyle, Isobel was no spendthrift. She guided Clemency to the stores where they might expect to find bargains in undergarments and silk hose. She was prepared to haggle if she thought the price of anything was too high, and even while they were in the process of selecting silk gowns, fans and evening shoes, she expounded her views on women’s rights and the poor housing conditions of those less fortunate than themselves. Clemency did not like to tell her that she knew first-hand about poverty and what life was like in the worst East End slums. She liked Isobel, and admired her social conscience, even if her knowledge had been gained second hand, and was sometimes wildly inaccurate. The only exception to this routine was on Wednesdays, when Isobel went off to her art class, although it did seem rather odd to Clemency that Isobel never brought home any of her work or, for that matter, showed the slightest inclination to pick up a brush or pencil at any other time. The toffs were a strange bunch, she decided, and immediately put the matter out of her head; there were much more interesting things to occupy her mind now.

Ned brought Edith to the house in Finsbury Circus one Sunday afternoon. They sat in the kitchen, drinking tea and eating slices of the seed cake that Nell had sent with them. Although they didn’t say much, Clemency could tell that both Ma and Ned were impressed with the house. She did not invite them above stairs to meet Isobel and Lady Skelton, who was visiting at the time. It was not that she was ashamed of Ma, who looked very pretty now that she was well again, and had kept her promise to keep off the booze: Clemency sensed that Lady Skelton might make Ma feel uncomfortable, and she was aware that Ned had disliked Jared on sight. It was best for all parties to keep them apart. Nancy seemed to get on well with Edith, and they chatted amicably while Ned talked to Jack and Ronnie. Augustus was having one of his bad days, when he mourned for his lost songbird, and he retired to his room to brood. Apart from that, the visit was a great success, and Ned promised to bring Edith again when they had a quiet afternoon at the pub.

The days slipped into a pleasant routine. Clemency loved her fine new clothes, and she had grown used to having a bath once a week, although it had been a surprise to discover that she was expected to wash her hands and face every evening before going to bed, and to repeat
the process first thing in the morning. At first, it seemed like overdoing cleanliness, but it was wonderful to be free of head lice and fleas for the first time in her life. Isobel had given her a pot of cold cream, with instructions to rub it on her face, which would make her skin soft and might eventually remove the dusting of freckles on her nose. She also gave Clemency a bottle of lavender water, informing her that young ladies should smell fragrant. It was unacceptable to leave the rancid odour of sweat in one’s wake. Only horses were allowed to sweat – ladies were supposed to glow. Sometimes, Clemency thought her head was going to burst with all this information and instruction.

Although she was reluctant to return to a life of crime, she began to enjoy her secret trips to Hog Yard with Jared. He had managed to convince Isobel that he was taking Clemency to Mr Haines’ Riding Stables in Seymour Place, where she could learn to ride safely in the covered school before venturing out on the streets. Isobel had declined an invitation to accompany them, as Jared admitted that he had known she would. He explained that his sister was terrified of horses, and had taken it into her head that their parents’ death had been solely due to the vicious temperaments of the animals harnessed to the carriage in question. When Clemency asked him how she would explain to Izzie that she could
not ride after so many expensive lessons, he told her they would meet that problem if, and when, it arose. She had to be content with that, although she was not happy about lying to someone as transparently honest and straightforward as Isobel.

‘You worry too much,’ Jared said one afternoon when she had mentioned her concern about Isobel as they were leaving Hog Yard. ‘Izzie is unlikely to discover the deception, since I can’t afford to keep riding horses, or even a pony and trap, for that matter. We must start earning money soon, Clemency. The next quarter’s rent is due and it costs a small fortune to run the house.’

‘There must be places that are a lot cheaper.’

He tucked her hand into the crook of his arm. ‘Of course there are, but I have to keep up appearances. The rich benefactors wouldn’t trust me with their donations to the charities if they thought I was poor, and might keep some of it for myself.’

‘Why don’t you sell the hospitals and homes to someone else, and just keep the money?’

‘If only I could. My grandfather donated the buildings to the institutions but he kept the leasehold on the land, which is entailed and therefore cannot be sold.’ He glanced down at her and smiled. ‘You know, you are almost as bad as Izzie. She has a tender conscience too.’ He
touched her cheek with the tip of his finger, smiling. Clemency felt her heart do a somersault inside her breast. There was a light in his eyes that made her feel as though she were drowning in their blue depths. They were standing outside the dreadful, run-down buildings in Hog Yard with just a little patch of clear sky above their heads. But suddenly it seemed to her as though they were alone in the middle of a beautiful garden. She could smell flowers and hear birds singing in the leafy trees. She gazed up into his face. She was so close to him that she could hear his heart beating – or was it her own? His hands, that minutes ago had been demonstrating how to steal a man’s wallet from an inside breast pocket, slid around her waist. The scent of him was as intoxicating as wine. She slid her arms around his neck and closed her eyes.

His lips brushed her forehead with the lightest of kisses. ‘Come,’ Jared said briskly, dropping his hands to his sides. ‘We should get back to the house before Isobel thinks we’ve had a dreadful accident.’

Clemency opened her eyes, but he had already moved away, and was striding down the alley towards the main street. She hesitated for a moment, biting back tears of disappointment and frustration. She had offered herself to him. She had made it obvious that she wanted him to kiss her, and he had snubbed her with a token caress as if she had been a child. Humiliation, anger and embarrassment roiled in her stomach. She had been stupid to think that a man like Jared would give a girl from the slums a second glance. She was just a business proposition to him; a partner in crime. She dashed the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand, and, picking up her skirts, she ran after him. ‘Here, hold on, guv. I ain’t got me breeches on now. I can’t keep up with you.’

Jared stopped walking. He turned to her with an apologetic smile. ‘Sorry. I forgot.’

She tossed her head. ‘I suppose a girl like me is easy to put on one side, not being a lady of quality.’

‘You have many qualities, Clemency. Being a lady isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.’

She sniffed, refusing to return his smile. She was not prepared to forgive him, not yet anyway. ‘It’s all an act, if you ask me. All this polite business that Lady Skelton is trying to cram into my head. Seems to me that we’re all the same underneath, and you’re no better than the rest of us.’

‘I couldn’t agree more.’ He offered her his arm. ‘And I meant what I said. You’ve got courage, Clemency. You’re brave and you’re loyal. You are also a bit of a crook, just like me, and that’s why we’ll do well together.’

‘As partners in crime?’

‘That will do for now.’ Jared executed a bow from the waist. ‘Will you allow me to escort you home, Miss Skinner?’

A reluctant chuckle escaped from her lips and she took his arm. ‘It would be a pleasure, sir.’

‘You’ve worked hard, my dear. And I think you’ve earned a treat. On Sunday, I want you to dress up in some of your fine new clothes and I am going to take you to Hyde Park, where we will promenade with the rich and fashionable.’

Falling into step beside him, Clemency caught her breath. She had heard of the famous park,
but had never imagined she might have the chance to actually visit that part of London. Up West was another world. ‘Really? You aren’t teasing me, are you, Jared?’

‘Of course not. It’s one of the best places to relieve the unwary of their trinkets. I always take my girls there first. It’s easy pickings in such a crowded place.’

She came back to earth with a thud. So it wasn’t an outing for two. It was just another training session, or a test to see how much she had learned. ‘Oh,’ she said dully. ‘I see.’

‘You don’t sound too enthusiastic.’

‘I am. I’ve always wanted to visit Hyde Park. It’s just that – maybe I’m not ready yet. I need a bit more practice.’

They had reached the main thoroughfare and Jared hailed a cab. ‘You mustn’t worry on that score. And you won’t be on your own with me. We’ll take Izzie and Lady Skelton along too. I don’t expect you to do more than lift a couple of wallets and breast pins, but if you can do so without Izzie noticing anything amiss, then I’ll say you are ready to begin work in earnest.’