A Sister's Shame (16 page)

Marie stared into his eyes defiantly. ‘Let me go, I wasn’t doing anything wrong.’ She felt sick at the smell of his hair oil. He held her even tighter.

‘Get out of here, Teddy, we’ll sort it,’ said Bev, coming up.

Teddy smiled, trailing his hands over Marie’s hips. Keeping her pinned against him, he muttered, ‘You’d better, or else you’ll have Wally to answer to.’

‘I told you, we will,’ insisted Bev. ‘Now get out, Teddy, as we’re all trying to change.’

Marie held her breath as Teddy hesitated. It seemed an eternity before he released her.

When he’d gone, Marie felt dizzy with relief. She smiled at Bev. ‘Thank you.’

‘What you did was quick thinking.’

Marie rushed over to Vesta who had collapsed on a chair. ‘I’m so sorry, Vesta. I had to make it look real.’

‘You could have warned me first,’ Vesta said angrily.

‘I didn’t know I was going to do it.’

‘Well, you pulled hard enough.’ She examined her head in the mirror. ‘I think I’ve got a bald patch.’

Bev laughed. ‘Don’t worry, it’ll grow again.’

A moan came from behind the screen. They all rushed back to find Joanie trying to stand up. Her coat was half off her shoulders. She fell back again, her head rolling sideways.

‘What are we going to do?’ whispered Sal fearfully. ‘We’ll never get her out in this state.’

‘She’s legless,’ agreed Bev worriedly. ‘Even if we carried her between us, they’d see.’

‘There’s a door in the room at the end of the passage,’ suggested Marie.

They all turned to stare at her. ‘How do you know that?’ demanded Bev.

‘I went up there by mistake one day.’ She couldn’t say that she’d seen Hector in the room working, as he’d asked her to keep it a secret.

‘Blimey, you risked it.’

‘I saw a door with two bolts on it. It must lead out onto the alley.’

‘I think we should tell Teddy,’ said Vesta suddenly. ‘He might help us if we told him the truth.’

Bev stared at her. ‘That bit of hair coming out of your head must have loosened your brains, love. No, your
gentleman
would go straight to Wally.’

Vesta gave a pout. ‘If you say so. But it sounds very dangerous to me, when it isn’t even our fault, it’s Joanie’s. I’ve had enough frights for one
night.’

‘Yeah, me too,’ agreed Rose.

Sal nodded. ‘Joanie will just have to take what’s coming to her.’

‘Charming,’ said Bev in a cold voice. ‘And you two are supposed to be her mates? Well, thank God it ain’t me stretched out there.’ Turning to Marie, she raised a
pencilled eyebrow. ‘Do you feel the same?’

Marie shook her head. ‘The two of us could do it.’

Bev grinned. ‘You’re on.’

As soon as Teddy began to sing, Marie and Bev dragged Joanie out into the passage. With her arms slung round their shoulders Joanie moaned loudly as she tried to stumble
along.

‘Shut up, you silly mare, or we’ll drop you right here,’ Bev hissed.

Marie tried not to inhale the damp and musty smell of the passage as it grew darker and more suffocating near the end.

‘You know we’d be brown bread if Wally caught us?’ said Bev, trying to catch her breath as they hauled Joanie along.

‘I know, my dad warned me before.’

‘Your dad?’

‘Yes, he’s the handyman now.’

‘What, like Sid was? But don’t your dad act or something?’ Bev puffed.

‘Yes, but Wally got him to clear the rubbish instead. That’s how I came across the room. Only I couldn’t let on to Vesta as Dad asked me not to say he’s just the hired
help. He knows Mum and Vesta would worry.’

Bev stopped and took a deep breath. ‘Blimey, that’s rotten of Wally. Your poor old man is living in hope for nothing.’

Marie didn’t answer. She was too busy trying to support Joanie’s weight as she slumped between them.

Finally they came to the room at the end of the passage. ‘Blimey, we’re done for if this door is locked,’ gasped Bev.

‘Dad said he was going to fit a new lock. But he might not have done it yet.’ Marie reached out to grasp the handle.

‘Thank Gawd your old man ain’t on the ball,’ sighed Bev when the door opened and they dragged Joanie inside.

Marie slid her hand down the wall to find the light switch. The plaster was damp and peeling and the room smelled of decay.

‘Where’s the door gone?’ Bev asked when the light went on. ‘I can’t see one.’

‘It must be behind those crates.’

‘We’ll never shift all them.’

Just then, there were footsteps. Marie froze. Joanie groaned loudly. Marie heard Bev’s angry rasp, trying to keep Joanie silent. Marie was too frightened to turn round. They held their
breaths, waiting to see if it was Teddy or Wally.

‘Marie, what are you doing in here again?’ Hector’s voice was shocked as he gazed at the three of them.

‘Oh, Dad, thank goodness it’s you.’

‘I told you before, you mustn’t come here. What’s this?’ He pointed to Joanie.

‘She had too much to drink. And you know Wally’s rules. We can’t take her out through the club and we can’t leave her in the dressing room. We thought whilst Teddy was
singing we’d try this way.’

Hector shook his head. ‘I piled the crates in front of the door as Wally told me to.’ He wiped his brow with his sleeve. ‘It took me ages.’

‘I’m sorry,’ said Marie, ‘but we didn’t know what else to do. You see, Joanie is Irene’s friend. She was terribly upset when Irene died.’

Hector nodded slowly. ‘Yes, that was very sad indeed.’ He stroked his moustache as he considered the problem. ‘Well, I’ll just have to move the crates again. Lay your
friend on the floor there. Then, please, both of you go back to the dressing room or else you’ll get into trouble, and me too.’

‘But you can’t move all those again, love,’ said Bev anxiously.

‘I’ll manage. Now, hurry up and go, the pair of you.’

They lowered Joanie carefully to the floor. Marie went to her father and hugged him.

He patted her cheek. ‘Quickly now. If I’m caught in here, I can say I’m cleaning. But there’s no excuse for you.’

They crept back through the passage. Marie knew they were both too frightened to speak. As they arrived at the dressing room, Teddy’s voice faded at the end of his number.

‘Quick, we’ll just make it,’ urged Bev.

‘What happened?’ All the girls came rushing over as they shut the door behind them.

‘Her old man is gold,’ said Bev excitedly. ‘He’s getting Joanie into the alley for us.’

‘You mean Dad?’ said Vesta in surprise.

‘Yes, he heard us and came to see what the noise was.’ Marie looked at Bev.

‘You were dead lucky it wasn’t Wally,’ said Rose. ‘Listen, is that his voice outside?’

They all gathered at the door and listened.

‘Quick!’ whispered Bev. ‘Look busy! If anyone asks where Joanie is, we’ll say she slipped out as she was sick.’

Clothes flew everywhere, Bev began to hum, and Rose and Sal began talking loudly as they clattered the chairs around.

Marie felt herself caught up in a burst of action. All the time she was praying that Teddy and Wally wouldn’t go along the passage to the room at the end. At the same time she didn’t
want them to come in the dressing room either!

Teddy was feeling pleased with himself as he walked off the stage; there had been a mild applause, which was something to be grateful for, as the customers rarely bothered. The
men were too preoccupied with their drinking. And their paid escorts, some of whom were the Scoresbys’ tarts, had false smiles on their hard, painted faces as they tried to maintain their air
of respectability. Not that this lasted long; the moment they opened their mouths it was obvious what they were.

Nevertheless, the twins were making their mark quickly, which had surprised him. They could actually sing! Wally had given him a generous handshake for finding them. But Teddy was beginning to
wish he hadn’t. In no time at all they had been promoted to prime position. It was a place usually reserved for him, along with the extra cash it afforded.

Teddy felt a moment’s deep loathing for the Scoresbys. He needed them and feared them in equal measure. Swallowing down the bitter taste of disgust, he straightened his spine. Nothing and
no one would spoil his plans or threaten the stash he was secretly saving. When he’d had enough, he was going to leave this country and disappear. He refused to live the rest of his life at
the brothers’ mercy. His tart of a mother and the bullyboys she mixed with had had their pound of flesh from him. Now the Scoresbys would take what was left of him, if they could. But Teddy
had other ideas. One day, he would be free of them and leading the life he truly deserved.

Teddy was halfway to the girls’ dressing room when Wally stepped out of the office. He froze.

Wally stabbed a finger in his chest. ‘Stop right there, a minute.’ Wally’s breath was sour from the whisky. Teddy swallowed and formed the same obedient expression he’d
worn for the last six months.

‘Yes, Mr Scoresby, how can I help?’

‘Where do you think you’re off to?’ Wally demanded. ‘Trying to do a bunk like you did when them South Londoners got a bit stroppy?’

Teddy had a feeling in his bowels that Wally was not best pleased with him. ‘No, of course not!’ Teddy pulled at his bow tie nervously. ‘You know I’m not so handy when it
comes to the physical, Mr Scoresby.’

‘Shut your trap.’

‘Yes, Mr Scoresby.’ Teddy tried not to study the awful disfigurement of Wally’s face. It looked like two different people staring at him. One half bore a sneaking resemblance
to his brother, Leo, the other to a monster that had curled inside his skin and taken up residence there.

‘You didn’t think I would notice you trying to do a bunk,’ said Wally in the kind of hushed, malevolent tone that Teddy knew was the hallmark of an approaching fit of temper.
‘That’s why I sent Pedro after you.’

Once again, Teddy kept quiet. He knew the worst was to come.

‘And then, what happens?’ Wally drew closer and Teddy’s breath almost stopped. ‘Pedro is all over you like a rash, like he was your mother or something. And what do I see
next? Pedro is cutting that Bermondsey geezer, before the ugly sod gets to you.’

Teddy’s thoughts were running along the same lines and he hated to admit it, but Wally was right. Pedro had saved him from a very nasty pasting. And though Teddy had been grateful for it,
he could see retribution in Wally’s menacing expression.

‘What is it with you and him?’ Wally demanded in the same threatening whisper. ‘I didn’t take you for a pansy too.’

‘I’m not,’ objected Teddy before he could think what he was saying. ‘Pedro’s just a good friend. We don’t—’

‘I don’t give a flying fart what you two are,’ Wally interrupted, his tone contemptuous. ‘But he ain’t your minder, he’s mine. That’s what I pay him
for. To cover my arse and ignore yours.’ Teddy thought Wally’s eyes looked mad. ‘Now, I’ve given him a rollicking and he knows he’s on his last breath. And I’m
telling you the same: when it comes to a bundle, you put yourself in the front line, right? If there’s a blade coming at me, you take it, or he does. Not like the other night when you fainted
away like a bleedin’ fairy princess.’

Teddy felt himself go scarlet. His blood pumped humiliatingly into his face. How he hated this man who degraded him.

‘Got it now, have you?’ The punch to his shoulder made him fall sideways. Another clout around his jaw and he was reeling against the wall. He could hear Wally laughing and all Teddy
could do was pray this was just a moment’s anger.

‘This little slap,’ sneered Wally, snatching Teddy’s lapels and pulling him close, ‘is just to remind you about your terms and conditions of working for the firm.
Right?’

Teddy nodded silently as Wally tightened his grip.

‘And now you can get rid of that dozy cow Joanie, who thinks she’s God’s gift to men. I could have danced better than she could tonight, the clumsy bitch. And then you can
start upping the ante with the twins. We’ve had the all-innocence bit and the men are lapping it up. Now it’s time to give a sneak preview of what our goods really have to
offer.’

Teddy felt his head being forced back into an unsustainable position. ‘Y . . . yes, Mr Scoresby.’

‘Get ’em new costumes. And not them red tarts’ outfits they had on before. Let’s have a bit of decorum, as it don’t take a genius to know we need to work up the
demand, not give everything away all at once.’

Teddy stared into Wally’s eyes. Would he ever escape the Scoresbys? They were killers, violent thugs who stopped at nothing to get what they wanted. He still couldn’t get the mental
image from his mind of Leo splitting open the South Londoners’ faces whilst Wally had broken their arms. They had enjoyed every moment and revelled in the screams.

‘Well, what are you waiting for?’ Wally demanded, roughly pushing him along the passage. ‘Go and give them two girls the good news that we’re rigging them out with new
clobber. And don’t forget that tart Joanie.’ Wally smiled evilly, stretching the ugly red scars on his face and drawing an index finger across his throat.

Teddy backed away as Wally watched him. Who was to be next, Teddy wondered. First Sid, then Irene and now Joanie. It was a growing list. And Teddy knew that Wally savoured every violent act,
almost for the sake of it.

Marie was putting on her coat as Teddy entered the dressing room. The girls all stopped what they were doing.

‘What do you want this time?’ Bev demanded, glaring at him.

Teddy looked at Marie and Vesta. ‘You’ll be pleased to know that Mr Scoresby says you can have new costumes.’

Vesta jumped up from the chair where she had been sitting. ‘Oh, Teddy, that’s wonderful!’

‘It’s been left up to me to decide the style.’

‘Could we have one like that Kay English’s, the Ziegfeld girl in that lovely photo?’ asked Vesta.

‘We’ll see.’

‘Oh, Teddy, thank you.’

‘Have you learned any new songs yet?’

Vesta was already nodding. ‘Oh yes,’ she said eagerly. ‘We’re practising all the time.’

‘And is the boss buying us new costumes too?’ interrupted Bev in a bitter tone. ‘Or do we have to make do with what’s on the rail?’