forward and carried on his slow descent of the stairs.
Tilly turned back to the locked door and renewed her efforts with both hands. Her concern for her younger sister’s welfare had put a fire in her belly. ‘Fran? Open the door if you’re in there.’ Her fists were raised to recommence the assault when her sister finally opened the door a crack. ‘Let me in, you silly cow.’
‘Only if you promise not to go mad and start shouting. Me head’s fit to explode as it is.’
Tilly gave an impatient sigh and shoved past Fran into a room as dingy and depressing as the one she’d just left on the floor above. She turned about and gave her sister’s appearance a thorough inspection. Her back teeth began to grind but she fought down her anger and simply continued to stare at the sorry sight before her. The light was poor but even so Tilly could see blood spatters on Fran’s blouse and her bruised and battered face. Calmly she asked, ‘What the fuck started him off this time?’
‘He’s a bastard.’
‘Yeah, I know that.’ Tilly waited, hoping to hear a better explanation for Jimmy’s savagery. None was forthcoming. ‘Look at the state of you, fer Gawd’s sake,’ she burst out. ‘Didn’t you try and belt him back?’
‘Just makes him worse.’ Fran grimaced in pain. ‘Besides, me arms hurt too much. Felt as though he’d twisted them out of their sockets. He had them right up behind me back.’ She tried to ease her shoulders but even small movements made her gasp. ‘I’ll get him one o’ these days,’ she vowed shakily. ‘I’ll creep up on him with a knife when he ain’t expecting it. You see if I don’t.’ Her bravado flagged and she slumped against the wall. ‘We’re finished this time, in any case.’
‘You said that last time.’
‘Now I mean it ’cos he’s give me no wages in over a week. I know where the money’s gone, too. I know for sure he’s got a fancy piece.’
‘You said you was finished last time when you found out he had a fancy piece,’ Tilly reminded her a mite too sarcastically.
‘It’s alright for you,’ Fran shrieked, stretching her cut lips. ‘We ain’t all lucky enough to have a decent man like Jack.’ Gingerly she raised her fingers to her face as she felt the warm wetness on her chin. ‘Me mouth’s started to bleed again,’ she wailed and bent her head to a cuff to staunch the flow.
‘Where’s the boys?’ Tilly asked after her two young nephews.
‘Got them off to school somehow. Bobbie’s gone off bawling fit to burst. Stevie’s wet the bed. I gotta get that cleaned up before Jimmy turns up. If he finds out he’ll give him such a hiding.’
‘I’ll change the sheet,’ Tilly promised. ‘And if Jimmy turns up, I’ll see to him too,’ she vowed grimly. ‘First, let’s see to you.’
‘I’m alright,’ Fran muttered and again brought her cuff up to her face. ‘Nothing I ain’t dealt with before.’
‘Come upstairs.’ Tilly got hold of her sister’s arm but, hearing Fran cry out in pain, she instead slipped a hand about her waist. ‘Come on,’ she urged and tugged her gently towards the door. ‘Let’s get some tea on the go and we’ll sort it out.’
‘I reckon he’s got a woman round here this time. That’s where he’s spending his money.’ Fran dipped her head to hide her weeping eyes.
‘We’ll sort it out,’ Tilly repeated firmly. She opened the door and propelled her sister out onto the landing.
Alice and Bethany were sharing the job of wiping the crockery dry and stacking it on the battered old dining table. Sophy had said she’d done her stint washing up yesterday and had got going to school. When their mother reappeared with Fran in tow both girls stopped what they were doing to gawp at the state of their aunt’s face. One of her eyes was puffed to a slit, her lips looked gigantic and her jaw was red and grazed from chin to ear. She greeted her nieces quite jovially even though her eyes were suspiciously wet.
‘You two still here? Bobbie ‘n’ Stevie been gone to school a quarter of an hour or more. You’ll be late, y’know.’
Having heard their cousins had already left, the girls looked at one another. It was not unheard of to get a blackboard rubber aimed at your head by Rotten Rogers if you were last in for registration.
‘We’re just going,’ Alice said and dropped the towel she’d been using to dry up. Bethany followed suit.
Both girls knew that big trouble was afoot, and the two women would want to discuss in private a plan of how to put right whatever had now gone wrong between Aunt Fran and Uncle Jimmy.
‘Where’s Sophy?’
‘Gone to school,’ the sisters chorused in reply.
Moments later Tilly surprised them by saying, ‘You’ll have to stop home.’ She caught one of Alice’s elbows in a strong grip. ‘You get going.’ Tilly tipped her head at the door indicating that Bethany should immediately use it.
With a quick, sympathetic look at her sister Bethany did as she was bid. School was a pain, but at least you could have a laugh with friends on the way there and back. Staying home and caring for Lucy was, to Bethany’s mind, utterly boring. And she knew that was why Alice was being kept off school.
‘Do I have to, Mum?’ Alice asked plaintively. Usually when they had women’s talk they liked to be alone. But there had been one other time Alice had been kept home to act as nursemaid to Bethany when Aunt Fran had problems; it had been years ago before Lucy had been born. On that particular day the whole house had seemed to shake with the commotion that’d gone on.
Uncle Jimmy and her dad had come to blows because Jimmy had accused Tilly of poking her nose in his business. Naturally, her dad had backed her mum although Alice had sensed he thought Jimmy had a point.
Alice was glad her dad had gone out now. At least he would be spared any nastiness that might occur if Jimmy turned up hollering for his missus as he had last time. Not that her mum was unable to stick up for herself. She’d witnessed her fighting in the street with men and women. She’d seen her put a poker over the head of Bart Walsh when he’d refused to pay his rent and had spat at her. Her mum had looked big as a house on that occasion. It’d been only a day or so after that Lucy had been born.
‘Yeah, you do have to stay home today,’ Tilly told Alice. ‘Me ‘n’ your aunt Fran have got to go out a bit later and you’ve got to take care of Lucy ’cos we can’t drag her round with us.’ Tilly sweetened the dictate with a promise. ‘Tell yer what, Al; if you’re a good gel I’ll get you some chips dinnertime. There, how’s that?’
Alice gave a faint smile. In fact it was a nice bribe. They’d had very little to eat yesterday. Dinner had been bread and a scrape of jam. There’d been no jam left for this morning and a slab each of bread with the mould cut off the crust had been their breakfast.
‘I’ve got a couple o’ coppers for you too,’ Aunt Fran said and attempted a smile. The small movement made her wince and moan and hold her jaw.
Alice knew things must be serious if she was getting treats. She didn’t know where her mum and Aunt Fran were heading but guessed it would be to locate Uncle Jimmy. A dingdong was sure to ensue. Alice went to the bed and looked down at Lucy.
