A Daughter's Courage

by Kitty Neale

  She dashed to the telephone to call Adrian, picked up the receiver and put it to her ear, but then quickly hung up. If Adrian went after Robbie there might be a fight. He was no match for Robbie and she didn’t want him hurt. Robbie would never lay a hand on her, though, so she wasn’t worried about herself. She’d ask Mrs Hart to sit with her dad, and then she’d grab a taxi to Robbie’s place to confront him. He was no more than a sick, despicable pimp and she’d tell him that to his face.

  Then she’d bring Yvonne back here again and there would be nothing that Robbie Ferguson could do to stop her.

  Robbie paced the floor of their room, ranting at Yvonne, who was white-faced and shaking, but that didn’t bother him. ‘If you ever try to run off again, I’ll skin you alive, you little slag.’

  ‘I … I’m sorry, Robbie. I won’t do it again.’

  He rolled himself a cigarette and lit it before he continued. ‘You made a big mistake, Yvonne, but let that be the last. And if that bitch Dottie comes round here again you tell her to fuck off.’

  ‘All right, Robbie.’

  ‘Stop snivelling. You’ve got work to do later and I want you looking your best. Now wash your face and get yourself dolled up.’

  Yvonne meekly did as he asked, and soon she was sorting through a bag of make-up, about to apply some, when there was a thump on the door. Robbie opened the door and scowled. ‘I might have guessed, Florence flaming Nightingale. Come on a rescue mission, have you?’

  ‘As it happens, yes, I have. I’m here for Yvonne,’ Dorothy said resolutely.

  ‘Bugger off, Dottie, and mind your own business,’ Robbie snapped.

  ‘Let me in. I want to talk to Yvonne.’

  ‘You’re not coming in and Yvonne’s not coming out, so just go away.’

  ‘I’m not going anywhere until I’ve seen her.’

  Robbie opened the door wider and indicated the sofa, ‘There, you’ve seen her. Now get out of my sight, you interfering, money-grabbing bitch!’

  ‘Call me what you like, Robbie, but I’d never sink as low as you,’ she spat, and then called, ‘Yvonne, are you all right?’

  ‘Ye-yes.’

  ‘See, she’s fine, but if you insist on talking to her, O righteous one, come on in. You’ve got two minutes.’

  Dorothy stepped over the threshold and gave Robbie a dirty look before saying, ‘Hey, Yvonne, are you sure you’re all right?’

  Yvonne looked at Robbie, and he narrowed his eyes at her. He was pleased when she said, ‘Yes, s’pose so.’

  ‘Don’t worry about Robbie. He’s just a low-life and he can’t force you to stay here. Come with me, I’m taking you home,’ Dorothy said gently, and held her hand out to Yvonne.

  That really got Robbie’s back up – the audacity of the woman! He quickly stepped between Dorothy and Yvonne, a snarl on his face.

  ‘I don’t know who you think you are, coming here and acting like you’re better than me. Just remember, Dottie, I know you and you’re nothing but a common little tart from the slums who married my brother for his money. You’ve as good as prostituted yourself to Adrian since the day you married him. Now take your airs and fucking graces and get out,’ Robbie shouted as he pointed to the door.

  ‘I’m not leaving without Yvonne,’ Dorothy replied as she pushed her shoulders back in defiance.

  Robbie stepped closer to her until there was just breathing space between them. He glared down at her face and warned, ‘You are leaving without her, or do you want me to physically throw you out? Is that it? You like it rough? Does it turn you on?’

  Dorothy stepped back. ‘You disgust me, Robbie. Yvonne, come on, we’re leaving.’

  Dorothy reached out to pull Yvonne up, but Robbie acted quickly. He grabbed her arm tightly and said menacingly, ‘I told you, she’s not going anywhere.’

  ‘Get off me, Robbie, you’re hurting me,’ Dottie said as she tried to yank her arm free.

  ‘I could hurt you a whole lot more,’ Robbie growled before releasing her arm, ‘but it’s not going to come to that now, is it, Dottie?’

  ‘You can’t threaten me, Robbie. I’m not as gullible as Yvonne and I’m not scared of you. One way or another, I’m taking her with me.’

  ‘Don’t push me, Dottie, my patience is wearing thin. She doesn’t want to go with you. Go on, tell her,’ Robbie demanded, looking at Yvonne.

  ‘I … I stay here.’

  ‘See, you heard her,’ Robbie said. ‘Now bugger off, Dottie.’

  ‘She only said that because she’s too afraid to defy you. If you don’t let her leave, I’ll call the police. I’m sure they’d like to hear about your little prostitution racket, not to mention the robbery at the jeweller’s that I heard about. It may have been some time ago, but I’m sure they’d still be interested.’

  Robbie glared at Dottie, his temper at breaking point. It was all right for her, in his brother’s nice house with all of Adrian’s money, but what about him? He’d been left with nothing and had to make some cash one way or another. He was furious and as a black mist began to descend over his eyes, he lifted his hand and slapped Dorothy. ‘I told you,’ he screamed. ‘Get out!’

  She staggered sideways, her hand holding her cheek, as she stared at him dumbfounded.

  For a moment he regretted hitting her, but the moment passed and he yelled, ‘See, look what you made me do. Now piss off before I give you more of the same, and you’d be wasting your time calling the police. There’s no proof that I robbed a jeweller’s, and when I tell them I’m not a pimp, Yvonne will back me up.’

  Dorothy just continued to stare at him as though transfixed, but then she lowered her head, stepped over to the door and walked out without a backward glance.

  Dorothy’s unsteady legs only just got her down the stairs. Once she was at the bottom, she grabbed hold of the newel post and paused to catch her breath. She felt her throbbing cheek with her hand, hardly believing Robbie had hit her.

  Her mouth was dry and she felt sick to her stomach. She was close to tears and as she was near to where Nelly lived, she almost ran there.

  Nelly’s mother opened the door, and looked surprised to see her, but then her expression changed to concern. ‘Gawd, love, what’s wrong?’

  Dorothy found herself unable to speak and almost staggered inside, where she collapsed in a heap on the sofa next to Nelly.

  ‘Nelly, look after Dottie. I’m gonna make her a cup of hot sweet tea. She looks like she needs one.’

  ‘Dottie, what’s wrong?’ Nelly asked worriedly. ‘Has something happened to your dad … or Adrian?’

  At last Dottie found her voice. ‘Robbie came round while I was out and he took Yvonne. I … I went round to his place to get her back and … and he hit me.’

  ‘He what?’

  ‘I couldn’t believe it. It’s like he’s a different person. Something’s changed him. He’s not the Robbie I used to know.’

  ‘Dottie, he hasn’t changed. He’s always been a bad ’un. The difference is that now you’re seeing him for what he really is.’

  ‘I didn’t think he was capable of violence, not Robbie.’

  ‘Yeah, well, he isn’t getting away with hitting you. Just you wait until I tell my Malcolm.’

  ‘No, please, if Malcolm goes round there it’ll only make things worse and any more violence might rebound on Yvonne. I’ll have to find a way to go back there when Robbie’s out and hopefully she’ll agree to leave him again.’

  ‘Leave it out, Dottie. He could come back while you’re there and you can’t risk that. If he’s hit you once, he’ll hit you again. You’ve got to tell Adrian, and I’ll tell Malcolm. We’ll leave it to the men to sort out.’

  ‘No, no, Nelly, please don’t say anything to Adrian. He’s never been involved in fights and I don’t want him going up against Robbie.’

  ‘Look in the mirror, Dottie. You’ve got a big bruise coming up on your face and Adrian is going to see it. How are you going to explain it away?

  �
�I’ll think of something, but, more importantly, I’ve got to think of a way to get Yvonne away from Robbie,’ Dorothy answered as her mind whizzed with ideas.

  ‘No, Dottie, enough is enough. I won’t let you put yourself in danger again. Sorry, sugar, but like it or not, if you won’t tell Adrian, I will.’

  With a feeling of defeat, Dorothy sat back on the sofa. Her head was pounding, her cheek burning, and her heart was broken. Even when she had confronted Robbie and seen how nasty he’d become, she had still believed she could reach him, that he still loved her as much as she did him.

  She had stubbornly refused to believe the man she’d loved could really be such a monster and hoped in her heart, that, like her father, he would find his way back from the dark place.

  Chapter 41

  As usual, Adrian’s desk was covered in a mountain of paperwork and he had to admit he missed Nelly. Thankfully, though she was still using a cane, her leg muscles were stronger and she was coming back to work next week.

  When there was a knock on the office door he looked up to see Malcolm walking in. The man looked a bit uncomfortable, as if he wasn’t looking forward to what he had to say.

  ‘I thought you’d knocked off for the day,’ Adrian said. ‘Is there a problem, Malcolm?’

  ‘Nelly wants to see you, and she said it’s urgent.’

  ‘Do you know why?’

  ‘No, guv, she didn’t say. I went round to have dinner at her place when I finished work but she sent me straight back here again.’

  ‘All right, Malcolm. I’ll lock up and go to see her. Do you need a lift?’

  ‘No, thanks. I came on my motorbike.’

  ‘I’ll see you there then,’ Adrian said, wondering what could be so urgent, and twenty minutes later he pulled up outside Nelly’s house. The street was alive with young children playing hopscotch or kicking a ball around. Many had snotty noses, and most had dirty faces. He was instantly reminded that Dorothy had grown up like this, in dire poverty, yet she’d emerged through her struggles with such grace.

  As he climbed out of his car he beckoned to a group of four boys who were playing marbles against the kerb. He reached into his trouser pocket, pulled out a coin, a shining sixpence, and said, ‘If you look after my car and make sure that no one touches it, there’ll be one of these for each of you.’

  ‘Yes, mister,’ said one of the lads. ‘We can do that for you.’ The rest of the boys nodded enthusiastically.

  Nelly’s mother showed Adrian into the small front room where Malcolm was sitting next to Nelly on a sofa. ‘Am I glad to see you,’ she said. ‘Thanks for coming so quickly.’

  ‘Malcom said it was urgent, so I came as soon as I could.’

  ‘Sit down, Adrian. I’ve been up half the night thinking about this, and though Dottie doesn’t want you to know, for her sake I just can’t keep it to myself. What did she tell you about Yvonne leaving your place?’

  ‘She said the girl had gone back to Robbie. I must admit I was surprised. I know she’s young, but she’s an adult so there isn’t much we can do about it.’

  ‘Yvonne didn’t leave voluntarily,’ Nelly said, going on to report what had really happened, along with Dottie’s attempt to get her back.

  When Adrian heard about Robbie hitting Dottie, his temper immediately flared. That explains her face, he thought, his teeth grinding. Dottie had said she’d walked into a door, but in truth his brother had dared to strike her. He wanted nothing more than to march round to Robbie’s and batter his brother to a pulp, but he remained outwardly calm.

  ‘So you can see why I had to tell you, because that stubborn wife of yours refuses to.’

  ‘I don’t know why.’

  ‘She doesn’t want you going up against Robbie and getting hurt, but I don’t think you’re the sort of man to let him get away with hitting Dottie.’

  ‘No, I’m not,’ Adrian said as visions flashed through his mind of kicking Robbie’s head in. He could imagine his hands round his brother’s throat as he squeezed tighter and tighter. He was usually a mild man and this was out of character, but his chest heaved with fury. ‘I need to get some fresh air, Nelly. I’m so angry I’m seeing red and I can’t think clearly.’

  ‘No, wait,’ Nelly said. ‘I know what you’re thinking of doing, and I’d like to wring Robbie’s neck too, but—’

  ‘Sorry, Nelly, I intend to get there first,’ Adrian interrupted.

  ‘No, Adrian. If you go round there the chances are you’d come off worse and that’s the last thing Dottie needs. We both want Robbie to get his comeuppance, but you can’t do it alone. You need a bit of muscle with you.’

  ‘I fit that bill and I’ll come with you,’ Malcolm offered.

  ‘Thanks, but this isn’t your problem and I can’t ask you to become involved.’

  ‘You ain’t asking. I’m offering.’

  ‘Think about Dottie,’ urged Nelly. ‘I told you, Dottie doesn’t want you hurt, but she wants to get Yvonne away from Robbie. You’ll have more chance of doing that if Malcolm is with you.’

  Adrian knew that Nelly was right and, though he wanted revenge for what his brother had done to Dottie, he doubted he’d be able to get Yvonne away from him without help. There had been a time when he had looked after Robbie, felt protective towards him, but now he questioned the way he and Myra had brought Robbie up after their parents died. Had they done something wrong? Had they indulged and spoiled him? Yet even if they had, surely that wouldn’t have made him turn bad? He remembered Robbie’s uncontrollable temper tantrums and the way he would kick the cat, or steal toys from other children. They had always made excuses for Robbie’s bad behaviour, but, looking back, Adrian concluded Robbie must have been born that way: nasty, reckless and with an evil streak.

  ‘All right, Malcolm. I’ll accept your offer and thanks,’ he said, then, realising that he couldn’t have gone to sort Robbie out without his address, he added, ‘Nelly, do you know where Robbie lives?’

  ‘Yes,’ Nelly answered, and told him where to go.

  ‘Right, if it’s all right with you, Malcolm, we’ll go round there now.’

  ‘Yes, that’s fine, boss. Let’s go.’

  Robbie thought Yvonne looked sexy and felt a stir in his groin but was immediately put off by the thought of all the men she’d been with. No, he wouldn’t go there again, even though he’d made sure she was always clean and protected. Even so, just the thought of all the punters turned his stomach. Yvonne was a good worker, he’d give her that, credit where credit’s due, he thought, but he wasn’t prepared to mix business with pleasure any more.

  A knock on the door brought Robbie out of his thoughts. He wasn’t expecting anyone, and his lips tightened. It had better not be Dorothy again. But when he opened the door, a man mountain filled it. ‘Hello, Malcolm. Have you come to take me up on my offer?’

  The man took a menacing step towards him, but then Adrian pushed him to one side. ‘It’s all right, Malcolm. I’ll deal with this and I think you know why I’m here, Robbie.’

  Robbie shrugged. ‘If it’s about that little incident with Dottie yesterday, well, I’m sorry, it was an accident, but you need to keep that wife of yours on a leash. She’s out of order coming round here and laying down the law.’

  ‘I ought to knock your bloody head off for what you did to her. How dare you hit my wife and try to fob it off as an accident!’

  Robbie had never seen Adrian so wound up. Even when annoyed he usually came over as placid, but now his eyes were blazing with anger. ‘All right, calm down. I said I’m sorry, so what more do you want?’

  Adrian turned to Yvonne. ‘Get your things together. You’re coming with me.’

  ‘No, she isn’t,’ Robbie argued.

  ‘Yes, she is, and if you try to stop her from leaving I’ll let Malcolm loose on you,’ Adrian warned. ‘And another thing, if you dare to come round to my house again, you’ll live to regret it.’

  Robbie looked on angrily as the flustered Yvonne sho
ved clothes into a bag. She couldn’t leave, he needed her, but he wasn’t stupid enough to think he could get past Malcolm. The man was built like a brick shithouse.

  Within minutes, Yvonne scurried out of the door, and then Malcolm marched up to Robbie, and said, ‘This is for Dottie.’

  Before Robbie had time to react, a huge fist landed, the force of the punch almost knocking him off his feet, and he staggered backwards, recoiling in pain. He held his hands over his bleeding nose and hazily saw Adrian leaving. He shook his head, trying to clear it, and then raced after him.

  ‘Adrian,’ he shouted from the top of the stairs as his brother reached the landing on the floor below, ‘you can’t do this!’

  Adrian stopped and looked back, his eyes flickering to the room behind his brother. Robbie quickly turned and the movement made him dizzy. He saw Malcolm reach out for him, stepped back to avoid his grasp but lost his footing. Arms flailing and unable to save himself, Robbie tumbled backwards down the stairs. He could feel every bump and thud as each step bashed into his bones and threw his body around into unnatural shapes, until he landed with a sickening crash that knocked the air out of his body. Almost unconscious, he lay in a twisted and broken heap at the bottom of the stairs. He opened his eyes to see Adrian leaning over him with a concerned expression, and he groaned in pain.

  ‘Don’t move, Robbie, I’m going to call an ambulance,’ Adrian instructed before disappearing from view.

  Robbie wanted to turn his head to see where his brother had gone, but it wouldn’t move. From where he was lying he could see his leg, but, to his horror, his foot was facing the wrong way. It was strange; everything hurt yet felt numb at the same time. Confused, he closed his eyes again and the last thing he remembered was hearing Yvonne’s shrill scream before he fell into unconsciousness.

  Chapter 42

  Dinner was ready and, as Adrian was much later than usual, Dorothy was keeping it warm. At last, hearing a car pull up outside, she went to the window to see Adrian get out, followed by Yvonne and Malcolm. How had that happened? Had Yvonne run away from Robbie again? Had Adrian seen her and stopped to pick her up? And Malcolm – what was he doing here?