‘What with the salvage rules and us making this confetti,’ Blanche said to Evie, ‘and all that grub that Ringer got hold of from somewhere and,’ she lowered her voice, ‘the mystery wedding dress – gawd alone knows where that come from – let’s just hope no coppers turn up at this do, Eve, or we’ll all be spending the night in the nick.’
‘Don’t think there’s much danger of that,’ chuckled Evie. ‘Can you imagine Albie inviting the law?’ She ran her hands over her gently swelling middle. ‘I don’t look too fat, do I?’
Blanche tore another page from the magazine and started cutting it into squares. ‘You look as gorgeous as ever, darling. Here, I didn’t tell yer, my little sister’s in the family way.’
Evie nearly dropped the soap. ‘Not your Ruby?’
‘Yeah, a little present her Davey left her last time he come home on leave.’
‘But I thought she was planning to be running that munitions factory single-handed by the end of the year.’
‘That’s what she thought and all, but this being pregnant’s put a stop to all that. She don’t care though, she’s so happy about the baby. Looking after herself all proper, she is. Even gone to stay with Mum’s sister down East Ham way. It’s safer down there, she reckons.’
Evie twisted round in the bath to face Mary. ‘You gonna give up working there now Ruby’s left?’
‘You kidding?’ Mary shook her head determinedly. ‘I’m after her supervisor’s job, ain’t I?’
Blanche and Evie grinned at each other.
Babs came into the kitchen, rubbing her hands together. ‘Flaming perishing outside, it is.’ She went and stood by the cooker and warmed her hands. ‘That’s the cake sorted,’ she said, blowing on her tingling fingers. ‘Yer’ve had a right touch there, Eve.’
‘How’s that?’
‘When I went in the baker’s to collect it, Rita winked and told me to look under the cardboard. When I lifted it up there’s only a whole bottom layer made out of proper cake.’
Evie sat upright in the bath. ‘What, real cake?’
‘Yeah, hidden under that cardboard one they rent out. I asked where the stuff had come from to make it, but Bert just tapped the side of his nose with his finger and said “Careless talk!” and then he winked at me and all.’
‘Luck of the Irish, you’ve got, Eve,’ laughed Blanche. ‘He’s a good’un, old Bert.’
‘Real cake,’ Evie repeated. ‘Well, let’s see it then.’
‘I took it straight down the Drum, miss,’ Babs said, dropping a mocking curtsey. ‘If that’s all right with you.’
Evie waved her hand regally at her twin and slipped her shoulders down under the water. ‘Just so long as you ain’t been shirking.’
Babs sat at the table between Mary and Blanche and started tearing pages from the magazine into strips. ‘Guess who I saw in the Drum – the old trout herself.’
‘Queenie Denham?’ Blanche guessed.
‘Got it in one. Should have seen her. She swanned in with these two women, laden down with boxes of food they was, looking down her nose at everyone. Even at Nellie.’
Evie held the flannel up to her face and peered round it as if she was in pain. ‘Tell me the worst, Babs. Did she look like she had her wedding outfit on?’
‘’Fraid so.’
Evie groaned. ‘Lairy?’
‘Yer could say that. And her hair’s very orange.’
‘Very orange?’
‘Very.’
‘What a show up.’
Mary sniggered and Blanche tapped her across the back of her head. ‘You ain’t too big to feel the back of my hand, madam,’ she warned her.
‘Yer can’t blame her, Blanche.’ Babs nibbled her lip to stop herself laughing. ‘You just wait till yer see her. She looks like she should be on top of a Christmas tree. And when she had the cheek to get all hoity toity with Nellie, after all she’s done for us, I thought Nellie was gonna land one on her. I mean, there’s Nellie, done all that food what Dad brought, and she’s done it lovely and all. Then Queenie turns up with all this gear. And she kept saying, “I wanna do my boy proud, he’s used to decent things, my Albie.” And looking down her nose at what Nellie’d already laid out.’
Evie snorted. ‘Used to decent things! What a load of old toffee. Yer should see their place, Blanche. It is soapy. She’s a right filthy mare, that Queenie.’
Mary giggled.
‘Truth. Yer should see their front room, they have a fire burning all weathers. It’s all right now, when it’s cold like this, but when it’s warm it’s horrible. Stinks like hell. They burn these great big lengths of quartering that they make Chas fetch from the bombsites. They stick one end in the fireplace and the other end goes right up the passage. As it burns away, the old girl kicks it further onto the fire till it’s all used up. Then they put on another one.’
‘Never.’
‘Honest, Blanche. It’s just like having a bonfire inside the house. You ask Babs. I’ve told her all about it.’ She turned to Babs. ‘And how about Bernie, the old man?’
Babs tutted and rolled her eyes. ‘You listen to this, Blanche.’
‘See, their lav’s got no roof,’ Evie continued. ‘Not had one since I first went round there. And that’s what, fourteen, fifteen months ago? And they ain’t never bothered to do nothing about it. So when it’s raining, Bernie goes out there with a bloody umbrella.’
‘Liar,’ Mary spluttered.
Evie’s already big blue eyes widened. ‘I swear on my life. And the lav door, that’s as bad. It ain’t got no hinges so you have to kind of lift it to one side to get in and out. But Bernie can’t be bothered to pull the door over to shut it or nothing when he’s in there, so he just sits there reading the racing papers like a king on his bloody throne and anyone going past can see him. They’re so used to it they even call out good morning to him.’
‘It’s smashing to hear you all laughing, girls,’ said Maudie as she came into the kitchen. ‘And I don’t wanna be a spoilsport when you’re having such a good time, but I think you should think about getting dressed soon, Eve. Your Dad’ll be here with the taxi in less than an hour.’ Babs looked up at the clock. ‘Blimey, Eve,’ she said, undoing the buttons of her blouse. ‘Come on, get out of that bath and let me get in. Hurry up, I ain’t even ironed me bridesmaid’s frock yet.’
‘It’s done,’ smiled Maud. ‘All you two’ve got to worry about is your hair and lipstick. I’ll be back over when I’ve got changed.’
‘We’ll be off and all,’ said Blanche, scooping the homemade confetti into old blue paper sugar bags. ‘Mary, try and pick Janey up without waking her or she’ll be grizzly all day.’
Forty-five minutes later, Babs and Evie sat side by side at the dressing table up in the front bedroom, looking at their twin reflections in the triple-framed mirror, Evie in her white gown and Babs in her pale blue bridesmaid’s dress.
‘Them flowers look right pretty in your hair, Babs.’
‘They was Maudie’s idea.’
‘So long as everyone don’t look at you instead of me,’ grinned Evie, and shoved Babs in the ribs, nearly knocking her off the dressing table stool. ‘Yer’ll have to wait till you get married for that. This is my big day, not your’n.’
‘I’m gonna miss yer so much, Eve.’ Babs grabbed her twin’s hand.
‘Don’t, Babs. Don’t make me cry, yer’ll spoil me make-up.’
Georgie knocked on the bedroom door. ‘Can I come in?’
The girls both turned round to face him.
Georgie stood there a moment, looking at his daughters. ‘I can’t tell you two how beautiful you both are. Just look at the pair of yer. Like a painting.’
‘You look smashing and all, Dad,’ Babs said. Her lip quivered as she spoke.
Georgie sniffed. ‘Bit o’ luck I bought this new suit, eh?’
‘Yeah.’ Evie stood up and kissed him on the cheek. ‘Yer look really smart, Dad. I’m gonna be proud to be on yer arm.’
‘Don’t, Dad, not today.’
‘All right, darling. Not today. But yer know yer’ve always got a home here with us.’
‘I know, Dad.’
Georgie took a deep breath. ‘Right, you’d better go down, Babs, the cabs are waiting. Maudie’s going with you, and me and Eve’ll be in the one behind.’
As Babs stepped out into the street, Maudie was waiting for her.
‘I’m sure you’ve already heard it from your dad, but you look a picture.’ Maudie squeezed Babs’s hand and led her to the waiting taxi.
They both smiled at the little crowd, including Alice and Ethel in the prime spot along the wall by the street doorstep, who had gathered to watch the bride leave the house before they ran round to the church for the service.
‘Getting married.’ Alice managed to make the words sound like an insult. ‘All happened a bit quick, if you ask me.’
Now it was Evie’s turn to leave the house. The onlookers oohed and aahed at the beautiful bride on the arm of her proud father.
‘Bit quick?’ Ethel didn’t bother to lower her voice. ‘Will yer look at the size of her. That frock ain’t fooling no one. I always knew that she’d bring trouble home. Just like her mother.’
Evie stopped right in front of her.
Ethel drew herself up to her full height and stared over Evie’s shoulder. ‘And I’d like to know where that frock come from and all.’
Evie lifted her veil and flashed her most dazzling smile at Ethel and Alice. ‘March it’s due,’ she said sweetly, patting her stomach. ‘And don’t forget, me and Albie’s really looking forward to seeing yer at the wedding party in the Drum.’ She winked then dropped the veil. ‘See yer, ladies.’
Georgie squeezed her arm and whispered, ‘Good for you, darling. No one takes liberties with us Bells.’
‘I’ll be a Denham soon, Dad,’ Evie reminded him.
Everyone, even Alice and Ethel, had to agree that the do afterwards at the pub was a success, a proper knees-up like they used to have before the war. Although the two old gossips wondered, loudly and rudely, about where all the grub came from, they were both more than happy to get stuck in to the shellfish, pies and pickles, the sandwiches, cold meats and trifle, and aggressively encouraged their husbands to do the same. Queenie showed a grudging approval of the cake, and took a large slab of it for herself, claiming that she had clients she wanted to treat to a little taster of her boy’s wedding breakfast. No one was clear what Bernie thought of the proceedings as he was slumped, drunk, in the corner.
Even when the siren went the party continued; they all trooped down to the cellar and, because they couldn’t carry the piano downstairs, Babs and Evie sang instead, bringing tears to their dad’s eyes.
But as soon as the all clear sounded, they were back up in the bar and the dancing began, with Maudie surprising them by playing all the latest dance tunes as well as the old favourites.
Rather than cause a scene, Babs agreed to take to the floor with Albie when he made a show of asking her, as the bridesmaid, to dance with him.
She wasn’t too happy when Maudie began playing the slow opening bars of ‘Night and Day’. ‘Remember that first night when we all went to the club?’ Albie breathed into her ear. ‘Yer sister sang it to me. D’you wanna sing it to me?’
Babs squirmed in his arms. She felt like kneeing him in the groin, but she knew she couldn’t even walk away from him what with everyone watching. But she didn’t have to put up with him holding her so close.
‘What’s up, darling? Gutted that it’s not you what’s gonna be in me bed tonight? If you play yer cards right …’ His voice trailed off, his sickening meaning left dangling in the air between them.
‘You pig,’ she hissed under her breath. ‘Just get away from me.’
Albie laughed at her. ‘Keep smiling, girl, we’ve got quite an audience.’
‘Chas!’ Babs called as she looked round Albie’s massive shoulders. She smiled seductively at Albie’s handsome but dim mate who was standing propping up the bar. ‘Ain’t yer gonna cut in?’
‘Stupid bitch,’ sneered Albie as Chas, surprised but delighted, took Babs in his arms and waltzed her away, leaving Albie standing there.
By the time Evie and Albie were ready to leave for their honeymoon – in the rooms in the Mile End Road that Bernie had taken as part pay-off for a gambling debt and had then given them as a wedding present – Babs had danced with Chas a dozen times and she was uneasily aware he was getting quite the wrong impression.
As the guests threw handfuls of homemade confetti at the departing Riley which Frankie, in his role as ARP warden, had threatened to confiscate because of the noise made by the tin cans tied to the back bumper, Chas slipped his arm round Babs’s shoulders.
‘Yer must be freezing in that flimsy little frock,’ he leered at her. ‘I could keep yer warm if yer like, darling.’ Before Babs realised what he was up to, he was trying to shove his hand down the front of her dress.
‘Yer lucky, Chas, ’cos I’m putting that down to yer being pissed,’ Babs snarled, pushing him away from her. ‘And yer can bugger off now that bastard’s gone.’
‘I don’t understand.’
‘No, I don’t suppose you do,’ said Babs and went over to Georgie who was standing on the edge of the kerb still waving into the pitch dark of the blacked-out street.
‘I think they’ve gone, Dad,’ she said gently.
‘Yeah.’ Georgie sighed.
‘Ready to go home?’
Georgie nodded in the dark. ‘I said I’d walk Maudie home but that lot in there won’t let her go.’ He took off his jacket and draped it round Babs’s shoulders.
‘Just me and you now, eh, Dad?’
They walked slowly across the road back towards number six. The sounds of the party still going strong in the Drum echoed through the empty street.
‘Never knew Minnie could dance like that,’ Georgie said with a quiet, muted laugh.
‘No. Nor did I.’
They stopped by the street door.
‘I hope I’m wrong about Albie, Dad.’
‘Yeah. Me too.’
‘She looked lovely though, didn’t she?’
‘Beautiful.’
‘You’re ever so quiet, Dad. But it’s no good upsetting yerself, she’s gone and done it now.’
Georgie took the key out of his pocket. As he put it in the lock he said almost to himself, ‘It’s not that. I was just wondering where Maudie got that frock.’
20
It was now mid-December, just a month after her wedding day and Evie’s life had changed completely. But not for the better. Instead of the glamorous life she had imagined, based on ideas she had got from seeing the Thin Man films with Myrna Loy and William Powell at the Troxy, her life was miserable, boring and lonely. In fact, the only similarity between the lives of the movie characters and her own was that she too had a dog. But even that wasn’t a cute little terrier like the one who slept on the satin covers in Myrna Loy’s swanky bedroom; it was a great lolloping greyhound that wanted walking every five minutes and howled every time the air raid warnings went off.
Being Albie Denham’s missus was definitely not measuring up to the life of wedded bliss that she had expected. Not only was he out till all hours nearly every night of the week, either with Chas or on yet another ‘bit of business’ that he had to see to, he had taken it into his head that he didn’t like being seen in public with a pregnant woman, which meant that Evie had no choice but to stay indoors night after night with only Flash for company. Most days Albie went out some time during the morning and didn’t get back home until way past midnight. So it was with some surprise that she heard the knock on the door at half past five in the afternoon.
‘Hello, Babs, what you doing here?’ Evie smoothed back her unbrushed hair and pulled her dressing gown rou
nd her – she hadn’t bothered to get dressed yet, there seemed no point when there was no one there to see her.
‘Yer don’t mind me coming, do yer?’ Babs stepped inside, careful to pull the blackout curtain down behind her. ‘I didn’t wanna stick me nose in and disturb you two honeymooners but I couldn’t help wondering how yer were. It’s been such a long time.’
‘Come in.’
Babs followed Evie along the dark passage to the front room of the flat that took up the ground floor of the three-storey house on the Mile End Road.
‘This is nice,’ Babs said, looking round at the jumble of ill-matched furniture with its tatty, worn upholstery that Queenie had given them.
‘Don’t tell lies,’ said Evie, lowering herself into a battered armchair by the gas fire.
‘You all right?’
‘Yeah, fine. You know me.’
Babs stood by Evie’s armchair. ‘Shall I make us a cuppa?’
‘Have one if yer like. But don’t do nothing for me. Everything I have makes me feel sick.’
‘I won’t bother either then. I’ve gotta get home soon anyway, to get Dad’s tea. He’s on shift later tonight.’
Evie didn’t say anything.
Babs sat down in the wobbly armchair opposite Evie.
A silence fell between them but it wasn’t like the comfortable, companionable times when they’d been at home in Darnfield Street, when it didn’t matter if neither of them spoke for hours on end; this was different, uneasy, as though there were things that were being left unsaid, making a barrier between them.
‘So long as you’re all right, then,’ Babs said eventually, standing up. ‘I’d better be off.’
The Bells of Bow Page 27
