Songbird

by Josephine Cox

  “I’d rather walk around for a week with a bucket on my head!” he shouted back.

  “I reckon he would an’ all,” Ellen laughed.

  Maddy knew he would be absolutely fine. Michael was a good baby. With his belly full and his bottom comfortable, he would probably sleep for the next three to four hours. “All the same, if there’s the slightest problem when we get there, will you bring me straight back?” she asked.

  “Course I will,” Ellen replied, “but we’ll only be gone two hours – three at the most.” She gave a sigh. “Oh Maddy, it’s so good to be out on the open road. If it wasn’t for you-know-who, I’d be perfectly happy living as we are for the rest of my days. I wish they’d hanged him. Then we’d really be safe.”

  Maddy was astonished. She had never heard Ellen talk like that. “What’s going to become of us?” she asked quietly. When the baby had arrived so unexpectedly, the girls’ plans to move out and rent a place together had been put on hold. And now it seemed cruel to bring the subject up, as Grandad was in his element with little Michael in the house.

  “I don’t know.” Ellen had often wondered the very same thing. “Are you happy here, Maddy?”

  Maddy nodded. “Well, if I’m honest, I can’t say I’m exactly ‘happy.’ It’s more like… well, feeling secure. I don’t mean to sound ungrateful.”

  But Ellen agreed. “I know what you mean,” she said, negotiating the junction. “We’re almost like prisoners, but we can’t go back, not ever. London is finished, where we are concerned.”

  “I have to!” Maddy had a sense of panic. “One day, I have to go back… to make my peace with Alice.” She needed to stand over the place where they had laid her, and say all the things that were in her heart.

  Now it was Ellen’s turn to panic. “Do you think that’s wise?” she entreated. “Raymond already told you – he took care of Alice. It would be dangerous for you to go back there. I mean, you can’t know what Steve Drayton is up to, can you?”

  Just the mention of his name sent shivers through Maddy.

  For the remainder of the journey, both she and Ellen lapsed into deeper thoughts of what had transpired, back there in London.

  “Here we are!” Excited and chatty once again, Ellen parked the car by the promenade.

  “Look.” Pointing down the road, Maddy informed her, “There’s a phone booth. You get the parking ticket and I’ll give Grandad a ring.”

  Between the two of them they found enough coinage for the ticket machine so, leaving Ellen to do the business, Maddy ran the few yards to the phone booth.

  A few minutes later she was back. “Everything’s fine,” she told Ellen. “Michael is still fast asleep, and Grandad said we’re not to fuss.” She took his gruff manly voice off to a T. “‘I’ll have you know, I am perfectly capable of looking after a scrap of humanity without being checked up on every few minutes!’”

  “That’s Grandad for you,” Ellen laughed. “He’s not about to be organized by some snip of a girl! And although it will kill him to do it, he will call on Nora if needs be – you mark my words. Anyway, we won’t be all that long. Like as not, the little lad will still be fast asleep when we get back.”

  Reassured, Maddy suggested they should make straight for a café. “I fancy a mug of hot chocolate.” She licked her lips.

  “You and your chocolate!” Ellen chuckled. “It’s a wonder you’re not twice round as the gasworks.”

  As it turned out, the café did not do hot chocolate. “There’s not enough profit in it,” said the owner, a surly man of weasel build. “Pots of tea, coffee and thick bacon butties. That’s where the money is.”

  Needless to say, Ellen and Maddy decided to walk down to the bigger café, further along, where the middle-aged, bottle-blonde waitress told them. “He’ll not be there for long. He’s a miserable, dirty old bugger. We’ve already poached the bulk of his customers.”

  She was the sort of person who could turn her hand to anything. She took their order, made the hot chocolate, and served them each a freshly made cheese and onion toastie, which they ate with relish. “I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed a mug of hot chocolate so much,” Maddy told her as they paid at the till.

  “It’s my own recipe,” the woman imparted in a whisper. “The secret is to whisk the milk to a frenzy and get the air bubbles up – makes it nice and light. Then of course, there’s my own special ingredient,” which she wasn’t about to reveal, “then a dash of nutmeg finishes it off a treat.”

  Next stop was to give Grandad another call from the booth outside. “How’s it going?” Maddy asked. “Is Michael still asleep?”

  “No.”

  “How long has he been awake? Is he crying? Maybe he needs his nappy changing!”

  “Hey!” Grandad’s stern voice cut her short. “Enough of the panicking. Your baby son is lying here, kicking his legs and gurgling. Later, I might take him for a walk down the street. The fresh air will happen send him off again.”

  When Maddy was about to make a suggestion, he preempted her. “No, I won’t forget to make sure he’s covered up warm, and yes, if he needs his bottom changed I’m quite capable of doing that an’ all. Now go and enjoy yourselves and stop fretting.”

  A little more reassurance and Maddy went away satisfied. “He’s very special, your grandad,” she told Ellen as they walked along. “Nothing is too much trouble for him.”

  Ellen confided in her. “It was wrong of me to desert him like I did,” she said, “but you know what it’s like. I wanted to see the big wide world, thought I’d find fame and fortune. And here I am, yes, with money in the bank, and yes, I’ve had my name on posters and I’ve seen the sights of London town.” She gave a sad little smile. “I went away searching for my dream, when all along what I really needed was a simple, quiet life.”

  She took a deep invigorating breath. “But I’m back now, and I mean to stay.”

  “Will you be content to stay in these parts forever, though?” Maddy had seen for herself, how quickly and easily Ellen had fitted back into her hometown, like a foot in an old slipper.

  For what seemed an age, Ellen lapsed into a brooding silence, before turning to Maddy with a deep, knowing smile. “We all of us belong somewhere,” she murmured wisely. “I belong here.” That was all. But it was from the heart. And in a way, Maddy envied her.

  The shopping center was designed round a small square, with seats and flowerbeds, and wide walkways where a body could pass without shuffling and pressing against other people.

  “I think I’ll pop in there.” Ellen stopped to look in the window of the new dress shop. There were dummies clothed in pretty dresses in the latest styles; shoes and high winter boots on shelves, and handbags of every shape, size and color. And as she peered past the display she could see row upon row of striking outfits hanging on the rails.

  “You go in,” Maddy suggested. “I’ll be over there.” Her figure wasn’t quite back to normal yet, and she didn’t want to waste money on clothes that wouldn’t fit in a couple of months. Having spied a branch of Mothercare, she told Ellen, “Look! There are loads of things I need in there.”

  “All right then.” Ellen thought she might like to see inside that shop as well. “I’ll have a quick browse in here, then I’ll follow on.”

  While Ellen went in to find herself something pretty, Maddy walked around in Mothercare, filling her net basket with nappy lines, bibs and other baby paraphernalia. She also picked up three plastic feeding bottles, a box of sterilizer tablets and half a dozen tins of formula. Michael had quickly graduated from the breast to the bottle. The health visitor said he simply wasn’t getting enough to eat, and sure enough, when Maddy tried him with his first bottle of Cow & Gate formula, he had taken to it like a duck to water. At nearly two months old, he was growing plump and sturdy.

  The big shop contained so many useful and so many wonderful things, Maddy didn’t know which way to turn. As she seized a catalogue to take home, she was utterly absorbed in h
er shopping and had even forgotten to worry about Michael.

  Putting all her purchases into a large pink shopping bag, Maddy made her way to the dress shop, where she imagined that Ellen was trying on everything in sight. She was within yards of the shop, when she paused to glance at the display in Marchants. There was a particular pair of red boots that had caught her eye.

  She did not notice the man who was lingering at the chemist’s shop next door, pretending to scrutinize the window display while keeping a close eye on her.

  Intent on reading the price, she was startled when the man came up beside her. “Like those boots, do you?” Tall and willowy, with shoulder-length dark hair and piercing eyes, he had a sinister air about him.

  Maddy merely smiled and made to walk on, when he laid his hand on her arm. “I know you, don’t I?”

  “That’s impossible.” Unnerved, Maddy had noticed his London accent. “I’ve never seen you before.”

  As she tried to pass him, he blocked her way, almost stopping her heart with his seemingly casual comment. “You’re a singer, aren’t you? The Pink Lady Club – yes, that’s it. Always top of the bill and rightly so.” He smiled knowingly. “Last I heard, Steve had thrown you out in favor of somebody else.”

  “No, you’re wrong!” Desperately trying to sound calm and unruffled, Maddy was in turmoil. “I’ve no idea what you’re talking about!”

  “Oh, I’m never wrong. I have an exceptional memory – and an eye for a pretty face.” Burrowing his eyes into hers, he said, “So what are you doing so far away from London?”

  “Let me pass – please. I have a friend waiting.”

  He looked her up and down, taking in the simple, chain-store coat. “Short of money, is that it?”

  “Like I said, you’ve made a mistake. I’m not the person you thought.”

  “All right, so we’ll agree to differ. We’ll pretend you’re not Maddy Delaney, the Songbird of Soho. But that doesn’t mean to say we can’t have a little fun together, does it, eh?” He gave her a meaningful wink.

  Instinct told Maddy to play his little game, After all, it was not so strange that someone should recognize her from the club. There must be thousands of people who had seen and heard her sing over the past three years. Besides, he seemed a nasty piece of work.

  “I really must go now,” she said. With her heart racing and every limb trembling, she gave him her warmest smile. “Nice meeting you though.”

  Encouraged, he reached out; taking hold of her arm, he questioned her, “Live round here now, do you?”

  Inwardly shaking she answered politely. “You’ve got me mixed up with someone else.” She thought it best to play his little game, and find out what he was really up to. “Look, my husband is being transferred to a new post in Jersey. He’s away at the moment, making arrangements for us to move there.” Maddy pointed to a small terrace of houses to the far right. “That’s where we live,” she lied convincingly. “But like I said, it’s only for another couple of weeks and then we’ll be off.”

  When he made no sign of making a move, Maddy took a gamble. “You can call round later if you like,” she said, smiling suggestively. “What with my husband being away, I get a bit lonely on my own, if you know what I mean.”

  “So you do like a bit of fun after all, eh, sexy lady?”

  “Well, who doesn’t?” Maddy replied with a naughty grin. “But, I’ve still got things to do. I should be home in about an hour though.”

  His slow smile enveloped her. “That’s my girl. Now you’re talking sense.” He glanced at his watch. “Half three okay?”

  “I look forward to it.”

  As she walked away, trying not to run, he called her back. Turning, she put on a sweet smile when she was ready to scream.

  “You didn’t say which house?”

  “The end one.” She pointed to the left of the row. “By the garage.” Congratulating herself, she thought how by the time he knocked on that door, she and Ellen would be long gone.

  He nodded; his lustful gaze following her back view as she walked away.

  “I knew this was my lucky day,” he muttered smugly. “Seems like it’s Drayton’s lucky day too.” He rubbed his hands together and crossed over to the corner pub, where he ordered a pint of beer and bided his time. Not for one minute did he suspect his quarry had got one over on him.

  With four outfits over her arm, Ellen was on her way to the counter to pay when Maddy burst in. “We have to get out of here,” she whispered frantically. “He sent him, I know he did!”

  Ellen took hold of her and gave her a gentle shake. “Maddy, calm down! You’re not making any sense.” She paid the shop assistant and picked up her carrier bags.

  Maddy waited impatiently, wringing her hands, glancing at the door and praying that the man had not followed her. “Listen to me,” she hissed. “That man… he knew me. He asked if I’d sung at the Pink Lady, he even knew me by name! We have to get away from here, Ellen! We have to go now.”

  Realizing this was serious, Ellen told the assistant, “My friend here is feeling ill.” Keeping her cool, she asked, “Is there a toilet we could use? I think she might be sick, and I wouldn’t want her to spoil any of your beautiful clothes.”

  That did the trick. In seconds, Ellen was hustling Maddy to the rear of the shop, and from there via the back door and onto the street, where they ran as fast as their legs would take them. In minutes, they were in the car and driving toward the outskirts of Lytham.

  Having caught her breath, Ellen demanded that Maddy tell her everything. “Word for word – what did this man say?”

  Maddy breathlessly relayed the conversation. “He knew everything – about me singing at the club, and that a new singer had taken my place. He didn’t say anything about the shootings. He wanted to know if I had come on hard times, and asked did I need any money – did I want ‘a bit of fun,’ that kind of thing. But it was all a ploy. He was under orders, I’m sure of it.”

  She took a deep breath, then continued, “He asked me where I lived, started making advances. He wouldn’t let me pass. I really thought he would shove me into a car and make off with me. Oh Ellen, I was terrified!”

  “So, how did you manage to get away from him?” Ellen’s eyes were huge and alarmed.

  “I wanted to run, but I was afraid he’d come after me. Then I thought it might be best if I played along with him, so I told him I was lonely, because my husband was away. I said we lived in one of the terraced houses near the shops.”

  Thinking of it now made her skin crawl. “I told him I had things to do and that I’d be back in an hour. We made arrangements for him to call round.”

  “Could it have been that he just saw and recognized you?” Ellen asked. “He may simply have been an old client thinking you were down on your luck, and trying to take advantage.”

  Maddy shook her head. “No. Knowing Steve Drayton, he’s probably got men all over the country looking for me. Looking for both of us.”

  Ellen had to concede the possibility. “You could be right.”

  “I am. I just know it.”

  “But it doesn’t make sense.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Ellen went over what Maddy had told her. “If he was Drayton’s man, why would he approach you in the first place? I mean, why didn’t he just take a note of where he’d seen you, secretly follow you home, and report it back to Drayton?”

  Maddy’s heartbeat slowed down. “Do you think he really was just a client who’d seen me singing at the club, and was coming on to me?” Oh, if only she could believe that, but every instinct in her body told her otherwise.

  “I really don’t know what to think,” Ellen sighed, “although like I said, if he really was Drayton’s man, he’d have been far craftier. On the other hand, he could have been sent to find you, and thought he could get his leg over for tuppence. After all, he’s a man, and sometimes men can lose all sense of duty where a woman’s concerned. Maybe he’s wanted you for a l
ong time and you were always out of reach. When he saw you today, his need of you was stronger than his fear of Drayton.”

  Pulling up at the traffic lights, she glanced at Maddy. “You have to admit, it’s possible.”

  “Well, yes, when you put it like that.” Maddy was not altogether convinced. “But even if that were true, it doesn’t change the fact that one of the club-goers recognized me. What if it gets back? What if this man has links with him? If he thought he could get money out of it, what’s to stop him from visiting him and asking if he’s willing to pay for information regarding his old sweetheart?”

  Ellen groaned. “That is some imagination you have,” she said. But she didn’t laugh, nor did she dismiss Maddy’s fears.

  Maddy first thoughts were for her baby. What would happen to Michael if he were to find her? She daren’t even think of the consequences.

  “I’m frightened,” she told Ellen in a choked voice. “I thought we were safe. Now I’m not so sure.”

  Choosing not to alarm Maddy any further, Ellen said nothing. But she fully understood her friend’s fears. The past was catching up, and it was a dangerous thing – for Maddy and the child, more so than for herself.

  There was no doubt about it. However much she might try to reassure Maddy, this was a frightening development, which needed some very serious thought.

  The little man was sweating. His bleak surroundings were all too familiar. The stench of misery seemed to waft through the room, and there was a sense of hopelesness in the very walls of the prison. Behind him, the warder stood watching, ready for the slightest wrong move by either the prisoner or his wretched visitor.

  The little man looked up, directly into the flat dark eyes of the burly warder. “We’re late today,” he said pleasantly, but his voice fell on deaf ears. He knew what it was like. Often the guards deliberately did not bring the prisoners out on time. It was as though they took sadistic enjoyment in making them sweat to the last minute.

  The little man wanted to be out of there as soon as possible. Twelve years off and on he had lived behind prison walls, and the very thought of being locked in even as a visitor, made the sweat drip down his back like a running tap.