by Dilly Court
‘All this talk,’ Jezebel grumbled. ‘I’m hungry and thirsty. Where’s the kitchen, missis? If you ain’t prepared to turn your hand to feeding us, then I suppose it falls to me.’
Grace opened her mouth as if to speak and then closed it.
‘Jezebel is an excellent cook,’ Lottie said hastily. ‘Her pies are unequalled and we’re all prepared to help out. I have to find work, but I’ll wash and clean and do anything I can to help.’
‘Gideon said you were an angel, Lottie,’ Grace said with a tremulous smile. ‘I’m beginning to think he was right.’
Jezebel took over the kitchen, refusing to allow Grace into the room until she had reorganised everything to suit herself. The larder was bare, except for a sprinkling of dead flies that had probably died of starvation, and the mice had resorted to chewing the skirting boards. Jezebel sent Teddy out to purchase carbolic soap and washing soda, giving him money from her own purse. With strict instructions to purchase only the bare necessities, Ruby went to market to buy the ingredients for supper, and Lottie took on the task of sweeping floors, cleaning grates and removing the thick layers of dust and smuts that had accumulated over the past weeks. With all this activity going on around her, Grace was given the task of looking after the baby, and she sat in a chair cradling Molly in her arms.
She looked up as Lottie entered the room with a fresh supply of cleaning cloths and a bucket of lukewarm water. ‘You never said whose child this is. She’s not yours, by any chance?’
Lottie almost dropped the pail. ‘Good heavens, no. She’s not mine by birth, but she is my responsibility now.’
‘Her mother is dead?’
‘Sadly, yes. But from the start she wanted nothing to do with Molly.’
‘I can’t believe that.’ Grace stared at her in horror. ‘What sort of mother would abandon her baby?’
Lottie could see that nothing would satisfy Grace other than the truth. She put the bucket down and pulled up a chair. ‘I’d better start at the beginning …’
Grace listened intently. ‘Well,’ she said when Lottie finished speaking, ‘the poor little mite.’
‘She’ll never know that she was unwanted.’ Lottie reached out to stroke Molly’s downy head. ‘She’s much loved and she has a family who will take care of her.’
‘Even so, you’re not her flesh and blood, and Molly must have some relations living. From what you’ve told me they’re rich and important – they could give her everything that you can’t.’
‘I hadn’t thought about it like that,’ Lottie said slowly. ‘I suppose you’re right.’
‘I can see that you love her, but maybe you ought to seek out her mother’s family and tell them what you’ve just told me. Do you know where to find them?’
‘I only know that Lady Aurelia’s maiden name was de Morgan.’
‘There you are then,’ Grace said triumphantly.
‘I don’t see how that helps. I wouldn’t know where to start looking.’
‘I could help you there, dear.’ Grace’s pale features became animated and her eyes sparkled. ‘Before I married I was in service in a big house in Berkeley Square. One of the girls I worked with is now the housekeeper. We kept in touch until a year or so ago, but there isn’t much that Nancy doesn’t know about the aristocracy.’
‘Do you think she would know where to find the de Morgan family?’
‘I’d be surprised if she did not.’
‘Then could we go and see her? The longer I keep Molly, the harder it will be to give her up.’
‘I haven’t been far from the house for months, and I could do with a day out. What do you say we go tomorrow?’
Berkeley Square surpassed all Lottie’s expectations of elegance and grandeur. The gated gardens were a green oasis, shaded by tall plane trees. Sparrows and pigeons wandered the lawns, pecking up minute pieces of food, and birds sang from the leafy branches, beneath which uniformed nannies sat and chatted while their small charges played around them. It was a scene far removed from the grim reality of Whitechapel, but Lottie did not have time to stand and admire the setting. Grace seemed to have thrown off the depression that dogged her at home and she marched up to the door of the servants’ entrance.
‘I had five years here, Lottie,’ she said, smiling. ‘It was hard work, but they were a good crowd, for the most part. Of course you always get one or two who spoil things.’ She broke off as the door opened and a stern-faced footman gave them a stony stare.
‘Good morning, James. I’ve come to see Mrs Dobson.’
‘You’d better come in then, Mrs Ellis.’ He stepped aside. ‘You’ll find her in her office or in the linen room.’
‘Thank you.’ Grace sailed past him. ‘Come on, Lottie. This way.’ She hurried along what seemed like a maze of passages. They were largely ignored by the servants who were going about their duties, although one or two of the older ones acknowledged Grace with a nod and a smile. ‘Here we are.’ She stopped and knocked on a door marked ‘Housekeeper’.
‘Come in.’
Grace entered with Lottie close on her heels. ‘Nancy, how are you, love?’
Mrs Dobson, a plump woman in her mid-forties, took off her spectacles and her round face creased in a smile. ‘Grace. This is a surprise.’
‘I know. I’ve had little time for visiting, being busy with my lodgers, and then I didn’t feel like seeing people after Gideon was taken from me.’
‘Oh, my dear, I didn’t know.’ Mrs Dobson’s smile faded. ‘Do sit down.’ She glanced at Lottie. ‘I don’t think we’ve met.’
‘I’m sorry,’ Grace said hastily. ‘I’m forgetting my manners. This is Lottie Lane. She would have been my daughter-in-law if circumstances hadn’t intervened.’
Lottie felt the blood rise to her cheeks. ‘I don’t know about that, Grace.’
‘I’m certain of it, love. I know my son and he wasn’t a ladies’ man, but he thought highly of you.’ Grace took her hanky from her reticule and blew her nose. ‘I’m sorry, Nancy. You must think this very strange, but we came to ask your advice.’ She turned to Lottie. ‘Tell her what you told me yesterday.’
Lottie hesitated: it felt wrong to reveal Lady Aurelia’s personal tragedy to a complete stranger, but Molly’s future might be at stake, and she owed it to her to do everything in her power to make sure she had the best start in life. She took a deep breath and began at the beginning.
‘Well, now,’ Nancy said, when Lottie came to an end of her story. ‘That’s a tale, indeed.’
‘But do you know of this family, Nancy?’ Grace asked eagerly.
‘As it happens, I do.’ Nancy leaned her elbow on the desk, gazing intently at Lottie. ‘Lord Aloysius de Morgan has an estate in Essex and a house in Grosvenor Square, not far from here. Lady Aurelia was a wild one, to be sure, although that would have been a little after your time, Grace. Her exploits were the talk of the servants’ quarters some six or seven years ago. I think her father must have been relieved when she and the colonel were wed, even if he didn’t approve of the match.’
‘Give us the address, Nancy, and we’ll go there directly.’ Grace rose from her seat. ‘This isn’t going to be an easy thing for Lottie to do, so it must be done quickly, before she changes her mind.’
An hour later, Lottie emerged from the house in Grosvenor Square with Lord Aloysius de Morgan’s words ringing in her ears.
Grace hurried up to her. ‘What did he say?’
Lottie leaned against the iron railings, fanning her hot cheeks with her hand. ‘I don’t wonder that Lady Aurelia wanted to leave home. He’s a horrible man.’
‘Wasn’t he interested in his granddaughter?’
‘He just didn’t believe me, Grace. He accused me of trying to extort money from him under false pretences. He even threatened to call a constable and have me arrested.’
‘But surely you explained the circumstances of Molly’s birth?’
‘He simply didn’t want to know. He said if it were even partly
true it was Colonel Dashwood’s responsibility, not his. If you ask me, Molly is better off living in the East End with us than she would be in that mansion with a hateful grandfather.’
‘You tried, love,’ Grace said softly. ‘You did your best and it’s his loss.’
‘Maybe one day, when Molly is older and he can see the likeness to Lady Aurelia, he’ll change his mind.’
‘And maybe that pig you told me about, Lady Petunia, will fly.’ Grace proffered her arm. ‘Come on, Lottie. Let’s go home.’
Chapter Seventeen
The house in Leman Street seemed to have come back to life after dying slowly from misery and neglect. Grace herself flowered amongst the company of women and children, and helping to care for Molly seemed to have given her a new purpose in life, but after a few weeks it was becoming clear to Lottie that their finances were in a desperate state. Grace received some money from the newly formed Patriotic Fund, but Ruby had only just applied for assistance, and the small amount of her husband’s back wages paid by the army had all but run out. Lottie had gone through most of the money she had earned, and Teddy had spent the last of his pay on mint humbugs and toffee. Jezebel had saved as much as she could from the meagre amount she received from the Filbys, but that too was running low, and they had to find money for the rent.
Grace had been only too willing to give up some of her responsibility in the running of the house, and Lottie had been put in charge of the housekeeping. With the rent collector due in two days, she was only too well aware that they could not go on as they were. She raised the subject at breakfast. ‘We’re two shillings short. Grace says that the rent collector isn’t sympathetic to those who can’t pay in full. We have to find the money somewhere.’
‘I’ve sold most of my valuables,’ Grace said sadly. ‘It will be the furniture next, and it’s not worth much.’
Jezebel rose to her feet. ‘I ain’t related to any of you, so I’m the odd one out. I should leave and look for work as a cook.’
‘You are as much a part of the family as any of us,’ Lottie said stoutly. ‘And Lad, too. We’re all in this together. Don’t you agree, Grace? It’s your house, after all.’
‘Having you all here has meant so much to me.’ Grace’s bottom lip trembled and her eyes brimmed with tears. ‘You’ll never know what a difference it’s made. You are all connected in one way or another with my boy, and I feel as though he’s still with me when you’re here. I don’t want to go back to living with strangers.’
‘There must be a way to earn money quickly—’ Ruby broke off as she caught Lottie’s eye and her cheeks reddened.
‘That would definitely be a last resort,’ Lottie said, chuckling.
‘I didn’t mean that sort of thing. Shame on you, Lottie.’
‘What are you talking about?’ Teddy demanded, looking from one to the other. ‘What’s funny?’
‘Nothing, boy. Little pitchers have big ears.’ Jezebel sent a warning look in Lottie’s direction. She pushed her untouched bowl of gruel across the table. ‘I ain’t hungry, but it’s a shame to put good food to waste.’
Teddy grabbed the bowl and spooned the gruel into his mouth, curiosity apparently forgotten.
‘You are a splendid cook, Jezebel,’ Lottie said slowly. ‘We always said your pies were the best in London. You could work anywhere.’
‘I’ll second that.’ Ruby rose from the table and went to lift Molly from the wooden crate which served as a makeshift cradle. ‘I never tasted the like of the eel pie and mash you cooked for us last week.’
‘I would gladly go out and sell your pies in the street, if you could make enough,’ Lottie said eagerly. ‘If we could raise two shillings it would give us another month to find work.’
‘I can’t make pies without the ingredients.’ Jezebel reached for her pipe and tobacco pouch. ‘This is the last of my baccy. You’d all best watch out for me when I goes without a smoke. I get bad-tempered and likely to swipe anyone who crosses me.’
Grace stared at her in surprise. ‘You don’t mean it, Jezebel.’
‘Indeed I do. Find me the makings and I’ll bake pies until I drop. All I want in return is a pouch filled with baccy, and I’ll be a happy woman.’
Teddy licked his spoon clean. ‘If you want eels, I’m your man.’
Everyone turned to stare at him and even Molly was quiet.
‘What are you saying, Teddy?’ Lottie snatched the spoon from him. ‘Can you really help?’
‘I can catch eels, although I might need a bit of help until the splint comes off me arm.’
‘Are you making it up, boy?’ Jezebel demanded, scowling.
‘No, miss. Honest, I ain’t. Me and some of the boys from the foundling home used to sneak out at night and set a trap to catch eels, and if we was lucky we could get a few pennies for them in the market next day.’
‘How did you manage that?’ Lottie asked.
‘We filled a sack with straw and put in some bait. Weighted it with a brick and tethered it so that the tide wouldn’t take it away, and at first light we was down there hauling it in filled with eels.’
‘You’re not making this up, are you, Teddy?’ Lottie gave him a stern look. Teddy had a vivid imagination and she wanted to be sure that this was not one of his tales.
‘No, Lottie. As if I would.’
‘I believe you,’ Ruby said gently.
‘It’s worth a try.’ Lottie turned to Jezebel. ‘If Teddy could catch enough eels, what else would you need?’
Jezebel abandoned her pipe and did a quick calculation. ‘Flour, lard, parsley and salt. I should be able to get what I need for about a shilling. How much have we got?’
Lottie emptied the contents of her purse onto the table. ‘Tenpence ha’penny.’
‘That will have to do then.’ Jezebel’s hand shot out to take the coins. ‘Get me the eels, boy, and leave the rest to me.’ She stood up and went to the door, snatching up her shawl and a wicker basket on her way out.
‘Are you sure you can do this, Teddy?’ Lottie turned her purse upside down to make sure there were no farthings caught up in the lining. ‘That was the last of our money.’
He puffed out his chest. ‘I’m an expert, but it’s going to be difficult with one arm. I’ll need someone to help me.’
‘I will,’ Lottie said firmly.
Teddy stared at her, frowning. ‘I dunno about that. Your long skirts would hamper you, Lottie. Sometimes I had to climb down ladders and wade in the mud, and we had to make a run for it.’
‘But it’s not against the law to fish for eels, is it?’
‘No, but we might be mistaken for river pirates.’
This made Lottie laugh. ‘Do I look like a pirate?’
‘No, Lottie, but there’s all sorts roaming round the docks at night, and you wouldn’t be safe. I couldn’t do much to help with one arm out of action.’
Lottie was about to say that she could look after herself when Grace forestalled her.
‘I kept some of the clothes that Gideon wore when he was a lad not much older than you, Teddy. I’d forgotten all about them until I was looking for extra blankets for all of you.’
‘Are you suggesting that I dress up as a boy?’ Lottie demanded, torn between dismay and laughter.
‘It will be dark.’ Grace rose to her feet. ‘If you want to try them on I’ve got them in my room.’
It was a moonless night and rain had been falling steadily for hours. Lottie felt self-conscious but strangely comfortable in the clothes that Gideon had worn ten or more years ago. She felt closer to him now than at any time since the tragic news of his death. Besides which, the freedom that trousers gave when walking was quite astonishing and almost indecent, when compared to layers of petticoats and long skirts. Her hair was crammed into a peaked cap and she wore a pair of old boots that would have benefited from the attention of a cobbler, and would almost certainly leak. Teddy walked on ahead with a sack filled with straw and offal picked up from the gutter, w
hich he said was the ideal bait. Lottie was certain that people would see through her disguise, but to her surprise she did not receive a second glance. It was as if she had suddenly become invisible, and she began to feed more confident.
It was not a pleasant walk to the docks. Huge puddles glistened like lakes and the cobblestones were slippery with mud and the filth washed up from overflowing gutters, but they reached the Hermitage Basin eventually, and Teddy found what he considered to be a good spot. With Lottie’s help he tied the sack tightly and they weighted it with a brick he had collected on the way, and dropped it over the wall. Lottie watched it sink into the murky blackness, and Teddy secured his end of the rope.
‘There now,’ he said triumphantly. ‘We’ll come back first thing and see what we’ve caught.’
‘Are you sure that was a good place?’ Lottie asked as they hurried homeward. ‘We’ll be in desperate trouble if there are no eels.’
‘Trust me, Lottie. I know what I’m doing.’ He gave her a cheeky grin and swaggered along the street, hands in pockets.
Lottie barely slept that night. She had not laboured the point to Teddy, but their future depended on their catch. She was up before dawn and dressed when she went to wake Teddy. He grumbled, but raised himself from his warm bed and followed her downstairs.
It was still dark, although a thin pale line in the east heralded an early dawn. They walked quickly and in silence. Lottie tried to be positive, but the thought of returning home empty-handed was too terrible to contemplate. Eel pie was the only thing that stood between them and penury. Teddy did not seem to share her anxiety and he bounded along with Lad trotting at his side. The small mongrel followed Teddy everywhere, although Lottie suspected that Jezebel was slightly jealous of her dog’s obvious affection for the boy, but it was good to see Teddy cheerful again. Leaving the army had hit him hard, and living in an all-female household must seem strange to a boy who had been raised in an orphanage and sent into the army at such a young age. Lottie picked up her skirts and ran in an attempt to keep up with him.
