The Seaside Angel

by Evie Grace

  ‘Tie him to the railings,’ someone suggested as the crowd cheered.

  Hannah checked on the precious bundle, moving the cloth away from the infant’s face to reveal her blotchy cheeks and cracked lips. Her eyes were closed and sunken into her skull, but she was still breathing, albeit in short, sharp gasps.

  ‘He should be made to walk the plank.’

  ‘Drown the man – it’s no more than he deserves for puttin’ an innocent child in danger.’

  ‘No, ’e should ’ang for this.’

  Hannah turned and walked away, not caring what happened to Mr Milani, her only concern being her niece.

  ‘Hello, darling,’ she murmured, her heart throbbing with relief and renewed fear. ‘Don’t give up, I beg you.’ She looked for James and saw him walking towards her, having removed his coat and rolled up his shirtsleeves. He was supporting his right arm with his left. ‘She needs milk and medicine,’ she told him.

  ‘We’ll find Dobbs and get her to the house.’

  ‘You’re hurt!’ There was a scratch across his forearm and his elbow was at an unnatural angle.

  ‘It’s nothing, just a flesh wound.’

  ‘Really? You’re a doctor – you know it’s broken.’

  ‘I’m fine.’ James turned to face the Allspice brothers. Alan had a black eye, and Abel’s nose was bleeding.

  ‘Pa will kill us if we go home empty-handed,’ Abel moaned.

  ‘You can’t take her,’ Hannah said abruptly. ‘Alan, you know that.’

  He nodded. ‘I can’t ’ave it on my conscience to take the littlun back to ’im. You know what ’e wants to do with ’er and it isn’t right. It’s what ’e did to us – bent us into shape, so to speak – for ’is own ends. Look at ’im, sitting there, smoking baccy and drinkin’ all day while Ma runs ’erself ragged, tending to ’is every need. And ’e takes our ’ard-earned money off of us.’

  ‘I’m not riskin’ it,’ Abel said.

  ‘These are good people – they saved my leg. I won’t go against ’em. Besides, what can Pa do when ’e’s an invalid, stuck in that chair for the rest of ’is time on earth?’

  ‘’E could ’ave someone do us in.’

  ‘’E isn’t the bigwig ’e used to be. There’s nobody left who owes ’im a favour,’ Alan said. ‘We don’t have to go ’ome at all. We’ll start our own act, somethin’ new that no one’s ever seen before. We’ll go to America and make our fortune.’

  ‘What about Ma – she’s makin’ good money as the oldest acrobat on the circuit,’ Abel said.

  ‘The audiences love ’er, but they’re laughing at ’er. We’ll take ’er and the littluns with us, so she doesn’t ’ave to work again. Let’s do this – the world is waitin’. I can feel it in my bones.’ Alan turned to Hannah. ‘You take the babe. We won’t give you no trouble.’

  ‘Thank you,’ she said, stepping back. ‘And good luck.’

  ‘I wish you all the best in your new venture,’ James said. ‘Don’t shake my hand,’ he added quickly.

  ‘I ’ope your arm’s better soon,’ Alan said.

  ‘So do I, young sir.’ James and Hannah slipped away as the passengers and crew congratulated the brothers on their bravery and stared at the prisoner, pointing at him like the lion in its cage at the Hall by the Sea. By the time they found Dobbs, James could barely speak for the pain and Hannah was completely distracted by her worries for the infant in her arms, unable to tell whether she was dead or alive.

  It wasn’t until she was seated safely in the carriage that she could look at her properly.

  ‘How is she?’ James asked from beside her as the horse trotted along.

  ‘The same,’ she said flatly. ‘Her breathing is shallow and fast.’ Mercy’s tiny fingers had escaped from the dirty swaddling and were blue with cold. ‘I’m afraid they have done for her as well as my sister.’

  She felt James’s arm sliding around her back and his hand coming to rest on the curve of her waist.

  ‘We’ll do our best, but her fate is in God’s hands. The Allspices’ regime is likely to have caused permanent harm: stunting of the mind and body, injury to the stomach and intestines.’

  ‘It’s so unfair …’ The baby whined, opened her mouth and spilled a little brown liquid. Hannah wiped it from her chin with the corner of her handkerchief, then kissed her forehead.

  ‘I think you should be prepared …’

  ‘There, there, sweetheart,’ she whispered, her heart shattering into a thousand pieces as she thought of Mercy joining her mother.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Fools Rush in where Angels Fear to Tread

  Mr Mordikai was in the reception hall at the infirmary. There was no comment, no odd look when she carried Mercy to the desk with Doctor Clifton walking behind her. Everyone had heard the news. They knew that her sister had met with an accident and drowned, and that there was more to her story than met the eye.

  ‘Please, call the duty physician,’ she said.

  ‘I’ll deal with this. Mercy is my patient,’ James cut in.

  ‘You need treatment as well.’

  ‘The child comes first,’ James said. ‘Mr Mordikai, I need to speak to Mr Anthony when he comes in and I’d be grateful if you can find someone to organise a cot on the girls’ ward. Perhaps Matron can be persuaded to allow Nurse Huckstep to provide one-to-one care for as long as it’s necessary.’

  ‘Of course, Doctor Clifton. I’ll give her the message.’

  Hannah followed James to an unoccupied examination room where she placed Mercy on the trolley and began to unwrap her from the swaddling, removing two safety pins, then unknotting an extra band of material which had been tied around the baby’s middle.

  ‘She’s very tightly bound,’ she observed. ‘Oh my goodness, you don’t think …? James, look how the cotton has chafed her skin. They have deliberately bound her like this to keep her small. How cruel …’

  ‘What with that and the gin, they have done everything they can to turn her into a freak of nature,’ James agreed. ‘We’ll tube-feed her and then we’ll make urgent enquiries to find a wet nurse. After that, I’ll find out what’s going on …’

  ‘With Ruby?’ she finished for him.

  He nodded.

  ‘What about your arm?’

  ‘That can wait.’

  ‘I don’t think so. You should have those bones set as soon as possible – your patients need you. Promise me that you’ll speak to Mr Anthony this morning.’

  ‘Anything you say, Sister.’ He gave a small smile. ‘Let’s give this little one a dose of glucose and water, then get her on to the ward.’

  Hannah wrapped her in a clean cotton cloth, wishing she had proper clothes for her: a pretty knitted barracoat or bootees trimmed with lace like her brothers had worn. Suppressing a wave of grief, she picked her up and carried her to the girls’ ward where she found Alice waiting.

  ‘Matron’s asked me to look after her. She’s moved one of Sister Trim’s nurses across to the Lettsom,’ she said. ‘Hannah, how are you? I’ve been thinking of you.’

  ‘Please, don’t speak kindly to me. I don’t think I can bear it.’

  ‘Let me take the baby …’

  ‘Keep fighting, little one.’ Hannah touched Mercy’s cheek and laid her in Alice’s arms before giving her the paperwork which James had put together. Having summarised his plans for Mercy’s care, she forced herself to continue, ‘Doctor Clifton says that the prognosis is poor. The likelihood is that she will join her mother in Heaven within the next couple of days.’

  ‘The poor little mite,’ Alice murmured.

  ‘I have to go, before my nurses take advantage of my absence. Promise me you’ll let me know if there’s any change in her condition.’

  ‘You know I will. How is Doctor Clifton?’

  ‘He’s a hero – he ended up in a fight, saving Mercy from her father who’d snatched her away from the Allspices. I dread to think what would have happened if we hadn’t found him in
time – he would have left the country with her. Thanks to Mr Milani, Doctor Clifton has broken his arm. I feel terribly guilty.’

  ‘Sister Bentley, to my office.’ Hannah turned to face Matron who was standing at the entrance to the ward, her hands on her hips and her chin jutting forward, reminding her of a bulldog. ‘I’ve put Nurse May in charge of the Lettsom until I can find someone with more experience.’

  ‘It’s my ward,’ Hannah said quickly.

  ‘I’ve relieved you of all responsibility for now. We have much to discuss. Follow me.’

  The rest of their encounter continued in Mrs Knowles’s office with the door firmly shut.

  ‘First of all, I’m sorry for what has happened to your sister. She’s been a good worker and an asset to the infirmary. Secondly, I wish you’d felt able to tell me what was going on – I’m not sure what I could have done, but there might have been some way to mitigate the situation before it came to this.’

  Hannah stared at her apron where grey blots began to appear in the white cotton.

  ‘I’m not saying that your sister’s course of action could have been altered, just that the revelations could have been handled differently. I’m not going to suspend you as such, but you’ll take a week’s compassionate leave while we decide how to proceed.’

  ‘What about my patients? Oliver will be expecting me.’

  ‘I’ll find some way of covering your absence.’

  ‘Am I going to lose my place?’ Hannah said, looking up.

  ‘I’ll be raising it at the next meeting of the Board. Don’t worry – I’m on your side, but I fear that I’ll struggle to win the governors over if this episode is deemed to have brought our work here into disrepute. It’ll be in all the newspapers.’

  Hannah felt sick. ‘They will drag my sister’s name through the mud.’

  ‘Inevitably, I think. Go home and rest.’

  ‘My niece requires intensive treatment – I can at least do that to relieve the burden on the other nurses.’

  ‘I understand your motives, but I can’t allow it. There must be no room for speculation and questions. It’s never a good idea for a family member to be nursed by another, particularly when we’re under siege from the press.’

  Hannah frowned.

  ‘Mr Mordikai has already seen off several reporters, and we’re expecting to have to keep them at bay when they come in later, pretending to be outpatients.’ Matron’s manner softened. ‘Use this time to make the arrangements to bury your sister and I’ll be in touch as soon as I have news of our decision. You may, of course, spend time with the child.’

  ‘Thank you, Matron.’ Hannah hesitated. ‘May I visit the boys on the Lettsom?’

  ‘I don’t think it’s a good idea. I’ll ask Nurse May to speak to them – she can tell them that you’re indisposed.’

  ‘They’ll be worried about me.’

  ‘I’ll tell her to make light of it.’

  ‘What if they see me when I’m visiting the child?’

  ‘You’ll be discreet,’ Matron said firmly, and she had to be content with that.

  Hannah left the office and dropped by at the mortuary where she watched over Ruby who looked for all the world as if she was sleeping.

  ‘Dear sister,’ she whispered hoarsely. ‘Why did you do it? Why didn’t you come to me?’ She prayed for Ruby’s soul, for the miracle of Mercy’s recovery and for James, that he would recover his strength so he could continue to practise without disability and pain. ‘I promise you, my darling, that out of love for you and little Mercy, I’ll do the right thing by her, whatever that may be. Rest in peace.’

  After she’d spoken to the chaplain and the mortuary assistant about Ruby’s funeral, she made her way towards the reception hall. In the corridor, she ran into Sister Trim, who took one look at her and turned away, muttering to her companion, one of the dispensary nurses.

  ‘There’s no way she’ll be allowed to work here again, not after what’s happened with her sister,’ she heard her say.

  ‘What was that?’ Hannah turned sharply and Sister Trim stopped with her back to her.

  ‘You heard. What class of parent is going to allow someone like you to look after their child?’ Sister Trim spun round and glared at her.

  ‘My sister’s misfortunes have no bearing on my ability to do my work.’

  ‘Misfortunes? I’m sorry for your loss, but having a child out of wedlock is a terrible sin. Ruby was a pretty girl, lacking in morals – I was forever chasing her off my ward.’

  ‘Take that back. I won’t hear you speaking badly of my sister.’

  ‘I won’t take it back – it’s the truth. You’re no better than she is, throwing yourself in Doctor Clifton’s way all the time.’

  Hannah’s face burned as she watched Sister Trim continue along the corridor with the dispensary nurse. Was this how it was going to be from now on?

  She left the house. Once she’d sent telegrams to her father and uncle, she returned to their lodgings, feeling a cold draught of loneliness as she entered their old room. Mrs Wells offered her tea but little sympathy, as well she might, Hannah thought, sensing that their comforting little chat was turning into an interrogation.

  ‘I was thinkin’ of turfin’ you out on your ear’ole, but I’ve seen there’s no sense in that. You need a roof over your ’ead at this sad time.’

  ‘Thank you – I’m very grateful,’ Hannah said.

  ‘The gen’lemen from the papers ’ave called ’ere today.’

  ‘I hope you didn’t say anything.’

  ‘I told nothin’ but the truth as I see it. I couldn’t believe my ears when they said there was money in it. How about that then? There’s financial reward to be found in gossip and ’earsay, as well as the satisfaction of spreadin’ news of folks’ misfortunes. They said I should ’ave a reg’lar column in the newspaper. ’Ow about that?’

  ‘I should go,’ Hannah said, feeling sick at the thought of her private business being embellished by Mrs Wells’s imagination.

  ‘If there’s anythin’ you need – within reason – you only ’ave to ask.’

  Hannah couldn’t stay at their lodgings. She put her hat and cape back on, and returned to the house where she went to find Alice who was on the girls’ ward, rocking Mercy in her arms.

  ‘How is she?’ Hannah said abruptly.

  ‘She’s about the same, according to Doctor Clifton.’

  ‘He’s been to see her? I thought he’d gone home to rest.’

  ‘Him, rest?’ Alice uttered a hollow laugh. ‘He never stops. He’s been in four or five times to give her glucose water by tube, and there’s a wet nurse arriving early this evening. Even so, I’ve been praying for her all day. Here. Take a seat. You hold her for a while.’ Hannah sat down, and Alice bundled the infant into her arms.

  ‘She’s beautiful, isn’t she?’ Alice said.

  ‘Like a little doll.’ The air caught in Hannah’s throat, thick like treacle, as she reached out and touched Mercy’s cheek. The baby stirred slightly, her eyes shut and her skin sallow. Hannah unwrapped her arms from the swaddling and reached for one of her tiny hands, but her fingers remained unfurled. She wrapped her up again and held her close, wishing she could breathe more life into her.

  ‘You might not have heard,’ Alice said, ‘Doctor Clifton has signed the death certificate so there’s no need for a public inquest, but the whole escapade is in the later editions of the papers. Mr Mordikai showed them to me.’

  Hannah bit her lip. The press could assassinate Ruby’s character, but she wouldn’t let them change her opinion of her lovely, flawed sister who’d felt more passion than she would ever know in her lifetime.

  ‘There are rumours that you’ve been suspended …’

  ‘I’ve been given compassionate leave, although my future here is in the balance, depending on what the Board decides.’

  ‘We’ve had a whip round. There’s a few shillings waiting for you to use as you wish – perhaps for clothes
for Mercy or a contribution towards your sister’s funeral. I’ll bring it round to you later.’

  ‘I can’t accept—’

  ‘You’ll take it without argument,’ Alice said sternly. ‘People around here think you’ve been hard done by. After all you’ve done for them, they want to give something back. Be grateful and take it.’

  ‘I don’t know how to thank you all …’

  ‘Oh, Hannah, sometimes even an angel needs help to find her wings again. You’ve helped so many people, it’s time you accepted some help yourself.’

  ‘How is Doctor Clifton?’

  ‘Mr Anthony told him he shouldn’t have interfered, that he was a fool to rush in where angels fear to tread, but that’s only to be expected, the way they bicker. Anyway, he gave him chloroform and put his arm in traction to line up the ends of the bone, then Mr Brightside made a cast to fit. He’s gone home now to let the plaster of Paris set. You should have heard him arguing about it – he’s a terrible patient. Anyway, Doctor Hunter’s going to step in and help out here for a few days. Mrs Hunter sends her kind wishes too.’

  ‘I’m mortified that James got dragged into this,’ she said.

  ‘He made the choice to do it. He could have gone to the police, but he wanted to be there for you.’ Gently, Alice took Mercy back. ‘Go home and get some sleep while you can.’

  How could she do that? Grieving for her sister and worried about her niece’s future, she didn’t think she’d ever sleep again.

  Hannah walked along the empty seafront, gazing out at the cold grey sea, and wishing that she could turn back time to the summer when she and Ruby had bought ice cream from the hokey-pokey men, and life had tasted sweet and full of promise.

  Alice came to the lodging house in the morning. Mrs Wells let her in and showed her up to the room that Hannah and Ruby had shared.

  ‘A visitor for you, miss,’ she said. ‘Oh, you poor thing. You look as if you’ve hardly slept a wink.’

  ‘Thank you, Mrs Wells.’ Hannah pushed the door closed.

  ‘She has a nose like the parish pick-axe,’ Alice observed, taking off her cape and hanging it on the hook. ‘She’s right, though – you look dreadful. Here, I’ve brought you some breakfast – cold beef, bread and ale.’