Mermaids Singing (12 page)

Sir Desmond’s condition had become chronic and his doctor advised a trip to Bath to take the waters. Kitty gleaned her knowledge from snippets of conversation that she overheard between her ladyship and Miss Lane, and the rest from George. Lady Mableton had almost fainted when it was suggested that she should accompany her husband to Bath.

Kitty might not have believed this, but she had brought Leonie to her mama, all dressed up for a walk to the park, and she had found Miss Lane administering smelling salts and a few sharp words to Lady Mableton. Once again, Kitty had been shocked by the familiar tone that Miss Lane used when talking to her mistress. She couldn’t help wondering why her ladyship didn’t give Miss Lane a good talking to instead of taking her scolding to heart and looking as though she might burst into tears at any given moment. Kitty had been within an ace of telling Miss Lane to leave out speaking to her ladyship like she was her equal. It wasn’t right and it wasn’t fair.

For several days, Kitty could feel the tense atmosphere above stairs and Miss Leonie was at her most fractious and demanding. Lady Mableton kept to her rooms and Captain Edward went daily to the Officers’ Club. When Kitty went down to the kitchen to collect the meals for the nursery, George told her in whispers that James and Jane had reported fierce rows amongst the family above stairs. Then all of a sudden it seemed that Sir Desmond had changed his mind and he left early one morning, accompanied only by Mr Warner.

Immediately the atmosphere in the house seemed to change. Lady Mableton’s fragile beauty that had faded like a wilting rose under the strain of Sir Desmond’s tempestuous outbursts, bloomed once again with an almost incandescent radiance. Captain Edward curtailed his visits to his club, staying at home and, it seemed to Kitty, that he was always with Lady Mableton. Their high spirits seemed to affect everyone living in the house; even Miss Iris appeared less vinegary and more pleasant. The only person who did not seem relaxed and happy was Mr Rackham. Whenever Kitty happened to see him, she felt an inexplicable shiver of apprehension run down her spine.

Their afternoon walk to Green Park became an established routine, with Lady Mableton and Captain Edward walking on ahead, and Kitty pushing Miss Leonie in her galloping gig, just a little way behind. She did not have to turn her head to know that Jem, who had been lounging casually in a doorway a bit further along the street, was now strolling along behind them. Once they were in the park, Lady Mableton and Captain Edward walked beneath the trees, too deeply absorbed in each other to notice what was going on around them.

Jem and Kitty played ball with Leonie, fed the ducks or sat on a park bench, keeping an eye on her while she picked daisies or chased butterflies. An hour would slip by and then two, and still Lady Mableton and Captain Edward continued to walk and talk. Keeping a careful eye on them, in case they should suddenly return, Kitty observed that they had taken to holding hands. On one occasion, as she listened to Jem telling her of yet another of his thrilling adventures at sea, Kitty saw Captain Edward draw her ladyship into the shade of a willow tree. He kissed her hand and then, with a swift movement, he drew her closer and kissed her on the lips. They pulled apart almost immediately, casting anxious glances around, and then, apparently satisfied that no one had seen them, they clasped hands, gazing at each other and smiling. Kitty turned her head away, her stomach muscles knotted in alarm. How stupid had she been not to realise that my lady and Captain Edward had been slowly and inexorably falling in love? And what terrible consequences would come from such a passion?

‘You haven’t heard a word that I’ve been saying,’ complained Jem. ‘What’s the matter, Kitty? You look like you’ve lost a shilling and found threepence.’

Kitty shook her head. She couldn’t even tell Jem; it was my lady’s secret and she would guard it with her life. ‘I heard you all right.’

‘No you didn’t. You was miles away.’

Kitty jumped up to catch hold of Leonie’s petticoats as she started to run towards her mother. ‘Not yet, Miss Leonie. Wait here for your mama.’

‘There’s something rum going on there,’ Jem said, following her gaze. ‘Ain’t they related in some way?’

‘That’s none of your business, Jem Scully,’ Kitty said, brushing bits of grass off her skirt. ‘And you’d better get going before they come back and catch us together.’

Jumping to his feet, Jem caught Kitty around the waist. ‘Never mind them, Kitty. You know this is my last day ashore. I’ll be sailing on the evening tide.’

‘I didn’t know that. I mean, surely not so soon?’

‘So you will miss me a bit then?’

Jem’s blue eyes were laughing but there was an eager look in them that made Kitty catch her breath. ‘Of course I’ll miss you. You’re my best friend, Jem, and always will be.’

‘More than a friend, Kitty. You and me belong together.’

‘Please don’t start all that again.’

Jem dropped his hands to his sides and his smile faded. ‘I’m not giving up that easily, Kitty. One day I hope you’ll change your mind about us, but I can wait.’

Kitty caught a movement out of the corner of her eye and, turning her head, saw that Lady Mableton and Captain Edward were coming towards them. ‘You’d better go quick.’

‘Not unless you promise to come and see me off at the docks.’

‘You know I can’t.’

Leonie broke free from Kitty’s restraining hand and ran towards her mother. Lady Mableton bent down and lifted her up, kissing Leonie’s rosy cheek. ‘Bad girl to run away from Nanny.’

‘I’m sorry, my lady,’ murmured Kitty, glancing nervously from Lady Mableton’s flushed face to Captain Edward’s. She was relieved to see they were both smiling.

‘It’s all right, Kitty. No harm was done,’ Lady Mableton said, casting a curious glance at Jem. ‘Is this young man a friend of yours?’

‘I’m sorry, my lady,’ Kitty said, before Jem had a chance to speak. ‘I know it ain’t allowed, but Jem is an old friend.’

‘And a seafarer by the looks of things,’ said Captain Edward, eyeing Jem’s reefer jacket and shiny brass buttons. ‘What ship do you sail on, young man?’

Tugging off his cap, Jem snapped to attention. ‘The
Mairangi
, Sir. We set sail on the evening tide, bound for New Zealand.’

‘How splendid!’ cried Lady Mableton, her eyes shining as she set Leonie down on the ground. ‘How romantic to sail to such a faraway place.’

‘I don’t know about that, Ma’am, but I would sail away far happier if Kitty could come and see me off.’

Appalled by Jem’s boldness, Kitty nudged him in the ribs. ‘Jem, you shouldn’t speak so to Lady Mableton.’

‘I admire a bold fellow,’ Lady Mableton said, laughing and casting a sidelong glance at Captain Edward. ‘Of course you must go and see him off, Kitty.’

Despite Kitty’s protests, Lady Mableton insisted that she must have the evening off, and Captain Edward wished Jem
bon voyage
, handing him some coins with instructions to send Kitty home in a hansom cab.

When they arrived back at Tanner’s Passage they found that Polly had suffered one of her funny turns, and had been put to bed with a draught of laudanum to quieten her down. Betty cried and hugged Jem. She blessed Kitty for coming to see him off, as she could hardly leave poor Poll in this sad state. Jem went upstairs to say his own goodbyes to Polly and came down again, blowing his nose and rubbing his eyes, pretending that he had a speck of dust in them. Kitty knew he was blinking away tears and she wanted to hug him, but she stopped herself in time; Jem would take it all wrong and she mustn’t give him false hope.

‘Goodbye, Ma,’ Jem said gruffly. He wrapped his arms around his mother and hugged her. ‘Take care of yourself, old girl.’

‘Let me go, you big stupid,’ Betty said, pushing him away. ‘You get going or you’ll miss your ship.’ She managed a brave smile, but Kitty could see her mouth working as though she wanted to cry.

‘I’ll be back afore you know it,’ Jem said, hefting his sea chest onto his shoulder. He headed for the door, knocking a chair over on his way.

Kitty righted it, turning to Betty with a wobbly attempt at a smile. ‘He’ll be all right. You mustn’t worry.’

The dock was crowded with horse-drawn wagons, carts and people milling about in a seemingly disorganised fashion. A constant stream of men poured up and down the gangplanks of the steam ship
Mairangi
, loading the provisions for its long journey. The air was filled with noise, and Kitty almost lost Jem in the midst of the hustle and bustle. She heard him calling her name and then, craning her neck, she spotted him standing on his sea chest, waving his cap.

Edging her way through the crowd, Kitty was hot and flustered by the time she reached him. ‘I thought I’d lost you.’

‘No chance of that,’ Jem said, grinning. ‘You’re stuck to me like glue, Kitty.’

‘We’re much too young to even think about courting.’

‘Maybe, but I’m a faithful sort of chap and I’ll not change.’

‘We’ll always be friends.’

Jem stared at her for a moment, pushing his cap to the back of his head. ‘I wish I was good at words. It’s all here in my head but when I start talking it all comes out wrong.’

‘I care about you, very much. Can’t we leave it like that?’

Shoving his hand in his pocket, Jem brought out some coins. Selecting a golden guinea he held it up in front of her face. ‘D’you know how many days I got to work to earn this much money?’

Kitty shook her head. ‘I don’t.’

‘A lot of days.’ Jem took a knife from his belt. ‘This coin is like you and me. You’re the one side and I’m the other.’

‘What are you doing?’ Kitty watched in horror as Jem knelt on the cobbles and hacked the coin in half. ‘Have you gone mad? It takes me over a month to earn a guinea.’

Scrambling to his feet, Jem pressed one half of the coin into her hand, closing her fingers around it. ‘That’s my pledge to you, Kitty. No matter what happens, you hang on to that and I’ll keep mine. One day I hope you’ll look at me different, but I’ll not press you.’

‘I’ll always love you like a brother, Jem. I can’t promise nothing more.’

‘That’s all I ask, for now at least,’ Jem said, kissing her on the tip of her nose. Taking her hand, he pressed two half-crowns into her palm, closing her fingers over the coins. ‘I told that cabby over there to wait and take you back to Dover Street. It ain’t safe for you to walk these streets on your own.’

Eyeing the coins, Kitty shook her head. ‘It’s an awful waste of money, Jem. This would feed a family for a week.’

‘Promise me you’ll take the cab.’

‘I promise, but I still think—’

Twisting one of her short curls around his finger, Jem looked deeply into her eyes. ‘I love you, Kitty.’

Before she could answer, he had picked up his sea chest and was off up the gangplank. As he boarded the ship, Jem turned and blew her a kiss. With a last cheery wave, he disappeared from view.

Kitty stood on the quay wall, watching while the crew went about their duties and the great engines purred into life. Steam belched from the funnels and the gangplanks were hauled up. The mooring ropes were released and the great ship began to move. Kitty thought she saw Jem briefly on deck before the
Mairangi
slid away from its moorings. She waved anyway, hoping he might be able to see her. She stood on the dockside until the ship was out of sight and then made her way slowly along the quay wall, heading towards the cabstand. She had not expected to feel anything but a slight sadness that Jem had gone away but, as the sun plummeted behind the buildings, drowning the City in dusky purple, Kitty suffered an almost overwhelming feeling of loss. Her best friend was sailing away to foreign lands; she would miss Jem more than she could have imagined possible.

Realising that she still clutched the piece of gold coin in her hand, she glanced nervously over her shoulder to make sure no one was looking, and then tucked it safely away inside her corset so that it nestled between her breasts. It was a daft thing for Jem to have done but it had touched her deeply. The knowledge that someone cared that much about her made her feel all warm and squashy inside; it was strange but sweet, to be treasured and stored away like the fragment of gold coin. She smiled to herself as she made her way to where the cab had been waiting, but it seemed the cabby had got tired of waiting or had picked up another fare. Shrugging her shoulders, Kitty set off to catch the omnibus and, still thinking about Jem and not considering where she was going, she followed the familiar route that would take her past Sugar Yard.

Realising her mistake, she broke into a run, but as she reached the pub where Sid drank away his wages, Kitty couldn’t help glancing through the open door. The smell of stale beer and tobacco smoke made her wrinkle her nose; her heart missed a beat when she saw Sid leaning against the bar. Instinct told her to run but she froze with terror at the sight of him and her limbs wouldn’t respond. Forcing them to move, Kitty felt as though she were wading in deep water, her breathing was ragged and the sound of her own blood drumming in her ears deafened her. She broke into a run but a pair of strong hands caught her, pinning her arms to her sides. Kicking and screaming, she was dragged inside the pub door.

‘Look what I found lurking outside, Sid. Does this belong to you?’

Kitty saw Sid’s fist coming towards her but she couldn’t dodge the blow …

She regained consciousness to find herself being dragged into a dark alleyway between two warehouses.

‘Thought you’d got away with it, did you?’ Sid muttered through clenched teeth. He threw her down on the cold, hard ground. ‘Well, now I’ll give you what for, my lady. Put you in your place right and proper.’

Kitty kicked and fought but another clout round the head stunned her. Sid came at her like a maddened bull, forcing her legs wide apart. His raddled face hovered above hers like a hideous incubus, his eyes darkened with lust and his breath foul with stale drink and tobacco. His weight pinned her to the cobblestones, making struggling futile, and his knuckles grazed her flesh as he ripped his trousers open, sending buttons pinging onto the cobbles. She opened her mouth to scream, but he clamped his free hand over her face.