all from the railway – better than from the top deck of a leckie, even.’
Electric trams were no longer quite the novelty they had been for Lilac, since Nellie and she now caught the tram quite often when they went home to Coronation Court. Nellie had found a way to supplement her small income, and the extra money made it possible for them to ride on the trams from time to time. She had always been a good knitter and now she was being paid to knitfor the troops by a rich lady who was on the board of governors of the Culler, so in the evenings, whilst she supervised baths and bed, Nellie stood with the wool tucked under one arm and the needles clicking away like mad whilst her work gradually grew.
‘There isn’t much money in it,’ she told Lilac. ‘But every little helps.’
Nellie never said so, but Lilac knew that a good deal of the money went on Lilac herself, and she guessed that Nellie put the rest away towards her marriage. Davy was so nice, so handsome, and so extremely attentive! And he was beginning to talk about taking a couple of rooms somewhere off the Scotland Road, so that Nellie could be near her brothers whilst he was at sea. Even Lilac could see how much he liked Nellie; he bought her little presents, spent all his spare time with her when he came to the city, and was quite willing to send Lilac off to the cinema or to take her to Coronation Court so that he and Nellie could spend some time alone. In fact Lilac thought it might only be a matter of time before the three of them had a nice little house somewhere ... and goodbye to the horrible Culler, she told herself now, warm in her bed, cuddling her arms round herself ecstatically at the thought.
So what a day this was to be, then! No wonder she had woken at the patter of footsteps ... and this made her wonder anew who was outside the home at this early hour and what they were doing. Had someone dumped a baby, the way someone had dumped her, nine years ago to the very day? Well, if they have I’m not going down, Lilac thought smugly. Nor will Nellie, because she’s got me to look after, she wouldn’t want another baby. But she sat up on her elbow, nevertheless, and stared across at the nine narrow beds with the nine humped up shapes of nine sleeping nine-year-olds.What a lot of nines, she thought. If I was to go to sleep again I’d spoil it, it would be ten sleeping nine-year-olds ... just let me take a quick look ...
She swung her legs out of bed and clutched her skimpy cotton nightdress around herself, then made for the window. Nellie always closed it in the winter-time since everyone knew that darkness was bad for the young and the cold air worst of all, but now, with infinite caution, Lilac moved the heavy sash upwards, then knelt on the floor and poked her head out. Below and to the left of her was the portico; was there a wild figure running off down the street, or a would-be burglar effecting an entrance to the lower windows? But so far as she could see there was nothing and nobody, only the dark sky with the stars twinkling frostily, a puddle in the road reflecting the sky and telling her of earlier rain and the salty breeze which blew from the Mersey bringing a tantalising breath of the tidal river and the great open spaces of ocean beyond.
She was still kneeling there, almost mesmerised by the sweetness of the pre-dawn wind and the brilliance of the stars, when she heard something outside the room, just a tiny thread of sound but still something. Her heart, which had been thudding quietly away down there, gave a sudden bound; burglars! She knew there was nothing much to steal at the Culler, but there was always her pink dress, let out and lace-trimmed and many-times washed, which Nellie kept in her own chest of drawers upstairs. And the little red cloth coat with the black velvet collar and cuffs which Nellie was cutting down for her to wear, come Christmas. Suppose someone had heard rumours of these riches? Suppose even now some
Electric trams were no longer quite the novelty they had been for Lilac, since Nellie and she now caught the tram quite often when they went home to Coronation Court. Nellie had found a way to supplement her small income, and the extra money made it possible for them to ride on the trams from time to time. She had always been a good knitter and now she was being paid to knitfor the troops by a rich lady who was on the board of governors of the Culler, so in the evenings, whilst she supervised baths and bed, Nellie stood with the wool tucked under one arm and the needles clicking away like mad whilst her work gradually grew.
‘There isn’t much money in it,’ she told Lilac. ‘But every little helps.’
Nellie never said so, but Lilac knew that a good deal of the money went on Lilac herself, and she guessed that Nellie put the rest away towards her marriage. Davy was so nice, so handsome, and so extremely attentive! And he was beginning to talk about taking a couple of rooms somewhere off the Scotland Road, so that Nellie could be near her brothers whilst he was at sea. Even Lilac could see how much he liked Nellie; he bought her little presents, spent all his spare time with her when he came to the city, and was quite willing to send Lilac off to the cinema or to take her to Coronation Court so that he and Nellie could spend some time alone. In fact Lilac thought it might only be a matter of time before the three of them had a nice little house somewhere ... and goodbye to the horrible Culler, she told herself now, warm in her bed, cuddling her arms round herself ecstatically at the thought.
So what a day this was to be, then! No wonder she had woken at the patter of footsteps ... and this made her wonder anew who was outside the home at this early hour and what they were doing. Had someone dumped a baby, the way someone had dumped her, nine years ago to the very day? Well, if they have I’m not going down, Lilac thought smugly. Nor will Nellie, because she’s got me to look after, she wouldn’t want another baby. But she sat up on her elbow, nevertheless, and stared across at the nine narrow beds with the nine humped up shapes of nine sleeping nine-year-olds.What a lot of nines, she thought. If I was to go to sleep again I’d spoil it, it would be ten sleeping nine-year-olds ... just let me take a quick look ...
She swung her legs out of bed and clutched her skimpy cotton nightdress around herself, then made for the window. Nellie always closed it in the winter-time since everyone knew that darkness was bad for the young and the cold air worst of all, but now, with infinite caution, Lilac moved the heavy sash upwards, then knelt on the floor and poked her head out. Below and to the left of her was the portico; was there a wild figure running off down the street, or a would-be burglar effecting an entrance to the lower windows? But so far as she could see there was nothing and nobody, only the dark sky with the stars twinkling frostily, a puddle in the road reflecting the sky and telling her of earlier rain and the salty breeze which blew from the Mersey bringing a tantalising breath of the tidal river and the great open spaces of ocean beyond.
She was still kneeling there, almost mesmerised by the sweetness of the pre-dawn wind and the brilliance of the stars, when she heard something outside the room, just a tiny thread of sound but still something. Her heart, which had been thudding quietly away down there, gave a sudden bound; burglars! She knew there was nothing much to steal at the Culler, but there was always her pink dress, let out and lace-trimmed and many-times washed, which Nellie kept in her own chest of drawers upstairs. And the little red cloth coat with the black velvet collar and cuffs which Nellie was cutting down for her to wear, come Christmas. Suppose someone had heard rumours of these riches? Suppose even now some
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