THE DEPRIVED... Chapter 2... Part 10.

A continuation of my book.

Mr. Pendleton’s face went through a barrage of expressions as remembrance suddenly lit the brown eyes, quickly followed by a pointed finger and the outraged accusation.
“She’s the woman who robbed me last night! Call the law! Call the enforcers!”
Goldie stood with her mouth open, quite still and not knowing what to do. Mr. Pendleton began to shout the foulest of obscenities, causing customers to turn in startled confusion as Mr. Pendleton’s voice raged even louder and higher.
“It’s her! The hussy who stole my purse! It’s her I tell you! Call the Bobbies!”
Mary ran forward, pushing Mr. Pendleton out of the way in her rush and only to be caught by Danny who had run over to see what the noise was.
“She stole my purse!” shouted Mr. Pendleton as he righted himself.
Danny did not fully understand what was going on but reacted quickly by calling Della over to help Goldie drag Mary out to the back yard. The two women hustled Mary out between them, taking her out into the back yard of the tavern and held her down.
“Strip and search her!” Danny demanded.
“She won’t have it on her! She stole it last night!” shouted the quivering Mr. Pendleton, now joining them all out in the yard.
Goldie and Della began to tear away at the clothes as Mary struggled to break free, ripping the silk from her body and then the petticoat and undergarments till she stood shaking and shivering in the cold.
“There! That’s my purse, it’s round her neck!” screamed Mr. Pendleton jumping up and down in excitement. “And that’s my other purse! There, behind the garter on her thigh!”
“Keep hold of her.” ordered Danny as he stepped forward to snatch at the purse from around Mary’s neck.
“How much did you have in the purse?” he asked as he opened it.
“I had six sovereigns and four bob bits and I had some copper coins in the other purse.” answered Mr. Pendleton.
Danny emptied the small purse first and held his hand out, displaying the six sovereigns and the four shilling pieces.
“Give me the other purse she has in her garter.” ordered Danny.
Goldie handed over the purse.
“Some of that money is mine!” screamed Mary before breaking into a hacking cough and almost fainting.
“Hold her up!” ordered Danny before turning to Mr. Pendleton.
“We don’t need the law here do we Mr. Pendleton?” queried Danny giving the man both purses.
“What about her?” asked Mr. Pendleton, pointing at Mary.
“She will be punished. Now you go and find Alice, the small girl with the blue dress. It will cost you nothing and the drinks are on the house.” said Danny.
Mollified, Mr. Pendleton went back into the bar.
“Can I go?” begged Mary, shivering in the cold.
“You will learn not to bring trouble to this tavern. You could have had me turned over by the law and closed down. No, you can’t go till you are punished.” said Danny coldly.
He turned to Goldie.
“Goldie. Keep hold of her while Della goes in and gets the whipping belts. Then I want you and her to teach this woman not to bring us trouble. Teach her she is not wanted in this area and also tell all the Night-Girls to spit on her if they see her around these parts again.”
With that Danny walked back inside, motioning Della to do as he bid.
“Please let me go.” pleaded Mary.
Goldie laughed harshly and gripped Mary’s arms tightly.
“Now princess, there’ll be no more of your high and mighty ways.”
Mary writhed in Goldie’s grip, the pain tightening in her chest.
“Please, I beg of you. Let me go.” she wheezed again.
“You are going to get what you deserve.” said Goldie dispassionately. “If me and Della don’t do what Danny says then we might get the punishment instead. You’ve only got yourself to blame and you’re lucky it’s not Danny’s cutthroat razor you’re feeling instead of the belts.”
As Goldie said that Della came out into the yard carrying two broad leather belts, one of which she handed to Goldie.
The punishment was swift and spiteful, with the belts cracking as they hissed through the air to land and split open the skin of Mary’s back. Mary cried out in pain, cowering down by the wall of the yard till Goldie and Della stopped, both breathing harshly with exhaustion.
“Here’s your clothes.” said Goldie picking up Mary’s clothes and throwing them at her.
“Now get dressed and leave by the back gate.”
With that Goldie and Della walked back into the tavern, the door closing after them and leaving Mary alone in the cold and with the pain.
Tearfully Mary got dressed and opened the back gate, not aware of even getting home or how she had got there. She was only aware of feeling the aches and pain and the tightness to her chest as she staggered her way.

 

Behind her there came whispering through the shadows in a secret steal the figure of a small boy, the face white in his mother’s agony while tears flooded the dark eyes.

Reviews

[Great Aunt Astri]

I found this a very disturbing read ... not the sort of reading I would normally like. But, you do a good job of it, very vividly described and generally well written. The pathos at the end is heart rending!

[ron s king]

Thank you so much for your review on my book. I actually thought no-one was reading it because there are some two hundred pages already written of this nine hundred-page book. I wondered if you had been reading it through or just this part. I do understand its area of deprivation but in the 1850s, in London's East-End, life was full of deprivation. I was raised in the area written about, in the early 'Forties' and even then life was pretty grim, not having changed much.
Again, my thanks for reading my work and for your comments... Ron.

[Great Aunt Astri]

OH, my mistake, sorry. I thought it was a short story. As it is part of a book dealing with the deprivation of the 1850's then it makes much more sense. I would like to read more.