By the time the train drew into Euston Station they were both hungry and thirsty and more than a little apprehensive about the journey they had embarked on. Neither of them had eaten much at breakfast and so Holly suggested, ‘Why don’t we find somewhere we can get something to eat and then we’ll start to look for a place to stay? We can look for a job tomorrow.’
Ivy nodded, her face solemn as she stared at the crowds of people milling around them. She had never seen so many people all in one place before and was feeling a little overwhelmed. They followed a throng of people who all seemed to be heading for the exit and emerged into Euston Square where an old man with a grubby bandage wrapped around his eyes was sitting against a wall with a bowl in front of him. As they passed he asked pathetically, ‘Spare a penny fer an old blind man?’
Holly’s soft heart made her reach into her purse and drop some coins into his bowl before they tentatively went on with no idea whatsoever of where they were going. An old lady was selling little posies of dried heather and there was a cart of pies and peas. Beside this, a woman was selling tiny bags of food for the pigeons that hopped across the pavements and perched on the roofs. The streets were alive with traffic – horse-drawn cabs and carts, as well as motor cars, which were a rarity back home. The vehicles seemed to be coming from every direction, with the cars sounding their horns and the drivers of the horse-drawn vehicles shouting at their horses and any pedestrians who got in their way. It was so noisy Holly could hardly hear herself think and there was not a patch of grass to be seen. Instead, everywhere she looked, the buildings towered above them, belching thick black smoke from their chimneys. Suddenly she felt very small and vulnerable.
‘We’ll get something to eat here,’ Holly said, gesturing to the man selling pies from a cart and feeling totally out of her depth. ‘And there’s a drinking fountain over there, look, so we’ll have a drink of water, which should tide us over until we can find somewhere to get a cup of tea.’
Holly approached the old man and ordered their food. He stared at her curiously as he spooned peas into a bowl. ‘New here, are yer, dearie?’ he enquired.
Holly nodded as she fumbled in her purse for the money to pay him before dropping it carelessly back into her bag.
‘Hmm, I thought as much.’ He handed her the first tray. ‘Well, take a bit of advice from me. Be careful wi’ yer purse. The dippers, or pickpockets as you might know ’em, are rife round here an’ yer don’t even know they’ve dipped yer till yer come to get yer money out again, be it in yer bag or in yer pocket.’
‘Thank you, I’ll remember that.’ Holly hastily did the clasp on her bag up and put it under her arm as she took the second tray and joined Ivy.
As they stood eating their pies they gazed about. Traffic was zooming past them at an alarming rate and Holly thought longingly of the much quieter streets at home. It felt a very long way away and she had to fight down the panic that was threatening to overwhelm her. Everything was so loud and large here and not at all like the pictures of the famous landmarks she had looked at in books. Those pictures had made London seem a very glamorous, adventurous place but in reality she could see now why it was called the big smoke.
The pies were surprisingly tasty and by the time they’d eaten they were both feeling a little more optimistic as they crossed to the drinking fountain and cupped their hands to take a drink.
‘So what do we do now?’ Ivy looked completely lost.
Crossing back to the old man who had sold them their dinner, Holly waited patiently as he served a customer before asking, ‘Would you happen to know of anywhere round here where we might be able to rent a small house?’
He chuckled. ‘Yer in London now, luvvie. You’ll be lucky to afford a room in a shared house unless yer prepared to go close to the docks.’
‘Oh, I see … thank you.’ Feeling disappointed, Holly took Ivy’s elbow and they set off with no idea where they were going whatsoever. The shops windows they passed were decorated with baubles for Christmas, which only made Holly realise again how far away from home they were, and her spirits sank still lower.
They set off and found themselves walking through a market that appeared bigger than the whole of their home town, where the stallholders competed with each other to shout their wares louder than their neighbours. Soon they veered off into an alleyway that was overshadowed by dingy, ill-kept houses where children played barefoot in the street despite the freezing weather, and old women sat on the steps smoking pipes and watching them with lifeless eyes. The stink in the alley was such that they swiftly turned to make their way back to the main thoroughfare. Eventually, they reached the Thames and were disappointed to see that it was a dull, sludgy brown colour, with houses perched along the shore that were little more than huts.
Finally, three hours later, they stopped, exhausted, to sit on a low wall outside a large house in Mayfair, which was clearly a wealthy area, and the contrast between this and the poorer places they had walked through was startling. They were both feeling totally worn out and dispirited as it dawned on them both how very different life here was going to be and they were suddenly afraid of the enormous step they had taken. Ivy had barely said a word all afternoon as they had trudged around the busy streets. But now a thick smog was settling across London and it was so cold that their noses were glowing. The pieman had been right when he told them how expensive it would be to rent somewhere to stay and now the light was fading from the afternoon.
‘I don’t reckon I can walk much further in these boots,’ Ivy whimpered, rubbing her sore heels. ‘They’re too tight fer me an’ I’ve got blisters on me heels. Me bag is gettin’ heavier an’ all, unless it’s me gettin’ weaker.’
Holly made a decision. ‘Come on,’ she urged encouragingly. ‘We’ll check into a hotel for the night and begin our search again in the morning.’
‘But one o’ them posh hotels we passed will cost a fortune. Can we afford it?’ Ivy queried worriedly. ‘An’ will they even let me in, dressed like this.’ She stared down at her worn, faded clothes in dismay.
‘We’ll get you a new outfit tomorrow,’ Holly promised. ‘But come on, I’m so cold I can’t feel my hands and feet any more. If we stay out here much longer we’re likely to catch our death of cold.’
After a lot more tramping they finally booked in to a hotel close to Euston Station. The room was basic but clean and they were pleased to find a fire burning in there along with two single beds.
‘I’m sorry we have to share but this was cheaper than two separate rooms,’ Holly apologised as she sank down wearily into a chair at the side of the fire.
Ivy was feeling better already now that she had her shoes off and grinned. ‘Sharin’ don’t bother me, miss. In fact, I prefer it.’
‘Don’t you think you ought to stop addressing me as miss now and call me by my name?’ Holly suggested.
Ivy blinked in surprise. ‘I can try,’ she said cautiously. ‘But it’s gonna take some gettin’ used to, miss … sorry, I mean, Holly.’
Half an hour later when they had thawed out and were feeling a little more human, Holly ordered a meal to be sent up to their room and when it arrived, Ivy looked at the various covered dishes the maid wheeled in greedily.
‘Cor, look at this,’ she yelped as she lifted one lid to reveal thinly cut slices of chicken. ‘An’ there’s all these veg an’ tatties to go with it.’ She eagerly began to fill their plates and passed one to Holly, saying gleefully, ‘I could get used to bein’ waited on like this. An’ there won’t be no washin’ up to do, neither.’
‘Hmm, well don’t get too used to it because I’m afraid my money won’t last long if we don’t find somewhere reasonable for us to stay.’
The next morning after breakfast, Holly paid the hotel bill and they set off in search of somewhere to stay again. Ivy had slept well but Holly had lain awake for much of the night. It had dawned on her in the early hours of the morning that there could be no going back now and she was terrified of what might happen to them if she couldn’t find them somewhere to live, so while Ivy was in a more optimistic mood, Holly looked pale and drawn.
By mid-afternoon they were both forced to admit that what the pieman had told them was true. They were going to have to look for a room to rent rather than a house, at least until they had both found employment. As the light was fading they found themselves wandering through Soho.
‘Ooh, I ain’t too keen on it round here,’ Ivy commented nervously. There seemed to be a large number of clubs with posters of women in various stages of undress outside them, and posh carriages were drawing up outside them depositing well-dressed gentlemen who hastily disappeared inside. Dotted amongst the clubs were shops with grimy windows that seemingly catered to every nationality, and grubby-looking little terraced houses.
It was in the window of one such house that they spotted a sign saying ‘Rooms Vacant’ and they glanced at each other.
‘What do yer think?’ Ivy was the first to speak. ‘I know it’s a bit rough round here but anythin’s better than nothin’, ain’t it? An’ it is gettin’ dark,’ she pointed out.
Holly frowned for a moment as she stared at the paint peeling off the window frames. How different this was to the comforts of her old home. ‘I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to look,’ she conceded and with their minds made up she tapped on the door.
After a while they heard the shuffle of footsteps and an old woman opened the door to peer at them suspiciously. Her straggly grey hair was pulled back into an untidy bun on the back of her head and an old shawl of indistinguishable colour was wrapped about her shoulders.
‘Yes?’ she snapped.
Holly licked her lips nervously and explained, ‘We’re looking for a room to rent and saw your sign in the window.’
The woman frowned before asking, ‘You ain’t doxies, are you?’
Holly had no idea what a doxy was but she shook her head. ‘No, we’ve just come to live in London and we’re looking for somewhere to stay until we can rent a house.’
‘Hmm!’ The woman didn’t sound convinced but she opened the door wider and ushered them inside all the same. Instantly the cloying smell of stale urine, boiled cabbage and rotting food assailed them and Holly felt the back of her throat burn with the putrid odours. The walls in the long hallway were painted a dull, drab brown and dirty lino, which was full of holes, covered the floor. Somewhere they could hear a baby crying and what sounded like a couple having a blazing row.
‘Only room as I’ve got vacant is up in the attic. It’d mean yer goin’ up four flights o’ stairs,’ the old woman informed them shortly.
Hoping to soften her up a little, Holly smiled at her politely. ‘I’m sure we could manage that. Might we be allowed to look at the room?’
The old woman shuffled away into one of the downstairs rooms muttering beneath her breath and seconds later she returned with a key which she passed to Holly, warning her, ‘Don’t yer go thinkin’ o’ nickin’ owt. I knows exactly what’s in there!’
‘I wouldn’t dream of it,’ Holly assured her as colour flooded into her cheeks. From what she had seen of the house so far she couldn’t imagine there would be anything in the whole place worth stealing, even if she had a mind to.
‘I’ll wait here while yer go up an’ have a look, it’s the last door on the top floor,’ the old woman responded and turning about Holly and Ivy began the long trek up the stairs, which creaked alarmingly in places.
They were both huffing and puffing by the time they reached the top.
‘That must be it, that door there,’ Ivy puffed, pointing.
Holly inserted the key and as they stepped inside she groaned with dismay. Ivy, on the other hand, had lived in far worse than this back in the courtyards in Abbey Street and wasn’t put off at all.
A window that was so dirty they could barely see through it was set in one wall and a small table with two mismatched chairs stood beneath it. On the other wall was a double bed covered in grimy blankets with a large chest of drawers to one side of it, and opposite that was a small sink and what looked like a little cooker. The only other furniture in the room was an old easy chair that stood next to a small fireplace that was clogged with dead ashes. As Ivy ventured into the room, she coughed as a cloud of dust rose into the air but Holly hovered in the doorway chewing on her lip.
‘I-it’s not very nice is it?’ she gulped and Ivy laughed as she walked to the window and rubbed a little circle clean with the sleeve of her old coat.
‘It just needs a bloody … sorry, miss … I mean, Holly, a damned good clean. I reckon it could be quite cosy.’
‘But it’s so cold up here!’ Holly was shivering and her breath hung on the air in front of her.
‘Well it will be till we get some coal an’ get a fire lit,’ Ivy said practically. ‘Come on, let’s go back down an’ ask the old lady how much a week she wants for it. It will do us till we can find somewhere better.’
Despite her misgivings, Holly followed Ivy back down the stairs with a heavy heart. After all, like Ivy said, it would only be temporary.
‘So how much a week do yer want for the room then?’ Ivy boldly asked the woman.
‘Seven shillins,’ the old dear responded instantly.
Ivy laughed. ‘Seven shillins! Come off it! It ain’t worth that. How about five an’ a tanner?’
The old woman glared at her. ‘Six an’ sixpence.’
Ivy shook her head. ‘Six bob an’ that’s me final offer. Yer won’t find many as will want to tackle them stairs every day.’
The old woman sniffed, disgruntled. ‘Huh! It’s bloody daylight robbery! Cheatin’ an old woman out of her fair dues!’
‘Fine, then we’ll find somewhere else.’ Ivy lifted her bag and made for the door with Holly close behind her.
‘All right, all right,’ the old woman grumbled. ‘But I wants two weeks up front!’
Ivy grinned as Holly took her purse from her bag and counted the money into the old woman’s hand.
‘The toilet’s out in the backyard through that door there.’ The old woman pointed to the end of the hallway. ‘An’ I don’t want you bringin’ men back to your room else you’ll be out on your arses quicker than you can say Jack Robinson, do yer hear me?’
‘We hear you,’ Ivy affirmed and Holly was shocked. She’d never seen Ivy so assertive. She was usually such a nervous little thing.
‘You’re responsible fer buyin’ yer own coal an’ gettin’ yer own meals,’ the old woman went on. ‘An’ I’m Mrs Hall, by the way. That’s the door to my room there. Just remember what I said, though, this is a respectable house an’ I won’t have no hanky-panky.’
Ivy didn’t even bother to answer but turned and started to lug her bag up the stairs again.
‘You did well there,’ Holly told her when they finally arrived on their landing. ‘I’ve never seen you stand up to anyone like that before.’
Ivy shrugged as she unlocked the door. ‘Well, she ain’t the sort o’ person you’re used to dealin’ with, is she?’ she answered. ‘An’ I weren’t goin’ to let her get away wi’ more than is reasonable.’
They stared around the room silently for a moment, until Ivy eventually said, ‘Right, if I go an’ find a shop before they close I can get some cleanin’ things an’ get this place shipshape by bedtime.’
‘I’ll help,’ Holly said quickly but Ivy merely grinned.
‘An’ since when have you been used to cleanin’ an’ gettin’ your hands dirty? No, leave it to me.’
But Holly was not to be put off so easily. ‘That was in my other life. This is the start of a new one so I’ll have to get used to it. You’re not my maid now, Ivy, and I want to pull my weight.’
Ivy grinned as Holly handed her some money.
‘While I’m gone you could unpack our things into the chest o’ drawers,’ she suggested as she left, leaving Holly to stare about and think ruefully of her lovely bedroom and secure, comfortable life back at home.