Johnny reluctantly opened his eyes and realised that someone knocking on his front door had woken him. He grabbed his wristwatch from his nightstand and switched on the bedside lamp. Squinting at the watch face, he groaned when he saw it was three thirty-five in the morning.
The tapping on the door continued. He threw his legs over the edge of the bed and pulled a robe over his naked body, shivering as his bare feet felt the coldness of the floor. Perplexed at who would be knocking him up at this time of the night, he grabbed his gun before going to the door.
‘Who is it?’ he called, being sure to take precautions against gunfire, standing sideways on to the door with his back against the wall.
‘It’s me, Mr Dymond, Elsie Flowers.’
Elsie Flowers, Johnny thought, his face screwed up in consternation. What on earth was the woman doing at his door? He pulled it open and looked behind her before stepping outside and glancing left and right. She was alone. And when his eyes set on her, he was shocked to see her arm in plaster and bruises on her face.
She stood, her body trembling and tears on her cheeks. ‘Please… can you h-help me?’ she asked meekly through her chattering teeth.
He held out his arm and ushered her indoors, though it wasn’t much warmer in his small lounge than outside. ‘Sit down, I’ll make you a hot drink,’ he offered and fetched two blankets from his bed, one which he draped across her shoulders and the other over her lap.
‘Thank you,’ she said in little more than a whisper.
When he came back into the room with a cup of sweet tea, he was pleased to see she had stopped crying and her body was now still. He handed her the cup. When she looked up gratefully at him with her big blue eyes, he felt his heart melt for her.
‘What are you doing here?’ he asked gently.
‘I didn’t know where else to go. You gave me your address which I memorised before putting it on the coals. You don’t mind, do you?’
‘No, no, of course not. Did your husband do this to you?’
Elsie bowed her head, slowly nodding. ‘He hit me and then to cover up what he’d done, he tried to make me throw myself down the stairs. I couldn’t, so he pushed me.’
A sob caught in her throat and Johnny’s chest constricted in anger. How could that vile man do this to his beautiful wife? He wanted to kill the evil bastard. ‘Don’t fret,’ Johnny reassured her. ‘You’re safe here and I’ll make sure he never hurts you again.’
‘He’ll come looking for me. He won’t let me leave him. He keeps me shackled to our bed at night. I only managed to run away because I was in the hospital.’
Johnny paced the room, walking through his anger. The thought of the poor woman shackled to her bed at night burned furiously inside him.
‘Like I said, don’t fret. He won’t find you here and if he does, I’ll see to him.’
‘Thank you, Mr Dymond. I’m so sorry.’
‘It’s Johnny, and you’ve got nothing to be sorry for.’
‘He’ll be furious when he realises I’m not in the hospital. If he finds me, he’ll slit my throat.’
‘He won’t find you, I promise.’
Elsie’s delicate fingers cupped her tea and she gently blew on the hot liquid before sipping it. He wondered again how she’d come to be with someone like Jacob Flowers. His name might be pretty but there was nothing flowery about the man.
‘You take my bed. I’ll stop out here on the sofa.’
‘No, I couldn’t pos—’
Johnny quickly interrupted before she’d finished her sentence, ‘I insist,’ he said firmly. ‘No arguments.’
Elsie nodded and looked at him again with those grateful eyes that resembled Daisy’s. He could see the fear in them. He’d seen that look in his mother’s eyes and his stomach lurched. He hadn’t been able to protect his mother but he’d do whatever it took to look after Elsie.
‘How bad are your injuries? I mean, do I need to get the doctor out to you?’
‘No. My arm is broken but it’ll mend. I was being discharged from the hospital tomorrow. That’s why I had to escape tonight. See, once Jacob had me back at home, I’d be his prisoner again. He doesn’t allow me to go anywhere alone, not even to the shops. I go to church on Sunday mornings but I couldn’t ask anyone there for help. It wouldn’t have taken long for Jacob to find me and then he would likely kill me and whoever had helped me. When you gave me your address, you saved my life.’
‘I dunno about that,’ Johnny answered, feeling embarrassed.
‘Oh, you have, Johnny, you really have. I could have been killed when he threw me down the stairs. Who knows what he would have done next!’
Tears began to well in her eyes again and Johnny dashed to find a handkerchief. ‘’Ere,’ he said, handing her a white one with his initials embroidered on the corner. A gift from Miss Garrett a few Christmases ago. Christ, he thought, Miss Garrett. He doubted she’d be pleased about him keeping Elsie Flowers safe from her husband. He decided it was probably best that he didn’t mention it to her for now. After all, Miss Garrett had enough on her plate at the moment.
‘You’re very kind,’ Elsie said, dabbing the handkerchief at her wet eyes.
‘Yeah, maybe, but I won’t be kind to your old man if he dares to show his face here. You get yourself off to bed, sweetheart. Try and get some rest, eh. And don’t you go worrying yourself about Mr Flowers. You’re never gonna have to worry about him again, not with me around.’
‘I don’t know what to say. Thank you and good night.’
Johnny tossed and turned on the sofa but not because he couldn’t get comfortable. Jacob Flowers was on his mind. He supposed he could just go round to the man’s house and put a bullet in between his beady eyes. But Jacob had connections with the Zammits and Lord knows who else. He’d already made a mistake by rushing into things and unwittingly turning over the Zammits. He couldn’t afford another cock-up. No, for the time being at least, he’d sit tight and wait. After all, Jacob Flowers had no idea where his wife had run to and the man had no reason to suspect she’d be with Johnny. She was safe. For now.
*
Charlotte returned from an early morning walk with Dog and Tim in Battersea Park, pink cheeked and windswept. The moment she unleashed Dog, he pounded towards Georgina, jumping at her lap and panting heavily in her ear as his tail wagged with pleasure at seeing her.
‘Yes, I love you too, you soppy mutt,’ Georgina said, stroking his fluffy coat.
‘Well, that was interesting,’ Charlotte said as she pulled her knitted gloves off. ‘Tim has said he’s going to resign from the police and enlist with the army.’
Georgina shot Charlotte a look. ‘When?’
‘Tomorrow, when he goes back to work. He’s gonna hand his notice in.’
‘No, he can’t. Not yet. You’ve got to talk him out of it. Just another week or two.’
‘I wish I could. The last thing I want is him off fighting the Jerries. But he’s adamant it’s what he wants to do. He said it’s for us, me and him. He can’t stay in the police force and be with me at the same time.’
Georgina gently eased Dog away and rubbed her finger as she thought hard. Maybe Tim resigning from the police wasn’t such a bad thing. She needed him to be a credible witness and he still could be. And without his uniform, he wouldn’t be obliged to turn her in. If he was willing to give up his career for Charlotte, he’d likely do anything for the girl, even if it was against the law.
‘What are you thinking?’ Charlotte asked.
‘I’m thinking that it’s time to act. I’m going to get the police off my back for good.’
‘How?’
‘You’ll see. It’s important that you do exactly what I tell you. Understand?’
‘Yeah, of course.’
‘Good. What are your plans today with Tim?’
‘I’m just about to go shopping then me and Tim are popping in to see his sister.’
‘Shopping? On a Sunday?’
‘Yeah, the Barker twins,’ Charlotte smiled. ‘I promised Tim a turkey.’
‘Oh, I see. Right, on your way back from Tim’s sister, I need you to pop into Mary’s to drop off a Christmas present. It’s imperative that Tim is with you.’
‘Eh?’
‘Don’t ask questions, just do it.’
‘Fine,’ Charlotte said grumpily and clicked her tongue.
‘You need to be at Mary’s for five o’clock. Don’t be any sooner or later. Mary’s package is wrapped in brown paper in the sideboard. Put it in your bag now so that you don’t forget it. On your way to see the Barkers, call in to Johnny and tell him I need him here immediately.’
Charlotte nodded. ‘Can I take the car? Tim knows I can drive but haven’t got a licence.’
‘No, shanks’ pony.’
Charlotte rolled her eyes. She’d always been a moody young woman and didn’t like being kept in the dark. But Georgina preferred to keep things close to her chest, at least until after her plans had been executed. Her pulse raced. This was it. As long as Charlotte managed to get Tim to be at Mary’s at five on the dot, tomorrow morning she could finally discard George and be herself again, safe in the knowledge that the police would no longer be searching for her.
*
Jacob Flowers clutched a bunch of slightly wilted flowers as he hurried through the hospital to collect his wife. His heels clicked on the polished floor, the sound echoing in the narrow corridor. He’d insisted that Elsie be discharged today even though it was quite unusual on a Sunday. But he’d reasoned with the nurse that the beds were needed for injured soldiers and his wife was better convalescing in the comfort of her home. She’d had a word with the doctor who had agreed and now Jacob couldn’t wait to get her out of here. Once he had her home, he knew he could rest easy. As it was, he’d hardly slept the past two nights. Instead, he’d been lying in his bed, tormented with images of his darling wife cavorting with the young doctors. No, it wouldn’t do to have her in hospital a second longer than was required, he thought, picking up his pace to rush to her ward.
When he pushed the door open and marched towards her bed, a rather flustered looking nurse stepped in front of him.
‘Oh, Mr Flowers. Thank goodness you’re here,’ she said, her face ashen.
‘Is something wrong with my wife?’
‘No, well, not in that sense. I’ve been calling you but obviously you didn’t answer because you’re here.’
Jacob glared at the woman. ‘What is the problem?’ he asked impatiently.
‘It’s your wife, sir, Mrs Flowers.’
‘What about her?’
‘She’s, erm, gone.’
‘What do you mean, gone?’ he demanded to know. She couldn’t be dead, surely? She’d only had a broken arm and a few bruises.
‘I mean, erm, she’s gone. Left the hospital.’
‘Where? When?’
‘We don’t know. She must have slipped off in the night. We were hoping that she had returned home.’
‘No, she hasn’t. What sort of incompetence is this? I want to see your senior… NOW!’
The nurse scurried away, mumbling something about how sorry she was.
Jacob stamped his foot, furious that they had allowed this to happen. He threw the flowers angrily into a wastepaper bin and saw the nurse approaching with the ward sister.
‘This situation is unacceptable,’ he ground out, jabbing a thin, gnarly finger at the sister. ‘I left my wife in your hands and now I’m being informed that she has gone. Gone! No one seems to know where. How can you allow your patients to simply walk out in the middle of the night?’
‘I can assure you, sir, that we were as surprised as you. But this is a hospital, not a prison. Our patients are free to leave if they wish to do so.’
‘Incompetence! Utter incompetence! Where is she? I demand to know where my wife is.’
‘I’m sorry, sir, but your wife is only our responsibility while she is here under our care. Mrs Flowers left a note on her pillow saying she had discharged herself. She did not state to where. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have patients to attend to. Come along nurse.’
They walked off, leaving Jacob fuming. He stamped from the hospital, his mind in turmoil. Where could Elsie be? Had she tried to come home and been kidnapped or had an accident? No, that was unlikely. The truth was plain to see. She’d discharged herself to run away from him. But Elsie was penniless without him. She wouldn’t get far without money. Unless, of course, someone was helping her. But who? She had no friends; Jacob had made sure of that. Maybe someone from the church? He doubted it because Elsie would know it would be the first place he’d look. But someone had to be hiding his wife. Who? Who could she have turned to? And then he was struck by a thought that stabbed at his heart… Johnny Dymond.
He’d seen the covert glance his wife had given the man. And she’d lingered too long at the street door when she’d shown him out. It had to be Dymond, he was sure of it. And he was sure that Dymond had fancied Elsie too. Not that he could blame the man, Elsie was a beautiful creature. But she was his beauty. His creation. She belonged to him, not some upstart in flash clothes. He’d make Dymond pay for this! And Dymond’s boss, Georgina Garrett. He’d make them both pay! And once he got his hands on him, he’d make his treacherous wife watch as he skinned Johnny Dymond alive.