Read Online The Street by Kay Brellend - Free Book Online

back she was beating Sophy up and Sarah’d scarpered.’
    Tilly’s features tightened on hearing that Sophy had been set about. ‘Right. Give it here, then,’ she ordered and stuck out a hand to take the coin.
    ‘Spent it,’ Alice muttered and hung her head.
    ‘You . . . done . . . what? ’ Tilly demanded in genuine astonishment. She grasped her daughter’s chin and forced it up.
    ‘Bought chips; we was hungry.’ Alice knew that wasn’t explanation enough to satisfy her mother. A few penn’orth of chips didn’t make half a crown. She’d bought pies and pop too. ‘Bought some for the new boys too ’cos Danny was on our side and knocked down Louisa for what he did to Sophy.’
    ‘Feeling generous, was you?’ Tilly’s hand cracked against the other side of Alice’s face this time. ‘You little pest. Give ’ere what’s left of it. Every penny.’
    Alice dropped the coins into her mother’s waiting palm. ‘I’ll pay back the rest from me doorsteps,’ Alice mumbled while the tears rolled down her scarlet, stinging cheeks.
    ‘Too bleedin’ right you’ll pay it back,’ her mother agreed harshly. ‘Now get out o’ me sight else I’ll really give you something to cry about.’
    Alice sank onto the bed in the back room and shrugged off Sophy’s comforting hand. She turned her face into the musty old mattress and closed her hot, dribbling eyes.
    ‘Wish I was old enough to leave school,’ she muttered. ‘I’d be out of here and miles away by tomorrow.’
    ‘Me ‘n’ all,’ Sophy agreed. ‘Hope Danny gets a decent job soon.’
    Alice turned on the bed to look at her sister. ‘Won’t help you what job he gets,’ she said shortly and cuffed the wetness from her face.
    ‘Might do . . .’ Sophy looked away. ‘Only just met him but I know he likes me and I like him,’ she said a bit defensively. ‘Can’t wait to get away from this dump and nor can he. When he goes home to Essex I’m going with him.’
    Alice levered herself up on an elbow, momentarily shocked into speechlessness. Her sister looked oddly calm and confident and there wasn’t a sign of the self-conscious smile that usually accompanied her daft hopes. ‘I never heard him say you can,’ Alice reasoned. ‘Anyhow, you don’t hardly know him.’ She’d spluttered that with a grin, already recovering from her mother’s chastisement. It wasn’t an unusual occurrence for any of them, even Bethany, to get a good belt off her when she was het up over something. And she had given her mother something to get very het up about. Inwardly her stomach squirmed in regret because she knew the money must be found from somewhere to pay back Uncle Jimmy. He wouldn’t wait for payment while she did her doorsteps for the next few months. Alice focused on her sister’s expression, considered the meaning behind it. She looked secretive but in a nice way. Danny did like Sophy. He’d made that pretty obvious this afternoon by the way he was looking at her and touching her. At one point Alice had feared he might try and kiss her behind a wall in Seven Sisters Road. And Sophy had just let her know . . . as if she hadn’t already guessed . . . that she liked him right back. ‘You reckon he’ll marry you or something?’ Alice asked. ‘You’re not even old enough to leave school.’
    ‘Soon I will be.’ Sophy nodded in emphasis. She glowered fiercely at Alice. ‘Don’t you go telling Mum I like him. She’ll put a spoke in. She can’t wait for us to get out to work neither but only so’s she can have our wages off us.’
    Alice knew that was true. Even the little bit they managed to make on their odd jobs was under scrutiny from their mother. They’d learned to hide very well their few coppers for their mother had been known to prise up floorboards searching for them.
    ‘You could marry Danny’s brother Geoff, if you like,’ Sophy said, revelling in her romantic daydream.
    Alice snorted. ‘I’m not getting married for a long