The Ha'penny Steps. Book 2. Nancy's Story by C R Spencer

Author:C R Spencer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Thriller, Murder, London Blitz, Organised vice
Publisher: Phoneme52
Published: 2024-07-10T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

February 1941

Maida Vale

The bell outside Nancy Keeling’s attic room was ringing loudly. She peeked out from under the bed covers. Her roommate was snoring loudly. She unstuck her eyes and glanced over to the female, who was on her back with one hand behind her head. Her mouth was open. Nancy reached over to the little bedside table and picked up a box of matches. She casually flicked the half-full box over at the woman. The box hit her full in the face. The woman snorted, turned over and went back to sleep.

Nancy pushed off the blankets. She immediately felt the cold. She looked at the dying embers in the hearth. She walked up to the window that overlooked the rear of the house and pulled back the heavy blackout curtains. She wiped away the condensation and stared down at a couple of the house- minders who were sat on a bench smoking and laughing. It was about ten in the morning. She looked over towards St John’s Wood. There was still smoke rising from the bombing of the previous evening. When the sirens started, staff retreated to the basement. There was even a wood and coal store lower than that but most refrained from venturing in there, partially because it was colder than the basement, but mostly the rats didn’t like to share their place of safety.

She shook the sleep from her head. She remembered that the all-clear had sounded just before two in the morning and staff were allowed back up to their rooms. In some ways, she didn’t mind the nightly raids from the Germans, as it kept the amorous punters away; bad for business but easier on the domestic staff that didn’t have to clean up after them.

Nancy pulled on a dressing gown over her thick, cotton nightdress. She sighed as she sat back on the bed and dragged on a pair of woollen socks that some kind soul had left in her bedside locker. She padded out of the door and went to what had originally been called a water closet by some Georgian designer. It looked as though it hadn’t been updated since then.

She closed the door, locked it and sat on the pedestal.

It had been nearly a week since she had been dragged here against her wishes; if only she had gone straight to Porteous’ after she had agreed to move in with him. She wondered what he was up to. Had he been and incurred the wrath of the supervisor, Dorothy Jackson? She smiled at the thought but Porteous had a way with women, especially those who were slightly more mature; he’d have her sorted...

The incessant bell in the top floor corridor finally ceased. Nancy heard her bedroom door slam. That meant that her snoring roommate had finally woken. She heard her on the steps as she went down the back stairs. She stood up, yanked the chain. The lavatory flushed noisily. She went up to the sink, pulled the nightdress

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