Chapter 18
"Mrs Bedwin would you mind going into town and picking up my new Top hat from the milliners, I've just remembered he told me it would be ready today and I've been so tied up with paperwork I just haven't the time to collect it." Mr Brownlow enquired.
It didn't take a genius to discover that Mrs Bedwin was also knee high in work too. And although Mr Brownlow was oblivious to this Alice was not. She saw Mrs Bedwin's face fall as she contemplated adding another task to her list of chores.
"I'll do it Uncle." Alice offered. Mr Brownlow jumped he hadn't heard her enter the corridor. Her silent natural footing was something that, no matter how hard he tried, he could not get used to.
"I could do with the fresh air and I'm sure Oliver would too." Alice added for good measure knowing how her uncle hated her going alone.
Mr Brownlow's brow creased as he contemplated the decision. He was always still wary when letting them go out on their own. Visions of the first time they had left the house on an errand and never made it back haunted his mind. Yet that was the past. The villain who had kidnapped them was dead and buried, he had nothing to fear.
"Alright, don't be too late. Dinner is at six. You can get yourself and Oliver and treat with the change." Mr Brownlow handed Alice the money and wandered back to his work.
Alice, pleased that she had been given valid permission to venture out instead of having to create a reason which she had been trying to do all day, went in search of her brother. She found him the living room immersed in a book but as soon as she told him what she had been asked to do he was up and ready to go. His past in the workhouse and being confined to that one building had made him very appreciative and willing to be outside.
Handing him his coat, Alice picked up her own shawl and headed out into the fresh air that they both loved. Oliver had, while Alice was shutting the door, realised how silently she shut the door and a little smirk crept across his face, he knew Alice had gained her practice at this by the constant nights sneaking Jack into the house. As they descending the pure white stone steps Alice noticed her brother's smirk but chose not to ask the cause of it, she wasn't in the right frame of mood to start that sort of conversation.
They walked down the street and on into the town square, at which point Alice starting heading in the opposite direction to the Milliner's.
"Um, Alice isn't the Milliner's in that direction?" Oliver asked pointing towards where he had always assumed the Milliner's had been, although perhaps he was wrong. He was well aware Alice knew the city better than the back of her hand and so had no alternative but to believe his assumptions where incorrect.
"Yes it is. I thought we'd pay a visit to Old Faggie first." Alice said blankly, she was headstrong in her decision and her determination to get the den was stronger than usual.
Obviously by Fagin she had meant Jack and although Oliver knew this he couldn't help but feel a desire to see the old man. Despite not really approving of his life choices there was something about Fagin that made him likeable to Oliver. Alice took a different route to the den then the one Oliver remembered.
Alice stopped at the pathetic wooden door that seriously looked as though it would not hold against one tiny little puff of wind. She knocked five times, and on the fifth knock and only the fifth they both heard the bounding footsteps as the boy on door duty came down the stairs to let them in. He recognised them instantly and so no exchange of words was necessary, he simply gestured them up the stairs in front of him. Alice pushed Oliver ahead of her aware of the boy's pickpocketing tendencies, even to friends. She didn't want her little brother being subjected to that sort of treacherous behaviour knowing that he would be completely oblivious to it which gave Alice all the more reason to make sure he was in front as they ascended the stairway and entered the den. It was nearing dinnertime, the attitudes of the boys told everything. The time between the end of the working day and before dinner was the time that the lethargy set, the tiredness from the work and the hunger made them extremely passive, it would stay this way until dinner was served.
The boy who had let them in return to his friends, his drink having been stolen by a younger boy, the door keeper was determined to discover who had stolen it and get what remained of it back. Oliver watched as the boy went to each of the younger children and demanded the whereabouts of his drink, when they did not answer him he resorted to violently shaking them until eventually one boy admitted he had stolen it and trembling gave it back although it was now half empty. Oliver wasn't sure he liked the violent method the boy had used to get the information but then again he had to hand it to him for finding out and retrieving the drink.
Meanwhile Alice moved swiftly through the swamp of boys, some acknowledged her politely recognising her from earlier visits others ignored her and continued with their individual conversations and card games.
"Alice!" Charlie exclaimed jumping up from his seat where he had been idly pretending to read the paper although really he had only been bothered about the cartoons. Alice smiled at him. She couldn't help but notice him as soon as she had walked through the door, Charlie had adopted the same way of sitting as Jack. Chair slightly tilted legs up on the table ankles crossed. Apart from the fact Charlie was a considerable amount shorter then Jack and of course the absence of the top hat, Alice could almost believe they were the same person.
"And Hello to you too Charlie!" Alice replied cheerily. Her eyes fleeted around the room in search of Jack, as far as she could see he wasn't in the room but that didn't mean to say he wasn't in the little room Fagin had claimed his office or perhaps he was in bed the beds out of view from her standing point or failing that perhaps he was running an errand.
"Who dares enter here?!" Fagin exclaimed cautiously entering the room with a poker in hand. Alice laughed, it wasn't even mildly threatening, perhaps to a stranger, yes, but she knew Fagin was only toying with her. Alice took the poker out of Fagin's hand.
"It's just me Fagin, no need to panic." She said returning the poker to its original place by the fire.
"I wasn't panicking my dear; just playin' that's all, just playin'!" Fagin said attempting to regain his dignity.
"I know." Alice replied in a cheery laughable tone.
"So my dear, to what do we owe the pleasure of your ladyship's presence?" Fagin mocked, bowing down to Alice.
"Fagin, Don't call me that! What I came to ask is has anyone seen Jack, as I haven't seen neither head nor tail of him the past week or so."
Fagin's rather disturbing smile melted away. Charlie lowered his eyes and turned away from Alice. Alice looked between the both of the trying to discern what was going on.
"What? Where is he?" Alice questioned again not really knowing if they were playing games with her or not. She paused for a while awaiting a response, expecting one of them to crack at any moment. Neither of them did.
"What's going on? Where's Jack?" she said again, this time with a more serious tone. Something was clearly wrong.
"I'm sorry, my dear, ever so sorry…" Fagin mumbled. Alice turned to Charlie to explain Fagin's unhelpful words.
"Alice, Dodger was arrested a week ago."
Alice's eyes widen in fear, arrested he couldn't have been!
"He was charged with murder, I don't know how but apparently he was seen stabbing a bloke in the street, not far from where you live now, on the evening of the 22nd November. Of course it can't be true…" Charlie continued the explanation for her benefit. He hated having to be the one to bring her the bad news, the last thing he wanted to do was upset her. Yet it had to be told and so it was told.
"The 22nd of November…but that was when we…he was with me that night, the whole night." Alice exclaimed not able to comprehend how he could possibly be accused of something when he was absolutely nowhere near the scene. Alice's face had turned pale with fright. Murder was a hanging crime, unless there was a way to prove his innocence Jack would be sent to the gallows.
Fagin scuttled forwards and offer a comforting pat on the shoulder to Alice.
"Now my dear, we must'n get overly distraught at this, it may well be that there is no truth in the conviction and he will be let off… we need to think hopeful." Fagin's words of wisdom did not reach Alice's ears.
"Where? Highgate?" Alice demanded from Charlie. Charlie nodded when she said 'Highgate'. At that response Alice headed for the door. Realising what she was planning, Charlie sprinted after her, grabbing her arm to stop her.
"Alice, you can't! You don't know what you'll encounter!" Charlie exclaimed failing to grasp the point of his refusal to let her go. But then she couldn't just go waltzing into a prison, expecting to be allowed to see a suspected murderer without suspicions arousing and questions asked. She would be best to leave it alone and wait until the trial gave the verdict.
"Charlie, I can. Just you watch me and right now I don't care if the whole world knows about me and him, so just let go." Alice's voice was so determined and strong Charlie felt he had no option but to let her go. He loosened his grip on her arm and Alice yanked it back. Alice turned in a huff back to the stairs. Charlie could feel the rush of anger sweeping across him mixed with an element of compassion; he wished that no harm would befall either Jack or Alice nevertheless it had already happened.
Oliver had noticed his sister was at the stairway, he jumped up inferring that they were about to leave and rushed over to join her. Alice put her left hand on his shoulder and told him he was to stay in the den until she returned. Charlie was put on duty to look after Oliver. Oliver nodded and agreed to do what she told him although he was very eager to know what was so important she had to do right now and without him. He was sure it was something to do with Jack as he wasn't actually present in the room but as to what he hadn't even a clue. It was a little frightening, actually, to see his sister in such a distressed and extremely determined mood.
Charlie was still standing as still as a statue staring at the stairway long after Alice had gone. Slowly he lowered his eyes and ambled back to where he had been sitting before Alice and Oliver had arrived. He took up the position he had been in before, although instead of picking up the paper he hung his head and closed his eyes letting his thoughts engulf him.
Oliver trotted on behind Charlie, he was confused at what had just happened and at the moment Charlie was the only one who both knew what had happened and was an acquaintance if not precisely a friend of Oliver's. The memory of how Charlie had pushed the stolen goods into his hands and allowed him to get caught was put to the back of his mind for now. He realised now that Charlie had a habit of covering up his true feelings, the jokes and banter often had a hidden meaning and Oliver understood that which made him or the more curious to discover what had set Alice and Charlie off arguing.
Oliver perched on the chair next to Charlie and gently tapped him on the arm.
"Is there anything wrong Charlie?" Oliver asked empathetically. Charlie lifted his head up and looked at the incorrupt boy, he had a sudden wish that he could be like Oliver. He would never have to get himself involved in criminal offences again, his life would be simple, he'd learn well and get a good job. But then he thought better of it. If he had been as innocent as Oliver he would never have been entrusted into the gang, he would never have met Jack and more importantly he would never have met Alice.
"Your sister, that's what's wrong… she just walks into things without thinking it through, she's about to walk into arguably the most dangerous prison in London and expect to come out without so much as a slight suspicion to her name, especially when she's visiting a so called 'murderer'! I'm sorry Oliver, I worry."
Oliver stood there a moment dumbstruck and then after processing and analysing Charlie's thoughts, he came to a conclusion.
"I'm sure Alice knows what she's doing and has thought up a way to become inconspicuous." Oliver offered as reassurance. Charlie hadn't a clue what inconspicuous meant but nodded and smiled at Oliver. Oliver's words reminded him that Alice was well suited to looking after herself and that he didn't need to excessively worry himself over it.
Sorry for the wait, but unfortunately exam season has arrived! Hope you enjoy and please review!