Cathy Sharp - The Little Runaways

‘No, stop that, child!’ Nan cried as she followed her into the room. ‘You mustn’t bite. It isn’t nice …’

‘Has he drawn blood?’ Sally asked the staff nurse. ‘Shall I put some disinfectant on for you?’

‘The skin isn’t broken,’ Michelle said with a wry look. ‘Terry objected to my trying to take his pyjama bottoms off – didn’t you, Terry?’

‘Don’t like you,’ the boy muttered sullenly. Sally could see what Nan meant because he was nearly as tall as his sister, thin and wiry, and he looked quite strong, but his attitude was that of a small child. ‘Shan’t be washed. Nancy washes me – don’t yer, Nance?’

‘Yes, Terry, love, I look after you.’ Nancy came forward and placed herself between Michelle and the boy. Her eyes were filled with a silent appeal as she said, ‘Terry relies on me. I’ll give him a wash if you let us alone for a while.’

‘Staff Nurse Michelle wants to help you,’ Nan said. The children often resented the implication that they might have nits, but many of them were crawling with lice when they first arrived, and these two had been living rough, although if Constable Sallis was right, only for a few days. ‘No one is going to hurt either of you, Nancy, but you must have a bath – you may wash him if that is what you both wish.’

Nancy stared at her defiantly for a moment, and then inclined her head. ‘I’ll take your things off, Terry. Nurse has to look at us both but she won’t hurt you. I’m here to protect you.’

His sullen expression didn’t alter but he allowed Nancy to take everything off. Nancy turned him round so that they could see his thin body and Sally caught her breath as she saw the bruises all over his back, arms and legs.

‘Who beat you, Terry?’ Nan asked, but he just stared at her. She looked at Nancy, who hung her head but then mumbled something. ‘Speak up, my dear. We want to know who did this to your brother. It wasn’t just a fall, was it?’

‘It was a tramp where we were hiding,’ Nancy said, contradicting her earlier statement. ‘He was drunk. I pushed him over and we ran off and hid somewhere else – didn’t we, Terry?’

The boy nodded his head, seeming almost dazed as if he wasn’t sure what was going on. Sally suspected Nancy was lying to them, but if she didn’t want to tell them the truth there wasn’t much anyone could do.

‘I’ll leave you two to get on,’ Nan said, and went out.

‘Shall I show you how to run the water?’ Sally asked, leading the way to the old-fashioned bath at the other end of the large room. ‘Have you ever used a bath like this, Nancy?’

‘No, miss,’ Nancy said, staring at it. ‘We brought in a tin bath from outside when we had a bath – but we mostly just had a wash in the bowl in the kitchen, miss.’ She stared at Sally and then back at Michelle. ‘Are you all nurses?’

‘I’m a carer and my name is Sally. Nan is the head carer and she looks after us all. She is very kind, Nancy. You can trust her – and all of us. You’ve been brought here so that we can look after you. Once you’ve had a wash you’ll go into the isolation ward for a while, and then Sister Beatrice will decide which dormitories to put you in.’

‘What are they – dormitories?’

‘It’s another name for bedrooms. The girls go one side and the boys another.’

‘No!’ Nancy was startled, a frightened look in her eyes. ‘Terry can’t be separated from me in a strange place. We have to be together … please, you must let us. He won’t sleep and he’ll be terrified. Please, Sally, help us to stay together.’

‘I’ll talk to Nan about it,’ Sally said, ‘but I’m not sure what I can do – we’ve always separated the boys from the girls.’

‘Don’t tell Terry yet. Ask first, because he’ll get upset,’ Nancy begged.

‘Yes, well, you’ll be together for a while anyway. So I’ll see what Nan says. Now, I’m going to stand just here to make sure you can manage everything. If you need help, you only have to ask …’

Angela heard someone call her name as she walked towards the main staircase of St Saviour’s later that morning and paused, smiling as she saw it was Sally. She liked Sally very much because she was the first person to make her feel welcome at St Saviour’s when she’d arrived, feeling very new and uncertain just a few months earlier. Her friend looked happy and cheerful, even though her rubber apron was a bit wet and she’d obviously just come from bathing one of the children.

‘New arrivals?’ she asked, with a lift of her fine brows.

‘Yes, brother and sister,’ Sally said and sighed. ‘They were in a fire. I understand their parents died of smoke inhalation before the fire service got there.’

‘Oh, how tragic,’ Angela said. ‘Only a short time after Christmas and already we have another tragedy.’

‘Terry seems to be in a traumatised state. We couldn’t do anything with him but, fortunately, he does whatever his sister tells him so we’re getting by, so far.’ Sally frowned. ‘The boy has a lot of bruises. He looks as if he’s been beaten pretty severely recently. His sister said he’d had a fall and then a tramp had attacked him, but I think she was lying.’

‘At least he is safe now. He won’t be beaten here.’

‘No.’ Sally beamed at her. ‘It’s good to know he is safe with us …’ She hesitated, then, ‘Have you moved into your apartment?’

‘I got the keys two days ago and much of the stuff my father is sending up is coming later today. I have to meet the removers at around two o’clock so I’d better get going − I have a lot of work to do first.’

‘Perhaps I’ll see you tomorrow?’

‘I’ll be here later this evening. I’ve arranged to help out with the night shift.’

‘I’ll have finished my shift by then. Andrew is taking me out soon. We’re going somewhere special.’

‘Andrew Markham?’

‘Yes …’ Sally’s cheeks were flushed. ‘We’ve been going out since before Christmas, but just casually. It’s going to be different now, I think.’ She paused. ‘You did once say I might borrow a dress sometimes, if you remember?’

‘Yes, of course, Sally. Pop round tomorrow evening – say about eight? I’ll can show off my new home and you can choose something.’

‘I wouldn’t ask, but Andrew mentioned taking me to the theatre and I don’t have anything suitable. Mostly, I can wear my own things, but …’ She stopped and blushed, embarrassed at having to borrow Angela’s clothes.

‘Sally, I’d happily lend you anything of mine. I should have remembered my promise before this, but I haven’t stopped since we came back after the holidays.’

‘I don’t think any of us have had a spare moment,’ Sally said. She looked shyly at Angela. ‘I don’t want to let him down, you see.’

‘You couldn’t do that,’ Angela assured her. ‘You’ll look wonderful whatever you’re wearing.’ She glanced at her watch. ‘I must fly or I shall never get there.’

‘Go on, you don’t want to be late,’ Sally called after her but Angela didn’t stop to look back.