‘Oh …’ Jinny hardly knew what to say, because it all sounded like a dream to her. She was going to get paid for doing things she liked?
‘Does the idea not appeal?’ Sister Beatrice asked and frowned. ‘You’re a little too young to go straight into the job of carer …’
‘Oh no! I mean yes, it does appeal,’ Jinny said and blushed violently. ‘I didn’t think it would be so nice … I mean, do I get paid as well as my room and food just for … doing what you said?’
‘The wage is two pounds fifteen shillings a week, plus your uniforms, your food and your room. You’re expected to keep it clean, but the sheets are done at the laundry with St Saviour’s …’
‘Are you offering me the job?’ Jinny was breathless, hardly daring to believe that she could be so lucky.
‘Yes – if you want it,’ Sister Beatrice said, looking a little stern.
‘Oh yes, please,’ Jinny said. ‘When can I start – tomorrow? Can I move in this evening?’
Sister Beatrice smiled. ‘I think that is an excellent idea, Jinny. You will be here nice and early in the morning so that you don’t keep Mrs Davies waiting … and now I think Sandra should take you to meet Mrs Davies, and Nancy, and then show you where you will sleep and the other rooms …’
Jinny thanked her, still not quite believing her good fortune as Sandra led her off to meet various members of staff and then to see the lovely neat, clean room that would be hers. It was larger than the one she had at Nellie’s, not huge but big enough to have an elbow chair and a desk, as well as the bed, chest of drawers and single wardrobe. Jinny didn’t have many possessions other than her clothes, but she realised that she could gradually make this room into her home and it was such a lovely feeling that she turned anxiously to Sandra.
‘Do I have to pay rent?’
Sandra smiled and shook her head. ‘No, Jinny, it is part of your wage. Sister Beatrice doesn’t force girls to live at the nurses’ home but she thinks it is a good idea, especially for the younger ones. You’re asked to be in by ten thirty at night, because then we can lock the gates and know that our staff and children are safe from intruders.’
‘Oh yes, I’ll be in by then. I don’t go out much in the evenings – but I promised Nellie I’d take her to see Elvis Presley at the Odeon when I get my wages. She’s been that good to me, but we can go first house …’
Sandra nodded, looking at her steadily for a moment. ‘Sister Beatrice may seem stern to you, Jinny, but she cares about the children, and she cares about her staff. Be honest, do your job well, and you should be very happy here. I know I have been.’
‘Thank you …’ Jinny blushed, because she hadn’t told them all the details of her unhappy home life, but she thought they probably knew most of it because of Hannah. ‘I shan’t let you down.’
‘I am sure you won’t,’ Sandra said. ‘Well, get off and pack your things – we have supper at half-past eight so if you’re here by then you’ll meet some of the children, because we all sit together for meals …’
‘What yer!’ Micky’s voice hailed her as she approached the corner of Lilac Lane just before she turned down into the ancient courtyard where Nellie’s and her mother’s house stood at the middle of the terrace. He’d just come out of the grocer’s shop and was clutching a racing paper, a packet of cigarettes and a large paper bag filled with what looked like biscuits, cakes and crisps. ‘How yer doin’?’
‘I’m all right,’ Jinny beamed at him, unable to control her excitement. ‘I got my job at St Saviour’s. They’ve given me a nice room to myself and I start tomorrow. I’ll be able to pay for that skirt when I get my wage and take Nellie to the flicks …’
‘That’s great.’ Micky grinned all over his face. ‘You can come to the flicks with me any time you say, Jinny. There’s a film comin’ soon I want to see – Bridge on the River Kwai …’
‘Thanks …’ She hesitated, not wanting to cut him off and yet knowing that she wasn’t ready to become involved too much with someone like Micky. ‘I’ll probably be working most of the time for a start. I’m not sure how much time I get off …’ She glanced at the paper bag and, perhaps because she felt awkward, teased, ‘If you eat all that lot you’ll get fat and then you won’t be able to run fast enough to catch any more thieves …’
‘They ain’t fer me,’ Micky said. ‘Just fetched ’em fer a friend. He’s got two little kids and he’s bin orf work for weeks. The Social don’t pay enough to keep a flea alive, let alone a few treats for the kids. I’m as fit as a fiddle, don’t you worry.’
Jinny nodded and moved from foot to foot uneasily. ‘I’ll see you around then, Micky.’
‘Yeah, I pop up all over the place,’ he said. ‘Go and tell Nellie yer good news; she’ll be sorry ter lose yer …’
‘Nellie is a good friend, but she couldn’t keep me there forever,’ Jinny said. ‘She took me in when I needed help, but I’ll be all right now. It’s a nice place to work and Jake won’t come after me there …’
‘If he bothers you just let me know and I’ll put him right,’ Micky said but Jinny shook her head. She didn’t want them fighting over her, especially as she thought Micky might come off worse. Jinny liked Micky as a friend and she was grateful for his help over her stolen money, but she wasn’t ready to be anyone’s girlfriend just yet. She wanted to work and get some money saved so that she could stand on her own two feet and she thought Micky was the sort who would expect her to be his once he put his mark on her.
Jinny was too young and she wanted some fun before she became romantically involved. Her mother had been pregnant with her at fifteen and married the day she became sixteen – and that was enough to make Jinny vow she wouldn’t get caught in the same trap. There was a big exciting world out there and she wanted to have some fun before she got wed … if she ever did.
‘Run on home and behave yerself,’ Micky said and turned away, whistling cheerfully as he set off up the road.
She couldn’t help being curious about what Micky did for a living. He always seemed to have money in his pocket, and he was wearing a smart suit that morning, and yet she saw him about quite a lot and he didn’t seem to have a regular job. Unless he worked at night …
Nellie hugged her and told her she’d known she would get the job all along. There was a suspicion of tears as she helped Jinny pack her things into a big old shopping bag that she’d had for years.
‘I’ll bring it back when I get time off,’ Jinny promised and Nellie gave a little shake of her head.
‘Yer can always come back ter me if they don’t feed yer enough or treat yer bad,’ she said. ‘I shall miss yer, love, and that’s the truth – but I know it’s best fer yer to go. Jake were sniffin’ round ’ere earlier and I think ’e were lookin’ fer you, Jinny. I went out in the yard and started shaking mats over ’im. ’E give me such a look and went orf quick then! I don’t trust that bugger and that’s the truth.’
Jinny nodded, knowing that there was no real privacy in the communal yard that all four houses in the terrace shared. They were Victorian houses and due to be pulled down as part of the general clearance and rebuilding that was going on all over London. One of these days the tenants would all get notices to quit their homes and the bulldozers would move in, but it had been threatened for as long as Jinny could recall and most people had given up expecting it to happen. If the renovations did go ahead the council were due to rehouse them in one of the more modern estates built in the suburbs. Jinny’s mother had said she wouldn’t let the ‘bloody council’ stick her in ‘one of them soddin’ flats stuck up in the sky’, but Nellie was quite looking forward to it.