The Whitechapel Virgin Read online

  ‘I just think you’re a bit harsh on her and her fellow sounds a lot like my Mr Turner. I remember how he liked to beat at me back end with a stick whenever the fancy took him. I can’t tell you how glad I was to hear about him falling into a factory vat and coming out the other end as minced cabbage.’

  Annie took out a compact powder from a drawer and dabbed at her nose. ‘Exactly. So it ain’t a new story, and it’s better that she learns it now, if she had any foolish notion that she was going to be treated like some fairytale princess whilst she was ‘ere.’

  ‘It ain’t her that I’m really worried about Annie, it’s the lunatic. Did you hear what he did to Mary Ann? They’re all telling me that he practically butchered her head off.’

  Annie grimaced. ‘Don’t get me thinking about that gory stuff again now Nellie, I got work to do and so have you. If you think that I’d let a man pull a knife on me, well he’d not know himself as a man after I’d taken all his bits off for him.’

  Nellie put her hand to her mouth and giggled. ‘Oh Annie, you always make things seem better, you make me laugh no matter how bad things are.’

  ‘That’s the spirit Nell. Come on, you and me we’ve always survived our way of life together, haven’t we?’

  ‘We have,’ Nell nodded in agreement, feeling much less fearful than earlier.

  She took out a small bottle from her bag.

  ‘Ooh hang on, let’s have a quick swig of gin for luck.’

  As they made their way out of the door Nellie faltered. ‘But shouldn’t we carry something with us? You know for protection when we pass Bucks Row at least?’

  ‘Like what Nell?’

  ‘Like a kitchen knife.’

  Annie sniggered. ‘I don’t need to carry no knife on me, Nell. I’ve still got most of me teeth.’

  TWENTY-FIVE

  He couldn’t risk her running away again and more questions from the local authorities, so he had sent forth another carriage to bring her directly to his doorstep. Later that evening he would instruct it to deposit her back at the tavern, for it had been a foolish action to allow her to visit his home on foot.

  The Constable had questioned him for over an hour that morning as to his whereabouts on that August evening, and thankfully he had been able to answer the officer’s queries with sufficient satisfaction. They would most likely make other enquiries of course, and these he could not prevent, but he would in all due respect be able to provide a perfectly good alibi for his whereabouts, whether they liked it or not.

  There was a knock at the door and he hurriedly gulped down his glassful of gin before answering.

  There was something immediately out of the norm with his prized little whore when she entered his residence. Perhaps she had doused herself in fragrance, for a sharp and vibrant smell wafted around her. He also noticed how she carried her chin higher and maintained an erect stance. It made her look taller, older and deceptively more confident.

  Had he not been so deeply under the influence he might have punished her for running off without being dismissed after her last visit. Or parlay a few questions on her new and improved silhouette, but he could only surmise that perhaps she was feeling aroused this evening.

  He could sense it in a woman. The mere thought excited him and for a moment a twitch of excitement in his pants threatened to restore his exasperating affliction.

  She sat on the bed and leaned back to let her long waxen curls rest on the pillow. Raising her arms up, his eyes become transfixed at the sight of her bosom, rising and dropping above the delicate line of her dress.

  Fascinated by her amorous appeal Cross removed his clothes and stood before her, drinking in her youthful vulnerability and admiring the very innocence, which thus far remained preserved. As much as he desired this young girl he seemed unable to end her spell of chastity. Every attempt at doing so seemed to cruelly extinguish his manhood. It was not as if he hadn’t taken virgins before, oh he had, but this one appeared to have loosened some raging hinge within him. And it was not as though she didn’t want it. He had felt the slight rise of her hip, the small upward thrust of her pelvis during those times when he had tantalised her most sensitive areas.

  Unable to meet the demands of his calling, his inner torment began to rise with abominable force. Now she lay there within an incandescent glow, giving herself up to him, the soft curve of her small lips parting slightly. He felt his penis hiccup with yet another pathetic attempt at revival, and then just as promptly, deflate.

  He grabbed her by the wrist where her eyes widened in disbelief as he held one hand up to her throat.

  ‘No please, I… I was trying to please you sir. The way that you like it.’

  ‘THE WAY I LIKE IT?’ he bellowed, repulsed by her mockery.

  He tore at her bodice thrusting his weight on top of her, breathing heavily into her neck and pressing his mouth close to her ear. ‘Please, don’t hurt me,’ she whimpered.

  He said nothing, but slid off her as she lay panting quietly. Her eyes fluttered to a close as the laudanum took hold.

  He took a large gulp of his own alcoholic concoction before fetching his rope and deciding what he would do with her.

  TWENTY-SIX

  ‘Nellie, did you hear that?’

  Nellie tried to catch her breath and steady her balance as Annie peered down the dark alleyway. An owl hooted somewhere high on a branch as leaves rustled in the wind.

  ‘Stand over here,’ Annie said, as she edged towards the shadows, where together they cowered behind an iron gate.

  ‘Someone screaming it sounded like to me,’ Annie said.

  ‘I didn’t hear it and I don’t want to hear it.’ Nellie replied, bringing her hands to her ears.

  ‘Well if someone’s in trouble we can’t just stand here and let it happen can we?’

  ‘Yes we can, do you think we’d be able to fend off a murderer by ourselves?’

  Annie thought for a moment and realised that Nellie did have a point.

  ‘Right. You wait here then and I’ll go and find a police officer, there should be one near Commercial Road.

  Nellie grabbed hold of Annie’s arm in a blind panic. ‘Are you expecting me to stay here on me own?’

  ‘I’ll only be gone a minute Nellie, just stay here behind the gate and you won’t be seen if anyone goes past.’

  Nellie began to sob as she ruffled nervously through her bag to find a handkerchief. ‘But the killer might be just down there murdering some poor cow as we speak.’

  ‘But you can’t walk as fast as me, it could be a matter of saving a person’s life. Just stay behind the gate and don’t make a sound.’

  She strolled off leaving Nellie terror-stricken beneath the feathery branches of a tree.

  The air was turning clear and cool since the fog had lifted and Annie walked with purpose, her head held high. She would challenge any man who tried to interfere with her. That was how she had survived these streets for so many years and she wasn’t going to let one rotten egg pull her down.

  She was relieved, however, when she got to the turn on Brick Lane and spotted an officer rounding the corner.

  ‘Officer, over here.’

  He turned and hurried towards her. He was tall and broad-shouldered, like he could fight back well enough.

  Good, she thought to herself.

  ‘You shouldn’t be out at this time Madame.’

  ‘Yes I know, Officer, I’d just been on me way back to me lodgings with a friend when I was walking along minding me own, then I thought I heard a scream. Told my companion to wait aside whilst I came to look for one of you to help us.’

  ‘You heard a scream you say?’ the officer repeated.

  ‘A woman’
s scream I’m pretty sure it was. If I ain’t being daft it might even have sounded a bit like the word murder,’ Annie said regrettably.

  The two of them set off back towards Hanbury Street. Annie pointed in the darkness.

  ‘Right down there Officer, I wouldn’t like to venture down it me-self if that’s all right with you.’

  He nodded. ‘Of course, I shall go and check, you best wait here, or see how your friend is faring.’

  Annie left the officer and walked briskly away. She really hoped to God that it wasn’t another victim as people really would start to go out of their minds if it was. Nellie would for definite. She doubted if Nellie would ever leave the lodging house again if she heard the sordid details of any more murders.

  She’d have to work even harder than normal if that was the case, and quite frankly Annie was starting to feel the pinch of old age setting into her bones.

  She approached the gate where she’d left Nellie but couldn’t see her friend beneath the tree. A sudden burst of anxiety set in. ‘Nellie, where are ya? If you’re hiding then come out.’

  There was a rustling behind the gate and a small rodent ran past her feet making her jump. ‘Oh me lord, scared me witless you did!’

  She checked, but there was still no sign of Nellie.

  She must have gone back to the lodging house. It was the only place she’d go. Or would she be too afraid to step out alone?

  Something told Annie that Nellie wouldn’t walk back to the lodging house alone, she’d find somewhere else to hide, or maybe she’d chosen to take the short route back to the tavern through Old Montague Street.

  She turned on her heel briskly to make her way back through Commercial Road. The air was turning gusty now, stirring up soot and dust which blew up into her face as she walked, obscuring her view. She shielded her face with her shawl, approaching the corner where she spotted a figure lying on the ground across the pavement.

  ‘Nellie!’

  She ran towards it and leaned down to see that her friend was lying on her stomach with her face to one side. There was no sign of blood, but Annie felt sick anyway. ‘Oh my god. Nellie, are you all right!’

  She kneeled down and placed a hand on her cheek. It was still warm. Nellie groaned slightly.

  ‘It’s alright, I’ll get some help you stay where you are,’ she soothed, realising how foolish that sounded.

  Nellie wasn’t going anywhere. She hurried as fast as her leg would allow her to re-locate the officer and on turning the corner stumbled into him.

  ‘Oh thank heavens you’re still here Constable, it’s my friend Nellie, she’s fallen or something’s happened to her.’

  The officer looked alarmed. ‘Is she alive?’

  ‘Yes, it looks like she tripped and fell.’

  ‘I would assist you Madam but I’ve got myself a bit of a case on my hands as it is, best I get down to the station and call for extra back up.’

  ‘Why what is it?’ Annie asked.

  He lowered his face.

  ‘Another murder, madam.’

  TWENTY-SEVEN

  Catherine arrived at the lodging house escorted by a carriage shortly after midnight. She thought about the return journey home and had hoped it would be on foot. Then she might have been lucky enough to encounter the brutal knifeman who would have ended her misery swiftly, if not painlessly.

  She reached beneath her sleeves to rub at both wrists which were sore from the friction of the rope. It felt like she had been tied up forever.

  In the end he had come so very close to performing the act, but after restraining her his eyes had become wild as he tore at his hair and wailed pitifully. She had recoiled with disgust at the sight of his naked body and the floppy thing which hung between his legs.

  After a display of pure inner frustration he had rolled back onto the bed in a crumpled heap and told her to leave. She was now thoroughly convinced that he was a madman, a monster. There was little doubt. It seemed that for some reason he was unable to perform, try as he might, and instead, alleviated his anguish in a most hideous fashion by tying her to the bed and persisting in such torment.

  How long will this carry on?

  She could not answer the question for her spirits had sunk, resigned to this coarse reality.

  The carriage came to a shuddering halt. She stepped out into the street making her way towards the tavern door. The street was eerily silent. Nothing could be heard except some old hag’s cough expelled from some blackened doorway.

  She raised her eyes upwards and caught sight of Eddie’s face looking down from his window. She gasped and quickly looked away ashamed, for she was in no fit state to be seen.

  What will it matter? He can’t hate me more than he already does?

  She hurried to her room and slipped out of her clothing. This time she did not sleep straight away but instead knelt at the foot of her bed to pray. It seemed highly unlikely, but maybe if the Lord above were listening just this once, he might put an end to her woes.

  * * *

  ‘The woman was killed at Hanbury Street,’ said Constable Neil shaking his head.

  ‘And we’re confident we’ve caught the culprit since we’ve got six men detained at the station due for questioning. Miss Barton alerted us to the scene but by the time we got to the victim it was too late.’

  Madame nodded regrettably. ‘Another fallen woman?’

  He shook his head. ‘Yes.’

  ‘Madame, I seriously think you ought to be concerned for your girls, they are all in very serious danger of being attacked, not to mention the reports we’ve been getting from various townsfolk saying that Jack the Ripper is doing everyone a favour by cleansing the streets of its filth.

  The town is rioting, some even support his criminal actions. Riots have been taking place near the docks just this morning. It is an unsafe period of time. Has there been any trouble at the tavern?’

  She let out a sigh. ‘No Constable, but we have always had our enemies over the years, though please let me assure you that my girls are not a rowdy bunch, nor in my knowledge is there any reason to believe that they have acted inappropriately in public. Simply walking the streets is not an offence or a crime now is it officer?’

  ‘It’s no crime for women to be walking in the streets Madame, but if caught in the very act of soliciting in public, well you know that would be considered a petty crime. They may go on as normal about their business Madame, but please be aware that Jack the Ripper appears to be targeting women of a certain occupation and...’

  Madame cut in. ‘I am very aware of this Constable. The girls have been warned several times to take the utmost caution along their journey’s. Ultimately they have the freedom of choice as to whether they wish to lock themselves up within their dwellings, or continue on with their lives.’

  The officer stared at her thoughtfully. ‘Fair enough, but as long they aren’t caught in the act of soliciting within public view there’s nought more I can say to you Madame. However I would warn you that the authorities are being pressed to crack down on such businesses due to the recent spate of crime. They could be arrested, which wouldn’t harm their own safety to be locked in a cell rather than encounter, you know who, but best tell ‘em to keep out of public view at night as much as possible.’

  ‘I shall do Constable, is there anything else you require?’

  ‘Yes, well as you mention it there is one little thing. We’ve received this letter in the post down at the station and have been investigating it’s meaning. I’d like to know if it means anything to you at all, anything that comes to mind which might help us with our enquiries.’

  The constable passed a slip of paper across the table and Madame Davenport picked it up.

 
It ain’t smart to linger

  When the cops are about

  I know me way round these parts

  Inside and out

  Don’t bother with churches

  Cause I ain’t made of stone

  And next time my knife

  Will slice through her bone.

  You thought you had the culprit

  who wrote ’Dear Boss’

  But what you should be looking for’s

  The sign of the CROSS.

  Madame Davenport stared at the words.

  ‘I am afraid there is nothing here I could possibly relate to Constable. Nothing at all.’

  She dropped the paper letting it flutter down to the desk, where he retrieved it and placed it back inside his pocket.

  ‘If anything comes to mind just let us know, if you will.’

  ‘Of course Constable, will that be all?’

  ‘Yes Madame. I shall escort myself out, thank you.’

  She nodded graciously and the officer left the room shutting the door behind him.

  As soon as he was gone she seated herself and let out a long shaky sigh.

  Dear God, no, surely not Edward Cross?

  She spent a few moments pondering the words she had read.

  She could always say nothing to the authorities, do nothing. The women he slaughtered had all been well past their prime and Catherine was young, he would not kill her.

  Surely he would not kill his prize virgin?

  Or would he?

  She stood up and walked to the front tavern where she spotted Tilly sweeping the floor.

  ‘Tilly, have you seen Catherine today?’

  ‘I sent her off to the market to fetch some groceries, Madame.’

  ‘And where is Annie?’

  ‘Down at the infirmary with Nellie, been there all day. I expect she won’t be back till late this evening.’