Riches

Riches
Molly's place wasn't much - just a little rectangle of concrete under
a fire escape half way up an alley leading off Broad St. - but to Molly
it was 'home.'
She had it all fixed up splendidly too - with bin bags she'd stolen
and cardboard boxes she'd found. She'd even turned one of the boxes
over and covered it with an old tea towel so that it looked like a real
table - and over the years she'd accumulated a few bits of china and
glass. Oh yes - if Molly wanted to sit at a table to eat her dinner,
then it wasn't a problem. The only minor inconvenience was that every
morning the police moved her on, so that she had to pack her precious
possessions in a Tesco bag and carry them round the city.
Still, it was worth the hassle because the alley was safe and familiar
in a city that was dangerous by night. She would lie awake for hours,
counting the stars in the gap between the buildings on either side.
They were her stars and she imagined that nobody else could see them.
Sometimes she'd watch smoky-grey clouds scudding past the moon, and she
would gaze at the Man in the Moon's gentle face and imagine that the
gentle hum of the city was his soft lullaby.
Sometimes she'd wake shivering in the dark hour before dawn and
snuggle further down into her newspapers and rags. It wasn't exactly
warm - but it was dry and private. People could walk right past her and
not even know that she was there! Molly would lie perfectly still and
chuckle softly to herself as she eavesdropped on drunken revellers
arguing, or lovers grunting and panting as they consummated their
relationships.
Now Molly reckoned she was too old for any hanky-panky - even if Billy
didn't think so.
'Get off me you randy old goat!'
Billy had appeared just as Molly was packing her Tesco bag, and he had
started, as usual, to grope her bosom. He peered at her through his
mass of grey tangled hair that straggled down from his forehead and up
from his chin.
'Aw - come on Moll! Just a bit of slap and tickle!' His voice,
roughened by years of tobacco and alcohol abuse, bore a trace of an
accent that Molly couldn't identify. Somewhere European, she reckoned -
but Billy said he couldn't remember where he'd been born. He was like
most of the others who she met as she trudged round the city - without
a past and without a future. Like her, living for the present.
But what a glorious present it was!
Today the sun shone from a clear blue sky and the spring air was crisp
and clean. The scent of fruit drifted across from the market, making
her mouth water as she imagined the vendors unpacking crates of apples
and bananas. She turned her face to the sun, enjoying its warmth as it
stroked her rosy cheeks and she savoured the gentle breeze as it
ruffled her frizzy mane of steely hair and caressed her ears and neck.
This morning the hum of the traffic was sharper than usual and the
windows of the buildings winked and sparkled merrily. The city was
awake now, happy and bustling and Molly didn't want to be anywhere else
in the whole world. She took a deep breath and smiled contentedly at
her companion.
'You going up the Sally today?' she asked Billy, giving him a sharp
kick on the shin.
'Ouch! Bloody Hell! Course I am you silly mutton! How else am I going
to get a meal?' He rubbed his leg gingerly and looked at her with wary
eyes. Molly was an unpredictable lady. 'But not with you!' he went on
haughtily. 'You've had your chance - and I'm off to find a woman who'll
appreciate me.' He tossed his head and turned to leave, but the sound
of Molly's snort of laughter stopped him.
'Appreciate you!' she echoed. 'Just look at you! Your clothes are tied
on your body with string and you can't see your face for all that
hair.'
Billy eyed Molly's own tattered clothes, which were mismatched
garments that she'd pilfered from rubbish bags.
'You're not exactly Mary Quant yourself!'
Molly chuckled. 'Do I care? Anyway - I do appreciate you. I just don't
want you pawing all over me that's all.' The hair on his jowls
stretched and Molly guessed that he was smiling.
'Then perhaps you would do me the honour of accompanying me to
breakfast?' he said, gallantly crooking his arm so that she could slip
hers through it. She laughed, enjoying his good-natured company.
'Delighted - but you'll have to carry one of my bags,' she said.
Arm in arm they emerged from the alley, ignoring the disdainful
glances of early morning commuters on their way to their dreary
offices. Personally, Molly thought that she was luckier than they were.
She didn't have to work for her riches. Oh no - Molly had all the gold
that she wanted when she looked at the sun - and she had silver in the
drops of rain that washed her hair and face.
And she had Billy.

'Dirty tramps!'
The thugs were on top of them before either of them knew it. Something
hard hit Molly's jaw with such force that she thought her head had
flown off her neck. Beside her she heard Billy cry out and as the
ground rose to meet her she saw nothing but redness, followed by
flashing lights&;#8230;and finally blackness.

'Are you awake?'
Molly felt the touch of cool light fingers on her arm and she opened
her eyes to find a matronly face peering down at her. She tried to
speak, but the pain in her jaw was excruciating.
'Can you just try to tell us your name,' urged the matronly face. 'And
the name of the man who was with you.'
Molly concentrated hard on moving her lips without having to move her
jaw and managed to mumble,
'Molly Noakes&;#8230;.Billy Hancox.'
'Well done Molly ,' whispered the nurse. 'Now - is there anyone you'd
like us to contact?'
Molly nodded.
'Billy?' she managed to whisper. The nurse's face fell and her brown
eyes were full of sympathy as she said softly,
'I'm so sorry. Billy didn't make it to hospital.'
Tears welled up in Molly's eyes as she silently mourned the death of
the gentle, good-natured man who had been her friend.
'Why?' she wanted to scream. 'Why would anyone do a thing like
that?'
The nurse seemed to understand her expression, for she said,
'There's Heaven on earth - and there's Hell too. And some people are
just full of Hell.' She took a deep, shaky breath and added. 'But if
you can tell the police as much as possible - then there's a chance
that they'll catch the thugs that did this to you.'
Exhausted with the effort of talking, Molly drifted off to sleep and
for a while she was back in her alley with Billy, laughing at his silly
jokes and fighting off his amorous advances. And then, all too soon she
awoke and the painful memories flooded back. Well - she'd tell the
police what they wanted to know. She owed Billy that much.
Although what would they care about the death of an old tramp?
Nevertheless Molly was surprised to discover that the Press had a
different attitude. Two weeks after she had given her statement, a
young reporter arrived and asked if he could take some photographs of
her.
'I'll make it worth your while,' he said, flashing a wad of crisp ten
pound notes in front of Molly's astonished eyes. 'But I'll expect a
full interview in return.'
Molly nodded dumbly. With money like that she'd be able to eat like a
queen for a week - just like she was now in the hospital, where the
grub was the best she'd had for years&;#8230;..

'Molly - you've got a visitor.'
Molly looked up from the television screen and her heart skipped a
beat as she stared at what looked like her own unsmiling reflection.
But the mirror image in front of her was twenty years younger - and
dripping with gold and pearls.
'Margaret,' she murmured. 'Oh God - not you!'
Molly felt panic rise in her breast as she saw determination on the
face of her daughter - the daughter who had driven her to drink with
her wild parties, her men and her drugs! How glad Molly had been to
escape from her and her immoral lifestyle - even if it had meant taking
to the streets.
And now Margaret had probably read the newspaper&;#8230;Oh
God!&;#8230;She should never have agreed to do that interview.
Margaret continued to stare at her.
'Haven't you had enough of all this street nonsense mother?' asked
Margaret tiredly. 'Isn't it about time you came home and started to
live like a human being again?'
Molly tilted her chin defiantly.
'I'm not coming back,' she said. 'And as for being a human being - my
Billy was the first person who ever treated me like one.'
'Mother! I've arranged for part of my house to be converted into a
flat for you - you'll have everything you've ever
needed&;#8230;'
'Wrong!' cried Molly.
Margaret stared uncomprehendingly as Molly thought of the golden sun
and silver rain, of the little piece of land that she called her own,
of her bits of china and glass&;#8230;
'I'll have you know, Margaret,' she said with a smile, 'That I'm a
very rich woman indeed.'

END

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