Beggared (Episode 19 - The Further Chronicles of a Young Lady (and her Maid))

Continued from Episode 18 - Sausage

The story so far:  Gwladys and Aefelthrith have started a new life running a pawn shop, formerly owned by 'Anty Marj', who they managed to convince they were distantly related to.  'Anty Marj', after some typical twists and turns, was persuaded to sell by receiving Aefelthrith's precious ring and went away a happy woman.  Meanwhile, Gwladys engaged a young urchin, 'Arry, to help clear the back garden of weeds, as a means of giving him a bit of income to support his poorly mother and avoid him either going down the pit or up the chimney, much to Aefelthrith's displeasure. Unfortunately, his digging produced a skull, about which  Gwladys swore him to secrecy and quiickly buried the evidence, which gave them a breathing space, until Sergeant Argent of the Watch appeared in the shop.  Fortunately, he was not pursuing his enquiries but was, to her extreme shock and horror, pursuing Aefelthrith, romantically.  Meanwhile, 'Arry revealed that his Mam said the place had always been a shop BUT Anty Marj had originally had a partner, thought to be her sister, whose name was Sarah, who had disappeared.  Coincidentally, Sarah was the name that Gwladys had told Anty Marj was the name of their shared relative.  With this news, Gwladys tried  to persuade Aefelthrith to go out with Sergeant Argent so that they could find out more, to which she eventually agreed but only with the proviso that Gwladys should serve as chaperone.  On their 'date', Sergeant Argent regaled Aefelthrith with tales of the town, much to Gwladys's frustration but he knew nothing about the history of the shop, then Constable John confirmed that there had been a 'Sarah' but that she had disappeared.  Eager to show off his skills of detection, Sergeant Argent insisted on mounting an investigation.  The following day, the Sergeant and his Constable began their search of the premises and were only diverted from digging up the garden by some quick thinking on the part of Aefelthrith.  Meanwhile, Gwladys was surprised to find a rather familiar, and flamboyant, 'sea captain' in the shop, just at the same time that Aefelthrith was dealing with a street urchin with a message for the 'sossij', which turned out to be the Sergeant.  The message revealed that the Watch were needed to apprehend ' a fraud, a trickster and a mountebank', so it was perhaps just as well the the 'Captain' had made himself scarce!:

 

Aefelthrith escorted Sergeant Argent and Constable John to the shop doorway, and saw them off with a cheery wave and a smile.  Closing the door, she instantly turned on Gwladys:

“What ever is the matter with you?” She snapped.

“Me?  Nowt, why?”

“All that grimacing, I thought you were having some sort of seizure!”

“Grimacin’?  I weren’t doin’ no grimacin’” Gwladys shook her head, and looked affronted, “It were one of them sub-tell expressions.  I were winkin’” She said, smugly.

“Sub-tell?” Aefelthrith frowned and looked puzzled, “Oh, subtle!  It most certainly was not ‘subtle’, it was about at subtle as a brick through the window!  Anyway, why were you winking?”  Aefelthrith made sure to pronounce the final ‘g’ with emphasis

“Yer’ll never guess who I ‘ad in the shop ‘ere, just afore yer waltzed in with yer Sergeant?”

“Well, I suppose that child’s been here, looking for more work?”  Aefelthrith sniffed.

“’Arry?  Yeah, ‘e came in a while back, but I ain’t on about ‘im” Gwladys looking smug was more than Aefelthrith could stand.

“Well, WHO then?”  She snapped.

“Only yer feller, weren’t it” Gwladys grinned, “’E were ‘ere, in the guise of a sea captain”

“What, you mean, my Lord?” Aefelthrith looked shocked.

“I wish yer wouldner call ‘im that,” Gwladys sighed, “‘e’s been three different people in the time we’ve known ‘im” Gwladys shook her head.

“That does not change the fact that we had an arrangement, a betrothal”

“Not this agin!” Gwladys tutted, “E’s ‘ad a kiddy with that Dolly while yer’ve been ‘betrothed’ to ‘im, what does that tell yer?”

“He…He’s made some mistakes, that is true” Aefelthrith said, loyally.

“SOME mistakes?” Gwladys looked astounded, “’E lost a battle what ‘e never should ‘ave started, an’ cut off ‘is own ‘and into the bargain.  ‘E tricked a load of people into givin’ ‘im money for a sea voyage when ‘e ‘ad no ship, an’ wouldn’t know ‘ow to sail it even if’n ‘e did.  Then, when it looked like ‘e might get ‘is collar felt for that, ‘e became a Parson, ‘an nicked an’ ‘orse an’ carriage.  Then, ‘e set ‘imself up as a publican, under another name altogether.  Now, ‘e’s back ‘ere doin’ the sea captain bit again!”

“Was he well?”  Aefelthrith asked, with concern.

“Far as I could tell” Gwladys shrugged, “’e weren’t ‘ere for five minutes.  ‘E were surprised to see me, I can tell yer!” Gwladys chuckled.

“Did he …did he know that I was here?”  Aefelthrith asked, with a catch in her voice.

“Yeah, I told ‘im” Gwladys nodded.

“You…you didn’t say who I was with, did you?”

“As a matter of fact, I did, yeah” Gwladys grinned, “yer should ‘ave seen the look on ‘is face!”

“Tell me, please tell me, you did not say that I was ‘walking out’ with the Sergeant?”  Aefelthrith looked panic-stricken.

“’Course I did!” Gwladys nodded, “Wouldn’t ‘ave been no fun, else”

“How COULD you?  What will he think of me?” Aefelthrith sobbed.

“I dunner know why yer give a monkey’s what ‘e thinks about owt!” Gwladys shrugged, “’E’s a wrong un, an’ ‘e’s not even very good at that!”

“I could…I could slap you!” Aefellthrith stamped her foot and stormed off into the back of the shop.

“I wouldn’t try it, not if I were you, missy” Gwladys shouted after her.

 

* * * *

 

The rest of the day was spent in an uncomfortable silence.  Aefelthrith had stormed up to her room and showed no sign of coming down, which left Gladys to man (or woman) the shop.  As dusk fell, she carried a lit candle through and placed it in the shop window.

“What are you doing?”

Gwladys spun around to see Aefelthrith peeking through the black curtaining, behind the counter.

“Oh, yer’ve deigned to come down, ‘ave yer, now that all the work’s done?”

“I am very annoyed with you!” Aefelthrith snapped.

“Yeah, I kinda got that” Gwladys smirked, “I ain’t that taken with you, come to think of it, but it don’t mean there ain’t still work to do, does it?”

“I asked what you were doing with the candle?” Aefelthrith said, deftly changing the subject.

“Werl, if yer’d stayed put, instead of stormin’ off in a strop, I could ‘ave told yer that I told ‘imself I’d put a candle in the winder if the coast were clear”

“He’s…he’s coming here?”

“Dunno” Gwladys shrugged, “’sup to ‘im, innit?  Mebbe ‘e will, mebbe ‘e won’t”

“Oh!” Aefelthrith put a hand to her mouth, “Do you think it was him that the Sergeant was referring to when he said he was seeking ‘a fraud, a trickster and a mountebank’?”

“’As it taken yer that long to work that out?”  Gwladys looked incredulous.

“I had not put the two things together, no” Aefelthrith sniffed.

“Werl, yeah, I reckon!” Gwladys shook her head, clearly astonished, “that’s why I’ve put the candle there, so ‘e knows it’s alright”

There was a timid knock on the back door.

“Oh my goodness, what if it is the Sergeant?”  Aefelthrith bit her lip.

“Nah, dunner be daft!” Gwladys marched off to answer it, “’E’d ‘ave come to the shop, an’ any road, if ‘e’d ‘ave banged the door, yer’d ‘ave ‘eard the ‘inges creakin’”

Gwladys opened the door, to find a ragged beggar, stooped and partially hidden in the shadows.

“Alms for the poor” He pleaded, in a cracked and feeble voice.

“Ar, yer look like yer could do with one of ‘em, at least!” Gwladys sniggered, “Gerrin ‘ere an’ stop muckin’ about”

The ‘beggar’ shot through the doorway, and Gwladys, after checking the street in both directions, closed the door behind him.

“We got oursel’s a mendy cant” Gwladys shouted in the direction of the shop.

“I beg your pardon?” Aefelthrith made her way through the curtaining and stopped, abruptly, when she saw the ragged man.  “Who, or what, is this?” She asked, in a disgusted tone, suspecting that this was another of Gwlady’s’s charity cases.

“Hello Aefelthrith” The man said, drawing himself up to his full height and sweeping the matted hair from his face.

“Oh!” Aefelthrith gasped, “My Lord!” She curtseyed a little.

“Give me bloody strength!” Gwladys shook her head and stomped off into the kitchen to put the kettle on.

You can find the previous adventures of Gwladys and Aefelthrith in both Kindle and paperback formats at The Chronicles of a Young Lady (and her Maid (link is external)