Gangsters Girl

***Elliana’s POV*** I saw the advertisement in the paper. “Barmaid needed. Must be tough.” Nothing could be tougher than what I was dealing with now. I had been on the streets of London for over a year now; my father had kicked me out after my mother died and I refused to sleep with his friends for money. My older sister had left six months before to be married, and my brother had died in the war. I was alone. I had my nineteenth birthday on the street, and was coming up on my twentieth next month. I had managed not to become a prostitute, but I was starving and sleeping under a bridge. Jobs for respectable women were few and far between, and I was desperate. I cleaned myself up the best I could in the river, and combed out my long hair, before braiding it and pinning it back on my head. I tried my best to look presentable. Mad Maddy’s looked like a normal bar, nothing special, and I straightened my dress before I entered and held my head up high. “Ma’am you must be lost.” The barkeeper said when he saw me. The place was empty as it was early in the day, and he was polishing the glasses. There was only one other man in the place and he was reading his newspaper on the far side of the room while he sipped tea. “I read an advertisement saying you need a barmaid.” I kept my head up and didn’t let my voice quiver. “I do, but not a sweet girl like you.” He said seriously. “I just need a job sir. I’m polite, and not afraid of hard work.” I tried to persuade, since he obviously didn’t like the idea of hiring me. “I’m also good with numbers, and can work any evening.” “Are you married or have children?” He huffed. “No sir.” I said. “Miss, women like you don’t walk into a bar like this.” He raised his eyebrows to emphasize his point. “The men would mistake you, and I can’t always be watching out for you.” “Sir, while I appreciate the sentiment, I just need a job.” I insisted. “You can try me out for a couple of days and if you don’t like me, I will leave with no hard feelings.” He shook his head reluctantly. “Alright. Your shift starts at four and ends at two in the morning. Make sure you don’t show any skin you don’t want touched.” He grumpily turned away from me, and grabbed an apron, tossing it to me. “What’s your name?” “Elliana Fox.” I said. “Thank you sir, you won’t be disappointed.” “No, but you might. My name is Thomas Gance, but you can call me Tommy. I’ll see you at four Miss Fox.” He shook his head again, and I left. I had three hours until my shift, and I had to find a better dress. I had washed my best dress in the river yesterday, so hopefully it would be dry enough now, and I went to my hiding spot in the bushes beside the bridge. Anything I didn’t hide was taken by the other homeless people around here, so I was relieved to find my dress was still in its place. I unrolled it and laid it out in the sun to air out and finish drying, while I ate the last of my bread and cheese I had stashed as well. It wasn’t enough to fill my belly, but it was the very last food I had, and unless I was able to scrounge for something else it would be the only food I ate all day. The bridge wasn’t far from St. Mary’s church and I could see the clock tower from where I sat. I had about a half an hour left and I dressed quickly and hid the rest of my things. I used the small compact mirror I had to check my appearance, and it would have to do. I had a high collared baby blue dress that had long sleeves and came to my ankles. I looked like I could have been a governess, and perhaps if my father would have allowed me to finish my education, I could have been, but after my mother passed, I was just in the way, certainly not worth enough to pay my tuition. I took a deep breath as I walked into the bar, and it was much more lively than it was just a few hours before, but the same man sat at the same table reading his paper. He was a huge man, and wore a dark gray tailored suit. His hair was perfectly styled and he looked like he might be a rich businessman, or nobility of some kind. Tommy gave me a rag and a serving tray with drinks on it, and pointed me in the direction of the table that had ordered them. “Don’t let anyone give you any s**t, or they will never stop.” Tommy warned. I nodded my head and went over to the table. The business man watched me from the corner of his eye, and I smiled politely and served the table beside him. “Afternoon gentlemen.” I said as I began setting their drinks on the table. “Well well well, the whores of the bar are starting to look higher class.” One of the men said as he slapped my ass. “I’m sure you meant that as a compliment, but I’m not a w***e so keep your bloody hands to yourself, eh?” I smiled sweetly, and it took the man aback. “I’m sorry miss, I’ve never seen a woman in here that wasn’t.” He side eyed me. “Are you sure? I’d give my whole fortune for a poke with a woman like you.” He laughed and all of his buddy’s laughed with him. “Well, if I’m suddenly ever blind, deaf, and dumb you’ll be the first to know.” I quipped back, and he stopped laughing, but all of his mates were laughing at him. I smiled awkwardly, “If you need anything else gentlemen, just let me know.” I wiped a drop off the table and walked to the next. The businessman peaked at me over his newspaper as I walked up to his table and wiped it down quickly, “Pardon me sir, let me just get this cleaned up for you.” He didn’t say anything, he just moved his chair back a little and moved the paper from the table. “Can I get you anything while I’m standing here?” I asked. He looked at me now, his gorgeous blue eyes pierced through me, and his lips formed a thin line. “Get out of here before you get hurt.” He said to my surprise. “I appreciate the concern, but I’ll be alright.” I smiled. He just huffed a small laugh and went back to his paper. “Don’t say no one warned you.” I nodded and went about my tasks. It wasn’t too bad of a shift, and I only had to slap a few hands off of me. After the bar closed and the last patron had left, I stayed and cleaned. “You can go ahead and head home Miss Fox. I’ll close up.” “Oh I don’t mind Mr. Gance. I’m almost done mopping.” I said. He just nodded quietly and let me go about my work. I didn’t have the heart to tell him I didn’t have a home, and I dreaded going back to the bridge. It was cold tonight, and my coat had been stolen a few days ago, so I wasn’t in a rush to go and freeze to death. He didn’t question it again, and let me stay and clean until everything was done. It was almost four in the morning now, and the sun would be up soon enough that I wouldn’t freeze. I’d be cold, but I wouldn’t freeze. I walked back to the bridge slowly, dodging carriages and the occasional automobile. Those new contraptions scared me, and the people that drove them were rich, uncaring people. I noticed one had followed me from the bar, but when I turned down the path under the bridge, it kept going, so perhaps I was just making things up. I did that a lot, and scared myself with things that turned out to be harmless. Living on the street had made me jumpy and suspicious of everyone. I went to my hiding place, and pulled my small blanket from in the bushes. It wasn’t big enough to cover all of me, but if I curled myself up in one of the bridge alcoves, I could get out of the wind enough to not be freezing. When I woke up the next day, I had two hours until my shift. Tommy had given me a little bit of money last night, and it was enough to get myself a decent meal before work. When I walked into the bar, Tommy stared at me for a moment, noticing I was in the same dress, but he didn’t say anything, he just handed me a tray full of drinks. “You’re early Miss Fox. Here, take this to table 3.” He nodded. I took the tray and looked over at table three. It was the gruff businessman again. “He’s the owner, so don’t say a word to him.” He said seriously. I nodded as I walked over. He’s the owner. s**t. I kept my mouth shut as I served him his tea, and he just stared at me. “You wore that dress yesterday.” He muttered. I was embarrassed and didn’t say anything and wouldn’t make eye contact as he bore a hole in my soul. “What, did you not make it home last night?” He pressed for only a minute and I didn’t know what to say. I stuttered for a moment, and he thankfully let me off the hook when another customer fell and flipped the entire table. I rushed over to make sure they were alright before I cleaned up the mess. He didn’t speak to me the rest of the night. My shift passed pretty quickly and I again stayed late cleaning. Tommy tried to excuse me several times, but I just smiled and told him I didn’t mind as I continued to clean until about 4am again. I noticed the same car from the night before following me back to the bridge, and again as soon as I reached the path it sped away. It made me uncomfortable, but I couldn’t see who was driving, and chalked it up to me being paranoid. I went to my hiding spot to find someone had taken everything. My dresses, my blanket, everything. It was all gone, and I started to cry. I just needed to make it through the rest of the week and I could hopefully buy a new dress and blanket with my paycheck.