‘Are you all right, pet? she asked, stooping to the child’s level.

The little girl stared solemnly up at her. ‘Me ma an’ pa is ’avin’ a row cos she ain’t got no money to give him,’ the child informed her. ‘But me ma’s only got a few pence an’ she needs that fer the baby cos she says her milk ’as dried up, so she won’t give it ’im.’

Holly opened her bag and took out some coins, which she held out to the child. ‘What’s your name?’ she asked gently.

‘Sally, miss.’

‘Right, Sally, I want you to take this money and go and get some bread and some milk for the baby and take it back to your mother. Do you think you could do that?’

The child stared at the money incredulously before swiping her arm across her snotty nose and scrubbing at the tears on her thin cheeks, then she snatched the money as if she was afraid Holly might change her mind. ‘Yes, miss.’ And she was off, haring down the stairs.

Ivy shook her head. ‘Poor little sod,’ she said quietly. ‘She reminds me of some o’ the little ’uns from the courtyards back home.’

Holly nodded in agreement. ‘Did you see how thin she was? She looked as if one good puff of wind would blow her away.’

By the time they reached the street there was no sign of Sally and hugging her old coat about her, Ivy suggested, ‘Why don’t you go into town an’ try the shops? I’m goin’ to head fer the factories. We’ll meet back here at two o’clock, eh? We’ll be ready fer somethin’ to eat by then.’

Although Holly nodded in agreement, she felt very apprehensive as Ivy turned and walked away from her, but, determined to follow through with her plan, she plastered on a smile and set off to find a job.

Holly was patiently waiting outside their lodging house at a quarter past two that afternoon when Ivy came scooting round the corner. Her nose was glowing and her hands were blue with cold but she was beaming like a Cheshire cat.

‘Sorry I’m late.’ She skidded to a halt blowing on her hands to try and warm them. ‘But I stopped for a cup o’ tea in a café earlier on an’ the lady in there told me there were jobs goin’ at the Bryant an’ May match factory in Bow so I hopped on a tram an’ went straight there.’ She smiled proudly. ‘I got a job an’ I can start in the mornin’. The pay ain’t brilliant admittedly, it’s fifteen bob a week, but it’s better than nothin’ till somethin’ better turns up, ain’t it? How did you do?’

Holly hung her head and shrugged dispiritedly. ‘No good at all up to now and I must have gone into almost every shop in Oxford Street asking if there were any vacancies. But well done you, although I’ve heard the match factories aren’t very nice places to work,’ she ended worriedly.