‘I knew something were up,’ she crowed. ‘You sly old thing, keeping this beauty to yerself. If my Andy could have afforded to give me such a whopper, I’d be flashing it about all over town.’

Rita finally found her voice. ‘How dare you go through my things, you nosy cow,’ she stormed. ‘If I’d wanted you to see it, I’d’ve shown you. Give it back.’

Ivy jumped to her feet on the bed, holding the ring aloft and out of Rita’s reach. ‘Don’t call me a cow, you cow,’ she yelled. ‘You should’a told me you was engaged. I’m yer best mate, and I tell you everything.’

‘Mates don’t go poking about in other people’s things,’ shouted Rita, grabbing hold of Ivy’s trouser legs and giving them a tug which unbalanced her, making her tumble to her knees on the rumpled bed. ‘Give me back my ring before I slap you so hard you won’t know what day of the week it is.’

Ivy bunched her fists. ‘Oh, yeah? You and whose army?’

Thoroughly riled, Rita went for her, determined to wipe that smug look off Ivy’s face. She made another grab for her ring, but was thwarted by a left hook from Ivy which almost knocked her senseless. ‘Bitch,’ she spat, shoving Ivy so hard, she hit her head on the metal bedframe.

‘Manky mare!’ Ivy leapt up, intent on punching her again.

They grappled and shouted, slapped, punched, clawed and swore, so didn’t hear Peggy hurrying up the stairs, or the excited barking of Harvey who followed closely behind.

‘What on earth is going on in here?’ demanded Peggy from the doorway. ‘Stop this at once.’ She strode over to the bed and grabbed a handful of each girl’s hair to yank them apart.

Both of them howled with pain. ‘What you do that for?’ gasped Ivy, rubbing her head. ‘It was that barmy bint what started it.’

‘It was you going through my things that started it,’ barked Rita. ‘Now give me back my ring.’

Ivy looked in horror at her empty hand. ‘Gawd ’elp me, I ain’t got it no more,’ she gasped. ‘I must’ve dropped it when you shoved me.’

‘I’ll do more than shove you if you’ve lost it,’ Rita snapped.

Ignoring a furious Peggy and the spectators that had gathered outside the door, and accompanied by Harvey’s excited barking, both girls began to frantically search through the bedclothes.

‘I’m so sorry, Rita,’ sobbed Ivy. ‘I never meant for this to ’appen, really I didn’t.’

‘Shut up and keep looking,’ ordered an equally tearful and desperate Rita as she dropped to her knees to search the floor beneath the bed.

‘Is this it?’ Peggy stood by the dressing table, the last of the sunlight flashing fire on the large pink diamond.