Life Or Death

More Tales

It was safe to say that Margaret got no sleep that night after she saw The Grim Reaper kill the man that laid on the dirty ground. His face kept appearing in her nightmares and every time he had spoke in her dreams, she was met with a jolt that forced her awake and gasping for breath. His scar was what made Duncan Hancock to be The Grim Reaper of London because it had ran from the top of his eyebrow down to his bottom lip, it was a very jagged line.

When Margaret had her latest nightmare about The Grim Reaper, Mrs Hart barged into her room with worry etched on her face. Her hair was curled up with the curling rolls that was covered by a hair net to keep her hair intact as she slept. As she saw Margaret covered in a sheen of sweat and that she was pale, Mrs Hart wasted no time in wrapping her short arms around her daughter to comfort her but Margaret had to ask her why she had kept the stories of The Grim Reaper away from her daughter as she had grown up.

"Mother?" said the quiet voice of Margaret who clung onto her mother who had frantically rubbed her back in an effort to make her daughter relax.

"Yes, my May?"

"Why didn't you tell me about The Grim Reaper when I was a child?"

Mrs Hart went quiet as she contemplated her answer. She didn't really want to have to tell her daughter why she kept The Grim Reaper away from her daughter as she grew up. However, that day had come and Mrs Hart had to do it.

"I knew this day would come when I would have to tell you the reason why I kept him away from you," Mrs Hart still held May close to her but she was visibly scared for her daughter after she ran into one of the notorious gangsters of the West End.

"Look, when you were just a wee little girl, your father and your brother went to join the gang of Paddy Jameson. Times were hard, we had no money but to your father and your brother, joining Paddy Jameson's gang sounded the best thing to do but it was the worst thing that the Harts have done." Mrs Hart was close to being upset about her family's past. Clayton and Geoffrey Hart were the breadwinners of the Harts, they were once respected but their involvement with Paddy Jameson made them infamous.

"Duncan Hancock was part of Paddy's bunch but he was the worst out of all of them. He acted as an enforcer for Paddy. When your father had enough of what he had seen what Duncan had done to the others, he tried to leave but Paddy wasn't happy," said the meek voice of Mrs Hart. She was growing scared as she told Margaret of what her father and brother did when they tried to leave Paddy Jameson's gang.

"Clayton had the audacity to come up to Paddy who had Duncan with him and tell to his face that he would go fuck himself. Paddy got furious and he set Duncan upon your father. He tortured him in front of everyone in Paddy's pub and the man left your father close to death when I got the call that he was found on the doorsteps of the hospital." Margaret could not believe what she was hearing from her mother, she was finding herself to be furious with what her father and brother had went and done.

"Your father died from what Duncan did to him, three nights later." Mrs Hart was now crying, her tears were slightly drenching the top of Margaret's hair, Margaret was in shock. She could not comprehend what The Grim Reaper had done to her father. Her brother was a mystery to her but she dared not to ask her mother about him. Margaret guessed that Geoffrey had become a criminal in his own right and was as bad as Mad Max and The Grim Reaper. After Mrs Hart calmed down, she went back to talking again.

"May?"

"Mmm?"

"Do you understand why I had to keep this away from you as you grew up?"

"Yes, mother. I have more questions but I won't ask them now. I'll wait when the time is right." Margaret sent a soothing smile up to her mother who sadly returned the smile. Margaret was relieved that she got the answer that she needed but she remained terrified of The Grim Reaper.

The talk with Mrs Hart was at midnight and by the end of it, the sun had already appeared. It marked the start of a new day but for Margaret, she now knew that The Grim Reaper will be after her.

Margaret reluctantly got ready for a new day of work at the factory, she went down the stairs to the same fry up and tea that was made by her mother. Mrs Hart was feeling the same terror as her daughter, The Grim Reaper was again involved in her family's business since her daughter had seen him kill a man.

When she was finished with her breakfast, she looked at Mrs Hart with fear of being seen by The Grim Reaper and his men that could be on Getting Street who could be looking for her. Mrs Hart shoved her daughter into a bone-crushing hug and she held her tightly that today could be the last day of Margaret Hart if she got caught by The Grim Reaper.

"Don't get seen, May. Get there as fast as you can. Do it quick." Mrs Hart said in a hushed tone before giving Margaret another tight hug. "I love you." Mrs Hart murmured as she let Margaret go and let her leave on her way to work.

In a vain hope of not being seen again by The Grim Reaper, Margaret laid low as she walked through a busy Getting Street while reaching the factory. There were men in the suits and the fedoras around the street, Margaret could feel that their eyes were on her as she walked fast to the factory.

Margaret's heart was racing at the same time that her breath was quickening, she wanted to get to the factory as soon as possible away from the stares of the men in the suits until she felt someone grab her from behind her.

Having no time to scream, she remained silent when the person brought her into an unoccupied street and away from the view of the men. The person calmly put their hands off her and let her see their identity. Margaret was shocked, it was Mad Max from the factory who had taken her off Getting Street. She wanted to scream but once again, she knew that her scream would attract the attention of the men that were still on Getting Street.

"Miss, I am not going to hurt you. I know what you saw, last night. I know that you saw The Grim Reaper kill Mikey Carey on your way home from the factory." Mad Max Harvey calmly said in a suave voice, Margaret was thinking that Mad Max was not who what Carol described him to be.

"H-how do you know about it?" once she calmed down, Margaret saw to asking Mad Max on how he came to know about last night.

"I have a safe house around the corner from where you saw him kill the fella. One of me lads saw you run from The Grim Reaper and told me about you. Whatever shit that people have told about me, it's partly true but I don't brand people unless it is the last resort." Mad Max said with a gentle smile on his handsome face. He had dark short hair with piercing blue eyes, Margaret began to relax in his presence.

"I saw you at the factory yesterday." Margaret said. Mad Max chuckled when she told him that she'd seen him at the factory when he had been angry with Mr Harrington.

"Yes about that, the fella tried to bribe one of me men into selling shit. My lad told me and I went around to tell him that we didn't need his shit." Mad Max chuckled once again which his comment made Margaret laugh. It was true that Mr Harrington was dumb when it came to selling of his products which were overly priced for a woman to buy.

"May, if you will let me protect you from The Grim Reaper, I can promise you that we will keep you away from him. I stay true to my word and I will hurt anyone who try to go near you with bad purpose." Mad Max had used Margaret's pet name that was used by her mother but she liked it when people called her May. It was a fitting name for her.

"So, will you do it?" Mad Max asked again with much patience, it showed May that he was a patient man unless people constantly pushed his buttons. She was beginning to trust the dark-haired man.

"Yes Max, I'll do it." May smiled for the first time since yesterday before she unfortunately watched The Grim Reaper kill Mikey Carey for something that she did not want to know about it nor she did need to.

It was now official that May Hart was now hiding from The Grim Reaper and his cronies with the help from Mad Max Harvey, another gangster of the London underworld. She felt safe for now under him and his men, Mad Max seemed to be a good man but she knew that he could be the monster that people make him out to be if his buttons were pushed.