Free Salvation by Harriet Steel

Bel had finished feeding the baby, she ate hers cautiously, snuffling all the while. When the last morsel had been scraped from the pot and eaten, Jack handed over a penny. Janey slipped it into the pocket of her apron.
    ‘You can come back and sleep by the fire tonight if you want. I can’t promise any more to eat, though.’
    Jack shrugged. ‘We’ll see.’
    ‘Where d’you want to go?’ he asked when he and Tom were back in the street.
    ‘Some players came to Salisbury before I left and I spoke to their chief man. I think he might help me. I don’t know if they’re back in London yet but could we go and find out? The theatre’s called the Unicorn . ’
    ‘I know it.’
    As he followed Jack through the maze of streets and out of the city towards Shoreditch, Tom’s pulse quickened with excitement, but when at last they reached the Unicorn, they found the round wooden building deserted. The limp flags depicting the mythical horned beast flapped listlessly against the poles on top of its four turrets. Tom’s spirits sank.
    ‘Maybe they’ll be back in a few days,’ Jack said cheerfully. ‘You’ll know when they are, ’cause they always blow the trumpets to show the play’s about to start.’
    On the way back to the city, Tom noticed a large, wooden building. The noise coming from behind its gates stopped him in his tracks. ‘What’s that?’ he asked.
    ‘Sackerson and Harry Hunks. Come on, let’s go and watch.’
    ‘Ha’penny each,’ said the man at the gate. Jack pulled out a penny and the man tested it with his teeth before letting them in.
    In a ring strewn with sawdust and surrounded by a paling fence, two black bears prowled around each other. Tom had seen dancing bears when the fairs came to Salisbury but compared with them, these were Goliaths. Both had scarred muzzles and one had a badly torn ear. Jack nudged Tom. ‘That one’s Harry Hunks. He won last time.’
    Letting out a roar that made Tom jump, Harry Hunks reared up on his hind legs and crashed down on the other bear. Sackerson flung up his great head and with a snarl, sank his teeth into his attacker’s throat. Soon all Tom could see was a whirling mass of black fur and slashing claws. The excited yells and cheers from the crowd grew louder as deep crimson patches darkened the ground.
    At last, the fight slackened. Sackerson broke away and loped to the fence near where Tom and Jack stood. The bear’s eyes were bloodshot and blood streamed from a great gash in his shoulder. He skulked against the fence as Harry Hunks prepared to charge.
    Tom’s gorge rose. He had always hated seeing any creature tormented and it was obvious this one was too weakened to fight any longer. Then to his relief, just as it seemed the bear’s fate was sealed, a group of men rushed into the ring carrying a strong net. They threw it over Harry Hunks and in spite of the bear’s struggles, managed to drag him over to a wheeled cage. The iron door clanged shut after him and they turned their attention to the cowed Sackerson. Collapsed on his belly in the dust, he was easily trapped with the net. When the men dragged him from the ring, the crowd hooted and clapped. Tom noticed for the first time that his shirt was soaked with cold sweat. He was glad of the animal warmth of the crowd as he followed Jack out into the street and on to a tavern nearby.
     
    *
     
    Days turned into weeks and Tom grew more accustomed to life in London. He earned a little money where he could and, at Janey’s suggestion, came to live at the house in Angel Lane. To supplement the small income she made from taking in clothes to mend, he gave her a share of his earnings in return for his bed and board. There was still no sign of the Unicorn resuming business but he didn’t give up hope.
    One hot afternoon Tom was in the yard at the tavern where he did a few hours’ work each week, chopping wood for the ovens. He straightened his back and rested his axe against the woodpile, running