Lucy had been frantically running down Fleet Street, thankful that she was able to escape the dreadful Judge Turpin's grasp. She ran as fast as she could, feeling a stinging pain in her sides. She was extremely short on breath, and the tight corset that she had on wasn't helping with the problem. She coughed as she ran, tears building up, and eventually finding their way down her cheeks. She ran back to her home, just above Mrs. Lovett's Pie Shop.
She burst through the door, not surprised to see that no one was there except for Mrs. Lovett.
"Nellie!"
She screamed in between her sobs.
"First he takes Ben away from me..... And now he's trying to get his hands on me!"
Her English accent was strong, but her words were barely understandable from the condition she was in.
"I have to hide!"
The tears were now streaming down her face. Nellie knew that they wouldn't have much time, so she had to hide Lucy quickly.
"Go get Johanna!" Nellie was almost as scared as Lucy now. She had been terrified of the Judge since he had sent Ben away, and she knew that he wanted Lucy. Lucy ran up the side stairs, quickly grabbing the one year old Johanna out of her cradle.
Nellie had followed her up, giving her some money.
"Here, take this. Go to the docks, get on a boat. If you have to hide on one, do it, just get out of here."
Lucy didn't particularly want to leave London behind. She had hopes that Benjamin would some day return, and they could be a family again. She let out a soft whimper, but knew that what Mrs. Lovett was suggesting was only for the best. She nodded, turning and running quickly down the stairs. She almost tripped half way down, but caught herself. Thankfully, Johanna was cradled in her arms, so she wasn't harmed.
Lucy ran until she got to the docks, then saw a sailor who had been loading things onto his ship. She quickly ran on, hiding some where down beneath the deck. She didn't care where she ended up, as long as she was far away from Judge Turpin.
Nellie went back downstairs, shaking her head. She knew that this would happen some day, but she didn't think that it would be so soon. It was such a pity that Ben had been sent away. She had always been so fond of him, wishing it was her instead of Lucy, but she knew that she couldn't change that, and she knew that they were happy together. She let out a heavy sigh, then leaned her elbow on the counter, resting her head in her hand. She closed her eyes, feeling a bit tired, then heard the door swing open. She gasped, looking up in surprise to see Judge Turpin.
"Sir." She curtsied, but she knew why he was there.
"Where is she, Lovett?" He glared, stepping closer to the counter.
Her eyes made her look completely innocent, and she knew that if he found out that she had told her to run away, he would kill her. She smiled softly, looking directly into his eyes. "I thought she was with you, Sir?"
His glare faded into a bit more of a sympathetic look, seeing the innocence in her eyes. He signaled for her to come around the counter, to stand in front of him. She did, not wanting to disobey him at a time like this. She knew that she had to distract him, but wasn't sure how.
He looked down at her, seeing how innocent she looked; how pale and beautiful she was. His looks of anger quickly turned into a smile, as he advanced on her, grabbing her wrist firmly. "Well Nellie, I think you should come with me."
She gasped, thinking that she was caught. By the way he was smirking, she was sure that she would be dead before the night was over. She closed her eyes and tried to pull away from him, gasping and opening them again when he didn't let go of her.
"No sir.. I need to stay here."
She tried to smile, just as the Beadle walked in. The Judge smiled seeing his accomplice, and nodded toward Nellie. "Bring her."