Jack the Ripper Hits Walford (Scenes 89-90)
Dedicated to: DONNA - thanks for reading
(Scene Eighty-nine: Kat arrives home to find her father making coffee for the family).
Kat: When did Belinda say she and Neville were coming home after their holiday in Australia?
Charlie: Not sure, love. Why?
Kat: Well I’m going to ring Neville’s office and find out.
Big Mo: Why?
Kat: Because I don’t want Zoë here until whoever it is caught.
Lynne: Rumours are that they suspect Dennis.
Kat: Well that’s wild speculation Lynne. They could’ve taken him in for some other dodgy thing.
Big Mo: I doubt it, Kat. Not when you think what a big case they’re investigating.
Kat: Well anyway, I don’t want my daughter around Walford any longer until we know for sure that whoever is responsible is behind bars or dead! So as soon as Nev and Belinda are back home, she’s going to stay with them. Either that or I’m taking her away somewhere myself.
Big Mo: You don’t think the murderer will target Zo do you?
Kat: I’m not going to risk finding out!
(They agree that it’s better be safe than sorry).
(Scene Ninety: The Vic - 30th September - Alfie and Gem N are in bed together).
Alfie: Have to do a bit of stock taking this morning.
Gem N: Well I think I’ll just stay here.
Alfie: Second thoughts, perhaps the stock taking can wait a while. It’s too early for Phil or Peggy to pop around.
(The bedroom window is open and they can hear the market stalls being set up and the sounds of workmen outside).
Alfie: So tell me, are you working for DCI Marsden?
(Gem looks at him in surprise).
Alfie: Oh come on, Gem! You can’t deny it. I saw the way you and she were together, and the fact that you went into the ladies with her and the officers. Roxy in a terrible mess was she?
Gem N: Yes you could say that.
Alfie: Worse than Janine?
Gem N: Just a bit.
Alfie: I’ve never known you to be so evasive about things.
Gem N: It’s not ethical really to speak about such things. The murderer’s still at large.
Alfie: Unless it’s that Dennis. I always felt he was a shifty character.
Gem N: I don’t know why he was arrested.
(Alfie can tell she’s lying).
Alfie: So he has been arrested? I was of the assumption that he was just taken in for questioning.
Gem N: Yeah you’re probably right.
(Alfie looks at her silently then gets out of bed).
Gem N: Where are you going?
Alfie: Well no point staying here. Look Gem, I can’t be dealing with this sort of thing okay, you and I go back a long way and I thought you could talk to me about anything. I’d also hoped that you’d came here to offer a helping hand and a listening ear for Nana but clearly there’s another purpose you being at Walford.
(Gem N grabs him by the arm).
Gem N: Please don’t go. All right. I’ll tell you. But you mustn’t breathe a word to anyone.
(He crawls back into bed with her).
Gem N: Of course I took the opportunity to visit you all. You and Spencer mean everything to me. I didn’t think you’d still feel the same__
Alfie: You know that I do, I always would. You never forget your first love.
(Gem N smiles).
Gem N: DCI Marsden contacted me and made me a very attractive proposition. I love the dancing aspect but had been tired of punters with their various problems. Roxy was piling more and more clients on to me and although the money was attractive enough I didn’t need to think too long when Marsden told me about these murderers. Do you remember when we first met Alfie? What I told you about happened in Yorkshire?
Alfie: You’re going back some time now, Gem. I mean half the time I can’t remember what happened last week let alone all those years ago.
Gem N: You make me feel very old!
(They laugh).
Gem N: Well I’ll remind you. When I was a child and in my teens I used to visit relatives in Yorkshire. Once we stayed with my uncle for a few days and it was during this time, the Yorkshire Ripper claimed one of his victims. I had visions of that incident, strong ones almost as if I was standing there at the time witnessing what he was doing. It was awful, and I hoped I would never experience anything like that again.
I couldn’t see Peter Sutcliffe properly in my visions but was able to give the police a description. They didn’t take me seriously though and although they must’ve known they’d questioned somebody fitting that description a number of times, they released him and he just carried on killing.
We stayed in a B & B near to where a great aunt of mine lived. It turned out when Peter Sutcliffe was eventually arrested for the Ripper murders, he lived only a few doors away from this B & B.
It’s a chilling thought that my mother and I walked along the same footpaths of him and from the visions that occurred, the same evening it would seem as the poor victim. I believe to this day, it was my presence in that vicinity at the time which stirred up these psychic energies within me.
Through the years, I’ve learnt to train them and even block them out if I choose. I’ve helped out on a number of occasions and my most accomplished fete was when I enabled the police to find a missing little girl, who if it hadn’t been for me being able to visualise where she was being held would surely be dead the following day had she not been found!
But I prefer not to have my abilities publicised. Unfortunately at Angie’s Den I exposed myself and I know I aroused suspicions. I did so hope that me being there would’ve prevented another murder. Roxy wasn’t a very likeable person, but she wasn’t always like that. Life and circumstances change people, at the end of the day she was somebody’s daughter too. Not many will be mourning her death…but I could’ve saved her__
Alfie: No, darling, you did everything humanly possible.
Gem N: But it wasn’t enough. She died. And he’s going to keep on killing.
Alfie: Well correct me if I’m wrong, didn’t Jack the Ripper only kill five people? I mean Peter Sutcliffe was worse by far than the ripper of 1888 and this person whoever he is, is copying is that right?
Gem N: You’ve been reading the papers and watching Sky TV. Marsden and Scotland Yard have tried to keep as much of this out of the press as they can. But some blabber mouth has told certain reporters about the state Janine was in and the stories have been built up around that. The fact is Alfie, I’ve done some reading on Jack the Ripper and although the general consensus of opinion amongst ripperologists is that he only claimed five, some believe he killed perhaps twenty plus…some murders before the first canonical victim of 31st August 1888 and then some dismembered victims after that of Mary Kelly. And even if he only kills five, that means I have to help the police prevent another two deaths. And the fact of the matter is, Alfie, I don’t know if I can.
(Her voice breaks and she looks away).
Alfie: You experienced powerful sensations at Yorkshire, being here now aren’t you feeling the same powerful sensations?
Gem N: Not exactly the same. I have visions constantly about him…but never actually see him. And there’s so many dodgy characters living here. Dennis, Grant, Phil, Joe, Jamie…and some gangland boss by the name of Andy Hunter.
Alfie: Yeah, him. Don’t suppose it’s him do you? He’s courting Kat Slater now off and on. More off than on at the moment actually.
Gem N: I don’t believe he’s responsible. But the amount of people he’s put away is anybody’s guess!
(She looks at Alfie carefully).
Gem N: Any chance of you and Kat getting back together?
Alfie: We were never actually together, Gem. So how can we get back together?
Gem N: Well good.
(Alfie looks at her astonished. Gem N grins from ear to ear).
Gem N: Another problem I have is that whenever I have a certain emotional involvement, my powers are not as acute as they should be.
Alfie: Emotional involvement?
Gem N: Like you said, you never forget your first love. And seeing Spencer now…he’s grown to be such a handsome young man…do you think it’s too late for me to become a mother to him?
Alfie: It might be better not to tell him anything.
Gem N: But Nana knows.
Alfie: Nana knows all the sordid details, yes, but it’s all locked deep in her memory somewhere. The doctors talk of long-term and short-term memory loss…further tests have to be done to establish how advanced her dementia is….God, Gem, I’m so glad that you’re here! And yes, I want to build our relationship up fresh!
(They both dive beneath the blankets and giggle like a couple of teenagers in the throws of passion).