A Cockney's Journey (2 page)

CHAPTER TWO
    My favourite pastime was playing football in the sand pit with all my mates. In this case, the sand pit was a large disused area that the council were going to change into a car park but never did. A four-foot brick wall with a gate surrounded it, so we painted goals at each end. I have many happy memories of the years I spent playing in the pit. One night in particular stands out. It was a warm summer’s evening at about 7:30 p.m. and we were all playing football. When I say all, I mean there were six of us playing three-a-side! Tony jumped over the wall and called Brian and me over. Tony never played football; in fact, he was the only one of my mates that didn’t enjoy the game.
    “You both gonna play that stupid game all night?” he whispered, not wanting the others to hear him slagging off the game.
    “Yeah,” I replied, “unless you’ve got something better for us to do?”
    “As it happens,” Tony said, “I have.”
    While we were chatting, the other guys decided to call it a day, packed up and went home, leaving the three of us deep in conversation.
    “Well,” Brian said, “what you got in mind, Tony?”
    “Yeah it better be good,” I said sarcastically. “Our match is over.”
    “Have you ever heard of the Brockley Jack?” Tony asked.
    “Yeah, I have. Why?” I asked curiously.
    “So have I,” said Brian.
    “Well, there’s a story in the local paper that some kind of devil worshipping is going on there, with some sort of sacrifices,” Tony reckoned raising his eyebrows and smiling. (For the record, Brockley Jack is a graveyard in Nunhead, South London, and was notorious for black-magic worshippers in the late sixties.)
    “Really!” Brian exclaimed. “That’s interesting. I suppose you want to check it out?” he asked with a twinkle in his eye.
    “Yeah why not, it’ll be a laugh.” chuckled Tony.
    “What do you think, Eddie?” Brian asked me.
    “I’m up for it.” I replied enthusiastically.
    “Ok.” Tony said. “Let’s meet back here in an hour.”
    And so later that evening we all met up at the sand pit. It was a little after 9 p.m., just as it was starting to get dark.
    I was late, and Tony, Brian and little Tommy Young were already waiting for me. I gave them my apologies and muttered something about getting grief about coming back out. What I didn’t tell them was that I had to wash up the dishes and clean my room.
    “So you’re coming along as well, Tom?” I said, trying to hide my disappointment.
    “Yeah,” he replied. “Should be fun.”
    I looked at him and thought, what the fuck was Tony playing at bringing that plum along, but didn’t say it. “Fine,” I replied.
    “OK, let’s make tracks,” ordered Tony.
    We were following Tony like lost sheep and had been walking for at least 45 minutes. I was wondering how much further there was to go when suddenly Brian pointed out the large iron gates up ahead.
    “There it is, just up there,” he shouted.
    What a sight; dark and gloomy, sending shivers down my spine. The cemetery was surrounded by thick dense woodland with a path running uphill, alongside it. The boundary was a York-stone wall with an iron fence around it.
    “Did the Romans build this place ’cos it looks quite ancient?” I asked. Before Brian could reply, Tommy jumped in.
    “Yeah they did. Don’t you know your history, Eddie?”
    I stood there with this vision of my hands around that plonker’s neck.
    “Obviously not,” I replied. “Anyway lads, how do we get in?”
    “Up the pathway there’s a hole in the fence,” Tony whispered. “All we got to do is give each other a bunk-up onto the wall.”
    “How do you know there’s a hole in the fence?” Tommy asked.
    “I was up here yesterday having a look around.”
    “Did you get inside?” I asked.
    “No, there were too many people about,” Tony said.
    As we slowly walked up the pathway, my mind was suddenly elsewhere…
    “Did you break your sister’s bike, you little shit?” my father screamed at me.
    “No, I’ve been playing football in the pit all afternoon with my friends.”
    My sister was sitting on the sofa sobbing her eyes out; both my brothers sat there with blank, innocent expressions. Here we go again. Blame me. Apparently one of us had broken the padlock and chain and rode the bike around the estate, buckling the front wheel.
    “It wasn’t us, Dad, honest,” my two brothers pleaded innocently.
    He looked at me with coldness and hatred flickering behind his eyes. He stood up swinging the chain. He smashed the chain over my head, and then grabbed me by the throat.
    “You little bastard,” he shouted. I felt a trickle run down my check and under my chin. He let go his grasp, knowing there were witnesses watching. I slumped to the floor. Quickly jumping up, I ran out of the house. It was only when I was outside that I felt the pain. Funny thing fear, it renders you useless and, of course, I pissed myself again. My father struck so much fear into me that I often wet myself during a beating.
    I was jerked back to the present with the sound of Tommy moaning and Brian bellowing.
    “Go on, Tony. Pull him up.”
    I looked up to see Tommy dangling, trying to get a foothold on the wall. I ran over and pushed Tommy’s heels up.
    “Put some effort into it,” I said. “For fuck’s sake, Tom.”
    Tony managed to pull him onto the top of the wall and Tommy jumped through the gap in the fence.
    “Arghhh,” Tommy yelled out. “I’ve landed in a load of bloody nettles.”
    “Come on Ed. Let’s have ya.” Tony held out his hand and pulled me up, no probs. Once on the wall I dropped into the cemetery. Brian and Tony followed. All of a sudden we were in total darkness; there were no lights anywhere, not even the street lamps shone past the wall. I had a very uneasy feeling in my gut.
    “Nothing but bloody trees,” whispered Brian.
    “Come on,” Tony gestured, waving his hand. “This way.”
    As we clambered through the thick trees and bushes, an eerie silence fell and I must admit to feeling a bit spooked. We came into a clearing and I realised we were standing amongst hundreds of tombstones. I could just about see a few paces in front of me and the moon was casting an unearthly glow. Suddenly, a shaft of thin light appeared. As I stood staring at its point of origin, it went dark again.
    “Better save the batteries,” Tony said. “Anyone else bring a torch?” he asked.
    “I’ve got a lighter and a packet of fags,” I told him.
    “Shit,” whispered Brian. “I forgot my torch!”
    Tommy stood there motionless without saying a word. We ventured deeper.
    “This place is massive,” Tony whispered.
    “Yeah, you’re not kidding,” I said uneasily.
    “Easy to get lost in here, especially in the dark,” Tony laughed.
    
No fear, that bloke, none at all.
    “Fuck me, what’s this?” Brian shrieked. “Someone’s opened up this grave. Look!” I walked over to where Brian was standing and saw that the coffin had been smashed open. The earth was thrown all over the place.
    “Looks like whoever did this was in a big hurry,” I muttered, shocked. Tommy said he felt sick and wanted to go home.
    “Don’t be a tart,” barked Brian. “You’re here now and that’s it, right?”
    “But I want to go home,” he sighed.
    “OK, let him go,” Tony said, “but don’t tell anyone we were in here, otherwise I’ll thump ya”.
    “I’m not going on my own. You coming, Ed?” he pleaded. “It’s too dark to see where I’m going.” He looked completely distraught.
    “No chance,” I replied. “You wanted to come with us and we’re not going yet.” Tommy reluctantly backed down, agreeing to stay.
    “Who do you reckon could have done this to the grave?” Brian asked.
    “Don’t know,” Tony replied nervously. “Could have been grave robbers or some sort of devil worshippers.”
    Tony’s remark didn’t sit too well with me. I wondered what would happen if the people who had done this to the grave were still in the cemetery. What chance did we have of getting away? I mean, we only had a torch and a bloody lighter.
    “I didn’t think they existed,” said Brian.
    “They don’t; only in horror films,” Tom reckoned, trying to convince himself.
    “You should read the papers. They exist all right,” Tony said. “OK, let’s keep going.”
    After a while we came upon a locked iron gate. A large chain and padlock hung around it, fixed to a clasp on the wall. It looked like the entrance went underground.
    “This chain and padlock looks new,” Tony observed.
    “What’s this for, Ed?” asked Tommy.
    “Well, I think this leads to the crypt, where they keep the coffins.”
    “If that’s the case, there must be some sort of church in the grounds somewhere,” Brian suggested.
    “Come on then, let’s investigate. Let’s see if we can find the other end of this tunnel,” Tony said excitedly.
    As we searched the cemetery, we completely lost track of the time…
    “What’s that noise?” Tommy yelled as a loud sound rang out through the still night.
    “It’s a bloody church bell, it’s midnight!” Tony screeched.
    We stood there is total silence for what seemed like an eternity.
Midnight. God, I’m in trouble again.
I’ll have to climb in the bathroom window to get in the house. It’s a good job I left the clasp undone. He will never know, as his shift doesn’t end until 7 a.m. and by then I’ll be tucked up in bed. Or so I thought.
    I remembered the last time I did that; I went to a party at Billy Middleton’s house at the top of Denman Road. His parents were in Spain on holiday. What a night that was. That’s when I first met Anne. Gorgeous she was, I mean, top draw. However, I didn’t know my old man would come home from his shift at 1 a.m. instead of 7 a.m. Apparently he felt unwell. He caught me climbing through the window in the early hours of the morning. He really laid into me that night, hitting me like I was a punch bag. He threw me all around the bathroom. He punched me in the nose so hard my nose exploded everywhere. Then the nutter grabbed me from behind, pushing my arms up my back, dragging me over the bath. He then started ducking me under the half-filled bath, trying to drown me. I was screaming; swallowing bath water as I went under. Only the intervention of my mother, opening the bathroom door to see what all the commotion was about, saved me!
    “Over there,” shouted Brian. “Look, it’s a church.”
    In the shadow of the moonlight I could just about see a building.
    “Not very big,” I remarked. I’d imagined it to be vast, but it was only about the size of a very large house. As we got closer, it became clearer. It was a strange-looking church, if it was a church at all. The walls were made of the same bricks as the wall around the cemetery. The windows were narrow and oblong, like a castle. There were these large solid oak double doors at the side, with big black iron fittings and iron studs were embedded all over the doors.
    “This is definitely ancient,” I said to everyone. The walls were filthy, with cobwebs everywhere. Tony shone his torch up the face of the building.
    “Look,” he said. “Some sort of flat roof.” I looked up. It was like a parapet wall extending out from the building, about twelve feet high.