Horsey Street is the Southwark location of the warehouse loft that shelters Edgar and Nick during their flight from the law, and later becomes the place where Stella is found by police. Its narrow streets and working yards form a world of concealment: a fugitive’s refuge, a makeshift home, and finally the setting of Stella’s return to custody.

Setting and Nearby Places

From the loft, Stella can wander into a yard beside a covered fruit and vegetable market. Across the way, a high glass roof rests on slender metal pillars with elaborate metalwork; fenced bays hold stacks of crates and boxes. One morning, she watches men load sacks of potatoes onto a dusty lorry, then moves away when she realizes they have noticed her. Avoiding attention has become instinctive.

A walk down Horsey Street toward the river brings her to Southwark Cathedral in London, unexpectedly set at the end of the surrounding narrow streets and alleys. She finds quiet there among people praying or talking, the saints in their niches, and the tomb of the first English poet. The hour refreshes her, but she tells neither Edgar nor Nick about the visit, suspecting they would have little interest in the cathedral so close to their hideout.

Life in the Loft

The warehouse loft is not entirely cut off from the world. On Stella’s second or third day there, she and Edgar are eating sardines on toast with Nick at noon when someone knocks at the door. Stella rises in alarm, but Edgar remains at the table; Nick identifies the visitor as Tony and lets him in. Edgar’s casual response surprises her: even fugitives have visitors.

The loft also places Stella close to the other people in Edgar and Nick’s circle. Edgar now speaks and acts with an authority she had not seen on the estate. Nick often defers to him when serious matters arise, while the other men show Edgar respect. Stella listens rather than joining their discussions, and sometimes studies books of reproductions at the table. The surrounding life has its own constraints: she and Edgar cannot go out in daylight for fear of recognition and arrest. For Stella, the danger intensifies the attraction of her new life as an artist, even as it narrows the couple’s movements.

Stella’s Return and the Police

After leaving the loft, Stella eventually decides that it is absurd to be hiding from Edgar rather than from the hospital authorities. In the rain, she takes a bus to Blackfriars and walks to Horsey Street. Boys kicking a ball against a wall stop to stare as she turns into the alley. Their silence does not ease her dread; when she reaches the passage into the building, they have followed her into the yard.

The loft door stands open, and men are inside. Stella turns to leave, but one catches up with her, recognizes her as Mrs. Raphael, and calls to the others. They lead her upstairs. Edgar is absent, and the men do not appear to know where he is; once they establish that Stella cannot tell them, they do not question her there and then. The scene reverses the loft’s function: the refuge she had shared with Edgar becomes the place where she is recognized and returned to official custody.

Edgar’s departure and Stella’s arrival occur almost on top of one another. After she has left, he returns to work alone on the sculpture of her head for three days. On the fourth day, warned that police are coming, he flees with clothes and books in a duffel bag. The police arrive only minutes later, and Stella appears after he has gone. They impound the studio’s contents, including the drawings and the head Edgar left behind. Horsey Street thus holds the material trace of their life together even as their paths separate there: Stella is found, while Edgar escapes again.