by Annie Groves
Alice rubbed her hand. ‘You’re doing really well. You just have to give it another go. Wait for the contraction then push into it. Big breath, now.’
Mattie screamed as she gave it all she was worth, but still there was no progress.
Edith grabbed her torch and shone it on Mattie. ‘Come on, even in this light I can see something’s happening. It’s nearly here, Mattie, honestly. Give it one big effort. All right, one, two, three …’
Mattie screamed even louder and Kathleen turned her face away, not wanting her best friend to see the tears of anxiety coursing down her face. She couldn’t help it. She had been holding herself in check all afternoon, and now that she was relieved of responsibility, she recognised that she was wrung out. But Mattie didn’t need to know that.
Edith pursed her lips. ‘Kath,’ she said quietly, ‘go back into the kitchen and get Flo’s biggest cooking pot and fill it with cold water. Quickly now.’
Startled, Kathleen did as she was asked.
Alice flashed a glance at Edith but then composed her face and encouraged her patient to try again. ‘Next one’s coming – here we go, big push. Hold my arm tight.’ Mattie gripped her like a vice and again gave it all she was worth, but still there was no baby.
Then as Kathleen came back, balancing the biggest stewpot in front of her, by the light of the fully open door Edith could see a glimpse of what she was looking for. ‘Here we go, Mattie. That’s the top of baby’s head showing. Almost there! Big push!’
Mattie, at the end of her endurance, lay back against the cushions, gathered her energy and gave one last almighty push, yelling at the top of her voice as she did so.
‘Yes! The head’s coming through!’ Edith got into position and neatly prepared to give the baby a helping hand. Gently she pulled as the shoulders emerged, pausing discreetly to loop the umbilical cord from where it had wound itself around the child’s neck. She registered that Alice was giving her anxious glances but said nothing, giving all her concentration to the baby, to see if it would cry or not. Finally, the body and legs slithered out and she could lift it. It was small, but perfect, its hair dark, and …
‘It’s a boy,’ she proclaimed, all the joy flooding back now he was here. ‘A beautiful baby boy. I’ll just clear his mouth …’ She surreptitiously moved to one side where the light was better, cleared his airwaves and patted him on the back. After a few moments a small noise, almost like a mew, came out. Then, progressively louder, until he sent up a wail. Edith had never been so glad to hear a baby’s cry.
‘A boy!’ echoed Alice, delighted, setting aside her fears. She had known what was on Edith’s mind. She had planned to do her best if the baby needed reviving by alternating hot and cold baths – except they would have had to make do with Flo’s big metal pot.
‘Let me see him!’ Mattie pushed herself up onto her elbows with an energy she didn’t know she still had. Edith leant forward, presenting the child to his mother. Mattie gasped at the perfection of him.
‘A son for Lennie,’ she breathed. ‘He’ll be so proud. He’d have loved another girl, but to have a boy is extra special … he is all right, isn’t he? After all our worry?’
‘He is,’ Edith confirmed. ‘A little small but that’s only natural as he was a bit early. We can weigh him later, but he’s got everything in working order as far as I can see.’
‘Let me hold him,’ Mattie said, wriggling into a seated position. ‘I have to see his face again. To tell what sort of name he should have.’
Kathleen leaned forward to see the newborn. ‘Will you call him Lennie as well?’
‘He can have that as a middle name,’ Mattie decided. ‘I’m going to think about a name he can have all of his own. But first I think I’ll sleep.’
Edith stepped forward to relieve her of the baby. ‘You do that,’ she said. ‘We’ll make a little cot for him from this box. There, you tuck in that towel, Kath, and he’ll be snug as a bug in a rug.’
Once the baby settled, Kathleen brought out the new flask of tea she’d made while hunting for the big pot, and the last of the paste sandwiches. Then, as the three of them huddled on the wooden bench opposite the now-sleeping Mattie, they caught the sound of planes overhead once more – and the start of the next round of bombs.
On and on went the bombing, and yet the baby and an exhausted Mattie slept through it. Kathleen grew more anxious as the raid continued, stirring on her one hard cushion. ‘It’s no good,’ she whispered in a brief break in the cacophony. ‘I should try to fetch Brian. My neighbour doesn’t mind having him in the daytime, but she won’t want him overnight. I didn’t bring enough clothes or rusks either.’
‘Does she have a shelter?’ Alice asked quietly.
Kathleen nodded. ‘Yes, a really small one, or I’d have been round to get him and Gillian before now. But if this is set to go on … I don’t know what to do for the best.’
Edith pulled a face. ‘Now that Mattie is safely delivered we ought to try to go back anyway. We might be needed elsewhere. Can’t say as I’m looking forward to it, but I reckon we should.’
‘If we aren’t in here, then there would be room for Brian and Gillian,’ Alice pointed out. ‘You’ve got all these cushions and towels – you could make up little beds for them. If only we could get them back safely.’
‘It’s only five minutes away, if that,’ Kathleen said. ‘If there’s a proper break in the bombing I’m going to risk it. I can’t stand the thought of being apart from them a moment longer. Especially when I saw that look on Mattie’s face when she held her son. I can’t have Brian away from me for all this time. He’ll be scared and Mrs Bishop won’t be enough for him.’
Alice sat up straighter. ‘Then what we’ll do is all three of us go into the house. Edie or I will wait inside and then two of us can run to Jeeves Place and fetch the children back. How’s that? The raid can’t go on at this intensity much longer. We’ll make a run for it.’ She had no idea if this was the right thing to do, but they could not let Mattie sleep alone with the new baby and wake up to nobody. At least this way, if the worst happened, one of them would still be here to help her.
Edith stood up. ‘Come on. It seems to have gone quieter. Let’s do it while the going is good.’
Swiftly the three of them ran into the house, hands over their mouths against the all-pervasive smell of burning. Edith swung her torch as they reached the hall, so that they didn’t crash into the bikes and knock them over. ‘Shall I go?’ she asked Alice. ‘The children know me a bit better than you.’
‘Yes, but I’m taller and I can carry more of their things,’ Alice pointed out, as Kathleen cast them a look of frustrated despair. Their discussion was cut short by a knocking at the door. ‘Who’s that?’ Alice breathed, gripped with a fear there was bad news about Flo and Stan on their journey back from the south coast – or, by some dreadful twist of fate, Joe.
Kathleen went to open up. ‘Billy!’ she cried, and it was all she could do not to fall upon him in delighted relief. If ever there was a time when she could have wished for his reliable, dependable face, this was it.
Billy stepped inside. ‘I shouldn’t really be here but I thought I’d check everything was all right. Brendan filled me in on what was happening. How’s Mattie?’
Edith hurriedly told him, as Kathleen twisted with anxiety beside her. ‘And so now we need to get the other children back,’ she finished.
Billy nodded. ‘It’s no picnic out there, you know. I’ll be all right, I’ve got my tin hat.’ He tapped it and smiled. ‘I’ll come with you, Kath, then you two can stay here till we get back. That way we’re as covered as we can be. How does that sound?’
‘Really, Billy? Would you?’ Kathleen could hardly believe her ears. She would trust him above anyone to keep her boy safe.
‘Of course,’ he said seriously. ‘Come on, let’s go while we have a chance. See you girls later.’ Taking Kathleen’s arm he hurried her out of the front door, leaving Edith and Alice to keep th
eir fingers crossed.
It felt like hours but it was actually only a matter of minutes before they returned with the two toddlers safely in their arms, Billy with Gillian and Kathleen with Brian, whatever bits and pieces they could bring with them stowed in a shopping bag slung across Billy’s broad back. Mrs Bishop had been evidently relieved to hand over the children after having had the responsibility of minding them through the lengthy raid. Kathleen had been glad to take them away and to say goodnight to her useful but frequently miserable neighbour. The toddlers were all but oblivious, having nodded off, still blessed with the ability to sleep through anything.
Now Kathleen stood in the Banhams’ front doorway, having settled the little ones and then having waved goodbye to the nurses, who had pedalled off back to Victory Walk, where they fully expected to be called out to tend to injuries resulting from the raids. ‘I’d better send you on your way then, Billy,’ she breathed, filled with gratitude and admiration for what he had done. ‘You better get back on patrol, you’ll be needed tonight.’
‘Reckon I will be, an’ all,’ he replied. ‘You know what they’re saying? The first raid this afternoon dropped so many bombs on the docks and around that the fires guided the second lot over. Bloody marvellous, we get it in the neck twice in one day.’
Kathleen shook her head sadly. ‘We’ll find out the damage tomorrow, won’t we.’
‘We will. Kath, I’d better go,’ Billy said, his voice heavy with reluctance. His eyes shone as he looked at her.
‘Thanks again, Billy.’ She almost leaned in to his face, but common sense pulled her back. Despite what he had done for her and the children this evening, he wasn’t hers and it wouldn’t be right, never mind what she truly wanted in her heart. She put her hand on his arm and gave it a little squeeze. ‘I won’t forget tonight, ever.’ Her eyes stayed locked on his for a precious moment longer and then she dropped her hand. ‘I’ll get back to the shelter. Goodnight, Billy.’
He waited until she had gone inside and shut the door, and then he turned to resume his duty. His shoulders slumped at being parted from her when every inch of him longed to stay, but then he stood straight again with pride. He had helped reunite the little family and they at least were safe for the rest of the evening.
Whether that would be the case for the other families around Dalston, he could not say. But he doubted it.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
The next day was Sunday and, despite the bombing having gone on for most of the night, many of the nurses went to church as usual. ‘I shan’t let the Luftwaffe stop me going about my usual business,’ Mary declared, dressed in a new coat with a stylish patent belt to show off her trim waist. ‘That would be to admit defeat. Are you coming, Alice?’
Alice nodded, and the two of them set off down the narrow corridor that led between the attic bedrooms. Edith, though, had decided to miss Mass; she felt she needed to catch up on her rest after the events of the previous day.
Plenty of the nurses reported back that there had been damage all over the area, and that the church hall was being used to accommodate anyone unlucky enough to have been made homeless in the raids. The vicar’s wife was organising a canteen to feed not only the homeless but any of the volunteer firefighters or other local service members who needed a hot drink or sandwich to tide them over until they could return home. Mary had offered to help but was gently turned down. The vicar’s wife was sure she would be needed in her professional capacity only too often.
‘Well, I tried,’ Mary said as she settled into an easy chair in the common room. ‘I don’t mind serving cups of tea to firemen, but I suppose I’m of more use as a nurse. They’ve got it all set up, Edith, you should go and see it. They’ve thought of everything – even little toys to keep the children amused.’
‘We must tell Billy, then he can direct people to go there, if he doesn’t know already,’ Edith replied. ‘He didn’t mention it yesterday – mind you, we had other things on our minds.’
Alice pulled up a chair beside them. ‘I wonder if I should write to Joe and tell him he’s got a new nephew. Mattie will be too busy with the baby, and who knows when Flo and Stan will be back? At least they aren’t relying on the trains.’
‘We heard that London Fields station’s been damaged – a high explosive hit the tracks,’ Mary reported. ‘Heaven knows what the big stations are like.’
Alice’s face creased with worry, but she knew there was nothing she could do. She just had to trust that they would return as soon as they could. ‘I might wait until they’ve chosen a name,’ she decided. ‘That would make sense.’ She looked up as Fiona swept across the room, clutching a pile of folders.
‘Everybody all right?’ the diminutive superintendent asked them. ‘My, we all took a bit of a pasting last night, didn’t we? Did you manage to catch some sleep? Can’t have my girls too tired and weary.’
They all nodded, and Fiona smiled. ‘That’s the spirit.’ Then, too busy to talk further, she was off again.
Fiona hurried up the stairs to her office, weary herself, but with no time to give in to the urge to sleep. There was simply too much to do. She was proud of the way her nurses had coped so far, but had a gut feeling that this was the beginning of the onslaught. Somehow she had to keep them up to scratch and fully ready for whatever the air raids might fling at them. Yesterday’s emergency had sparked an idea that she had long been harbouring but had not yet acted upon.
‘Send more nurses on specialist midwife training,’ she wrote in the notebook she always kept on one side of her desk. She paused. Somewhere she had read that there were bursaries for this. ‘Find details of funding,’ she scribbled, knowing that the more of her charges who could confidently deliver babies, the better. Not everyone would have been able to cope in the way that Alice and Edith had, in the restrictions of an Anderson shelter.
Edith couldn’t rest no matter what she did. She had tried staying in her room and lying down, but she just could not settle. She’d come down to the common room and picked up a book but couldn’t focus on the words. Her mind was in a whirl. She had been hoping to see Flo and Stan, to hear how Harry was. Had he recognised their voices and responded? Had there been more improvement? In her deepest heart she had longed for them to say he had spoken and asked for her, and they would be able to bring him home soon. Yet she knew that was about as likely as flying to the moon. Any improvements would be slow and she must not get her hopes up. All the same …
She put the book down and got to her feet. The only way to still her anxious thoughts would be physical activity of some kind. ‘Fancy a walk?’ she called over to Alice. ‘We could wander over to the Downs before dinner.’
‘Good idea.’ Alice swung her legs down from the stool she’d been resting them on, and stood up, shaking the creases out of her cotton skirt. She’d been so exhausted this morning that she hadn’t ironed it, but supposed nobody would notice, or mind if they did.
As they made their way along Victory Walk, they could still smell burning, as some of the fires had raged all night. Debris littered the road and pavement: glass, tiles, bricks, and an assortment of burnt shapes that could have been anything. ‘Glad I didn’t wear my sandals,’ Edith muttered, swerving to avoid a sharp shard which must have once been a window. ‘My toes would have been cut to ribbons.’
Other people had had the same idea and they noticed couples, family groups and solitary walkers all out to assess the damage that had been done. Some of the smaller children were running around, not caring that they’d had to sleep in shelters. The change in routine was a cause of excitement rather than fear. Their parents’ faces told a different story, many visibly exhausted. Others showed a quiet determination to have their Sunday walk as usual, raids or no raids.
Alice linked her arm through Edith’s and they wandered along the outer path of the Downs, the first of the fallen leaves crunching beneath their feet. The trenches that had been dug before the beginning of the war would have provided little shelter
from the severity of the raids the previous night. ‘I wonder how Mattie is feeling this morning,’ she said. ‘I hope she got more sleep than we did.’
Edith gave a brief laugh. ‘I didn’t really sleep at all until about four,’ she said. ‘What with the bombing, and the anti-aircraft guns. I thought I’d catch forty winks this morning but I couldn’t. I’m too wound up, wanting to hear how Harry is. I do hope his hospital hasn’t been hit.’
‘There wasn’t anything on the news about south coast cities,’ Alice said comfortingly. ‘We’ll know when Stan and Flo get back. I’m sure they’ll send word. Won’t they be thrilled to find Mattie’s had her baby safely?’
‘Flo will be sad to have missed it,’ Edith predicted.
‘I wonder what he’ll be called?’
‘Maybe Mattie has already decided,’ Edith guessed. ‘Something that goes with Lennie as a middle name. Or Leonard. I suppose that’s the full thing, isn’t it?’
‘I can’t imagine Lennie being called Leonard – it sounds far too stuffy,’ Alice smiled. ‘Not like Lennie at all.’ She fell silent, wondering how he was faring in his prison camp so far away, with no prospect of meeting his newborn son.
Edith nodded, knowing what her friend was thinking. The baby would start his life with no father, and most likely neither of his uncles either; but he would have a doting mother and grandparents, who would make sure he wanted for nothing. This was a child who would be showered with love. She thought of her own family for a brief moment and wondered what her brothers were doing. What a contrast to the Banhams.
‘Look over there.’ Alice pointed to a clump of trees some way away, beyond the closest line of trenches, where some people were walking. One of them had distinctive red hair. ‘Is that Clarrie? Or her sister?’
Edith squinted. ‘You’re right, it does look like Clarrie. Let’s go over and see if it is her.’ She sped up and Alice hurried after her.
The young woman across the park looked up and nudged her companion, who immediately pointed and waved. Alice shielded her eyes to see them better. ‘It is Clarrie. And that’s Peggy, if I’m not mistaken.’