The Liberty Girls

by Fiona Ford

  ‘She never did that,’ Rose said fiercely.

  ‘And what would you know?’ Alice replied almost jeeringly. ‘I’ve known Joy a lot longer than you, darlin’, I know what she’s capable of.’

  For a moment Alice wondered if Rose would flounce off in disgust, but instead she just stared at her. ‘And I suppose you’re such a brilliant judge of character,’ she said quietly.

  ‘What do you mean?’ Alice asked.

  ‘I mean I don’t know why you’re lecturing me about who I choose to mix with when you want to take a look in the mirror,’ Rose finished almost triumphantly. ‘Ask anyone – we all agree.’

  Alice turned to the rest of her friends questioningly, only for them to look away, preferring to sit in uncomfortable silence. ‘What is it you all agree about?’ she asked, forcing her tone to remain even.

  Taking a deep breath, Mary was the first to swing around and face her. ‘What we mean is that we’re not sure it’s a good idea for you to be spending so much time with Jack.’

  ‘That’s right,’ Flo put in kindly. ‘Don’t misunderstand me, we all think he’s a lovely man, but it’s not right that you’re together so much.’

  ‘We’re not together so much,’ Alice scoffed.

  ‘You are, love,’ Dot offered. ‘You and Arthur are out with him every chance you get. Whether it’s walks up Regent’s Park or trips out to that club of his, it’s like you’ve found Arthur another father when he’s not had a chance to know his real dad.’

  ‘And that’s my fault?’ Alice gasped incredulously.

  ‘We know it’s not your fault, Alice,’ Mary ventured, getting up from her place on the rug to come and sit beside her friend. ‘And we know there’s nothing inappropriate between the two of you—’

  ‘Nothing at all,’ Flo cut in.

  ‘We just don’t want you to get hurt. I mean, he’s already told you that his CO wants to send him elsewhere at some point,’ Mary continued.

  ‘You’re already grieving for one lost fella,’ Dot said softly, ‘we’d hate to see you mourning two.’

  The girls fell silent then as Alice looked at each of her friends in wonder. This was obviously something they had spent a great deal of time thinking about, and worse, discussing behind her back. The last thing she wanted was people gossiping about her, even if they were her friends.

  ‘But we’re just friends. We’ve been through so much together in such a short time. We both know the pain of raising children alone,’ Alice said in a quiet voice. ‘We understand each other.’

  ‘But would Luke understand if he came back tomorrow?’ Rose asked bluntly. ‘Sorry, Alice, but you need to face up to the truth.’

  Alice looked away. She had a funny feeling that Luke wouldn’t understand, and no matter how much she told herself that the bond she and Jack shared was purely platonic, she wasn’t sure Luke would see it that way. And if she was being honest with herself, she wasn’t entirely sure that it was. The first person she thought about after Arthur was always Jack, and the first person she wanted to tell any news to was always Jack. The girls were right; she was beginning to see Jack as some sort of father and husband figure and she knew that wasn’t right.

  She sighed unhappily. ‘I need to put an end to it, don’t I?’

  ‘You don’t need to stop,’ Mary said kindly. ‘Perhaps just see a bit less of him.’

  ‘That’s right,’ Dot offered. ‘Treat him like I treat Edwin.’

  At that the girls broke into unexpected laughter.

  ‘You and Mr Button are courting,’ Flo protested.

  ‘I still don’t see him all the time.’ Dot sniffed. ‘I show him who’s boss. Take this weekend. I should have gone away with him, but, “Oh no,” I said, “Edwin, I’m going out with the girls for the day.”’

  ‘True,’ Flo agreed, ‘but that was after he told you he had to work this weekend because we need to do a stocktake.’

  Dot coloured. ‘That may be true, but I still told him.’

  Alice gave her landlady a playful nudge. ‘I don’t know why you can’t just admit how smitten you are with him. The world won’t catch alight, you know, if you admit that you, Dorothy Hanson, née Banwell, have feelings.’

  ‘You and Mr Button are made for each other. If he asks you to marry him you should say yes!’ Mary cheered.

  Dot bristled at the word marriage. ‘I will not! We’re happy as we are.’

  Flo smiled. ‘But you could be so much happier.’

  ‘Just give in to it, Dot. It’s hard enough to find happiness with this war on,’ Mary coaxed.

  ‘I am happy,’ Dot exclaimed, sitting up and throwing the dregs of her tea across the grass. ‘But I also know heartache, and I also know the danger of making poor decisions.’ She turned to Alice and gave her a kind smile. ‘Look, love, we all like Jack and we would none of us think there’s something improper between you—’

  ‘We know how loyal you are to Luke,’ Mary added.

  ‘Just think about what we’ve said. We don’t want you hurt again, especially when there’s not just you to think about but Arthur too,’ Dot finished, getting to her feet. ‘Now, who’s joining me for a promenade down The Spanicurals?’

  As Alice watched her landlady, flanked by Mary, Flo and Rose, she leaned over towards her son and planted a kiss on each of his cheeks – her friends had given her food for thought but Arthur would always come first.

  The rest of the afternoon passed in a perfect blur as the friends took it in turns to stroll, nap, read and chatter all while the sun beat down.

  But when the sun began to dip it was time to make their way home. Thankfully the journey back to the Elephant and Castle didn’t take as long as anyone expected but it was clear Arthur had just about had enough by the little grumbling noises he made on the Tube all the way home.

  ‘I’ll take him straight up,’ Alice said as she unlocked the door and peeled off her jacket.

  ‘I’ll get the kettle on,’ Dot said, following Alice inside.

  As Alice began to walk up the stairs towards her bedroom, the sound of a sharp knock at the front door made her and Dot jump.

  ‘Who the hell’s that? Dot exclaimed.

  ‘Mr Button?’ Alice suggested, as whoever it was rapped at the front door once more.

  ‘It better not be,’ Dot grumbled. ‘I look a right state. You go, Alice, and let me sort myself out a minute.’

  ‘What about Arthur?’

  ‘I’ll sort him.’

  Rolling her eyes, Alice handed her son over to her landlady. Once the coast was clear, Alice pulled open the door and gasped in shock at the sight before her. There, standing on the step was a man who at first glance appeared to be several years older than her but – she saw as she peered closer – was actually about her own age.

  Tall, with olive skin, he looked tired but happy and Alice could see he had nothing but the RAF uniform he stood up in.

  Alice’s hands flew to her mouth as she realised who it was. ‘Luke?’

  Nodding, he held his arms open and Alice fell straight into them, inhaling the scent of musk, citrus and something that was purely and undoubtedly her husband.

  ‘Oh Alice,’ he whispered in her ear, ‘my love, I thought I’d never see you again.’

  At the sound of her husband’s heartfelt words, Alice tried to reply, only she couldn’t. The lump in her throat was so large and Luke’s arms were wrapped so tightly around her that she couldn’t speak. She had missed him so much, and there had been times when she had feared he was dead, that she would never see him again. But now here he was. Her husband, living, breathing and very much by her side. It was all she had ever wanted. Transported by the moment, all she could do was stand on the doorstep and lose herself in the arms of the man she hadn’t been sure she would ever see again.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  The first thing Luke wanted to do once he had finally let go of his wife was meet his child. As Alice led him upstairs to the room she and Arthur shared, she couldn
’t stop looking at him, afraid that if she took her eyes off Luke for a second he would disappear.

  It was obvious Luke felt the same way. The way he gripped Alice’s hand, refusing to let go, along with the looks of love he kept shooting her way, made her melt inside. He had changed. His once handsome face was now gaunt and lined and he’d lost half his bodyweight; the once perfectly fitting blue RAF uniform, where he had proudly displayed his stripes, hung from him as if he were a skeleton. Then there was his right leg; he was visibly in pain, judging by the way he limped through the house, but at this moment Alice didn’t have the heart to ask him what had happened. All she wanted to do was introduce him to their precious son and, judging by the smile on Luke’s face, it was clear it was all he wanted too.

  Tiptoeing into the room, Alice snapped on the bedside light and together they peered over the cot to find Arthur wide awake and happily gurgling away at the sight of his beloved mother.

  ‘Hello, beautiful.’ She bent down to scoop up his warm, tiny body. ‘Arthur, this is your father.’

  As Alice passed Arthur to Luke, she couldn’t miss the wave of emotion that passed across his face. ‘Arthur?’ he whispered, before exchanging a look of wonder with Alice. ‘Is this really him? This is our son?’

  ‘This is him. He’s all ours, Luke.’

  Luke gasped, turning his attention back to his son and gently dropping a kiss on to his forehead. ‘How did we make something so beautiful?’

  At that Alice smiled, and even Arthur joined in with the joke, grinning excitedly up at the man holding him with such pride in his arms. ‘I have no idea.’

  ‘I just can’t believe it,’ Luke croaked. ‘All the while I was away I couldn’t stop thinking about you and our child. There were times I wondered if I would ever see you again, if we would ever be a family …’ There was a pause then while Luke collected himself, as if he wanted to get his words exactly right. ‘This moment, this boy, us: it’s all I’ve ever wanted, Alice. It’s like a fairy-tale. And to think I’ve already missed so much …’

  As Luke’s voice trailed off, Alice wrapped her arms around her husband and her son, revelling in the simple joy of being a family. ‘Then let’s make sure it never happens again,’ she whispered in the half-light. ‘Let’s make sure we stay together forever.’

  Luke said nothing, and simply buried his face in his wife’s hair, the tears that soaked the top of her scalp telling Alice just how much he agreed.

  An hour later and Luke had not only enjoyed a slice of Dot’s seemingly never-ending supply of carrot cake but he had had a bath, and was dressed in some of his old clothes. As he sat at the kitchen table, next to Alice, holding his baby son in his arms, she could see he was as smitten as she was with their child.

  ‘Are you feeling all right now, Luke?’ Dot asked gently. ‘Can we get you anything?’

  Luke wrapped his one free hand around his wife and pulled Alice in closer, kissing the top of her head. ‘I’ve got everything I need right here.’

  ‘Can you tell us how you got here?’ Alice asked dreamily, ‘or is it all a bit too raw for you? I still can’t believe you’re here – that if I close my eyes you won’t disappear.’

  Luke smiled. ‘I’m not going anywhere.’

  ‘So what happened?’ Dot pressed, clearly desperate for answers.

  Handing his son back to Alice, Luke sat upright and took a deep breath. ‘I was sent on a bombing raid near Boulogne with a group of other bombers. We were all lined up when the bomber next to ours dropped his load and ended up taking out our wing and engine.’

  ‘Oh my days!’ Dot gasped.

  Alice shot her landlady a warning glance. ‘Then what happened?’

  ‘We knew our aircraft was in trouble,’ Luke continued. ‘So we bailed out, but we were fired at by the enemy as we landed. I was shot in the leg, but unlike everyone else in the plane I survived.’

  ‘Were the Jerries close then?’ Dot asked.

  Luke nodded. ‘I could see I was in a forest not far from Boulogne and I knew the enemy wouldn’t be far away so I ran as fast as I could. The last thing I wanted was to end up a prisoner.’

  Alice nodded. She had secretly read up on the plight of prisoners of war after she had received the letter from the Air Ministry alerting her to the fact Luke was missing and discovered horror stories of men who were worked to death or starved – the Jerries were cruel, everyone knew that, and Alice could quite understand why Luke would want to try and make his escape, no matter how much it hurt him to do so.

  ‘I didn’t have any supplies so I walked for five days without food until I found a farmer,’ Luke continued matter-of-factly. ‘I was so happy to see another human being I almost wept with relief, but instead I got out my RAF-issue phrase book and asked him for help.’

  ‘Then what?’ Dot demanded. ‘If you made it to safety why did it take you so long to get back?’

  ‘Good question,’ Luke replied, rewarding Dot with the long, lazy smile that made Alice’s heart sing. ‘Luckily for me the farmer was a member of the French Resistance and so he sheltered me, but we had to wait for someone to help me get across the English Channel. I stayed with the farmer – Pierre – for months, helping on the land, all the while dreaming of home. I began to wonder if I would ever get back at all, but eventually Pierre told me that he could smuggle me aboard a gunboat bound for Dartmouth, along with several other men who had escaped capture.’

  ‘Anything could have happened,’ Alice said, horrified at the thought of her precious husband in so much danger. ‘You must have been terrified.’

  ‘I was, yes,’ Luke admitted. ‘But I knew it was my only chance of escape. The gunboat was so crowded; we were all packed in like sardines. And it was frightening being at sea at the dead of night. But I couldn’t stay on the farm any longer.’

  ‘Did they know about the Resistance’s operation then?’ Dot asked, her face a picture of alarm.

  Luke nodded slowly; Alice couldn’t help notice how his hands trembled under the table as he answered Dot’s question. ‘They knew that the Resistance smuggled Allied servicemen overseas, but they didn’t know the routes they used. What was hard was seeing the Channel every day, and knowing that I was separated from my wife and my child by just a few miles of water. I wondered what the hell you were thinking, but didn’t dare risk writing in case my letter fell into enemy hands or got the farmer and any of the people trying to help me in trouble …’

  As Luke trailed off, Alice wrapped her arms around her husband, the tears falling freely now she knew he was safe. ‘I can’t believe you made it home.’

  ‘There were times I wondered if I ever would,’ Luke murmured as he leaned towards her and planted yet another kiss into her hair.

  ‘So where did you get the RAF togs from?’ Dot asked, gesturing to the uniform Luke was wearing.

  ‘The Resistance had arranged for our boat to be met by someone from the Air Ministry and we were taken to the closest RAF base in Hampshire where we bathed and were given clean uniforms.’

  ‘And did someone examine that leg?’ Alice asked gently.

  Luke looked down at his right leg, which was stretched out stiffly in front of him. ‘Pierre did a wonderful job of getting the bullet out but because it was left for a few days, doctors think I may have suffered nerve damage.’

  ‘Will it get better?’ she asked.

  ‘I hope so.’ Luke smiled weakly. ‘I’m signed off at the moment though, and the RAF say it could be a while before I’m fit for duty, so if you’ll have me, I could use a place to stay.’

  Alice looked at him incredulously. She had been terrified of asking how long he was back for, but now the answer had surprised her. ‘You mean you’re here for a while?’

  Luke nodded. ‘Yes, until I’m declared fit, which could be weeks.’

  A broad smile lit up Dot’s face as she got up to clear the tea things. ‘You stay here as long as you like, darlin’. You two take my bedroom; it’s the only one with a proper-size
d double. Makes more sense for a family to be in it.’

  ‘Don’t be silly, Dot,’ Alice gasped. ‘You can’t go giving up your room for us.’

  ‘Nonsense, darlin’,’ Dot said firmly. ‘Your Luke’s home, and that’s the best news many of us have had in weeks. We should celebrate.’

  ‘Oh, I don’t know,’ Alice said doubtfully. ‘Luke needs time to recuperate.’

  ‘Don’t be daft.’ Luke grinned. ‘Dot’s right: we’re all together again now and a family. I want to tell the world.’

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  News of Luke’s return had flown around Liberty’s like wildfire. When Alice came back to work first thing on Friday morning – Mr Button had kindly given her a few days off – she was inundated with questions.

  The only one who wasn’t impressed at Alice’s news was Mrs Claremont, who had simply told her that now her husband was back Alice would be able to work that bit harder as she had even more support at home. At any other time, her boss’s words might have upset her, but Alice was too overjoyed with life to worry about anything Mrs Claremont could say. For now all she could think about was that her husband was home, safe and sound, and together with Arthur the three of them would be a family, at least for a little while.

  Just then a tap on her shoulder startled her and she jumped back in surprise to find the new deputy fabric manager, Jean Rushmore, looking down at her. Alice got to her feet. ‘Everything all right?’

  ‘Oh, um, yes, it’s fine, Mrs Milwood,’ Jean replied nervously. ‘I just wanted to come and introduce myself properly, only we’ve never had the chance really until now.’

  Alice found herself smiling at the dark-haired younger girl as she offered her a hand to shake. Alice knew from the routine gossip that Jean was a quiet but dependable staff member, and Alice also knew it wasn’t Jean’s fault that she had taken her job. ‘I’m very pleased to meet you properly. If there’s anything I can help you with, just let me know.’