‘I agree, sir. It’s just that I’m in an awkward position. I promised the family …’
‘You know this girl?’
‘Yes, sir, she’s my landlady’s daughter.’
‘Mrs Llewellyn-Jones?’ David Ford turned on his heel and stared at Kurt, showing the first signs of animation since they’d walked into the room.
‘Yes, sir.’
‘Then we have trouble.’
‘That’s why I came to see you, sir.’
‘Why didn’t you tell me this was going on between Captain Reide and Miss Llewellyn-Jones earlier, Lieutenant?’
‘Because it was none of my business, sir.’
‘You trying to be smart?’
‘No, sir.’
‘What have you told the family?’
‘Only that Captain Reide and Major Reynolds have left town, sir.’
‘Nothing else?’
‘No, sir. I wouldn’t have bothered you, but Mr Llewellyn-Jones intends to visit you in the morning.’
‘And you thought I’d like some advance warning?’
‘Something like that, sir.’
‘And,’ Ford lifted his eyebrows as he looked enquiringly at Schaffer, ‘American servicemen aren’t going to be too popular in the Llewellyn-Jones household tonight?’
‘Or any other night, sir.’
‘You want to leave your billet?’
‘I could move into the vestry, sir.’
‘Reide and Reynolds’s rooms are empty, ask Rivers if he can fit you in with one of the incoming officers.’
‘Thank you, sir.’
‘You’d better pick up your things right away. Tell Mrs Llewellyn-Jones that you’ve been moved into town for military reasons.’
‘Sir.’ Assuming he’d been dismissed, Kurt snapped to attention.
‘One more thing, Schaffer. Do you know if the girl’s pregnant?’
Typical of the colonel, Kurt thought. No euphemisms, coy words or hints, along the lines of ‘could she be in trouble?’ Just straight out with it.
‘I have no idea, sir.’
‘I’d appreciate the truth, Schaffer, man to man, not officer to CO. I need to know what I’m up against.’
‘I do know that she visited Reide in his rooms.’
‘And he really bought her a ring?’
‘I don’t know where he got it from, sir, but it looked pretty good to me.’
‘How were the family when you left them?’
‘I only saw Anthea and her father, sir. She was in quite a state. But it’s my guess that Mrs Llewellyn-Jones is going to be the one most upset by all this. She’s been planning the wedding since Christmas.’
‘Perhaps I’d better drive up there with you when you pick up your things, Lieutenant.’
‘I’d appreciate the support, sir,’ Schaffer answered, and he meant it. He had a feeling that battle was going to be an anti-climax compared to his forthcoming confrontation with his landlady.
‘I need to know, Anthea. What exactly did Richard do to you?’
Anthea buried her face in her pillow and pulled the bedclothes over her head.
‘Did he ever try to do more than kiss you?’ her mother demanded. ‘Well, did he?’
‘He behaved like an officer and a gentleman at all times,’ Anthea mumbled from beneath the blankets, realising that her mother wouldn’t leave her alone until she answered.
‘Did he ever touch you in a way you didn’t like, or put his hand up your skirt?’ Furious when Anthea continued to ignore her, she raised her voice. ‘You’re not a child. You know what I’m asking. Did he ever do anything to you that was wrong? Because if he did I could call Dr John back …’
‘There’s no need.’
Suspicions aroused by Anthea’s fainting fit, her father had sent for the doctor as soon as they reached home. She had been truly petrified when he had walked into her bedroom with her mother, but all he had done was look at her tongue, take her pulse and leave her a couple of tablets he assured her would help her sleep. Only she couldn’t sleep. Her mother wouldn’t let her. And all she could think of was the baby growing inside her and Richard not being there.
She refused to believe that he had deliberately abandoned her. Kurt had to be mistaken. Something must have happened between their meeting at lunchtime and his leaving. Richard couldn’t have known he was going – not when he last spoke to her in the park. Perhaps he took the place of another officer at the last minute …
‘Perhaps we should ask him to give you a thorough examination anyway.’
‘Please, Mother, just leave me alone.’ Anthea burrowed even deeper under the bedclothes. She wanted to scream that she had liked everything Richard had done to her. Very much indeed.
Her face burned with shame when she remembered all the times she had lain naked on his bed, allowing him to arrange her body into any pose he chose. How he had gazed at her, kissed and fondled every inch of her. How they had done things she had never even heard other girls whispering about. How she had not only become accustomed to his lovemaking, but had looked forward to the stolen hours in his rooms when they had both taken off their clothes, and romped naked in and on his bed.
‘Well, if you’re absolutely sure that he didn’t do anything wrong, or hurt you in any way, I suppose I’ll have to take your word for it.’ Her mother hesitated at the door, wanting to believe that her daughter was physically unscathed by her association with Richard Reide, if not mentally.
‘I’m fine, Mother,’ Anthea lied. ‘Please leave me alone. I haven’t had a minute to myself since I’ve been home.’
‘Very well. But I’ll be back later with some warm milk.’
‘I don’t want warm milk.’
The doorbell rang and Anthea almost shot out of bed. Her mother patted her back, the only part of her she could reach.
‘That sounds like Colonel Ford’s voice. I’ll go and see what he wants.’ She opened the door. ‘I’m sorry if I upset you, Anthea. But I had to know. I’m your mother. I care about you, and Richard deceived not only you, but all of us. I promise you, he won’t get away with this. Not with my daughter. Your father will see a solicitor first thing in the morning. We’ll sue for breach of promise. He’s going to learn that he can’t treat an innocent girl the way he’s treated you and get away with it.’
The door closed and Anthea clutched her pillow all the tighter. Who could she turn to now? For all her mother’s show of concern, she knew her parents would throw her out of the house the moment they discovered she was pregnant. Her mother would never compromise her high moral standards. She had cut close friends from her visiting list, simply because their daughters had been seen talking to a boy from the wrong side of Pontypridd.
Even her parents’ closest friends, the Johns, had suffered temporary social ostracism when Andrew had married Bethan. And when her parents had discovered that Bethan was pregnant before the wedding, her mother had made a point of visiting Mrs John to inform her that she’d heard Bethan Powell was a hussy who had deliberately set out to seduce and get impregnated by a doctor – any doctor – to better herself. And the rumours her mother had initiated hadn’t stopped there. She had overheard her telling someone at a golf club Christmas party before the war that Andrew’s wife had once worked as a prostitute, rumours that had backfired after the birth of Rachel, when the Johns had finally capitulated and accepted their daughter-in-law. But then, Andrew had stood by Bethan. What if Richard never came back? It was too dreadful to contemplate.
She recalled the advertisements she and her friends had giggled over in the Pontypridd Observer for ‘Blanchard’s Female Pills’. She could even remember some of the claims made by the manufacturers. ‘Cures all irregularities.’ Could they be used to get rid of a baby, as one of her schoolfriends had suggested? Did they really work?
She could send for them – but her mother opened all her mail. A Post Office number was no good, everyone knew her family and she was bound to be recognised picking up the parcel. She
pressed her hands over her stomach. Was it her imagination or was it already showing?
Her mother had urged her to take the week off. But going into work would be her only chance to meet someone who could help her. Perhaps one of the girls in the office? But if they spoke to her father… it was then she remembered someone who would know what to do. Someone who might even help her. All she had to do was get away from her parents for an hour or two.
Kurt Schaffer dumped his kitbag on a narrow, canvas cot that had been set up in a side cubicle in the vestry. His heart sank as he looked around at the peeling paint and damp patches on the walls. George Rivers had taken great delight in telling him that there was no other accommodation available. Every spare room and bed in the town had been earmarked for incoming officers and he could either take this, or leave it. Perhaps he should leave it? Even a park bench looked preferable to this place.
He reached for his jacket. The air was freezing despite the summer warmth outside, and if he was shivering now, what would it be like in winter? But whatever else, it had to be better than the Llewellyn-Joneses’ house right now. As he’d predicted, Mrs Llewellyn-Jones had been hysterical, and her husband wasn’t much better. They had ranted and raved at Colonel Ford about Richard Reide’s lack of integrity and the invidious position he had put them in. Getting engaged to their daughter and then running out on her, leaving them in the middle of expensive wedding preparations. Turning them into the laughing stock of the neighbourhood after they had taken him into their home and treated him like the son they’d never had.
Their list of grievances had been infinite, but he couldn’t help noticing that they had only spoken about their own situation. Neither of them had mentioned Anthea’s feelings. And although he had originally pegged the girl as a rather obvious man-hunter, he pitied her now. If he had been born female with parents like hers, he would probably have tried to grab any man who came along just to get away from home, too.
Glancing at his watch he realised it was almost time to meet Jenny. Leaving his kitbag, he climbed the steps and walked along to Ronconi’s café. As usual Tina was presiding behind the counter, and he wondered if it was his imagination or if she was being marginally friendlier towards the Americans sitting at the tables.
Perhaps her change of heart had something to do with the men who had been shipped out. Now that they were being lined up to die, it just might make things right in Tina’s eyes.
‘Lieutenant Schaffer, how nice to see you.’
‘Is that another example of British sarcasm?’ he asked as he climbed on to a stool in front of the counter.
‘No, now that I’ve found out that you’ve come over here to do more than sit around on your backsides in Pontypridd, I’ll even give you a cup of tea on the house.’
‘I don’t suppose you’d stretch that to coffee?’
‘No chance, unless you pay the extra twopence. Tell me, when are you leaving?’
‘Ah, the coffee’s a goodbye present?’
‘Intelligent too. What more could a grateful civilian want from an American soldier than his absence?’
He was rummaging in his pants pocket for the coins when Jenny walked in with Judy.
‘Hi, sweetheart.’ He left the stool to kiss her cheek.
‘As you can see, the lieutenant’s still here. For now,’ Tina added, as Jenny sat on the stool next to Kurt’s.
‘I heard some of the regiment shipped out.’ Jenny took a pack of cigarettes from his shirt pocket and helped herself.
‘That information’s supposed to be classified.’
‘With half the girls in the factory crying over their benches because their boyfriends have gone, who do you think you’re fooling?’
‘Evidently no one.’
‘So when is it going to be your turn?’
‘Can’t wait to get rid of me, can you, Tina?’
‘No.’
‘You disapprove of my fraternising with the natives?’ he asked, trying to keep the conversation light.
‘Only the natives I care about, like Jenny.’
Jenny laughed. ‘Come on, Tina, I can take care of myself.’
‘Can you? This is the sixth time I’ve seen you two together in here in the last month.’
‘So?’
‘Take a good look. He’s here today, but he’ll be gone tomorrow, and in my opinion the last thing you need is a Yank who only wants to brighten up his evenings while he’s in town.’
‘Perhaps I only want to brighten up my own evenings,’ Jenny responded carelessly.
‘It’s your funeral.’ Tina banged a couple of cups down in front of them.
Kurt glanced at the enlisted men who were taking too much of an interest in their conversation for his liking. ‘We’re both adults, Tina. Don’t you think Jenny’s old enough to make her own decisions?’
‘Frankly, no. Not when she’s decided on a “love them and leave them” Romeo like you.’
‘You don’t know the first thing about me.’
‘I know all that I want to.’
Kurt dug in his pocket for enough money to cover the cost of the coffee. ‘You’re wrong, Tina,’ he said as he handed her the coins.
‘Time will tell,’ she bit back as she rang up the till.
‘You’re not going. I absolutely refuse to let you.’ Diana stood with her back to the door.
‘Di, I don’t want to go, but there’s a job that needs doing.’
‘And I refuse to believe that you’re the only man who can do it.’ She eyed Ronnie sceptically. ‘It’s dangerous, isn’t it? You’ll be fighting again …’
‘Diana, they won’t allow me to tell you where I’ll be going, or what I’ll be doing, but I promise you it’s safe. And no, I won’t be fighting.’
‘And that’s supposed to make it all right? You’re leaving me when I’m about to have your baby, and it’s fine because you’ll be safe?’
‘I wouldn’t go if I didn’t have to.’ He laid his hand on her stomach before kissing the tears from her eyes.
‘You’ll come back when the baby is born?’ she pleaded.
‘If I can, but I’ve no idea how long this will take.’
‘Ronnie …’
‘I know, Di.’ He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. ‘I feel the same way too. Come on, let’s pack your things and I’ll get a taxi to take you and Billy to your mother’s.’
‘In Myrtle and Huw’s house? Ronnie, I can’t live there. It would feel strange to move back in with my first husband’s sister after being married to you.’
‘Someone has to look after you, and I won’t leave you here on your own with Billy.’
‘Good. In that case, I’m not going anywhere.’ She manoeuvred her swollen body into the armchair next to the range.
‘Very funny,’ he smiled. ‘Come on, you have to go somewhere. Where’s it to be? Bethan’s?’
‘Her house is full to bursting now that Jane and Anne are living there.’
‘Graig Avenue?’
‘It’s as much as Phyllis can do to cope with Uncle Evan the way he is.’
‘You’re being deliberately difficult.’
‘No, I’m not. I suppose I could ask Mam to come here.’
‘And Myrtle?’
‘Mam said she’s been feeling a bit of a gooseberry since Myrtle’s father died. Myrtle’s coping better all the time, and she could stay here when Uncle Huw’s on night shift if she wants to. I know this is your sister’s house, Ronnie, but it feels like ours. And I’d rather stay in it until you get back. And so would Billy.’
‘I’ll call in at your mother’s and Tina’s before I catch the train and tell both of them to keep an eye on you. I don’t want you to spend a single night alone here.’
‘I won’t.’ She fought back her tears as she looked at him. ‘Just you be sure that you come back from wherever you’re going in one piece, Ronnie Ronconi, or I’ll brain you.’
‘The lady of the house all alone?’ David Ford called out as h
e parked his Jeep in the drive of Bethan’s house and walked over to the vegetable garden she was watering.
‘It’s good to be alone sometimes.’
‘As I’m finding out.’
‘You don’t have to keep driving yourself so Maurice and Dino can go out with Liza and my aunt.’
‘Yes I do. Who knows how much longer they’ll be able to see one another? Three-quarters of the men shipped out this afternoon, but then you probably already know that. It seems to be the worst kept secret in town.’
‘And the rest?’
‘I don’t make those kinds of decisions. Tomorrow I’ll have another load of raw recruits to knock into shape. It’s anyone’s guess when they’ll be needed.’ He followed her to a small bench below the drawing room window.
‘You’d rather have gone with your men?’
‘I’d rather be doing some real soldiering instead of sitting up to my neck in billeting and supply lists and organising route marches. But then,’ he gazed up at the setting sun, ‘on a lovely summer evening like this with a beautiful woman at my side it’s difficult to imagine that there’s such a thing as war.’
Bethan glanced up at the window of the bedroom where her children were sleeping. She had allowed all of them to run around the garden until nine o’clock and by then even the older ones were too exhausted to protest that it was bedtime.
‘I have a bottle of Maisie’s elderflower wine that I’ve been saving for a special occasion. I can’t think of a better time. Would you like to share it?’
‘I’d prefer bourbon.’
‘Too strong for me.’
‘Not if you water it down. Stay there, you look exhausted. I’ll get it.’
She settled back, listening to his quiet tread on the stairs as he climbed to the top floor. She felt more at peace than she had since the autumn. Andrew might still be imprisoned in Germany, but she had other things to be grateful for. The house in Graig Avenue was secured for Phyllis and Brian, her father was crippled but alive, and looking forward to work that exercised more brain than brawn; perhaps he should have done something like it years ago.
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