‘You’d better get on home. Your mum will be worried,’ Lily said.
‘I’ll stay and help with the kids if you like,’ Daisy offered.
‘It’s all right. I can manage. I’m used to it.’ Lily gathered the children to her and set off down the road, turning to give a little wave.
Daisy walked home quickly, sure footed in spite of the dim light from her torch. She had walked these streets so often she could find her way blindfold.
Her father and Jimmy were in bed when she got home but Dora, still in her WVS uniform, sat at the kitchen table, her hands clasped round a mug of cocoa. She looked up as Daisy entered the room, her eyes red-rimmed with fatigue.
‘You all right, Mum? You didn’t have to wait up,’ she said.
‘Just tired, love. But you know I can’t settle till you’re home safe.’
‘Sorry, I should have let you know I’d be late.’
‘Working?’
‘No. I popped in to see Lily, helped her get the little ones ready for bed.’
‘They expect too much of that girl. She’s working full time isn’t she - and you said she hasn’t been well?’
Daisy was almost tempted to confide the reason Lily had been unwell. But she had promised not to tell, although she knew her mother wasn’t the sort to gossip. But she would be shocked and, after all, what good would it do?
‘Time we were both in bed,’ she said, taking her mother’s cocoa mug and putting it in the sink.
Tired as she was, Daisy couldn’t get to sleep as the events of the past few days went round and round in her head – the dreadful air raid and loss of her new friend, Barbara, the vindication of her suspicions regarding the NAAFI manager’s dealings, and most of all Lily’s news.
She sighed and turned over. At least Mr Browning would be dealt with now that her father’s policeman friend was involved. As for Lily, what could she do but stand by her and be a true friend?
Chapter Twenty One
Despite the nauseating smell which permeated the boat’s hold, Bob found himself drifting into a half-sleep. He was aware of the two airmen talking quietly, the gentle motion of the fishing boat, the chug of the engine.
He stirred as he realised the engine had stopped and he held his breath in the sudden silence. Had the boat been intercepted? He heard voices, then the hatch was thrown open.
‘Up, come up.’ A hand beckoned them, and the three men scrambled up the ladder into the fresh air. ‘Safe now,’ the fisherman said.
‘Where are we?’ Bob asked, looking around him for landmarks. It was still dark, but a faint pink tinged the eastern sky and he made out the grey bulk of a low-lying coast.
‘We’ll put you ashore here, but you’ll have to find your own way from there.’
‘Never mind, we’re home,’ Johnny, one of the airmen said.
‘Home,’ Bob echoed. He should be elated at having escaped from occupied France but the lurking fear at the back of his mind came to the surface. Would he be labelled a deserter? Would his story of escaping be believed? Not everyone had been rescued at Dunkirk. Many were left behind and captured, himself among them. It was a pure fluke that he got away. But that was months ago.
As the rowing boat that deposited them on the sandy shore pulled away, he confided his fears to his companions.
‘Just stick with us. We’ll speak up for you,’ Johnny said.
‘Yes. First thing is to find someone to report to,’ Mike, the other one said.
They trudged up the beach, their feet sinking into the loose sand, only to be halted by a tangle of barbed wire.
They looked at each other helplessly.
‘What now?’ Taffy asked.
He was answered by a figure which arose from behind a sand dune. Pointing a rifle at them, a voice called, ‘Halt. Who goes there?’
The three immediately stopped dead and raised their hands.
‘Pilot officer John Clark, and this is Taffy – er - Michael Gray.’ He turned to Bob. ‘Identify yourself,’ he whispered.
Nervously Bob recited his name and number. Surely they weren’t suspected of being enemy spies? They were in uniform, after all, even if his was a bit worse for wear after his adventures.
Two more men in Home Guard uniform rose from behind the dunes and moved towards the three of them, pointing their rifles threateningly.
‘We’ll have to have proof, better come to headquarters,’ the leader, a sergeant in the Home Guard, said.
He gestured them to walk in front and pointed them towards the road. A little further on, they came to a squat round building which Bob recognised it as a Martello Tower. When he was small his parents had brought him on holiday to Dymchurch, in Kent, and his dad had told him the strange building was one of several built along the coast to repel a threatened invasion by Napoleon. Is this where they had landed? He was given no time to wonder or to ask questions, as the Home Guard sergeant hustled them inside.
To Bob’s surprise they were treated kindly and offered tea and sandwiches, thick slices filled with corned beef and enamel mugs of strong tea. He hadn’t realised how hungry he was, and he wolfed the food down as did his companions. When they finished eating, Bob attempted to ask what would happen to them but the sergeant refused to answer their questions. ‘Wait till the officer gets here,’ he said.
It was a long wait, followed by an even longer interrogation and at the end of it, Bob still wasn’t sure if he was about to be court martialled for desertion, or returned to his regiment. His two air force companions, after a similar interrogation, were collected in an RAF van and cheerfully waved goodbye to him.
He sat on a bench inside the Home Guard post, dolefully contemplating his future. Even the thought of seeing Daisy again could not cheer him, confused as he now was about his feelings for her.
***
Daisy had scarcely put on her overall and cap when Mrs Green waylaid her. ‘That Lily’s late again. Don’t know what’s got into her – she used to be such a good little worker.’
‘Perhaps she’s ill. She’s been off colour for ages.’
‘Nonsense – she’s skiving,’ Mrs Green snapped. ‘Probably out late drinking and dancing and can’t get up in the morning. If she keeps this up, I’ll have to dismiss her.’
Daisy was relieved her supervisor hadn’t realised what Lily’s problem was but she tried to defend her friend. ‘I think she’s really ill but struggles in to work when she’s not really fit, as her family need her wages. Anyway, she hasn’t been dancing for ages – she has to look after her little sisters and brother.’
‘Maybe so,’ Mrs Green softened. ‘I must admit she has been looking very pale. If she turns up today, I’ll give her another chance. But she’ll have to pull her socks up or that will be it.’
Lily didn’t appear that day and Daisy was really worried. She resolved to go and see her again after work.
June wasn’t due on duty until later so Daisy was kept busy at the counter. The new girl Mavis was confined to the kitchen washing up. The morning passed quickly and Daisy was relieved when June arrived and she was free for the rest of the day, thanking her lucky stars that she hadn’t been sent to the stores. She couldn’t face Mr Browning now that she knew he was about to be exposed as a criminal. She hoped Dad’s friend had set things in motion to apprehend him and her mind would soon at rest.
Lily’s mother came to the door when Daisy called in on her way home. Leaning against the door post, her meaty arms folded across her ample bosom, she said, ‘You’re too late. She’s gone to her Gran’s down in the New Forest.’
‘Already? She told me she might be going away.’
‘I’m taking the little ones down at the weekend – they’ll be better off away from all these raids.’
‘I’m sure that’s for the best’ Daisy said. She was surprised the whole family were going.
‘Yes, it will be.’ Mrs Scott glanced behind her and lowered her voice. ‘She told you, didn’t she – about her trouble.’
&
nbsp; Daisy nodded.
‘Her dad don’t know – he’d half kill her. You won’t say anything, will you – to them at work?’
‘No. I promised Lily I’d keep it to myself.’
Mrs Scott nodded. ‘Good, Lily says we can trust you.’
‘Give her my love when you see her.’
‘I will – oh, and don’t be surprised if when we come back she’s got a little brother or sister.’
‘You mean...?’
Mrs Scott put her hands on her ample belly and nodded meaningfully. ‘Yes, there’s another one on the way.’
It took Daisy a moment to grasp what she was saying. So Lily’s mother intended to pass the baby off as her own. He or she would be brought up as an addition to that large, untidy family.
‘I hope it all goes well,’ she said. ‘I’ll miss Lily at work.’
‘She’ll be back when she’s better,’ Mrs Scott said. ‘I’ve written to her supervisor.’
Daisy said goodbye and walked home deep in thought, hoping things would turn out all right for her friend. She supposed it was a solution of sorts and, at least, Lily would not be parted from her child. Better than letting it be adopted and spend the rest of her life wondering what had happened to it.
Once at home, she tried to put Lily out of her mind after telling Dora that her friend had been sent to the country to convalesce. ‘She’s been ill on and off for weeks, so her mum thought it best to take her away.’
‘What’s wrong with her?’ Stan asked from his corner by the range.
‘Nerves, her mum said. It started when she got caught in a raid.’
‘Silly girl,’ Stan said. ‘There’s people suffering worse than that in this war. Still, if she’s going to go to pieces every time the siren goes, she’ll be no use at your work.’
Daisy ignored his comment. No use arguing, especially as she knew the real cause of Lily’s ‘illness.’ Instead, she decided to go and meet her mother from the WVS post in the church hall in Hope Street.
As she hurried down the High Street, she looked up at the sky with its massive barrage balloons hovering over the town. She hoped there wouldn’t be a raid tonight, although since that last dreadful assault on the Eastchurch aerodrome, the bombers seemed to have left them alone. The sirens still went off though, as enemy planes approached, making their way up the Thames towards London. Daisy thought of June and Mavis, who had left their families behind in the city, and realised how fortunate she was to have her loved ones nearby, except for Sylvia of course – and Bob.
She tried to put Bob out of her mind, having convinced herself he must have been killed. Surely if he was a prisoner he would have written, if not to her, then to his mother. But Mrs Gardner had only received a telegram saying ‘missing’. She couldn’t forget him though. He had been part of her life since junior school when he had protected her from bullies and taught her to swim in the murky waters of the North Sea.
Their friendship turned to love – a love made more intense when he joined the Army and they said their passionate farewells. But was it the kind of love that would last forever? Since meeting Chris, she began to wonder.
Still, she had made a promise to Bob and she would keep that promise until she knew for sure what had happened to him. When – if – they met again, she would know in her heart if they were meant to be together.
‘Daisy, Daisy love. Where are you off to?’ Her mother’s voice brought her out of her reverie.
She had been so deep in thought, she almost walked past the WVS centre. Her mother, in her WVS uniform, hurried towards her.
‘I was coming to meet you, Mum. Needed to get out of the house.’
Dora linked her arm with Daisy’s. ‘Nice to see you, love. We don’t get enough time these days for a proper chat. Were there any letters at home?’
‘I didn’t look. Dad would have said if there was one from Sylvia though.’ Daisy had long since stopped checking the mantelpiece for a letter from Bob.
‘I worry about her,’ Dora said. ‘Still, she’s doing a good job – and she seems to be having a good time. Doesn’t mention that Roland though.’
‘Perhaps she’s found someone else.’ Daisy truly hoped so. She couldn’t bear her sister’s heartbreak if she was still in love with him and found out what a rotter he was.
‘I hope so,’ Dora said.
‘Why?’
‘I didn’t take to him that time he came to the house.’ She paused. ‘I don’t suppose you saw anything of him while you were up at Eastchurch?’
‘Officers don’t come in the NAAFI, Mum.’ It was true and saved Daisy from having to tell a lie. It wouldn’t do for either of her parents to find out how badly he had treated Lily.
***
The next day at work Mrs Green asked them to gather round as she had some news. ‘I’ve received a letter from Mrs Scott, Lily’s mother. As you all know, Lily has been unwell for some time and she has been sent away to convalesce. It doesn’t say what she’s convalescing from, but I have my own ideas about that.’ She paused and looked round at the girls. ‘Never mind. We’ll cope. We have Mavis now and I’m trying to enlist someone else. Fortunately, since most of the army has left, we are not quite so busy. Meantime we will carry on.’ She waved a hand in dismissal and they all went back to their allotted tasks.
Daisy was stacking plates at the end of the counter when June came in with a handful of cutlery. ‘What was she talking about?’ June whispered. ‘About Lily I mean.’
‘I don’t know, do I?’ Daisy did know but she wasn’t about to share it with June.
‘She never did believe Lily was really ill. Suspicious old cow. I bet it’s TB and that’s why they’re keeping quiet.’ She nudged Daisy’s elbow. ‘Do you know where she’s gone?’
‘I saw her mother. The whole family’s gone to her grandmother in the New Forest.’
‘All of them?’
‘To get away from air raids, so she said.’
‘All right for some,’ June said. ‘I wouldn’t mind a little holiday in the New Forest. We went there once when I was little. Lovely it was. Ponies and deer. Mind you, I don’t think it would suit me now.’
‘Why not?’
‘No dance halls, no soldiers or sailors.’
Daisy couldn’t help laughing, relieved that speculation as to Lily’s illness had taken a back seat. She was still laughing when she heard the door open and turned to see Chris. As usual he was alone and she felt sorry for him. Just because he wasn’t in the same regiment and didn’t go out drinking with them, they treated him like an outsider. The only time they spoke to him was to pull his leg.
He came up to the counter. ‘What’s the joke,’ he said.
‘Just something June said. What can I get you?’ She spoke briskly, determined not to succumb to the fluttery feeling that engulfed her the minute he walked through the door. Just friends, she told herself firmly.
She served him his tea and toast and watched as he carried it over to the table without further conversation. Disappointed, she carried on serving as he sat down and pulled a book from his pocket.
A little later, during the lull of customers, she picked up a tray and started to clear the tables. As she neared Chris’s table she saw that the book he was reading was a motorcycle manual.
‘Interesting?’ she asked, as she picked up his empty plate.
He looked up and smiled. ‘Only to a motorbike freak,’ he said.
‘Oh, yes. A Matchless, isn’t it?’
Surprised, he nodded. ‘You like bikes?’
‘Sort of.’ She couldn’t tell him she’d made a note of the make of his motorcycle that time he’d given her a ride during the air raid.
‘Perhaps you’d like another ride some time.’
‘Perhaps.’ Before she could say anything else, she became aware of Mrs Green’s eyes on her. She hastily wiped the table and picked up the tray. ‘Anything else?’ she asked.
‘No thank you.’
She cleared a few more ta
bles and went through to the kitchen. Her heart thumped wildly and she took a few deep breaths before depositing the dirty dishes on the draining board and going back to the counter.
June grinned when she returned. ‘I saw you talking to Lofty. Making a date, were you?’
‘Certainly not. I told you, I’m staying true to Bob.’
‘But Bob’s not here, is he? No harm in having a bit of fun.’
Daisy ignored her and tried to keep busy, avoiding looking at the corner where Chris had been sitting. At the end of her shift she glanced across the room, but he had left.
Summer was truly at an end and there was a distinct nip in the air as she left the garrison and braced herself for the long walk home, wishing she had brought a jacket.
As she crossed the moat, she heard the roar of an engine and glanced round as the motorcycle coasted to a stop beside her. Chris lifted his goggles and grinned at her.
‘No dad walking you home this evening?’ he asked.
‘He only does that on dark nights.’
‘Nice that he cares so much. It’s a long walk to your house.’ He fiddled with the handlebars and cleared his throat. ‘Fancy that ride now?’ he asked.
She shivered. ‘It’s a bit chilly.’
‘Never mind, you can borrow my jacket.’
She really wanted to accept, remembering how she felt when she wrapped her arms around him and they drove that short distance to the air raid shelter. As she hesitated, he got off the bike and took his leather jacket off, wrapping it around her shoulders. Almost without thinking, she slipped her arms into the sleeves.
‘Suits you,’ he said with a grin. He swung his leg over the bike and grasped the handlebars. ‘Hop on,’ he said over his shoulder.
She climbed on and, without being told, put her arms around his waist, clinging on as he kick-started the bike. The journey was over too soon and they stopped in front of her house. She would have liked to linger but she could see her brother peering out of the window. She got off the bike and took the jacket off, handing it to Chris, hoping he would put it on and be away before Jimmy came out. She knew she’d be in for some teasing from him, coming home on a soldier’s motor bike.
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