by Mary Arden
‘Well, when the phone rang it gave me such a shock that I dropped a pile of medical reports on the floor. I was so angry that I swore like a navvy to whoever was on the other end of the phone, and then told them that I was too busy to talk, before I slammed the receiver down,’ the doctor recounted, ‘A few minutes later someone came barging into the room without knocking to tell me that I had filled in a form incorrectly, so I told him to go away, and in no uncertain terms too. In fact I was so angry that I picked up my inkpot and was just about to throw it at him when I came to my senses and didn’t, thank goodness.’
I was speechless and Doctor Du Caine looked at me intently. ‘You seem to have read my thoughts exactly. I know it’s not exactly a proper scientific test, but you definitely have some sort of telepathic skill, Mary,’ the doctor insisted. ‘You even circled the date of my wife’s birthday!’
‘What?’ I said astonished.
‘The twenty-first of September is my wife’s birthday,’ he repeated. ‘Why did you choose that particular date?’
‘I have absolutely no idea at all,’ I replied, and that made us both burst out laughing.
That night when I got back to my billet, Hazel begged me to be a good sport and make up the numbers the following Saturday for a dance at the local hotel in Campbeltown.
‘It will be fun, Mary,’ she promised, ‘and you won’t be expected to pay for a thing, as we have been invited as the guests of a group of Officers.’
I didn’t really want to go, but as I had turned her down so many times before I felt that I couldn’t refuse her yet again, so reluctantly agreed to go.
‘There will be eight of us altogether, so I guarantee that you will be properly chaperoned,’ she teased.
On Saturday evening Hazel and I washed our hair and got dressed up in our pretty afternoon dresses. We then sat in the Ugadale lounge while we waited to be picked up. It wasn’t long before we heard the sound of a car’s horn honking, and then two cars pulled up outside the hotel drive with a screech of brakes.
It didn’t take us long to get to Campbeltown, and when we got to the dance hall, I soon relaxed and started to enjoy myself more than I thought I would. I danced with all the Officers in turn, and they behaved like perfect gentlemen, all except for one called Rodney, who kept trying to hold me close to him, which was very annoying.
‘Stop holding me so close, Rodney, and dance properly, or I will go back to our table,’ I told him curtly.
I thought this firm but polite warning would work but Rodney, who was now a bit drunk and didn’t seem to care what he said or did, just laughed at me.
‘Stop behaving like a silly virgin,’ he said, now pushing his body even closer to me.
‘I don’t want you to hold me so close Rodney, because I already have a boyfriend and I only came along tonight to make up the numbers, not to be manhandled by you.’
‘Do you sleep with your boyfriend?’ Rodney asked with his mouth now close to my ear.
I went scarlet and pulled away from him immediately, ‘I most certainly do not,’ I replied indignantly, ‘I’m not that kind of a girl.’
I then started to walk back towards the table, but Rodney was not going to let me get away so easily. He caught hold of my hand and swung me back into his arms.
‘What you need is to be taught by an older man who knows what he’s doing, otherwise you’ll be frigid on your wedding night,’ he whispered menacingly.
I looked frantically around the dance floor for Hazel and saw that she was now dancing cheek to cheek with one of the Officers called Mack, so couldn’t get her attention.
‘Excuse me,’ I said to Rodney, as politely as I could and made a dash for the Ladies. I didn’t want to make a big fuss and spoil Hazel’s evening, so I decided that I’d just hide there until it was time to leave.
When I heard the music stop I went to find Hazel and begged her to allow me to sit in the front seat of the car next to Mack on the way back.
‘Why?’ she asked. ‘Do you feel car-sick in the back?’
‘No, it’s not that, Hazel. It’s Rodney, he keeps saying disgusting things to me and trying to grope me, I don’t like him, he’s horrible.’
She laughed and told me not to be silly, and then climbed into the front passenger seat, so that I was forced to sit in the back with Rodney, who kept touching my knee the whole way back, and at one point he even tried to put his hand underneath my dress. He is disgusting, I thought, what on earth is the matter with him? I tried to hold my dress tightly around my knees, so that it made it impossible for his hand to wander, but despite my obvious distress, he still seemed to think it was a great joke.
I was immensely relieved when the car drew up outside the Ugadale, and was even more thankful that, with only two minutes to spare before our late passes expired, there was no time to say more than a quick ‘thank you and goodbye.’
While Hazel and I were undressing that night, I told her that I’d rather die than go anywhere near Rodney again.
She just laughed and said, ‘Boys will be boys! You should take it as a compliment that he fancies you.’
‘Well I don’t think it’s a compliment, and I’m upset,’ I said firmly before going to bathroom.
As I lay in bed that night I realised that Hazel and I had very different ideas about men, so I decided that I would not go out on the town with her again.
The next day I decided to make the most of the good weather and go for a bike ride with Veronica. When I told her about Rodney’s bad behaviour, she was shocked and asked me if I was going to report him.
‘What’s the point? He is an Officer and I am just a lowly Wren, so nobody will believe me,’ I said, feeling a bit sorry for myself, ‘Oh well, hopefully I won’t see him again.’
That evening after high tea Hazel suggested that, as it was still warm and sunny, we should go for a walk along the dunes to look at the sea. I agreed to go, as I needed some fresh air. When we got to the dunes, Mack suddenly appeared over the top of a dune waving at us. Hazel had obviously prearranged to meet him, but then to my utter horror, I then saw that he had brought Rodney with him.
‘Hazel, how could you? You know I detest that man after his behaviour the other night.’ I snapped.
‘He begged me to bring you here Mary, he wants to put things right between you,’ Hazel confessed. ‘He was really taken with you and I think he just wants to apologise.’
I was furious, but before I had a chance to turn around and go back to the airfield, the two men were standing by our side. The moment Rodney saw me he began to laugh and shouted out loudly, ‘I knew you couldn’t resist me!’
It was obviously supposed to be a joke, so I did my best to take it as one and decided to give him a second chance, thinking that perhaps he had just been drinking too much the night before and really was sorry for his actions.
As the four of us walked towards to the sea, with Hazel and Mack leading the way, Rodney said, ‘Hazel told me that you like going on bicycle rides, where do you go?’ He was obviously making an effort to be friendly, so I told him how I had seen some seals on one of my rides. We were so busy chatting that I hadn’t noticed that Hazel and Mack had now disappeared from view, and must have gone behind one of the dunes. Suddenly without any warning, Rodney tried to kiss me on the mouth. It was then I realised with dismay that I had been too trusting and that he only had one thing on his mind. He then started to grope me and touched my breasts.
‘Help!’ I screamed, ‘Hazel, where are you?’
‘Leave them alone, you silly girl,’ Rodney said nastily, ‘they’re off having a cuddle just like you and I should be doing.’
‘Don’t touch me!’ I shouted, as he tried to force me down onto the sand and put one of his hands under my blouse. I pushed him as hard as I could and when he lost his balance for a moment, I took off like a bullet and ran as fast as I could.
When I got back to the airfield, I was relieved to see that one of the drivers, who I knew quite well, was standing
by his lorry, so I asked him if he’d mind if I sat in the back until it was time for him to leave. He gave me an enquiring look and scratched his head. ‘I don’t see why not, but we’re not leaving for another half an hour, so why don’t you wait in the NAAFI?’
‘I would rather stay here,’ I said quietly, ‘if that’s all right with you?’
Just before the lorry was about to leave, Hazel turned up with her hair all over the place and her shirt hanging loose outside her skirt. She laughed when she saw me and said, ‘Where did you get to? You are a dark horse. I couldn’t see you anywhere, perhaps you know somewhere that I haven’t found yet deep in the dunes?’
I was really angry with Hazel for setting me up with Rodney, but decided that it wasn’t worth spoiling our friendship over, so simply said that I had got cold and decided to come back early.
The following day, Rose wasn’t feeling well, so I told her that, as there was only one pilot to re-test in the morning, I would do it for her.
When I arrived at the Sick Bay on Saturday morning, I glanced at the form and saw that I was re-testing a Lieutenant Farland, so went to the testing room to get everything ready for him. I switched on the lamp on the small table that we used for giving our lecture and then turned off the main light, so that when he arrived his eyes would adapt to the dark quicker. A few minutes later I heard someone enter the room and when I looked up I couldn’t believe my eyes: it was Rodney.
‘Go away!’ I said firmly, ‘I am expecting Lieutenant Farland for a re-test any minute.’
‘That’s me,’ he said chuckling, ‘ready and able!’ He then closed the door and started to walk slowly towards me, ‘Why did you rush off like a frightened rabbit last night? Are you scared of me, or are you frightened of all men?’
‘It’s you Rodney, I’m frightened of you, the way you behave, now go away and leave me alone,’ I scolded.
‘But what about my re-test?’ he asked, grinning at me.
There was no way I was going to sit in the dark with this horrid man, so I told him, ‘The re-test is off, so you will have to come back on Monday when the other tester is here with me.’
‘Damn the bloody re-test, Mary. I only booked this one hoping I would get to see you again,’ and then he added menacingly, ‘on your own.’
‘I have already told you that I am in love with another man, Rodney, so why can’t you accept that and leave me alone?’
‘I can’t. You are driving me crazy,’ he said with a glazed look in his eyes.
‘I am sorry that you feel like that, but it’s not my fault and I have made it quite clear from the start that I am not interested or available, so please leave me in peace and stop pestering me,’ I pleaded.
‘Just give yourself to me once and then I will go away,’ he said desperately.
I was starting to get really frightened, so began to slowly walk towards the door hoping that when I got there I could run away, but he must have read my thoughts, and got to the door first. Then he turned the key in the lock and put it in his pocket.
‘Open the door, Rodney! This isn’t funny. I am going to report you,’ I yelled.
This made him angry and he grabbed my shirt and began to pull it out, tearing some of the buttons off in the process. He then pushed me against a wall, trapping my body with his before putting his hand under my shirt, trying to pull down my brassiere. I screamed, but knew it was pointless, because the walls were made of solid concrete.
I suddenly remembered the panic button, which was situated on the wall near our table, with the lamp on it. If only I could reach it someone would come to my rescue.
Rodney was obviously much stronger than me, so I knew that somehow I would have to trick him into letting go of me to win enough time to get to the bell, so I made the decision to stop struggling and went limp in his arms, pretending to finally give in.
‘Aha! I knew you’d surrender eventually,’ he smirked, and then he let go of me and started to take his jacket off, so I immediately took my chance and hurried to the table to turn off the lamp. We were now in complete darkness.
I tried to locate the button, but when I couldn’t find it, I started to panic.
‘Where are you, my little blonde bombshell?’ Rodney called out, and then I heard him knock over one of the chairs and curse. Thankfully, I then saw the faint red glow of the bulb of the panic button and put my finger on it and kept it there.
‘What the hell is that?’ Rodney said crossly. ‘Is that the fire alarm?’
I heard someone put the spare key in the lock and then the door was opened and the main light was turned on.
Rodney was momentarily blinded by the light and put his hands to his eyes. He made quite a spectacle, as his trousers were now around his ankles.
I then saw Surgeon Commander Tapps and the Chief SBA standing in the doorway looking in disbelief at the sight before them.
‘What’s going on in here, Lieutenant Farland?’ the Commander said although it was pretty obvious what Rodney’s intentions had been.
As I looked down at my shirt, I could see that it was ripped and hanging open to leave one of my breasts exposed. I began to tremble uncontrollably and then my legs gave way, but fortunately the Chief SBA caught me just in time and led me gently to a chair.
Doctor Du Caine came to see what was going on and seeing my distress immediately took off his white coat and put it around my shoulders.
The two doctors looked at one another gravely, and then I heard Surgeon Commander Tapps yell, ‘Tidy yourself up Farland, and then report to my office immediately.’
Rodney silently tucked his shirt into his trousers, put on his jacket, and left the room without saying another word. I was so relieved that I burst into tears. The SBA knelt down beside me and whispered, ‘There, there Lassie, it’s all over now.’
Before leaving, Doctor Du Caine told the Chief to take me to the Accident Room, wrap me in a blanket and give me some brandy, while he made arrangements for a Wren Officer to attend to my clothing.
As we got up to leave, Commander Tapps said, ‘I don’t want one word said about this incident until I’ve had time to think about it and make out a formal report.’
‘Yes Sir,’ I whispered and then followed the Chief to the Accident Room where he found some safety pins for me to re-attach the loose strap of my brassiere. As he helped me to pin the front of my shirt together he said, ‘You can wear my spare shirt, it’s clean I promise.’
‘It’s okay, Chief, it doesn’t matter. I’ve got another one in the office in case I spill ink on the one I’m wearing,’ I replied, trying to smile, but bursting into tears again instead.
‘Take a few more sips of that brandy, Lassie,’ he said kindly.
By the time the Third Officer Wren arrived, I was feeling quite light headed from the amount of neat brandy I had been drinking, and I hoped that I wasn’t slurring my words when I asked her if she would be kind enough to collect a clean shirt from the cupboard in my office. She returned a few minutes later and told the Chief that she would look after me now, so he could go back to his duties.
As I put on my clean shirt she must have noticed the scratches on my chest and said gently, ‘I’m afraid I’ll have to ask a doctor to examine you; it’s the rules and regulations.’
‘He didn’t have time to do anything really bad to me; I managed to reach the emergency bell before he had a chance,’ I told her.
‘I’m afraid that under the circumstances you may well be asked to make a charge against the Officer who molested you,’ she informed me.
I looked up, startled ‘Will that mean he could be sent to prison?’
‘I’m not quite sure, but he could possibly be court marshalled and lose his commission,’ she told me.
A female doctor now entered the room and explained that she was a gynaecological specialist. She told me that she would need to check to see if I had any other bruises in addition to those that she could see, and then in a very kind and reassuring way offered, ‘And while I�
��m at it, let’s just make sure that everything down below is unharmed.’
The Third Officer Wren gave me a smile and left me alone with the doctor who then examined me.
Once she was satisfied that I was still ‘intact’ and that there were no other scratches or bruises other than those that could be seen on my upper body, she told me that I could get dressed again, and advised me to try and put the whole unpleasant business out of my mind.
I thanked her for being so kind, and as she left, the Third Officer returned to tell me that Commander Tapps would like a quick word with me if I was up to it.
As I entered his office, the Commander looked up from his desk and asked me whether I was feeling better. When I told him that I was, he said that he now understood why it was so important to have a panic button fitted in the testing room.
‘Lieutenant Farland has behaved quite disgracefully. Do you want to make a formal charge?’ he asked.
‘Not really, Sir,’ I replied, ‘because if I do, sooner or later someone will get to hear about it, and that would be terribly embarrassing for me.’
‘Yes, I can appreciate that,’ he said in an understanding way, ‘but sexual harassment is a very serious offence.’
When I didn’t say anything, he then continued, ‘Farland’s squadron are flying out of Landrail in two days time to join their carrier, and as he is such a good pilot, they can’t really do without him, so if you aren’t going to press charges then I won’t force you to, but I promise you that I will put the fear of God into him, so that he’ll never do anything like this to you, or anyone else, ever again.’
I told the Commander that I would leave it to him, as all I really wanted to do now was have a hot bath and to try to forget about this frightening incident, as quickly as possible. He then told me to take the rest of the day off.
On Monday morning the weather was fine but by midday it was so foul that I thought that nobody would be expected to fly for the rest of the day. There was low cloud and a damp, dense mist but apparently, Commander Flying had ordered one of the squadrons fly to Ireland earlier that day, and then after refuelling there, they were supposed return to Landrail by a different route over the Mull of Kintyre. But as the mist got thicker and thicker we started to worry about the pilots; it was clear that any aircraft still in the sky were now in danger. Flares were lit all along the runway to help guide the planes in when they landed.