Bombers' Moon (17 page)

‘Look, you don’t know that Hilda was over at Maggie’s. Stay with Stephen and I’ll look for Hilda.’

‘I have to look for myself.’ Kate’s answer brooked no argument.

Arm in arm, Hari walked with Kate over the devastation that Swansea had become. Her home town wasn’t alone in this: London, Coventry, Manchester and many other big cities had been blasted to the ground. The German Luftwaffe seemed intent on bombing Britain into submission.

Hari saw at once that the Lamb and Flag was a dark, smouldering ruin with a few flames still shooting up intermittently from the rubble. She heard a faint, anguished cry fading to a ghostly stillness and her blood chilled.

‘For God’s sake Hari, the houses, Maggie’s place, what in the name of all the saints has happened?’

‘Some of the houses are bombed but Maggie’s is still standing.’

‘The Holy Mother be praised.’ Kate sagged against her and Hari swallowed her tears. ‘There, the baby is fine, come on let’s go look for him.’

Maggie’s door was open as it always was but the house was empty. Mary Pryce appeared from next door. ‘Maggie took Hilda and the baby to the Lamb and Flag,’ she said heavily. Wanted a bit o’ a drink she said.’

‘Oh Holy Mother and all the angels no,’ Kate said. Then her head lifted. ‘Hush!’ She stood like a hunting stag listening, sniffing the air. ‘I hear him so I do, I hear my Teddy’s voice.’ She stumbled forward into the smoking, ruined building. Hari followed her and tried to hold her back but Kate pressed on, climbing over huge chunks of debris until she disappeared from sight.

Hari knew that Kate’s sense of hearing, the touch of her finger tips in the darkened ruin of the Lamb and Flag, would be assets that sighted people would not have.

Hari heard Teddy wail and her heart quickened. She moved forward instinctively, waving her hands in front of her face, trying to dispel the smoke and the smell of burning. She touched a soft shoulder and dimly recognized Hilda. There was a rumble beneath her feet, the floor to the cellar must be burnt through, any minute they might crash downwards with the tons of twisted metal and masonry they were stumbling over. Hari dragged Hilda into the street.

Once safely outside, Hilda sagged to the ground. ‘I’m all right –’ she began to cough – ‘help Kate for God’s sake.’

But Kate needed no help. She emerged from the smoke and handed Teddy to Hari. I’m going back for Maggie,’ she said and disappeared into the smoke once more. And even though Hari called her until her voice was hoarse there was no reply.

Thirty-Three

I sat on a bunk in the small cabin that looked as if it might belong to the chief engineer judging by the range of strange equipment on the desk. I had a blanket wrapped round me, which was just as well, because my ‘baby’ had gone when the bag had vanished into the sea in spite of my endeavours to keep it. All I could hope was that if any of the sailors from the Irish merchant ship had survived they would be kept well apart from us. I imagined they would, they were crew and Michael at least had been taken for the son of the fatherland, which of course he was. How he would explain our presence in the sea I couldn’t imagine.

I knew we had bypassed Ireland; when the mine struck, the ship had floundered, drifted way off course and now, hours later, we were on our way to Germany, making our way past the coast of France.

Michael came into the tiny cabin accompanied by some sort of officer.

‘My wife,’ Michael said in German. The officer scarcely acknowledged me. I was relieved I didn’t yet know what we were supposed to be doing at sea in the first place.

The officer nodded again and left us. Michael sat down beside me and rubbed his face. ‘Speak German,’ he instructed me, ‘and only speak when you have to, I’m not sure they trust me.’

‘
Was wirst du ihen sagen
?’ I huddled close to him.

‘The story is you came from Ireland but from German parents,’ he replied. ‘We were returning to Germany when the Irish boat was accidentally sunk by the sub.’

‘We would have drifted off course,’ I said. ‘And what about the crew, the good men we were with?’

‘Poor sods,’ Michael said. I gathered that none of the Irish crew had survived.

‘Let’s try to get some sleep.’ Michael pushed me to the side of the bunk and stretched out beside me. I wanted to cry but Michael would think me even more of a child. Even now, when I had womanly curves and had got away with being an expectant mother, he treated me as if I was his kid sister.

He was lying beside me, our bodies touching out of necessity, the bunk was so narrow. It was torture for me. I wanted him, touching me, holding me, being inside me. I was a woman and human but Michael was in love with my sister, profoundly in love and he would no more betray her love than he would hand her little sister over to the enemy.

Eventually, I slept.

I was woken roughly by hands pulling me from the bunk. I opened my eyes sleepily and saw one of the sailors gesturing for me to go with him. I looked at Michael and he nodded. ‘Go easy with her,’ he said in German, ‘she’s very young and a bit slow-thinking like most of the Irish.’

I bit my lip as I realized Michael was acting in character. German people thought every other race was slow compared to them. The man holding my arm had clear blue eyes that seemed to penetrate my skull, he was someone to be reckoned with that was for sure.

An officer invited me to sit opposite him and nodded to me politely. ‘Frau Euler?’

I nodded.

‘Tell me what’s been happening to you and your husband.’

‘He was taking me to his homeland, he wanted to fight for his country.’ I hoped my funny accent would be taken for the Irish part of me.

‘Where had you been?’

‘Been? I don’t know what you mean, sir.’ I know I sounded stupid, at that moment I felt stupid.

‘Where have you been living?’ he said slowly and loudly.

‘In Ireland, sir.’ I hoped that was a good enough answer. He seemed to be waiting. I dabbed my eyes. ‘My mammy, she died while I was at her bedside.’ I stopped then as Michael had warned me not to say too much. The officer looked at me without expression.

‘Where did you live in Germany?’ It was like a bullet from a gun. Where did I know of in Germany? What would I say? I decided to stay as near the truth as I could.

‘On a farm. Michael was working the land for food for the troops, his mother Mrs Euler was very old, she too died. So,’ I sighed heavily, ‘we went to say goodbye to my family before Michael joined the . . .’ I didn’t know the word for ‘forces’ so I took refuge in wiping my tears on the edge of my skirt again. The officer averted his eyes from my dimpled knee.

‘That will be all, for now.’ He stood up and I quickly left the room. I don’t know how much of my story he believed, he gave nothing away, but as I was marched back to the cabin, Michael was being taken out. I put my arms around him and pressed my cheek to his.

‘I told them about the farm in Germany,’ I whispered, ‘didn’t give a name to the district.’ I kissed him, savouring his unresponsive lips. ‘
Liebling,
’ I said more loudly.

‘We’ll be back home in Hamburg soon,’ he said and kissed me softly. And then they took him away from me and I wondered if I would ever see him again.

Thirty-Four

The smoke that would have blinded most people made little impression on Kate’s eyes, she could see nothing anyway. She did start to cough and, clearing her throat, she shouted as loudly as she could.

‘Maggie! Where are you, you old baggage?’

She heard a sound like a cat mewling and went towards it. She stumbled over some rubble and, on her hands and knees, careless of the tearing of her stockings and the grazing of her shins, she called again.

‘Maggie, keep calling me, I’m coming for you.’

There was no reply but her sharp ears caught the sound of movement and she scrambled towards it. There was the noise of stones, a shower of them falling, and then her hand reached out and touched a warm, human hand. From the sticky feel of it Kate knew Maggie was bleeding.

‘Come on.’ She coughed out the words. The smoke was getting thicker, heavier, and time was limited if she wanted to survive.

Maggie didn’t speak but her hand clung desperately to Kate’s. Following the sound of voices, Kate headed towards the open air dragging Maggie, stumbling behind her. She could breathe. She fell to the ground feeling hands on her, lifting her. She knew, by the scent of him, through the smell of smoke, she was in her husband’s arms, her true but unwedded husband, her wonderful Eddie.

She touched his face. ‘Is it really you, Eddie, you’ve come home again! You’re alive and I’m not dreaming?’

‘It’s me, my darling, it’s me, I’ve come back to you. Don’t worry about me, worry about yourself. You have to go to the hospital, just to be checked, Maggie is going too but mum and the baby are all right.’

Kate seemed to fade then into a mist of a world, a mist inside her head. All she was conscious of was Eddie holding her close, still loving her, he was safe and well and home with her again. It was a miracle and she would bless the Virgin Mother for it every night of her life.

When she opened her eyes again, she was in her own bed. She could hear sounds from downstairs, muted voices, Hilda putting the kettle on the gas, talking baby talk to little Teddy.

Eddie; had she been dreaming she was in his arms, was it lack of air in her lungs causing her to have weird dreams? ‘Please, Virgin Mother, let it be true,’ she breathed.

She stirred and tried to get up but her knees hurt. She felt her legs and they were covered in bandages. Further down, her ankle was swollen and had a sort of stocking on it holding it tight. She must have been unconscious all the time she was at the hospital.

Her hands seemed all right but when she touched her hair it was frizzled and burnt and smelled heavily of smoke and burning wood. She tried to get out of bed though every part of her body ached and once her feet touched the floor, she heard steps on the stairs, the heavy tread of a man.

When he came into the room Kate knew it was true, she knew his scent so well; her dear, darling Eddie was alive, home, safe with her. He took her in his arms and held her gently.

‘How?’ she asked, her hands exploring his face. There was stubble on his chin, he hadn’t shaved in days, but what did it matter? He was in her arms, he wasn’t a dream, a figment of her imagination, he was real flesh and blood.

‘I was missing for a while then I was taken prisoner. Then, one day on a forced march, I took my chance and escaped. Look, none of that matters now, I’m safe, I’m home and I love you my darling little Kate, my beautiful girl.’

She found his lips and kissed him and then, gently, he lay beside her and held her in his arms. ‘I love you so much, Kate,’ he whispered in her ear. Kate wondered for the first time why people whispered when it was love talk: was it for intimacy, privacy, or a desire to hide feelings from the rest of the world?

Later, he helped her downstairs. Hilda silently made tea. She had baked cakes, dry, because there was not enough marge to make the cake light and there was very little fruit, but it was a gesture, a gesture of hope and welcome for the son she thought she’d lost.

Kate was in a dream, she was back in the days when she and Eddie danced without a care in the summer fields, hugged and kissed and made love with the joy of youth.

Hilda coughed. ‘The smoke,’ she explained, ‘it’s still in my chest. You were a brave girl, Kate, to go into the ruins and fetch poor old Maggie out.’

Reality began to trickle into Kate’s euphoria. ‘How
is
Maggie?’

‘In hospital, but she’ll live,’ Hilda said briskly.

‘Eddie, are you home for good?’ Hilda said, her voice hard-edged. ‘If so there are things we have to talk about.’

Reality came closer and Kate tried to push it away even as she listened to Eddie’s answer.

‘I don’t suppose I’ll go back now,’ he said. ‘As of now, I’m unfit for duty.’

‘Thank God for that,’ Hilda said. ‘So you’ll be back here living with us?’

‘Of course, mother,’ Eddie said, ‘where else would I live but with my family?’ He was puzzled by his mother’s attitude and Kate knew she must speak – explain – but the words stuck in her throat.

‘Kate?’ Hilda prompted. ‘Tell him, tell Eddie the truth.’

But she didn’t have to. The door opened and she heard Stephen’s voice, loud and cheerful. ‘I’m home! How’s my wife and my unborn son then?’

The silence was long and hard and edged with fear and Kate felt her happiness dwindling into a tiny sphere that at any moment would just fade away and disappear into nothingness.

Thirty-Five

‘I want you to go to Bletchley Park.’ The Colonel was stooping more noticeably, now he leaned more heavily on his stick. Hari watched as he eased himself into a chair.

‘Sir?’

‘The place where the clever people break codes.’

‘I know what Bletchley is for, sir, I just don’t really want to go away just now, and sir, what use would I be even if I went to Bletchley Park?’

‘I want you to have some training there, specialist stuff.’ He took out a huge hankie and blew his nose severely. He seemed to be short of breath for a moment and then he spoke again. ‘You must put personal issues aside, young lady, and do your duty.’

Hari felt exasperated. ‘I thought I was doing my duty, Colonel Edwards. I am working at a munitions factory and one of my best friends was blinded in an accident here. We are all in danger every day, isn’t that duty enough?’

‘Well, in Bletchley you aren’t likely to get blown up by a shell are you?’ His eyebrows hid his eyes.

‘My personal safety is not an issue, sir, I’m just not clever about codes and ciphers and things.’

‘I’m not arguing. You have to go, at least for a few weeks or so.’

She faced him, her hands firmly on the desk. ‘Have I displeased you?’

‘You are an unmarried lady.’ He was suddenly irate. ‘We work together a great deal, alone in an office. Do you see what I’m getting at?’

Hari did. She was amazed. ‘People are talking about us?’

‘’Fraid so.’

‘But, sir.’ Hari stopped. What she had been about to say was insulting.