'Accused me of crying out like a damned coward!' he blustered to her. 'I didn't make a sound. Knew it wouldn't do any good. Knew if I didn't dig myself out, I'd be there till kingdom come! Nearly had myself out, too, and then he comes along and accuses me of blubbering like a baby! It's monstrous, that's what it is! Monstrous!'
She took hold of his arm.
'What do you think you're doing, young woman? You should be at home instead of out running round in short skirts! It's indecent, that's what it is!'
She shoved him, still protesting, on to a bunk, and covered him up with a blanket. I slammed the doors to, watched her off, and then made a circuit of the incident, looking for Swales and Morris. The rising sun appeared between two bands of cloud, reddening the mounds and glinting off a broken mirror.
I couldn't find either of them, so I reported in to Nelson, who was talking angrily on a field telephone and who nodded and waved me off when I tried to tell him about Jack, and then went back to the post.
Swales was already regaling Morris and Vi, who were eating breakfast, with an imitation of Colonel Godalming. Mrs Lucy was still filling out papers, apparently the same form as when we'd left.
'Huge moustaches,' Swales was saying, his hands 2 feet apart to illustrate their size, 'like a walrus's, and tails, if you please. 'Oi siy, this is disgriceful!'' he sputtered, his right hand squinted shut with an imaginary monocle. ' 'Wot's the Impire coming to when a man cahn't even be rescued!'' He dropped into his natural voice. 'I thought he was going to have our two Jacks court-martialled on the spot.' He peered round me. 'Where's Settle?'
'He had to go to his day job,' I said.
'Just as well,' he said, screwing the monocle back in. 'The colonel looked like he was coming back with the Royal Lancers.' He raised his arm, gripping an imaginary sword. 'Charge!'
Vi tittered. Mrs Lucy looked up and said, 'Violet, make Jack some toast. Sit down, Jack. You look done in.'
I took my helmet off and started to set it on the table. It was caked with plaster dust, so thick it was impossible to see the red W through it. I hung it on my chair and sat down.
Morris shoved a plate of kippers at me. 'You never know what they're going to do when you get them out,' he said. 'Some of them fall all over you, sobbing, and some act like they're doing you a favour. I had one old woman acted all offended, claimed I made an improper advance when I was working her leg free.'
Renfrew came in from the other room, wrapped in a blanket. He looked as bad as I thought I must, his face slack and grey with fatigue. 'Where was the incident?' he asked anxiously.
'Just off Old Church Street. In Nelson's sector,' I added to reassure him.
But he said nervously, 'They're coming closer every night. Have you noticed that?'
'No, they aren't,' Vi said. 'We haven't had anything in our sector all week.'
Renfrew ignored her. 'First Gloucester Road and then Ixworth Place and now Old Church Street. It's as if they're circling, searching for something.'
'London,' Mrs Lucy said briskly. 'And if we don't enforce the blackout, they're likely to find it.' She handed Morris a typed list. 'Reported infractions from last night. Go round and reprimand them.' She put her hand on Renfrew's shoulder. 'Why don't you go have a nice lie-down, Mr Renfrew, while I cook you breakfast?'
'I'm not hungry,' he said, but he let her lead him, clutching his blanket, back to the cot.
We watched Mrs Lucy spread the blanket over him and then lean down and tuck it in around his shoulders, and then Swales said, 'You know who this Godalming fellow reminds me of? A lady we rescued over in Gower Street,' he said, yawning. 'Hauled her out and asked her if her husband was in there with her. 'No,' she says, 'the bleedin' coward's at the front.''
We all laughed.
'People like this colonel person don't deserve to be rescued,' Vi said, spreading oleo on a slice of toast. 'You should have left him there a while and seen how he liked that.'
'He was lucky they didn't leave him there altogether,' Morris said. 'The register had him in Surrey with his wife.'
'Lucky he had such a loud voice,' Swales said. He twirled the end of an enormous moustache. 'Oi siy,' he boomed. 'Get me out of her immeejutly, you slackers!'
But he said he didn't call out, I thought, and could hear Jack shouting over the din of the anti-aircraft guns, the drone of the planes, 'There's someone under here.'
Mrs Lucy came back to the table. 'I've applied for reinforcements for the post,' she said, standing her papers on end and tamping them into an even stack. 'Someone from the Town Hall will be coming to inspect in the next few days.' She picked up two bottles of ale and an ashtray and carried them over to the dustbin.
'Applied for reinforcements?' Swales asked. 'Why? Afraid Colonel Godalming'll be back with the heavy artillery?'
There was a loud banging on the door.
'Oi siy,' Swales said. 'Here he is now, and he's brought his hounds.'
Mrs Lucy opened the door. 'Worse,' Vi whispered, diving for the last bottle of ale. 'It's Nelson.' She passed the bottle to me under the table, and I passed it to Renfield, who tucked it under his blanket.
'Mr Nelson,' Mrs Lucy said as if she were delighted to see him, 'do come in. And how are things over your way?'
'We took a beating last night,' he said, glaring at us as though we were responsible.
'He's had a complaint from the colonel,' Swales whispered to me. 'You're done for, mate.'
