Daisy was still thinking of Mrs Hayes and the never-to-be-seen-again tea trolley when Aunt Betty’s heartrending description caused her to imagine what it would be like if one of the Luftwaffe bombs fell on their house. What if all their possessions and photographs went up in smoke like the family that her aunt had helped? The prospect was very sobering indeed.
‘I suppose you’ve heard nothing from Ed or Minnie?’ Mother asked after a while.
‘I telephoned Minnie yesterday,’ said Aunt Betty with the first hint of a smile. ‘She told me to tell you they’re safe. Because of living in their apartment they have no Anderson, but she refuses to use public shelters. She insists she hasn’t the right fashions to befit such an occasion! Instead, they’ve decamped to Leo’s studio which is on the ground floor and leads to a cellar.’
‘Minnie can be so stubborn,’ sighed Mother. ‘I hope she knows what she’s doing.’
Aunt Betty shrugged. ‘You know Minnie when she has a bee in her bonnet. Not even the Luftwaffe will change her mind.’ She reached into her pocket. ‘Now for the good news. I’ve heard from Ed - sort of.’ She grinned ruefully and passed a postcard to Mother who carefully studied the image of St Paul’s Cathedral on one side, before reading aloud from the other.
“Dearest Betty, this is to let you know I am fine, but missing you enormously. I hope Margaret Kelly’s fiftieth went off well - too bad I had to miss it. Sorry, no return address just yet, but we are told one will be forthcoming soon. Ever yours, Ed.”
‘Who is Margaret Kelly?’ said Mother with a frown. ‘And why is this card postmarked London? Do you think Ed and Nicky are still in town?’
‘No, quite the opposite,’ declared Aunt Betty. ‘That’s what we are meant to think.’ She took a breath. ‘You see, Ed thought up this ingenious idea, and we created our own code before he left. Yesterday I deciphered some of it.’
Daisy clapped her hands. ‘Aunt Betty, how exciting!’
Her aunt smiled. ‘The credit goes to your uncle. But yes, it does feel rather wonderful to pit our wits against the powers that be.’
‘Well indeed, Betty, I would never have thought it of you!’ Exclaimed Mother.
Aunt Betty’s eyes lit up as she spoke. ‘The postmark is a generic one, probably collected from our men’s location and sent off en masse by the war office in London.’
‘So we shall never be able to trace where they are?’ Mother looked disappointed.
‘Don’t be too sure of that,’ replied Aunt Betty. ‘I’ve developed my own theory on Ed and Nicky’s whereabouts. Though I shan’t be certain until Ed writes again and I can confirm my deductions.’
‘Deductions?’ said Mother on a gasp. ‘Do you mean Ed and Nicky are to be sent abroad?’
‘Good gracious, no,’ said Aunt Betty. ‘The government, I am convinced, have borrowed our men for very specific missions - here, on British soil. And though we are not supposed to talk about such things, I’m sure what I have to say won’t go beyond these four walls.’
Daisy stopped eating immediately. She didn’t want to miss a word.
‘A s I told you, Ed and I hatched a plan,’ said her aunt in a hushed voice.
Everyone leaned forward to hear her whispered words.
‘Ed guessed that any communication between us would be censored and any letters from him would be postmarked according to government instructions. And so we invented our own code.’
‘I wish Pops had invented one too,’ said Daisy eagerly. 'It would be so exciting if we could - ‘
‘Shh,’ said Bobby knocking her elbow. ‘You’re interrupting again.’
With great restraint Daisy didn’t retaliate which was just as well because Aunt Betty took a dog-eared map from her bag and spread it over the table.
‘We decided that any number from one to a hundred would represent the amount of miles from London to their secret location. Over one hundred and we would refer to another code, which this time, isn’t used on the postcard. Any name, be it male of female that was unfamiliar, would stand for the initials of the town nearest to this location. Does that make sense?’
‘No,’ they all said at once.
‘Good,’ said her aunt with a satisfied nod. ‘If you haven’t guessed, then our plan is pretty watertight.’
‘What does Margaret Kelly’s fiftieth have to do with your map?’ said Mother, puzzled.
‘Everything,’ said Aunt Betty with a wry smile. ‘Our men are fifty or so miles from London, as the crow flies, living in a town with the initials MK.’
Bobby sat bolt upright. ‘I get it, Aunt Betty. That’s why you’ve drawn this circle around London.’
‘Well done, Bobby,’ said their aunt, indicating the lightly pencilled orb. ‘For instance, here to the south is Hastings, fifty or so miles from us. And here, as we follow the shape of the circle is Oxford, fifty miles or so away. And here, at the top of the circle - ‘
‘Margaret Kelly!’ burst out Daisy, stabbing her finger on the map.
‘Milton Keynes!’ exclaimed Bobby. ‘Pops and Uncle Ed are in Milton Keynes?’
‘By my reckoning, yes,’ agreed their aunt. ‘We’re unlikely to be rumbled, you see, even if the card is intercepted. Ed will send his postcards or his letters and hopefully when I receive a forwarding address, I’ll respond with mine, also in code.’
‘What a whizzer!’ exclaimed Bobby, examining the map closely.
Aunt Betty grinned. ‘It’s quite simple really. Wherever our men were sent within the British Isles, it had to be north, south, east or west of London, right?’
Everyone nodded.
‘So
