‘I’m hungry Mummy,’ a little voice said at the kitchen door.
Claire stood the iron up on the ironing board and went to her. ‘Did you have a good nap, darling?’ she asked, bending down and hugging her daughter. Aimée shook her head and put her arms around her mother’s neck. ‘How about I make your favourite lunch?’ Aimée let go of her mother, took a step back and gave her a questioning look. ‘Spam fritters and a yokey-egg?’ Aimée shrugged her shoulders and turned her nose up at the suggestion. ‘But you loved fritters with an egg that you dip your bread and butter into when we were in Canada.’
‘And if you eat it all up, there’s sponge cake with buttercream and jam for afters,’ Esther added. ‘That is if you want cake?’
‘Yes, please!’ Aimée shouted.
‘I spotted a cake-tin in the box Father Christmas left with me, so I took a peek. I know I shouldn’t have looked, but I don’t think he’d mind. And I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if you eat some of the cake today. Especially as you won’t be here on Christmas Day.’
Claire looked at Aimée, waiting for her to jump for joy because not being at home meant she would be at Foxden with Grandma Dudley, her aunts and uncles and her new cousin Nancy. ‘Aimée?’
‘But Daddy won’t be there. How can we have Christmas without Daddy?’
Esther went to her great-grandchild, put her hands on her shoulders and walked her into the living room. ‘Because that is what your Daddy would want,’ she said. Esther sat on the settee and patted the cushion next to her. When Aimée sat down, she said, ‘Your Daddy wouldn’t want you to stay here and be sad. He’d want you to be happy and have fun at Christmas.’ Aimée looked down at her shoes, kicked her heels against the sofa and rocked back and forth.
‘Before you went to Canada you told me you were worried that you wouldn’t be home in time for Christmas because you wanted to go to Foxden.’
‘Yes, but that was before I knew Daddy wasn’t going to be with us. What if he comes home and we’re not here?’ Aimée looked up when her mother came into the room. ‘What will he do all on his own?’
‘He won’t stay here on his own, darling, not if we’re not here. Daddy knew we’d planned to have Christmas with Aunt Bess and Uncle Frank at Foxden, so he’ll come up to us.’ Aimée didn’t look happy. ‘I know,’ Claire said, ‘we’ll leave him a note reminding him that we’ve gone to Foxden and ask him to come to us as soon as he can. How’s that?’ Aimée nodded, but Claire could see she wasn’t won over by the idea.
After tea Claire cleared the table and washed the dishes. Esther rinsed the washing, put it through the mangle, and hung it on the clothes horse.
‘Right! It’s time I made a move,’ Esther said. Heading to the hall, she put on her coat. ‘I’m not keen on driving in the dark at this time of year, the roads can be icy once the sun’s gone down. Besides, I haven’t packed my case yet.’ She laughed. ‘I daren’t be late getting to Dorry’s tomorrow. She’s expecting me for lunch. If I’m not there by one o’clock she’ll think I’ve had an accident and start telephoning round the hospitals. She is a worrier.’
After walking Esther down the icy path and seeing her safely into her car, Claire returned to the house. She closed the front door and locked it before joining Aimée at the living room window. Together they waved Esther off. When the car was out of sight, Aimée resumed her drawing and Claire went into the hall, picked up the telephone, and dialled her sister Bess’s number in Leicestershire.
‘Hello, Bess, it’s Claire. Aimée and I will be coming to Foxden for Christmas as planned.’
CANADA - THREE MONTHS EARLIER
September 1949
CHAPTER TWO
Aimée was excited on the flight to Canada. It was the first time she had been on an aeroplane and she asked her father a million questions. She watched with awe as the stewardess demonstrated how, in the event of an emergency landing, passengers were to stay calm and exit by the nearest doors. Aimée beamed her best smile at the stewardess and when she had finished demonstrating the emergency procedures, said, ‘Excuse me, please? How does the aeroplane stay in the air?’
Looking surprised the young stewardess said, ‘That’s a good question.’ Leaning across the seat next to the aisle, she pointed out of the window. ‘You see the big engines under the wing?’ Aimée nodded. ‘Well,’ the stewardess said, ‘they draw in air and the air mixes with fuel, which burns and pushes the aeroplane forward.’
Aimée frowned as she tried to understand what the young woman was saying. ‘And then the pilot who is flying the aeroplane, the Captain, controls how fast and how high the aeroplane flies.’
‘My Daddy is a captain,’ Aimée said, proudly. ‘He flies aeroplanes too, don’t you Daddy?’
‘I used to, honey. It’s been a while,’ he said to the stewardess.
‘In the war, Captain?’
Mitch nodded.
Later, the same stewardess was serving drinks. When she had taken Mitch and Claire’s order she asked Aimée if she would like to visit the cockpit and meet the pilot?
Aimée caught her breath. ‘Yes
