‘You take care of yourself, my boy, and don’t volunteer for anything – that’s my advice.’ Her dad dropped his cutlery and drained his tea in one gulp. ‘I’ve got to get back to work. Goodbye, Jack, hopefully you’ll be here for Christmas.’
He stomped out so quickly Jack didn’t have time to reply. ‘It’s going to be hard for all of you having four of us in the firing line.’
‘At least you’re all based in England. The army in France is freezing in this terrible weather because they haven’t got enough blankets. But even that’s better than being a sailor.’
He flung his kitbag into the back of the car. ‘Next time you see me I’ll be in uniform. Take care of my car, no speeding.’
‘It’s very kind of you to leave it here for me to use. I promise I won’t do anything silly. Aren’t you going to drive?’ He’d opened the passenger door.
‘No, no point. It’s yours for the duration.’
The car was quiet on the short journey to Romford as neither of them had anything more to say – it had all been said over the last few days.
She pulled up expertly by the kerb and twisted to say farewell. To her surprise he leaned across and cupped her face in his hands and then kissed her on the lips.
‘Goodbye, Ellie, I’m going to miss you.’
Then he was out of the car and striding away laughing at her embarrassment. Several heads turned as he made his way towards the entrance of the station. Until he’d kissed her she’d not seen him as anything but an adopted older brother.
She ran her tongue along her tingling lips, not quite sure how she felt about him now. Why had he done it? Had he come to view her as a potential girlfriend and was letting her know she had two suitors? This idea was ridiculous – he’d just been teasing her. He was well aware she was in love with Greg.
The car skidded twice as the first heavy flakes of snow began to fall and she was glad to be home without anything worse happening.
The mood at church yesterday had been sombre. Despite the fact that nothing much had happened; everyone was expecting the Luftwaffe to arrive at any moment and drop poisonous gas on them. The women talked about shortages and the fact that rationing would be starting in January. Even those with husbands or sons at sea, or in France, appeared to be more concerned about the lack of basic food in the shops, than they were about the safety of their loved ones.
If Dad hadn’t had his stroke a few months ago she thought she would’ve joined the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force – WAAFs, but she wasn’t going to leave him until she was certain he was completely fit. Anyway, being so close to aircraft but not being allowed to fly them would be upsetting to say the least.
Mrs B waved to her through the kitchen window and held up a cup. Ellie nodded. She could have a quick drink whilst she put on her overalls, thick socks and gumboots. She’d taken over the pigs. They were intelligent creatures and she enjoyed spending time with them. However, she was sure she never quite got rid of the smell however much she washed.
‘It won’t be the same with Jack gone, I expect you’ll miss him too,’ Mrs B said as she handed over a cuppa.
‘I certainly will – but I think that my dad will miss him most. I wish he was as fond of Greg as he is of Jack.’
‘Your young man is a bit grand for Fred, but he likes him well enough. Jack’s more down-to-earth and just fits in better at Glebe Farm.’
‘Everyone was moaning about shortages at matins. Mrs B, are you going to be able to get enough together to make it a memorable Christmas?’
‘I’ve already made a cake and the pudding. We’re lucky here, we won’t go short. Fred got a letter from the Min of Ag saying all the produce has to go to designated shops and we can’t sell from the door anymore.’
‘I expect we’ll have enough cracked eggs to keep us going and I’m sure nobody will notice when we take milk and cream. Last time I looked in the pantry there were two sides of bacon hanging up. I’m assuming we can keep those and just have to give up any future meat.’
‘I should blooming well hope so, you’re all working ever so hard, out in all weathers, and you deserve to eat properly.’
Ellie finished her tea. ‘It’s a good thing I’ve got several pairs of overalls. I’d hate it if I had to put on smelly ones.’
*
The weather continued to deteriorate and as soon as the snow thawed a fresh lot fell. The Spitfires from Hornchurch continued to fly over in formation and every time she heard them approaching her stomach lurched. Her ears were telling her these were friendly planes but all the talk of imminent bombing was making her nervous.
The week before Christmas Greg missed his planned evening call. ‘He always rings at seven o’clock, Dad. I shan’t be able to sleep tonight worrying about what’s happened.’
‘Don’t fret, love, it won’t change anything. We’ve got four young men to worry about and it’s going to drive us daft if we panic every time there’s a missed call. Believe me, we’ll hear soon enough if anything’s wrong.’
‘I hate this war and it’s hardly started yet. The Prime Minister keeps saying he’s confident of victory, but I don’t see how that’s possible. I read in the Daily Sketch the other day that hundreds of civilians have been killed because of the blackout – far more than soldiers, sailors or airmen.’
‘It’s silly buggers going too fast when there’s no street lighting or headlamps on the cars. I reckon that things will get better on the
