A New Day (14 page)

‘Won’t that be lovely! You’ll make lots of new friends.’

The twins gave each other one of those strange looks, and David said something that only Andrew understood. Then with a look of mischief on their faces they dragged Pete off to tell them why the plants were taking such a long time to grow. They expected to plant them one day and have them fully grown the next.

Jane sighed and shook her head. ‘I wish they wouldn’t do that. I swear they can read each other’s mind, and that’s why I want them to mix with other children. I thought a party might be a good way to start.’

‘I’m sure they’ll grow out of it, but I know what you mean. They seem quite content in each other’s company, but this is a complicated world and they’ve got to learn to live in it.’

‘Yes, and it isn’t a nice one at the moment. They’ve got to be able to cope with the good and the bad life will throw at them, and the sooner we start that the better. Have you heard from Alan lately?’ Jane asked, changing the subject.

‘I had a letter yesterday. He’s nearly finished his basic training and looking forward to coming home on leave.’

‘When he does, Hanna, you must go to London and spend a few days with him. You can stay at the house in Kensington while you’re there. When you came to work for me we agreed that you should have at least a day and a half off a week, but you never take it. You work so hard it’s time you had a break.’

‘I wouldn’t know what to do with spare time, but thank you. Alan has been asking if I could get a couple of days free, and it would be so lovely to see him again and not have to rush away.’

‘Then you shall go. Just let me know when he’s home,’ Jane told her. ‘And you mustn’t worry about the boys. I’ll be here and Mildred is always happy to look after them if necessary, so you go and enjoy yourself.’

There were only ten children in the kindergarten class, and they all stared at the identical twins as if they couldn’t believe their eyes.

‘Children.’ Their teacher, Miss Preston, called them to order. ‘Andrew and David will be joining us next term, and they have something to ask you.’

Hanna and their mother had briefed them on what to do, but they still looked uncertain. Jane bent down to them. ‘Ask them to come to your party on Saturday.’

They nodded, stood shoulder to shoulder and spoke together quite clearly and in perfect unison.

When they had issued the invitation one little girl left her desk and stood right in front of them. ‘I’ll come. What time?’

‘Two o’clock,’ Jane told her. ‘What is your name?’

‘May,’ she told them. ‘That’s when I was born. Is it a birthday party, and should we bring presents?’

Hanna was impressed. May was certainly very mature and sensible for her age.

‘There is no need to bring presents or anything else,’ Jane told the class. ‘This is just a chance for you all to get to know David and Andrew.’

May nodded her approval of this, and then turned her attention to the boys, who were watching everything very carefully. ‘You both look the same. I can’t tell who is who.’

‘I’m Andrew.’

‘And I’m David.’

Hanna smothered a laugh and she heard Jane almost groan. That was the wrong way round, and they looked so innocent, but they were up to their old tricks again.

‘They’re going to have the children in a real tangle,’ Jane murmured to Hanna.

All the children had gathered around the boys now, asking questions, but May sidled over to Hanna. ‘Do you know which one is which?’

Hanna stooped down to the little girl. ‘Yes, it’s quite easy when you get to know them.’

‘How? Will you tell me?’

‘Well, look at them carefully. See how one of them has a small lock of hair coming down on his forehead? That’s Andrew. David’s hair always stays in place.’

May nodded, pursing her lips in concentration. ‘That’s not what they said.’

Oh, this was one bright little girl, Hanna thought as she shook her head. ‘They try that on everyone they meet, but they won’t be able to fool you now, will they?’

She grinned and shook her head, then went back to join the rest of the children.

When the teacher motioned that they should leave the room, they left together. Miss Preston said, ‘We’ll leave them alone together for a couple of minutes, Mrs Harcourt, but it looks as if they are going to get along just fine. I know you are both able to tell them apart, so would you mind telling me what to look for.’ The teacher shook her head. ‘They’re going to have me in a real mess if I don’t know which boy I’m dealing with.’

‘Oh, they will indeed!’ Jane laughed, and then explained the slight differences the teacher needed to look for.

Every one of the children turned up on the Saturday, along with their mothers, and it was a blessing that the weather was good so they could be in the garden. The noise was unbelievable and for two hours Hanna never stopped running around. Jane Harcourt couldn’t have any more fears about her children fitting in, Hanna thought wryly. They were in the thick of things, though never far from each other. Still, it was good to see them laughing and playing with the other children. They had grown quite a lot in the short time she had been with them, and once they were at school she would help more in the garden, and also help George with some of the other farm work. She felt strongly that she must make more of a contribution to the war effort. She hadn’t expected the boys to be going to school for a while yet, so this would be a good opportunity to do something useful with the extra time she would have on her hands.

Finally they waved off the last child, May, who seemed reluctant to leave the twins, and when her mother had at last persuaded her daughter the party was over, Jane and Hanna collapsed on to kitchen chairs with a sigh of relief.

‘I’ll give you a hand with the clearing up, Mildred,’ Hanna said as she surveyed the mountain of dishes, all empty.

‘You’ll do no such thing. I can soon put this place to rights again. The best thing you can do is see if the boys will sleep for an hour or so after all the excitement. That will help all of us.’

‘Good idea.’ Hanna dragged herself out of the chair. ‘They must be tired, but I think the party was a great success.’

‘I agree,’ Jane said. ‘It’s a shame Sam wasn’t here. He would have loved it.’

‘So would Jack.’ Hanna stretched. ‘I’ll see if I can persuade the boys to take a short nap.’

They were still in the garden, sitting quietly on the grass, and surprisingly there wasn’t one protest from them.

A week later, Hanna received a letter from Alan, saying he would be home on leave in two days’ time, and she went straight to see Jane Harcourt while the boys were busy in the garden with Pete. They did love getting their hands dirty and spent quite a lot of time out there.

‘Alan will be home on leave tomorrow and has asked if I can spend a couple of days with him, Mrs Harcourt. Will it be all right if I go to London tomorrow?’

‘Of course it will, Hanna. You can stay at the house, and Mrs Potter will be pleased to see you.’

‘Thank you so much. It will be lovely to see him again.’

After the beauty and tranquillity of the country it was strange to be back in London again. Nearly everyone seemed to be in some kind of uniform, and the train coming up had been packed with service men and women. There had been British, French, Canadians, Australians, and others she couldn’t make out.

The house looked just the same though, as imposing as ever, but so quiet now there was only Mrs Potter living here. She tapped on the back door, opened it, and walked in.

‘Hanna!’ Mrs Potter hugged her. ‘How lovely to see you. Are you staying for a while?’

‘Only for two days. Alan’s home on leave.’

‘Ah, that’s splendid.’ She took Hanna’s bag. ‘Let’s get you settled, then we’ll have something to eat before you go and see your young man. How’s that fine brother of yours?’ The elderly lady chatted away, smiling all the time, and obviously pleased to have a bit of company for a while.

‘His letters aren’t very regular, but the last time I heard from him he was fine.’

‘Good, good. Worrying times, my dear, but let’s hope it won’t last too long.’ She gave Hanna’s hand a reassuring pat. ‘We got through the last one and we’ll survive this one as well. You’ll see.’

Hanna nodded, but after the fall of France she didn’t hold out much hope of a speedy end to the war. These thoughts she kept to herself though.

Mrs Potter insisted she eat before she went out, so she did, letting the housekeeper talk away. It turned out that Mrs Potter was far from lonely, as Hanna had first thought. She had many friends, and quite a social life going on. No wonder she had refused to leave London.

As soon as the meal was finished, Hanna went straight round to Alan’s. She had just opened the front gate when the front door crashed open, and the next instant she was swung off her feet.

‘You made it!’ He buried his head in her shoulder, and then rained kisses all over her face. ‘Oh, how I’ve missed you.’

‘I’m happy to see you as well,’ she laughed when he put her down. Stepping back, she studied him. ‘You’ve lost a bit of weight, but you look very fit.’

‘So I should after that training, but let’s not talk about that. It’s Saturday night, so let’s go dancing.’

‘Sounds like a good idea.’ Hanna couldn’t stop smiling. ‘Hadn’t I better go and say hello to your parents first?’

‘Be quick then. We’ve got to make the most of our time together.’

Mr and Mrs Rogers were standing by the door, smiling. ‘Glad you could get here, Hanna.’

‘Mrs Harcourt insisted that I come. How are you?’

‘Very well,’ Mr Rogers said. ‘But you don’t want to waste your time talking to us. Off you go and enjoy yourselves. It’s only four o’clock, so you can have a nice long evening together.’

They didn’t need any more persuading, but they had only taken a few steps up the road when the air-raid sirens sounded. Alan stopped, gazing up at the sky, and Hanna said, ‘I expect it’s just a practice.’

‘I don’t think so, not this time. Listen, can’t you hear the drone of planes?’

‘Yes . . . What was that?’ she exclaimed.

‘London’s being bombed.’ Alan turned her round and they went straight back to the house. ‘Where’s your nearest shelter?’ he asked his parents.

‘At the end of the next road, but we’re not going there, Alan,’ his father said firmly. ‘Not unless they start dropping bombs right here, but it looks as if they are after the docks.’

Alan’s father was right, and by around five o’clock the docks were blazing. They stood in the back garden looking at the glow in the sky. It was six o’clock before the all-clear sounded and the raid was over.

‘Oh, those poor devils,’ Mrs Rogers said, shaking her head. ‘I think we all need a cup of tea after that.’

‘I need a brandy!’ Alan’s father stated. ‘What about you, Alan?’

‘Just the thing,’ he agreed.

They sat in the front room with their chosen drinks, and Mrs Rogers said, ‘Well that seems to be all over now. Hanna has come all this way to be with you, Alan, and I think you should still go out and enjoy yourselves.’

Alan drained his glass and nodded. ‘We’ll go if you and Dad promise to go to the shelter if they come back again tonight.’

‘That’s unlikely, but we’ll do as you say.’ His father raised his glass. ‘Go and enjoy yourselves.’

The dance hall in Hammersmith was packed, and as they danced they talked non-stop. Alan wanted to know everything she had been doing and any news she had of Jack. He let her talk all the time and said very little about the camp he was in, or what he was likely to do now his basic training was finished. However, she wasn’t surprised, knowing that security was of the utmost importance. It was accepted that people involved in the war effort didn’t talk about what they were doing.

The raid certainly hadn’t stopped people from coming out for the evening, and they were so lost in enjoying themselves and being together again that they were surprised when the music suddenly stopped in the middle of a dance.

A man in ARP uniform stepped up to the microphone and announced that the air-raid warning had sounded. ‘It looks as if they are dropping their bombs anywhere this time, and we advise you to make your way to the shelters,’ he told them.

Some people began to leave, but many just stayed where they were even though the sound of explosions could now be heard in the silence.

‘Come on, Hanna.’ Alan caught her hand and began to move towards the door. ‘Let’s see what’s happening.’

The sight that greeted them was unbelievable. The sky was alight not only with fires, but also searchlights, and the anti-aircraft guns were blasting away.

‘Looks like they’re hitting civilian targets this time.’

Hanna’s heart went out to the people living in the East End, where it looked as if most of the bombs were falling at the moment. It was an area she knew well and she prayed that the children in the orphanage had been taken to safety.

‘Will Jack be in London?’ Alan asked.

‘Unlikely. They’ve been docking at Liverpool, and anyway I think he’s still at sea.’

Alan nodded. ‘I’d better get you to a shelter.’

‘Down there, mate,’ an air-raid warden told them. ‘And I’d hurry if I was you. Those damned planes are coming over in waves, and there’s no telling where they’re going to drop their bombs.’

The shelter they found was crowded, but they managed to squeeze in on one of the long wooden seats. Alan couldn’t settle and kept going to the door to see what was happening, standing outside for quite a while.

‘Your young man wants to get out there and help,’ a woman sitting next to Hanna said. ‘I guess the only thing keeping him here is you.’

‘I think so too.’ Hanna grimaced. ‘He was a policeman before the war and he isn’t used to waiting on the sidelines. If he had the room he would be pacing up and down. I’ll go and have a word with him.’

When she stood beside him he placed an arm around her shoulder. ‘Just look at that, darling. It looks as if the whole of the East End is ablaze, and it sounds as if even more bombers are coming over. You must go back to the country tomorrow. I don’t want you in London now this has started.’