A New Day (26 page)

‘I think so.’ Bob squeezed her hand. ‘Thank you for talking to me like this, Hanna. You’re a real lovely girl, and if you weren’t wearing that ring on your left hand I would be trying to win you for myself.’

‘I don’t believe that. I bet you have a string of girls back home,’ she teased.

‘Ah, you’ve found me out.’ He winked at her. ‘But they’re a long way away. How big is this man of yours?’

They were both laughing when they reached the farm, heading straight for the warmth of the kitchen. Hal and Ed were already there, regular visitors now as well, and making coffee. The smell of fresh coffee filled the room. The Americans wouldn’t let anyone else make it, and that was understandable. They knew just how they liked it, and it was too precious to be wasted. They were all very aware that everything had to be brought in by ship.

The three Americans loved the twins, and the feeling was mutual. The boys even managed to coax them into doing a bit of digging in the garden when the weather was good enough, though Hanna wasn’t sure much work got done. They spent more time playing and messing about than actually working.

‘Could have some snow before long.’ George walked into the kitchen rubbing his hands together. ‘We’ll bring the sheep in if it gets too bad, Hanna. I’ve already alerted Jean and Pat.’

‘Want coffee, George?’ Ed asked.

‘Rather have a cup of tea, but don’t you try to make it.’ George winked at his wife. ‘These boys tried to make some tea once, and it was so weak it could hardly crawl out of the pot.’

There were roars of laughter, as this was a standing joke among them. The English couldn’t make a drinkable cup of coffee, and the Americans couldn’t make a decent cup of tea. Greg was the only one of them who seemed to enjoy tea now and again.

Hanna suppressed a sigh as she thought of Jack and Greg – two young men constantly facing unknown dangers at sea.
Be safe
, she silently prayed, and sighed again. Her list of people to worry about was growing all the time.

It was July before Alan returned from North Africa, and when she saw him walk into the yard, it was a moment of sheer joy. It had been such a long time since she had seen him. She rushed to meet him and was lifted off the ground and swung round. ‘Oh, it’s wonderful to see you. I’ve missed you so much.’

‘And you’re as beautiful as ever,’ he laughed, putting her down and stepping back to take a good look at her. ‘No, I’ll correct that – you’re even more beautiful, if a bit dirty.’

‘I’ve been cleaning out the pigs,’ she laughed. ‘Can you stay? Please say you can stay.’

‘I’ve got seven days, but I must spend some of that time with my parents.’

‘Of course you must. Have you been home first?’

He nodded. ‘Just overnight, but I couldn’t wait to see you, and they understand. They send their love, by the way, and thank you for all your letters.’

The boys, always eager for visitors, had come up beside them and were eyeing Alan with interest. She urged them forward. ‘This is Alan. You’ve met him before, but you might not remember.’

‘We do,’ David said. ‘You were a policeman.’

‘My goodness! What memories you’ve got.’

‘You haven’t been here for a long, long time,’ Andrew told him.

‘No, I’ve been away.’ Alan glanced across the yard and saw the three Americans, so he stooped down to David and Andrew. ‘Are you going to introduce me to your friends?’

Andrew caught hold of Alan’s hand and towed him across the yard to them. ‘They come from ever such a long way away.’

‘This is Alan,’ David declared. ‘He belongs to Hanna, and he’s been away.’

Bob chuckled. ‘And he’s a lucky man. I’m Bob, and this is Hal and Ed. We’re sure pleased to meet you, Alan.’

They all shook hands, and Ed was studying Alan’s badges. ‘You look as if you’ve been somewhere hot. Like the desert?’

Alan gave a slight nod of his head, but said nothing.

‘Fine job you did out there,’ Hal said quietly, then changed the subject. ‘We’ve got some real coffee in the house if you fancy a cup?’

‘Real coffee? I’d love one.’

An hour later when everyone had had a chance to greet Alan, and he was settled in a room, the Americans returned to their camp. The boys were asleep for their nap so Alan and Hanna were able to slip away on their own.

‘Let’s walk to the village, darling. I’d like to see the English countryside again. It’s so green here,’ he sighed, ‘and very beautiful.’

‘Worth fighting for?’

He nodded. ‘Even if the cost is high. Now, tell me what you’ve been doing, how Jack is, and about those Americans.’

Hanna talked, sensing that Alan only wanted to listen and not say much. It was a lovely day and after walking right through the village and into the open countryside, they found an old fallen tree and sat on it, enjoying the sunshine and being together again. She could see the change in Alan, just as Jack had been changed by his experiences. Her brother had needed time to come to terms with what had happened to him, and so did Alan. The only sound was birdsong, and she saw him close his eyes, listening and absorbing the peace.

After a few moments he opened his eyes again and smiled at her. ‘Do you know I used to dream of something like this, and often wondered if I would ever see it again – or you.’

‘I can understand that.’

‘Are you happy here, darling? Do you ever yearn to go back to London?’

‘To be honest, I love it here and it wouldn’t worry me if I never saw London again.’

‘Good, because I was thinking that it would be nice to be a village copper.’

‘That’s a lovely idea, but do you think it would be possible?’

‘Might be.’ He shrugged. ‘But we’ve got a long way to go before we can make definite plans for the future. Troops and equipment are building up in the country, Hanna. There are British, Canadian, Australians, Americans, Free French, and others. The last big effort to beat Hitler is being planned, and I don’t think it’s too far away.’

‘And you’ll be a part of it.’

‘That’s what we’re all here for.’ He hugged her tightly. ‘But that means we’ve got to hang on a bit longer before we can decide our future – a future at peace.’

‘How much longer do you think before we’re able to put an end to this madness?’

‘It will be a huge undertaking and take time to organize, so I’m only guessing, but perhaps by the end of next year.’

‘Let’s hope so.’ She smiled at a small rabbit who had come quite close, and then bounded away.

Alan laughed. ‘He’d better not let anyone else see him or he’ll end up in some stew pot. Come on, we’ll walk back through the village so I can have another look at the police house.’

‘Still a policeman at heart,’ she teased.

‘Always, and if I can find somewhere more peaceful than London, then that will be fine.’

‘For me too.’ Hanna clasped Alan’s hand tightly. ‘When Jack was about to board his first ship, we watched the sun rise on a new day – a new life for both of us – and when the war is finally over we’ll be able to welcome in a new day for all of us.’

‘That will be something to look forward to.’

Hanna nodded as they walked hand in hand back to the village.

Hanna thought a lot about those precious moments she had spent with Alan when he had talked about the possibility of the war ending, and what he wanted to do once he was out of the army. He would make an excellent village policeman, she thought, as she planted out neat rows of lettuce. The last of the frosts had gone and there was a great deal to do on the farm. She was kept busy and quite happy about that because the boys would be eight this year and didn’t need her so much. They had always been independent, but were even more so now. Jane was talking about going back to London now the danger of raids had diminished, but Hanna loved it on the farm and would ask if she could stay. If Jane and the boys weren’t here she wouldn’t be able to stay at the house, of course, so she would try to find somewhere to live until Alan came back for good. She had promised Jack that he would have a home to come back to, and she would make sure he did.

‘Another convoy of lorries has just rumbled through the village,’ George said, as he came up to Hanna. ‘More Americans arriving. Troops are pouring in from everywhere, and it looks as if 1944 is going to be the year we finally put an end to this damned war.’

Hanna straightened up. ‘When do you think it will be, George?’

‘Early summer’s the best time to cross the Channel, so I’d guess in the next couple of months.’ He pursed his lips. ‘We don’t see so much of the American boys now their training has been stepped up. No . . . it won’t be long now.’

Like everyone else, Hanna longed for the end of the war, but she went cold when she thought of the cost in young lives, including the danger to some very dear to her.

George smiled down at her. ‘Alan’s bound to get home for a few days, so you can expect him to walk through these gates any time soon. And Captain Harcourt’s just arrived on seven days’ leave.’

‘Oh, that’s wonderful! He hasn’t been home for such a long time. Jane and the boys will be so delighted.’

‘They are,’ he laughed. ‘It’s bedlam in there, and those kids are looking more like their father every day.’

‘I know.’ Hanna shook her head. ‘They were only three when I first saw them, and look at them now. Where have the years gone, George?’

‘Not been easy, have they? We were glad Pete was too young to get caught up in this mess. Our daughter died a couple of months after he was born, and we’ve had him since he was a baby. Means the world to us, he does.’

‘I didn’t know that, George. I’m so sorry.’

‘We don’t talk about it, and Pete’s never known anything else.’

‘What about his father?’

‘Oh, him! He walked out before the baby was born. Never seen him since, and don’t want to.’

‘Pete was very lucky to have you.’ Hanna couldn’t help thinking of their years in the orphanage, and was glad that Pete had escaped that kind of life.

‘Oh, we’ve been the lucky ones, Hanna. Anyway, mustn’t forget what I came here for. Mildred said could you find her a few more onions and potatoes for dinner?’

‘Of course. We’ve got plenty in the store shed. I’ll bring a few carrots as well, just in case she needs them.’

Although the captain was home, the Harcourts still insisted on eating in the kitchen with the rest of them. It was a lively affair, with the twins in high spirits, keeping them all entertained, and Hanna watched the captain begin to relax. She recognized the signs of strain, having seen it so often in Jack, and again in Alan when he had returned from North Africa.

‘Daddy, Mummy wants to go back to London.’ Andrew didn’t look too pleased about the prospect.

‘She told me, but I’ve persuaded her to wait a little longer.’

‘Oh, good.’ Andrew beamed. ‘We like it here.’

And Hanna was as pleased as the boys, because it meant she could carry on as usual for a while longer.

The next morning the three Americans turned up and they met the captain for the first time. Somehow their paths had never crossed on his brief visits home. The boys were at school, and Jane had popped to the village to see someone. Noting that the four men were already deep in conversation, Hanna just waved to them and went back to work in the garden. Pete was out with his Home Guard unit, so she was quite alone, working behind a row of raspberry bushes.

After a while she heard the gate open and the sound of men’s voices drifted over to her, but she moved so they could see she was there, and kept on working. There had been a lot of rain recently, and it was surprising how quickly the weeds shot up. This was a lovely tranquil spot away from the bustle of the other farm work, and she knew the men probably wanted somewhere peaceful to talk.

‘. . . looks like we’ll be moving out soon.’

Hanna recognized Hal’s voice as the men walked slowly around the garden.

‘We’ve been told the beaches will be bombarded before we land.’

The captain’s voice was too deep for Hanna to hear his reply, but they were coming closer and she moved out further so they could see her clearly, looked up and gave a little wave, then returned to her weeding. They knew she was there now and could move away if they didn’t want her to hear what they were saying. But they smiled at her and kept on walking and talking.

‘What chance do you have of knocking out the enemy before we go in, sir?’ Ed asked.

‘That we can’t be sure of, but you can be certain that we will do our very best to protect you as much as we can.’

‘Can’t ask for more than that, sir,’ Bob said. ‘Would you join us for a drink at the pub?’

‘That’s an excellent idea. Hanna,’ the captain called, ‘tell Jane I’ve gone to the pub for a drink.’

‘I will.’ When the gate closed behind them, Hanna rested on the hoe, deep in thought. From the little snatches of conversation she had caught, it was clear that George had been right. The invasion of France was close – very close.

An hour later Jane looked in the garden. ‘Have you seen Sam, Hanna?’

‘He went to the village with the Americans for a drink.’

‘Ah, he might be some time then. I’ll go and collect the boys later, so you can carry on with what you’re doing.’

Pete arrived back just then and the two of them spent the rest of the day working in the garden.

It was dinner time before the captain arrived home, and Mildred nodded. ‘You’re just in time. I’m about to dish up.’

‘I hear you met our regular visitors,’ Jane said, smiling at her husband. ‘What do you think of them?’

‘They’re interesting and easy to get on with. After we’d had a drink at the pub they insisted on taking me back to their base to meet some of their other colleagues. I’ve been plied with food and drink all afternoon,’ Sam laughed.

‘I expect they were pleased to have someone they could talk about the war with, and what is going to happen soon,’ George said.

‘They wanted to talk, and that is understandable. They’re a long way from home and naturally apprehensive, as are we all.’

Jane nodded. ‘We’ve been happy to let them come here whenever they wanted to, and I think they’ve enjoyed the farm, and the company.’