Winter on the Mersey(59)

‘All right, I see that. And I hoped it was you, I just didn’t know how it could have been. So what’s the coincidence?’

A faraway look came into his eyes. ‘It’s the most peculiar thing. I met someone who knew you.’

‘Knew me? In deepest France? How on earth …?’

‘She was one of us, she was brought in for a special mission,’ he explained. ‘It had to be her, she was one of only a few who could have done it as she spoke both German and French so well she could pretend to be either. She was pretty good, actually. Very impressive.’

Laura gasped. ‘That’s … no, it can’t be. Marjorie? You met Marjorie?’

Freddy nodded. ‘I know. How unlikely is that?’

‘Of all the Resistance cells in all the world,’ drawled Laura, but stopped when she realised Freddy didn’t have a clue what she meant. ‘Sorry. That is incredible, I can’t quite take it in. So you got to know her?’

That look came back into Freddy’s eyes again. ‘Yes, you could say that. Erm, quite well, actually.’

‘Freddy!’ Laura’s eyes widened. ‘No, you didn’t – you and Marjorie? Really?’ Yet, now she came to think of it, it had a certain rightness to it. Marjorie and her liking for blond airmen – many years ago she’d even danced with a Canadian who had a definite look of Freddy about him, which had shaken Laura to the core. This made sense in a totally impossible kind of way. ‘So she could tell you where I worked …’

‘Yes, and I confess we persuaded someone on the receiving end of some of our messages over here to seek you out and pass you a note,’ he said. ‘I realise it’s a roundabout way of doing things, but we couldn’t put the chain of information in danger. Your friend is a dab hand at signals, she could set up wireless transmissions and they’d be picked up over here. She really was terribly good at her job.’

Laura finally picked up on what he was saying. ‘Wait a minute. Was? Isn’t she any more? Freddy, is she all right?’

Her brother wouldn’t meet her eyes. ‘The truth is, I don’t know,’ he said quietly. ‘The arrangements were all made to get me out at last. We got that message sent to you. I knew where to go to find you – I just had to wait near where you girls park your cars, and Bob’s your uncle. That part of the plan worked like clockwork.’ He seemed to be shaking a little. ‘What happened was, I was moved in the last few days, so I could get away more safely. I was in territory held by the Allies right at the end. But Marjorie was needed behind enemy lines, you see. So she went off on a new mission. And … we didn’t hear anything. We thought we would. That she’d get a message through of some kind. But nobody has heard.’

‘Oh, Freddy.’ Laura didn’t know what to say. It was bad enough to discover that her friend had made it as far as France and was excelling at her job, only to find something had gone wrong; but how much worse would it be for Freddy? Her brother, who had been through four years of unimaginable hell, had found a kindred spirit, only to lose her.

‘She might be all right,’ Laura said staunchly, knowing this was echoing what she had thought about Freddy himself all those long years. ‘She’s fearfully clever, Freddy. You never know.’

‘No,’ he said, looking away, but not before she’d noticed the tear in his eye. ‘That’s the thing, isn’t it? We don’t know.’





CHAPTER NINETEEN


Tommy stuck his hands in his pockets and tried to whistle, but his mouth was dry. The wind had got up, bringing the familiar smell of the river into the streets around the docks. Autumn was here, and he wondered where he’d left his scarf. Kitty wouldn’t be happy with him if he needed a new one.

He’d finished work and would normally have cycled back on the bike Frank had managed to get him, but its tyres needed pumping up and he hadn’t been able find the pump this morning, so he had caught the bus instead. He hoped he hadn’t lost the pump for good – that would be another thing Kitty would be cross about. It was the whole business of having to get up so early and in to work on time – he still wasn’t used to it, and as the mornings began to get darker it was harder still. He’d managed not to be late so far, as he couldn’t have borne the shame of it, but it was touch and go. It didn’t leave any spare time to find anything he’d mislaid.

He hadn’t really noticed the change of temperature and the note of chill in the air as he cycled about the city on his rounds. He was too busy, and needed to move as fast as possible between jobs, so he was plenty warm enough. He was gradually getting used to the notion that he was a harbinger of bad news, and as the Allies continued their successes in France, the stream of casualties kept rising. Now that he was strolling along he began to shiver.

A car drew up.

‘All right, Tommy?’

Tommy looked up. It was Alfie Delaney. He wondered if he could get away without answering, but there weren’t many people around and he couldn’t exactly pretend he hadn’t seen him. ‘Hello, Alfie,’ he said cautiously.

‘How’s the new job going?’ Alfie asked, leaning across the front seat and talking through the wound-down passenger window. ‘Got the hang of it yet?’

‘I think so,’ said Tommy, brightening. ‘There’s lots to do and I have to get it right every time, so I’m very busy.’