Page 51 of The Island Girls

But that afternoon, when Patricia called to visit, she brought with her a gentleman whom Peggy had never imagined would visit her at home. Mr and Mrs Symonds retreated to the kitchen with Molly to allow Peggy a private chat with her visitors in the front room. Molly shut the door as she left and caught Peggy’s eye as she did so, her own eyes wide in wonder at what on earth was going on.

‘Good to see you’re holding up well enough, Peggy,’ said Fletcher before lowering his voice. ‘You’re quite sure we can’t be heard in here?’ he asked her.

‘Quite sure, Mr Fletcher,’ answered Peggy. ‘I do apologise for being rested up on this settee, sir. Mother is worried, and I must admit I feel a bit too chesty. I’ve no idea how long I was in that water, but my guess is a couple of hours at least.’

Fletcher and Patricia both nodded, and Peggy glanced at Pat, wondering what she knew.

‘Has anything been heard of Charlie, or even this other fellow, “Klaus”? I can’t believe he is on the run – I was sure he was dead when I last saw him,’ asked Peggy.

‘We’ve come to update you, Peggy, and it might be a little upsetting,’ Fletcher said. Peggy’s mind immediately turned to Darrell, and she braced herself for the worst possible news, holding back the tears she felt gathering in her throat.

‘A body was discovered floating under the lifting bridge in the early hours of dawn today, and we needed to make sure of exactly who it was,’ said Fletcher.

Peggy held her breath, her hand resting on her chest, waiting for this era of her life to be ended. She wondered in that moment if there’d be a sound, like a gunshot that would mark the moment, and thought again of the gunshot she’d fired herself, not knowing if it had met any mark at all.

‘Is it Klaus?’ she asked, hoping that Charlie might still be alive, somehow, somewhere.

‘We aren’t certain. It could be either Charlie or Klaus, or even someone else. We’d like you to come and help identify the body. For security reasons, it is being held at the RAF base in Hamworthy,’ Fletcher said.

Peggy felt her legs shaking and she began to feel quite sick. They had found a body. It was probably Klaus – the bringer of all the trouble, but might also be Charlie. And if it was Charlie, what on earth had happened to Klaus?

Peggy gathered her shoes and outdoor coat, for although the month was now June, the day was cool and damp, and she was already quite unwell. She didn’t realise how weak she felt until she walked to the car outside, and was glad to sit down again on the ride to Hamworthy. At the gates, she saw a familiar face, who gave her a meaningful nod. It was one of Darrell’s friends she’d met in the pub, and at the dance hall.

Once inside, they were directed to the medical rooms of the base, and asked to wait on hard, wooden chairs in a draughty corridor – a fact Fletcher complained of at once, owing to Peggy’s delicate state of health. Once inside the clinical room, the body seemed like a marble statue under its white sheet on the raised table. The RAF doctor peeled back the sheet and Peggy, who only realised now that she was fully intending to see the face of Klaus, was shocked to see Charlie lying there.

She stared for a few seconds, tears running freely down her face, before Fletcher prompted her.

‘Can you confirm if you know this man, Peggy?’ he asked her.

‘Yes. Yes, this is Charlie Edwards – the man we know as Charlie Edwards. But I believe his real name was Hans Meyers,’ she added.

‘You’re quite sure? This is Charlie, and not Klaus?’ he asked.

‘I’m certain, sir. This is Charlie, who I’ve been working with these past months, and getting to know extremely well in recent weeks.’ Overwhelming emotions overtook her now and whether or not it was grief, exhaustion, regret, or relief that her mission was now over, she could take no more. She slumped into a chair and held her head in her hands as tears streamed down her face and she gasped for air between sobs.

In the corridor outside, Darrell had positioned himself to watch through a narrow window. He’d heard that Peggy had arrived on site, and that there was a body being held in the medical rooms. He had waited and watched to see Peggy’s reaction, and now he knew. This was Charlie, this dead man. And Peggy was completely devastated by the loss. Darrell choked on the thickening in his throat and one lone tear escaped as he watched with a trembling lip the woman of his dreams grieving for the man she loved more than him. He spun on his heels and went straight to his group captain’s office, knocking firmly on the door, before entering on command.

‘Sir, you mentioned more men were needed in Plymouth?’

‘That’s right, Flight Lieutenant. There have been some movements and some extra staff are needed on hand there.’

‘I’d like to be put in for a transfer, sir, as soon as possible,’ said Darrell, speaking quickly before he could change his mind.

‘Are you sure? I understood you had a young lady here in Poole that you wished to be close to?’

‘I did, sir, but not any more. When can I leave?’

The group captain sat back in his chair and saw the determination in Darrell’s face.

‘We can have you there tomorrow, if you like. If you’re certain?’

‘I’m quite certain, sir. Thank you,’ Darrell said, saluting and turning to leave the office and walk across the yard, his chest burning with a pain he’d never known before. He daren’t look out across the harbour to where he knew he would always imagine Peggy, her blonde curls blowing in the breeze as she flew across the water.

Back in the medical room, Peggy raised her head as a question occurred to her. Did she really want to know? What if this had been her fault?

‘How did he die, sir?’ Peggy asked, so quietly, Fletcher asked her to repeat herself.

‘Charlie,’ she said clearing her throat and speaking up. ‘How did he die? Surely not from simply falling into the water during a fight?’

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