Page 90 of Whispers At Dawn
‘Yes, it was almost as if he had a premonition.’
The plane whirred through the sky towards its destination. Lizzie was exhausted but too on edge to fall asleep. Jack dozed on her shoulder after a swig of whisky from the navigator’s flask. She glanced out the window as first light broke and gasped in awe when the dome of St. Paul’s Cathedral etched against the pink dawn sky like a welcoming talisman came into view.
Jack winced and opened his eyes. ‘Where are we?’
‘Look,’ Lizzie said, pointing to the skyline. ‘We’re flying over London.’
‘Welcome home to Blighty, darling,’ Jack said, taking Lizzie’s hand.
Lizzie looked over at the airman, who had nodded off, his head bumping against the panel. ‘We had a successful mission, but my heart hurts for them.’
Jack’s gaze followed hers. ‘It could have been even worse. At least one of them is alive and will go home to his family.’
‘What about Billy? Who will break the news to his poor wife?’
‘The RAF will notify her and arrange the funeral. He’ll be buried with full military honours after being missing in action for weeks. We are bringing his body home, and she can mourn him. Too many of our boys have fallen in foreign fields and lie inunmarked graves. Billy’s death is a tragic loss of life, but at least they can have a proper burial.’
They reverted to silence, immersed in their own thoughts of the horrific price of war and another grieving widow and fatherless child.
CHAPTER 47
London, June 1941
Jack cursed under his breath as he shifted against the pillows on the hospital bed. When he settled, he said to Lizzie, ‘Do you think it will be a smooth collaboration between Lev and Hannah?’
‘I’d say so. Did you not notice how mesmerised he was by her?’
‘No, I can’t say I did, but I hope they will make a good team.’
Lizzie laughed. ‘Everyone’s mesmerised by Hannah.’
‘That’s true,’ Jack said. ‘Although you thought I was besotted with her when we first met. Lev might just, like me, be impressed by her ability to get the job done. Angel has become a legend in the Resistance.’
‘I have a feeling there’s more to it than that. He usually barely smiles, but he was bewitched. And that’s with her dressed as a man! Goodness knows what effect she’ll have on him, when he sees how gorgeous she is.’
‘Poor Henry,’ Jack said, his voice glum. ‘It would destroy my brother if he lost her.’
‘Emotions run high in wartime, and it’s easy to understand why people snatch whatever happiness they can in the moment, but Hannah is focused on getting people out of France. She loves Henry, and I doubt she has time for romantic liaisons, anyway. The poor love is always on the run. Imagine what it’s like to be permanently undercover in France, not in and out for short periods like us.’
‘It’s madness. I’ve tried to get her out, but you know how stubborn she is.’
‘She’s the most courageous person I’ve ever met,’ Lizzie said. ‘And shewon’t be stopped. The Lavender Network will be a force of nature.’
‘I hope her bond with Henry is enough to sustain them through these years of barely seeing each other,’ Jack said, still thinking of his brother flying with the RAF.
A red-headed, cheerful nurse with freckles appeared, reminding Lizzie of her sister, Evie.
‘Will I live?’ Jack asked the nurse with a cheeky smile.
‘I daresay, although that’s a nasty wound. You’re going to have to take it easy for quite some time. And I’ll not ask how you got it!’
‘Mum’s the word. Loose tongues cost lives,’ Jack said, tapping his nose.
‘Who knows how I’ll keep busy when this war is over,’ she said, and bustled off with a smile, promising to return with tea and biscuits.
A FANY driver dropped Lizzie outside her house at Regent’s Park after she had changed into her uniform and been debriefed at Baker Street. She raised her hand to knock, excited but a little nervous to see her family.
Violet, their housekeeper, opened the door, and a delighted smile spread across her face. ‘Your mother is going to be over the moon,’ she said, ushering Lizzie inside. ‘No case?’
