THE GIRL WHO DISAPPEARED

PART 6 WHO DARES

Chapter 12 Who Dares?

Emily listened avidly to the news broadcasts whenever she could, desperate to discover the course of events in the world outside the village of Pecket Well. 1941 proved to be the low point in the war for the British, despite propaganda attempts to make it seem otherwise. The fall of France had made people sceptical about the half-truths and lies to which they were subjected. As Churchill once said: 'In wartime, truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies.'

One of the heaviest raids on London occurred on the 10th May 1941 when over three thousand people were killed. Conditions in Britain at this time were grim indeed; the armed forces needed more men, but so did the munitions industry.

A few weeks after the May 1941 air raid, Walter telephoned Emily one morning from London: 'The bank has released me and I'm volunteering to join the army. This may be the last you hear from me for some time, particularly if I'm posted overseas. If you could see what they've done to London, you'd understand.' The call distressed Emily terribly; she really might lose him and be stranded with Richard in a tiny village where she had no real friends. She burst into tears, utterly devastated and unable to speak. How could he leave her like this?

Walter attempted to explain: 'I tried to join the intelligence service rather than face call up into the infantry. I can read German and understand it when spoken, but my accent leaves much to be desired. The interview panel rejected me for that role but expressed interest in my CV and recommended me for an officer training course. I've no idea where I might end up.'

Emily felt abandoned and depressed. Her life had gone full circle; she found herself alone with her precious son, dumped in a place only eleven miles from her parents in Halifax. Had her elopement all been in vain?

She reflected: 'I used to pride myself on having achieved all my objectives in life but look at me now. I did marry my Jimmy but now he won't listen to me and we're separated. I did escape from Halifax and my dominating father but now I live in a hovel only a few miles away from him. James is just as masterful, fancy parking me here in this village with no proper facilities to have a bath. I do have my Richard but that is not enough.'

After school that afternoon, Emily took her son to her special place near Hardcastle Crags where Walter had proposed to her. Whilst the little boy hunted for rabbit holes, she wept quietly to herself. Her loss felt even more palpable here; all she could do was to pray silently that one day her Jimmy would be returned to her.

It began to rain gently and she felt as if heaven was shedding tears in sympathy with her distress. She felt wretched yet the experience gave her the strength and determination to struggle on; she must not let her husband down when he volunteered to serve his country.

***

Some weeks after the traumatic telephone call, James paid Emily a surprise early morning visit at her cottage. He had received a telephone call from Walter the previous evening, the first contact with his son for over two months. She went pale at the thought that something terrible might have happened to her Jimmy.

But James had some good news: 'Walter is about to start a week's leave which he has been ordered to spend in the Isle of Man. He wants you and Richard to take the Saturday morning ferry from Liverpool to Douglas and join him. I promised to give you the message but my advice is not to go and certainly not to take Richard. Liverpool is a prime target for German bombers; the docks have suffered heavy bombing seven nights in a row and the whole area is a disaster zone.'

Even though the raids had all been at night, dare she risk such a dangerous journey, if indeed it proved possible for civilians to travel to the Isle of Man?