Strawberry Red

Chapter 4 Ruby

In the early morning hours, Ruby was cycling through her hometown. She had borrowed her brother's bike as she didn't have one. The cold morning air blew against her rosy cheeks. A few birds were up and singing. It was a peaceful morning.

Ruby reached the base in no time and got off the bike. She chained it outside against a fence and walked over to the entrance. A man in uniform was guarding the base.

"I'm a volunteer for the red cross," informed Ruby before she walked past him.

"I didn't get your name," he shouted after her. She stopped in her tracks and turned around.

"Ruby Davies," she answered. "Can I go in now?"

He nodded and let Ruby go. She was told to find Colonel Huglin in his office. The people on base were already awake and working. People were running from place to place to get everything ready for the new crews which were to arrive in a couple of hours.

Ruby walked a path along the barracks until she reached the beginning of the airfield. The ground crews were busy fixing planes and getting the runway cleaned. A man with dirty blond hair was showing two kids how they cleaned runways. He poured liquid over the ground and then stood to the side holding one kid by the shoulder. He said something and handed the boy a matchbox. The little boy's eyes lit up with excitement. On the other side of the runway the man's co-worker did the same thing with the boy's brother. Together they lit the match and threw it onto the wet runway. As soon as it hit the ground, it started a huge fire with a big cloud of smoke over it. The kids were cheering and looking at the fire in amazement.

The blond man spotted Ruby standing a few feet away from them. He started to walk over to her. "Can I help you, Miss?"

"Yes, please. I'm trying to find Colonel Huglin," answered Ruby. She looked at him with gratitude. She got lost on base. They had changed a lot, it looked completely different than Ruby had it in memory. Her father used to take her flying with him. The Brits used to train their pilots at Thorpe Abotts. But they gave it to the Americans to station their bombers.

"I can show you the way," He offered. "Guys, I'll be back in a few."

"Thanks a lot." Ruby smiled at the man. "I'm Ruby. It's nice to meet you."

"Ken Lemmons. The pleasure is all mine." He guided her over to Huglin's office. "So, what brings you here?"

"Work. I'm volunteering for the red cross." They came to halt in front of a barrack.

"So, I'll see you around on base from now on?" He asked with a smile on his lips.

"Probably." Ruby looked into his brown eyes.

"Alright then. This is his office," said Lemmons. "See you."

"Bye." Ruby watched as Lemmons left. Then she lifted her hand and knocked onto the door. From inside she heard a faint "come in". So, she pushed open the door.

"Ruby, right? I was told you were coming today." Huglin was sitting behind his desk, looking through files. "Have a seat. Helen will be showing you around on base and get you introduced to everyone."

A young woman was sitting opposite of Huglin. She was wearing the official red cross uniform which consisted of a blue overall and white dress shirt underneath it.

"Hi, it's good to have a new face around", said Helen. She stood up from her seat and shook Ruby's hand.

"I'm grateful to be able to help." Ruby was sure that she and Helen would get along well.

"Well, I'm not going to lie. It's going to be exhausting most days. But it's worth it." Helen laughed and waved her hand. "Come on, I'll show you around. Did you need her for something else, Sir?"