She heard a louder bang, an explosion this time, and ran out from where she’d been standing, looking to the sky, searching frantically for what the noise was. Her eyes locked on the object immediately, saw a plane explode like a fiery ball of sun in the sky and come crashing down in the distance, by the shore.
Lucy said a silent prayer. Although from what she’d seen today, she was starting to doubt that there was anyone listening. For what God would let men kill men like this? Would let men butcher one another and have such little regard for human life?
Lucy ran to the next ambulance, helping as best she could. She was here to save the lives of their soldiers, and that’s exactly what she was going to do until her very last breath. She wasn’t going to rest until she’d done everything within her power to send these men home.
PART TWO
Normandy
CHAPTER NINE
Scarlet
The boat swayed beneath her feet, putting her off balance as it moved slowly, steadily out into the harbour. She found she was holding her breath and had to force the air in and out, clutching the handrail as she watched the men calling out to them from the docks. They were wolf-whistling, waving and singing as the ship departed, and most of the nurses around her were laughing and waving back. But Scarlet felt cold – a chill in her bones that was making her uncomfortable, not making her want to wave back and join in the fun. It wasn’t just the guilt she was feeling over James, over finding out who he was, but a deep-seated worry about what they were going to encounter once they arrived in Normandy.
‘Can you believe we’re actually going to France?’ Ellie asked breathlessly as she finally stopped waving to the men they’d left behind. ‘Spencer was so certain I should find a way to stay behind, but there’s no way I’d miss this adventure. Honestly, I don’t know whether to be flattered or offended.’
Scarlet usually loved how positive and fun Ellie was, but today she was grating on her nerves. Was she that naive? Did she really think of this as an adventure? Maybe Ellie was simply trying to keep things feeling happy, to look forward to where they were going and their time on the ship, but Scarlet couldn’t shake the feeling of unease. It was a potent mixture of fear, worries about James, and guilt over Thomas.
‘Whilst aboard the HMS Invicta, you shall not undress at any time or wash yourselves. Any nurses disobeying this direct order will be punished accordingly.’ Ellie giggled at her own imitation of Matron. ‘Segregation will be strictly enforced.’
Scarlet had to smile this time, the look on Ellie’s face as she mimicked the older woman making her impossible to ignore.
‘I still can’t believe we’re travelling to France,’ Ellie said in her normal voice now as she leaned into Scarlet and dropped her head to her shoulder, hands on the railing beside hers.
‘Are you scared?’ Scarlet asked her.
‘Of course!’
‘But you seem so . . .’ Scarlet struggled to find the right word to say.
‘Happy?’
Scarlet sighed. ‘Yes. Like you don’t have a care in the world.’
‘Come on,’ Ellie said, tugging on her arm. ‘Let’s take a look around. We might as well enjoy the next few days if we can, because life ain’t ever going to be the same for us.’
‘So you’re faking it?’
‘Let’s just have fun, and worry about whatever we’re heading into once we get there. It’s better than being all doom and gloom before we even arrive.’ She laughed. ‘If not, we can always talk about you kissing your brother-in-law!’
Scarlet glared at her. ‘Don’t. Don’t even . . .’
Ellie laughed, making a zipping gesture across her lips. ‘I know, I know, you don’t want to talk about it. My lips are sealed.’
Scarlet guessed that was Ellie’s strange way of admitting that she was every bit as scared herself. She thought back to that first day waiting for the train, meeting Ellie and being thankful for finding a friend to pass the time with. It seemed like a lifetime ago, and yet it had only been weeks.
‘Have you seen Spencer again?’ she asked as they crossed the deck, shoes heavy on the timber beneath them.
‘Not since this morning,’ Ellie replied with a sigh. ‘I wish I could have met him somewhere different. I mean, well, it’s hard to know what to think. Or what to expect. But he’s so, I don’t know, different from any other man I’ve spent time with before.’
Scarlet was about to reply when they headed below deck, her voice lost in the sea of noise. She braced herself, gritting her teeth as she surveyed their mess quarters. It was awful. The most awful place she’d ever been. It looked dismal, it smelt damp, and it was filthy.
‘Did you hear that they weren’t expecting women on board?’ someone said loudly as they walked past. ‘The way they look at us is hilarious. Like they’ve never even seen women before.’
Scarlet turned and smiled at the nurse who’d spoken. ‘Yeah, so much for three days of luxury at sea.’
Her dry humour made a few of the women laugh and for some reason it helped to ease the tension in Scarlet’s shoulders.
‘Dinner will be served at 1700 hours,’ a man called out from above.
‘Oooh, is it a roast?’
‘Lashings of gravy for me!’
Scarlet grinned as others called out around her.
‘Porridge,’ came a cold grunt of a reply. ‘And it won’t be hot or warm.’
Scarlet’s smile died, her lips stretching into a straight line as the room fell silent around her.
‘Cold porridge. For dinner?’ Holly burst into tears beside her, and the chatter that had been so lively before resumed only as a low hum.
‘So much for staying positive, huh?’ Ellie muttered, taking Scarlet’s hand again and marching her forwards.
Scarlet had no idea where in France they were being taken, and frankly, she no longer cared. She just wanted to keep busy and not overthink anything and everything. Her emotions were swinging faster than a pendulum, and for some reason it was thoughts of James that gave her comfort, not Thomas, and she hated herself for it.
There was a loud noise above and Scarlet froze, scared, wondering if it was gunfire. And then the boat started to sway and she heard the louder lap of the waves and rain pounding on the deck. It must have been thunder.
‘Great,’ she murmured. Rain had been threatening as they’d boarded.
‘I don’t feel so good,’ Ellie whispered.
Scarlet held her hand tighter. ‘You’ll be fine. You can take a seasickness tablet if you need to, and we’ll keep talking. Maybe we could flout the rules and even try to find Spencer for you. Pretend we have an urgent medical question to ask him.’
Ellie squeezed her hand back, but Scarlet knew from the worried look on her face that she was already feeling beyond rotten.
‘I’m sure Spencer would love me to vomit all over him,’ Ellie said sarcastically.
‘Hey, the man clearly adores you. What’s a little sick between sweethearts?’