Home Front Girls

Lucy said, wrinkling her nose.
    ‘I suppose I do smell a bit strong,’ Annabelle admitted, sniffing each wrist in turn. ‘But the men are the worst customers to serve. They come in wanting to buy their wives some perfume for Christmas but can’t choose which one, so I have to spray some on myself for them to choose.’
    ‘Then all I can say is you must have been busy too,’ Lucy joked. ‘You must have a whole bottle-full sprayed up and down your arms.’
    They set off through the chilly streets for the bus station, which as usual was in darkness. They were getting used to it now though.
    ‘So what are you two planning on doing over Christmas then?’ Dotty asked once they were on the bus.
    ‘Well, I wanted to go to London and see a show in the West End,’ Annabelle sighed, ‘but Mummy isn’t keen on me going. She’s such a worrier, especially since Daddy went away. I would have liked to see Ivor Novello’s The Dancing Years but I doubt it will happen. I was hoping my friend, Jessica, would come with me and we could have a couple of nights in a hotel, but she informed me last night that her mother is sending her to stay in Devon with her grandparents next week until this damn war is over. All I can hope for now is that the man of my dreams – tall, dark, handsome and extremely rich – will appear from nowhere and take me away from all this. And of course, I’ll settle for nothing less!’
    She looked so glum that Lucy squeezed her arm and grinned. ‘Well, if it’s any consolation, I shan’t be doing anything special either,’ she remarked. ‘With Joel being away it will be just me and Mary this year.’ In actual fact, she was dreading the holiday and beginning to really worry about her brother now. It was weeks since she had heard from him and she didn’t even know if he had been shipped out to the front yet. But then she tried to console herself that no news was good news. The best Christmas present in the world at that moment in time would have been to arrive home to find a letter on the doormat from him.
    Soon they were tripping towards Mrs P’s house, but when they entered, Lucy’s face fell as she saw that there was no sign of Mary.
    Mrs P herself seemed to be in a high state of excitement.
    ‘Where’s Mary?’ Lucy’s voice was edged with fear but Mrs P only giggled like a schoolgirl. ‘Never you mind about Mary fer now. Get yerself round home an’ happen you’ll find a nice surprise waitin’ for you there.’
    ‘But Mary is all right, isn’t she?’
    ‘Right as ninepence, but now be off wi’ yer. Go on . . . shoo!’
    With her heart pounding, Lucy turned and hurried through Mrs P’s back door as Dotty and Annabelle exchanged a concerned glance and hurried after her.
    Seconds later, Lucy was fiddling with the back-door key, but her hands were shaking so badly that she struggled to get it in the lock. Whatever could Mrs P have meant by ’a nice surprise’? And where was Mary?
    After flashing an apologetic smile at Dotty and Annabelle, she stepped into the scullery then hurried towards the kitchen and flung the door open. The light was on, and as her eyes settled on a large kitbag to the side of the door her heart began to pound even harder and she dashed into the room, praying that what she was hoping for was right.
    Joel was sitting in the fireside chair with Mary snuggling contentedly on his lap and Lucy suddenly felt as if her Christmas had come early as her heart threatened to explode with joy.
    ‘Joel!’ She was across the room in a second and her arms went tightly around his neck, threatening to choke him as he chuckled.
    ‘Calm down, sis, I can’t breathe.’ But then the laughter died away as he caught sight of Dotty and Annabelle.
    Following his eyes, Lucy hastily told him, ‘Oh sorry, Joel. These are my friends from work, Dotty and Annabelle. They’ve come for tea. I didn’t know you’d be here, you see. But how long are you home for? Why didn’t you let me know you were coming? And are you all right?’
    ‘Whoa with the questions, eh?’ he said, very conscious of the two strangers. ‘I got two days’ leave but I didn’t know about it until this morning.’
    ‘Only two days? But that means you won’t be here for Christmas. Why couldn’t they have given you longer?’ Lucy could not keep the disappointment from her voice.
    ‘Because we’re being shipped out the same day I go back to camp,’ he told her calmly. ‘And before you ask, I have no