Far From Home by Ellie Dean Read Free Book Online Page B

in your clothes and making you itch.
    But there were also joyous times that took the edge off the weariness and discomfort, and she smiled as she remembered how she and Adam had realised they were in love during a harvest festival dance at the local village hall. She remembered their first kiss beneath the full harvest moon, and the happiness of riding together on the back of one of those faithful Shires as they made their weary way home from the fields.
    Tears sparked and she blinked them away, determined not to let the worry cloud this beautiful day. And yet, as she slowly made her way back to the tiny station platform, she couldn’t dismiss the fear that seemed to be entwined through everything she thought and did. Adam, her childhood sweetheart, lover and best friend was lying in hospital, his future uncertain. And Alice, sweet, precious little Alice, would have already boarded the steamship
City of Benares
and, in the morning, Convoy OB-213 would set sail for Canada. The life she and Adam had planned on that magical harvest night had been scattered to the winds.
    Peggy came out of the town hall and paused for a moment in the lee of the huge piles of sandbags to slip on her cardigan. There was already a bit of a chill in the air once the sun began to go down, and although they were only in the second week of September, she could already scent the coming winter.
    She glanced up the steep hill towards the station, wondering fleetingly if Nurse Brown had arrived yet. She was terribly late, and although the Billeting Office had assured her she was on her way, Peggy wondered if she shouldn’t give her place to someone else. It seemed very poor form to have an empty bed when so many poor souls were homeless, and if she should turn up later, the hospital could surely provide suitable accommodation.
    Realising she could do nothing about it today, she hurried down the High Street towards the seafront, past the burnt-out remains of Woolworths and the pile of rubble that had once been a very smart department store, and weaved her way through the long queue outside the Odeon cinema.
    She glanced automatically up the side alleyway. Jim worked as a projectionist at the Odeon and could often be found having a quiet smoke in the alley between performances. About to hurry on, she caught a glimpse of him emerging from the side door and was on the point of hailing him, when she realised he was not alone.
    A peroxide blonde had followed him outside and was looking up at him coquettishly as she leant against the brick wall and tossed back her hair. Jim moved nearer to her, resting one hand on the wall close to her head, effectively making their little exchange more private. He said something that made her giggle, and she playfully slapped his arm.
    Peggy watched as Jim lit her cigarette and continued to flirt with her. The pain she felt was immense, tearing through her so swiftly it took her breath away. She’d known Jim Reilly was a rogue even before she’d married him all those years ago and she’d learnt to hide the hurt – learnt it was better to believe him when he said it had only been a bit of harmless fun, that all men flirted, and of course he would never be unfaithful. Well, she’d been tested over the years, that was for sure, and when she’d seen the signs he was getting too involved elsewhere, she’d nipped it in the bud very quickly. But to see him like this when she’d thought he’d outgrown all that nonsense was so painful, she couldn’t bear to watch any more.
    Aware of the curious looks of those standing so patiently outside the cinema, and recognising one or two of them, she hurried on down the street, her face on fire, her pulse racing.
    Jim had never been able to resist a pretty face or a dodgy deal, and if he was up to his tricks again then she’d soon spike his guns – just as she’d had to do rather too frequently throughout their marriage. She doubted there was anything serious in his behaviour, but