Never Forget Me by Marguerite Kaye Read Free Book Online Page B

your imaginings?’ she asked, still keeping her eyes on the view.
    ‘I think we had better stop this before we get in too deep.’
    She turned to face him. His mouth was set, resolute. Before we get in too deep. It would pain him to know it was already too late. It would be painful for her, much more painful, if she let herself fall any deeper. ‘You’re right,’ she said, summoning a bright smile and rummaging in her capacious coat pocket for her notebook. ‘We should concentrate on what we came up here for before the light fades. Tell me, then, which parts of the grounds do you think best suited for target practice.’
    * * *
    ‘So, given the two new sections that have arrived, and with the main body of men due on the seventh of December, which is next week, we felt it prudent to establish a regular patrol in the village.’
    Flora glanced up from her notes at her parents, who were seated opposite her at the dining table in the Lodge. She would have held the meeting in the parlour over tea. She would not have called it a meeting, but a chat. It was Geraint who insisted she formalise matters. ‘Else they will not take you seriously,’ he had told her. ‘You need to stamp your authority on this, make them realise that the decisions are already made, and not up for discussion.’
    ‘Wouldn’t it be better if you did it?’ she’d asked him, but he shook his head.
    ‘I’m not the one with something to prove.’
    And he had been quite right, on all fronts. ‘I see no need to patrol the village,’ her father said. ‘Simply keep it out of bounds to the men, and there ends the problem.’
    He spoke in his don’t-be-a-silly-girl voice. Flora counted to three and made sure to reply in her well-rehearsed voice of reason. ‘First, making the village out of bounds will only encourage the men to want to go there. It is human nature to wish to do what one is told one cannot.’ A lesson she had been learning on a daily basis, these past couple of weeks, since agreeing her pact with Geraint on top of Ben Massan. ‘Second, drawing demarcation lines between the village and the House will create unnecessary tension. We are all in this together, Father. Third, it is inevitable that without some sort of patrol as a safeguard, there will be trouble between the village lads and the Tommies. And that leads me to my next point. The Christmas concert and children’s party. We feel this will provide an ideal opportunity for the men to help maintain good relations with the village, so Corporal Cassell and I have decided...’
    ‘You and Corporal Cassell seem to have decided a great deal,’ Lady Carmichael interrupted. ‘I thought Colonel Aitchison was in charge.’
    ‘The colonel has naturally approved the details of the plan,’ Flora said, which was essentially true. The colonel having been given a brief summary by Geraint and listened to Flora’s assurances that the laird was in full agreement, had nodded, signed the latest batch of requisition orders and returned to his fishing.
    ‘You seem to have spent an inordinate amount of time with this corporal,’ Lady Carmichael said pointedly.
    ‘It has been necessary in order to carry out my duties.’ Which was true.
    ‘Duties you have discharged very thoroughly,’ the laird said. ‘I must say, Flora, you have surprised me.’
    She had surprised herself, but she remembered just in time to suppress her gratified smile as her father got to his feet. Flora cleared her throat. ‘I am not quite finished yet, if you don’t mind.’ The laird sighed, but sat back down again. ‘The main convoy arrives next week, as I’ve said,’ Flora continued. ‘There will be a company of over two hundred men complete with a major, four lieutenants and a number of ancillary staff including officer trainers, cooks, medics and drivers.’ She paused, reminding herself not to sound apologetic. ‘The kitchen garden will form a shooting range. The high walls make it an ideal location.