Day Will Come (6 page)

‘How did she get on, Corporal?’

‘Very well, sir. I think she will make a competent driver in no time at all.’

He nodded, and asked Grace, ‘Did you enjoy learning to drive?’

‘Yes, sir.’ A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. ‘I can’t wait to have a go at a tank.’

They all laughed, and she joined in. It felt good to laugh again. The pain was still there, of course, but she was beginning to live with it better. Brian would have wanted her to get on with her life.

‘This is Steve, Grace. He’s the medical officer here, and he’s arranged breakfast for us.’ He then turned to the two soldiers waiting to be dismissed. ‘Thank you, Sergeant and Corporal. We’ve appreciated your help this morning.’

‘Sir.’ Both men saluted smartly. ‘It’s been a pleasure.’

‘Thank you, Bob.’ Grace smiled. ‘I enjoyed the lesson.’

He bowed slightly. ‘I look forward to the next one. Perhaps we’ll take you out on the road next time.’

After a quick meal with Steve, they were on their way back to London, and as they drove along, Grace studied Dan. He appeared more relaxed after his exercise session with the sergeant. ‘It was kind of you to arrange driving lessons for me, sir.’ She smiled when he glanced at her. ‘I enjoyed it.’

‘It’s a skill worth having. You never know when it might come in useful. How did your friend get on with her interview?’ he asked, changing the subject.

‘All right, I think. She couldn’t say much about it. Everything is so secret these days, but she was able to tell me they wanted her for her fluent French, and she’s had to join the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry. I’ve never heard of the FANY before, sir. Have you?’

‘It’s a volunteer organisation. Been established quite some time, I believe.’

Grace nodded. ‘She’ll be going away for training quite soon.’

‘You’ll miss her.’

‘Yes, I will. We’ve been friends since we were toddlers.’ Pushing the sad thought aside, Grace then settled down to watch how the major used the pedals while he was driving.

It was the middle of August now, and Dan was edgy. Convoys were being continually attacked, and air fields bombed. The pilots were being pushed to their limits, but when he had seen James two days ago, there hadn’t been the slightest doubt in his mind that they would beat the enemy air force. Every day they were fighting for their lives, and he was still stuck to this blasted desk!

His sessions with the sergeant had gone well, and the fitter he became, the more he riled against the job he was now doing. According to the corporal, Grace was an excellent pupil. He had told Dan that she had a sharp mind, and was quick to learn. He seldom had to explain anything twice to her.

He glanced across the office where she was busy working. What was going to happen to her when he returned to his regiment? That day was fast approaching, and the problem was beginning to play on his mind. George had his own staff, so there wasn’t an opportunity there, and he had been making discreet enquiries here at the War Office, but there didn’t appear to be any vacancies at the moment. He had
told her at the start that the job with him probably wouldn’t last for long, of course, so he shouldn’t be worrying about it. But he was, and he now understood why James had been so protective towards her. She had suffered a great loss, but she had kept going with courage and determination, keeping her grief a private emotion. If only he could find some way to take her with him. She was a competent driver now, but he couldn’t declare that he needed a driver when he was doing everything to prove he was fit again for active service. He could run faster than Sergeant Dickins, and the man was like a hare. He was having a final training session tomorrow, and then a medical examination later in the week. They couldn’t declare him unfit for duty now. He was stronger than he had ever been. Grace was going to be given a driving test by one of the transport instructors. She had been taught by the best and at least he had been able to do something for her.

It had been more than generous of them all to give of their free time like this, and to show his appreciation he was going to invite them to London for an evening at the Savoy Hotel. Grace, as well, of course. She had put up with a lot from him, and she had never complained.

‘How do you feel about the test?’ Dan asked Grace, as they headed out of London the next morning.

‘Nervous,’ she admitted. ‘I hope I’m good enough, because we won’t be coming here again, will we?’

‘No, this is the last session for both of us.’ Dan cast a quick glance at her. ‘I’m fully fit again. The sergeant has done his job well. I wouldn’t have made such rapid progress without him.’

‘They have been very kind, and I have enjoyed the challenge of learning to drive.’ She tried to keep her tone bright, but to be honest she was feeling a little sad. This wasn’t just the end of the early morning trips – it was more than that. He hadn’t said anything, but it didn’t take a genius to know that her job with him was coming to an end. The change in him was remarkable. The limp had completely disappeared, and for such a big man, his movements were now quite graceful. She smiled to herself. That seemed a silly thing to say about a man who exuded power and strength, but that was how she saw it. And that was what the medical examiners would see. There was no doubt in her mind that he would be declared fit for active duty again.

Helen had settled into whatever she was doing, and was happy. They wrote regular long letters to each other, but never mentioned their jobs. Everyone was continually reminded not to talk, as you never knew who was listening.

Grace had been lost in thought and hadn’t noticed the miles slipping away, so she was surprised when he stopped.

‘You drive now,’ Dan told her, getting out of the car and holding the door open for her. ‘Don’t look so worried. You need practice before we get there.’

Now she really was nervous. This was the last thing she had expected him to ask her to do. He adjusted the driver’s seat so she could reach the pedals. It had been pushed right back to accommodate his long legs. At five feet eight inches, she was by no means short, but he was over six feet.

‘That seems right,’ he said. ‘Can you reach the pedals easily?’

‘Yes, that feels fine. Thank you.’

He adjusted the passenger seat, and got in. ‘All right, Grace. You know the way by now.’

She drew in a deep, silent breath, and started the car, concentrating hard to remember everything Bob had taught her.

‘Relax,’ he told her after a few miles. ‘You are doing fine.’

It wasn’t easy with him sitting beside her and watching every move she made, but those few words of encouragement was the only comment he made. By the time she reached the camp she was relieved, and rather pleased with herself. She didn’t feel as if she had made any bad mistakes, or he would certainly have corrected her. It boded well for the test.

Bob smiled with pleasure when he saw Grace getting out of the driver’s side. He saluted the major. ‘How did my pupil do, sir?’

‘Very well, Corporal. I felt quite safe.’

Grace gave him a disbelieving look. She had noticed his foot pressing on an imaginary brake once or twice.

He laughed softly, reading her expression accurately. ‘Don’t change out of the slacks straight after the test. There’s something else I want you to do before we leave.’

‘Very well, sir. I’ll see you in about an hour.’

‘You didn’t ask Major Chester what he had planned,’ Bob remarked as they walked towards the car.

‘I quickly learnt not to ask him questions.’

‘I know,’ Bob laughed. ‘He tells you what to do, and you do it.’

She smiled, and nodded towards another soldier waiting by the car. ‘Is that the man who is going to do the test?’

‘That’s right. You don’t have anything to worry about. You are a good driver. All you’re lacking is experience. Just forget he’s there and concentrate on the driving.’

‘I’ll try not to let you, or myself, down.’ Putting on a confident air, she walked towards the examiner.

‘We’ll go straight to the assault course, Sergeant.’

‘Yes, sir. I’ve got a few volunteers who will give you a bit of competition. They are looking forward to beating an officer. All I’ve told them is that you are an officer who wants to see if he can still tackle the course. They don’t know who you are.’

Dan grinned. ‘So they think they can beat me, do they? We’ll see about that. I used to be quite good at this.’

‘And I’m sure you still are – now you’re fit again, sir.’

‘Let’s not keep them waiting, then.’

There were six soldiers at the course, laughing and joking. They snapped to attention when Dan arrived.

‘At ease. Thank you for volunteering to run the assault course with me. I haven’t tackled it for some time, and it will be more fun to be running with others.’

The men smiled smugly, and one said, ‘We’re looking forward to it, sir. We don’t get the chance to run against an officer.’

Dan put on a slightly worried frown as he studied the course, making the sergeant turn away to hide his grin.

‘Confident bunch you’ve gathered together, Sergeant,’ Dan remarked quietly.

‘They are new here, sir, and don’t know you, or your reputation of never expecting your men to do anything you can’t. I can’t wait to see them brought down a peg or two.’

‘You really think I can do that?’

The sergeant nodded, hardly able to contain his amusement. ‘Working with you over the last few weeks I’ve seen for myself what you can do, and I’m sure they won’t find it as easy as they think it’s going to be.’

‘I appreciate the vote of confidence. Let’s see just how fit I am, shall we?’

The sergeant faced the men. ‘Right, let’s get this started. Any man I see tripping, pushing or obstructing another will regret it. Is that clear?’

‘Yes, Sergeant,’ they chorused.

‘Play fair, or I will make your lives a misery. Get ready … Go!’

Dan started several paces behind the enthusiastic men, pacing himself over the first few obstacles. Then, finally, feeling good, he increased his speed, overtaking one man, and then another. The sergeant was running beside them, yelling comments at the top of his voice. Not all of them complimentary.

It was only in the last few yards Dan managed to overtake the last of the men. He was bent over, gasping for breath, when the team of soldiers gathered round, moaning with exhaustion.

‘Well done, sir,’ one of them gasped. ‘We couldn’t stay with you.’

Dan grinned, straightening up, elated with the way it had gone. ‘I wasn’t sure I could beat you. Thanks for giving me the chance to try.’

Steve wandered up. ‘That was impressive, Dan. How does the leg feel?’

‘Good. It held up well.’

The soldiers were now looking at the tall officer in amazement. ‘You did that with a gammy leg?’ one of them asked.

‘It’s healed now.’ Dan turned to Steve. ‘What do you think, Doc, will they let me return to active duty?’

‘No doubt about it. I’ll send in a report as well, to make sure of it. You’ll be back with your regiment by the end of the month. Your men will be relieved to see you.’

A cloud crossed Dan’s face. ‘I’ll know some that survived, but there will be a lot of replacements I don’t know.’

‘They will have all heard about the exploits of Major Chester, and they will be just as relieved to see you back. No one thought it would be possible, Dan. But you always were a stubborn bastard.’

One of the soldiers whispered to the others, ‘What did he do?’

‘Dunno,’ another replied, ‘but I think the sergeant has been hiding things from us. He damned well knew we were going to be beaten!’

All comments stopped as Grace walked into view, accompanied by the corporal and the examiner.

‘Ah.’ Dan strolled over. ‘How did she get on, Andy?’

‘I gave her the same test as a military driver, and she passed easily. I’ve been trying to persuade her to join the ATS, but I haven’t been successful.’

Dan didn’t comment on that, but smiled at Grace. ‘Well done!’

‘Thank you, sir.’ Her eyes shone with amusement as she looked at him. ‘I see you’ve managed to find some mud.’

‘Are you jealous?’ he asked, and they both laughed at the private joke. ‘As it’s our last visit here, and as a celebration
of you passing your test, I thought you might like to have a go at the assault course with me.’

‘Dan!’ Steve exclaimed. ‘You can’t ask a girl to tackle that!’

‘Why not? I’m sure she’d like to have as go. Wouldn’t you?’

She eyed the monstrosity, and thought for a moment. The glint in his eyes told her he really wanted to do this. Things had obviously gone well for him today, and she could see his relief. He knew he was on his way back to active duty, so perhaps this would be a fitting way to bring their short time together to a close – with laughter. She smiled at him. ‘You’re on!’

He took hold of her arm and placed her in front of the first obstacle. ‘I’ll tell you how to deal with each stage of the course. Trust me and go for it. I won’t let you hurt yourself.’

She nodded, wondering why on earth she had agreed to this.

‘Run as fast as you can!’

It was bedlam. Everyone there was running beside them, shouting encouragement. The first obstacle wasn’t too bad, and her balance was good when she reached the pole across the water, but there was a high wall in front of her now.

‘Keep your speed up,’ Dan instructed, ‘and be ready to grab the top of the wall.’

When they reached it she was lifted off her feet, and thrown to the top. She made a desperate grab and held on with all her might. Suddenly, Dan was also up there with her.

‘Right. Now, get your legs up.’

The yelling from the onlookers was deafening as Grace struggled to sit astride the wall. She looked down and saw the sergeant waiting on the other side, urging her to swing down.

The rest of the course was negotiated in the same way, with willing hands helping her along, and enthusiastic encouragement from all sides.

By the end, she was dirty, exhausted, and probably bruised, she thought. But it had been fun, and she had never seen Dan laughing so much.

‘Well done, Grace! That was a valiant effort. I’m proud of you.’

Everyone was clustered around, having thoroughly enjoyed the sight of a girl trying to tackle their course.

She finally found enough breath to talk, and said, ‘Thank you, sir. I couldn’t have done it without you and the sergeant. You both practically carried me over some obstacles.’

Steve waded in and took hold of Grace’s arm. ‘All right, men, you’ve had your fun. You come with me, young lady.’

‘I’ll see you when we’ve both cleaned up.’

As Steve led her away, he shook his head. ‘That was crazy, Grace.’

‘I know, and I’m sure I’ll regret it tomorrow.’

‘You did it for Dan, didn’t you?’

‘I couldn’t refuse. He is so happy, and it felt right to finish off with some light-hearted fun. He’ll be returning to his regiment soon, won’t he?’

‘He’s going for a full medical in two days, and there’s no doubt he is now fully fit. They will have to declare him fit for active duty. Will you be transferred to another office?’

‘I really don’t know. That’s a bridge I will have to cross when I reach it.’

‘You get on well together. It will probably be a wrench to watch him walk away.’

‘I expect so but, for me, the last few months have consisted of one loss after another. I’m getting used to it.’ Her smile was tinged with sadness. ‘I didn’t want to work for him, you know. I only went to the War Office because my boss had arranged the interview for me when he joined the air force. Now, I’m sorry my time there has been so short.’

An hour later, both scrubbed clean and dressed for business, they were on their way back to London.

‘I’ve invited everyone who has helped us to an evening at the Savoy,’ Dan told Grace. ‘It’s next Saturday, so get out your party dress. We’ll have a celebration.’