"Say goodbye to Daddy..." Chummy encouraged as she and Freddie stood just inside the darkened porch of the Lodge; Peter the other side of the step fishing in his pocket for the car keys. "Say goodbye Freds…" Chummy continued planting a kiss on her son's temple and smiling at her husband. There was something she had longed for in waving goodbye to her husband and she had done it a thousand times now, but each time it was still so rather special that it gave her the shivers.

"Bye bye Dadda" Freddie repeated, waving his hand enthusiastically inches from Peter's face as they were standing that close and Peter was almost in fear of injury from nails that needed a cut.

"Bye bye Freds" he smiled in return, taking his son's hand to make sure he didn't whop him on the chin, or take an eye out, to start his day. "Look after your Mummy for me today?" Peter asked, squeezing the little boy's hand as he smiled at him from his mother's hip.

"No!" Freddie replied, nodding his head at the same time. His parents just shrugged their shoulders at each other and smiled at their son's usual decisiveness.

"Are you going to speak to you know who then?" Peter asked, keeping his voice deliberately low and unconsciously straightening his tie as he stood up on the step so he was closer to them.

"Yes" Chummy replied, resolute. "Straight after breakfast. Best to get it over and done with and all of that".

He reached up to kiss Freddie and then her; seeing four girls walk down the staircase behind them, one party of particular interest to him and Peter felt the overwhelming need to make a point.

"Good luck" Peter whispered, kissing her again as his hand slipped up to caress her cheek, lingering for as long as felt like the message got across. He was not one for caring about decorum this time as he quickly opened one eye and saw their backs turned walking towards the kitchen.

"What was that for?" she asked, unable to wipe the smile off her face, feeling Freddie rest his head on her chest and one hand take tight hold of her uniform collar realising he was cuddled between the warmth of his parents and wanting to get comfortable.

"No reason" he replied, shrugging his shoulders. "I should be back around half past six, seven at the latest".

Chummy nodded as he walked away and slammed the car door shut. "I love you" she mouthed as the car engine revved and she watched him drive off as the early morning breeze ruffled her hair, seeing the postman walk up the path towards her right on time as per usual.

"Mornin' Sister. Mornin' Fred there lad" he smiled, casting about in his post bag as he heard Freddie reply ''Ello'.

"Hello Roy" Chummy responded, smiling as she waited. "What do you have for us today?" she asked.

"Just two or three for you this morning Sister" he said, holding up the white envelopes, Freddie deciding he wanted the post instead as he took the letters from the postman and held them tight to his chest. They said their goodbyes and Chummy turned to her son.

"Now" she began, "let's see about closing the door and then I can sit in the office with you Young Sir whilst you open the post for Mumma! Shall we do that?" Her son's earnest chewing of the corner of an envelope quickly made her realise that stamps and ink were probably not so gentle on a stomach so she took the letters from him, protesting away at how rude his mother was being at removing his new toys as she closed the front door on the outside world.

Chummy had only popped her head into the dining room to pick up a cup of tea when she saw that Patsy had been marshalling the troops and they were all sitting, talking loudly as usual, at the neatly laid tables. Satisfied, with a smile from Patsy that all was in order, Chummy balanced a cup of tea in one hand, Fred on her hip and she wasn't quite sure how she managed to open the office door and put the cup down without scorching herself silly.

"Now who do we have today?" she said; Fred installed on her knee pulling apart one of the envelopes that she had now removed the letters from. "Hmmm…." Chummy considered, casting an eye over the first one. "Mr French from the Council telling me one just cannot have the money for the new curtains in the sitting room and…oh look Freds! Another one telling Mumma that they are quite happy for me to consider the services of a gardener but would I consider seeing if I could utilise the services of a charitable volunteer first!" Chummy sighed and sat back, Fred following and nestling close as he continued his early morning work of destroying the envelope.

"Mumma can't ask Daddy to do it" she continued, talking to no-one in particular who could answer, "even though the only currency Daddy accepts payment in is kisses and cups of tea and I really can't ask your namesake. The place is too bla..." She stopped herself before she swore in front of impressionable ears. "It's too big a job for him!"

The ripped envelope was slung wilfully half way across her desk, sliding off to near enough getting it in the bin that lay at the side.

"Do you know" she replied, pressing her lips to the back of his head, breathing in the smell of Johnson's that Freddie had managed to douse himself with in the bath this morning, "one wishes one could do that sometimes…Just throw these letters away and pretend they never came…."

She breathed again and heard a polite knock on the door. "Come in!" Chummy sang, sitting themselves both back up so they were respectable for visitors, attention momentarily away from her worries.

"Do you want me to take him out of your hair for a few hours?" Patsy asked, popping her head around the door. "The girls are all going to clear up after breakfast. I could do with making myself useful and you need to get on with your day".

"Patsy, old girl, you are meant to be taking a break not baby sitting for me!" Chummy smiled, even though she could see the other Nurse's arms held out for the boy and he was handed over with a rather insistent look from her friend. "Here" Chummy continued, taking a key out of the top door of her desk. "Keys for the attics. All his bits and bobs are up there so just find what you need. Most of its scattered around the sitting room!"

Patsy smiled, bouncing Fred on her hip; the boy now wearing a smile as wide as next week.

"So where shall we go Freddie? The garden?" she asked, seeing Chummy fold up her letters again out of the corner of her eye, quite fancying a walk to breath in some fresh country morning air.

"Garden ducks!" he shouted.

With clarification from his mother about the pond next door, Patsy decided all was in order and as his mother waved him off she decided to go and find Josephine and, with heavy heart, get it over and done with. She had half a mind to, if nothing came of this discussion, to have the family back in again but there was something nagging at the back of her mind as she walked and found her sitting still in the dining room that made her hesitate and think it might be best to attend to her on her own. At least for now.

The two sat opposite each other, Josephine back picking at the skin around her fingernails knowing she was making them bleed but entirely unconcerned it seemed, both at the damage she was causing herself and the fact she was sitting in front of the Sister. Chummy cleared her throat quickly as she settled into her chair.

"I need to speak to you about a little rumour that has unfortunately reached my door" Chummy began.

"I know Sister", Josephine replied, eyes still downcast. Word had somehow found its way back to her too that the Sister had found out about what she had said to the girls.

"You do? You do" Chummy continued, really not quite sure what she was hearing in the girl's voice. "I have heard a rumour that you were the source of some unsavoury talk about me and my husband. I would like to know why you took it upon yourself to say anything to anyone?"

For the first time the girl raised doleful eyes at her. "Because," she began. "Because I thought that if ….I thought that people might like me if I had some chatter for them". That and the fact that if she had something interesting to say, someone, somewhere might find her worthwhile even for a few minutes. Trouble was sometime she opened her mouth before she thought and now it seemed it might be one of those times.

"You don't need gossip, or chatter as you call it, to fit in under my roof" Chummy warned. "Did you not see my wedding ring?" Unconsciously she had rested her forearms on her desk, the gold ring glinting in the early morning sun.

"Yes Sister" Josephine replied. "But….."

"But?"

"Well" she began making no conscious decision to say it but rather the Sister needed to hear. "I didn't think he was your husband as we're not meant to marry people like that".

"People like what?" Chummy asked, curiosity peaking for a moment followed quickly by that terrible creeping feeling that she had not experienced for years as it ate away inside her with rising panic as she began to slip the pieces into place; her voice almost breaking as she asked the question.

"People of that class. People who do manual labour. Or that's what Father says and…" Josephine paused, wondering if she was saying too much but perhaps the Sister might understand if she had done what she clearly had done and married beneath herself. "Your accent Sister. You speak and behave like Father tells me I ought to and I thought you were…I thought I saw…." She trailed off, wanting to say she thought but for fear of insulting the Sister. "Then the girls said your husband was a Policeman anyway…."

The sharp intake of breath from the Sister stopped her speaking, although the words for a moment almost wouldn't come from Chummy's mouth either. So she had mistaken Peter for the 'staff' and yet more than that somehow Josephine had managed to deduce this apparent social chasm between her and her husband regardless. But class? Chummy had suspected there had to be a reason. The McKenzie's were well dressed and well spoken; they had a car, made reference to shame on the family, all of these words she had heard fall from her own mother's mouth all these years. Chummy wondered for a moment if they were really quite so far apart and almost felt the sprout of sympathy for her as it all started to add up finally. All of these secrets; kept to save face, but perhaps the most clandestine of them all - so who was the father then?

Chummy suddenly remembered she needed to mention the visit to the cellar as well, even though she would not be elaborating on the reasons Peter had been down there as this was simply none of her business. "It does not give you an excuse to create gossip or to annoy my husband by creeping around, particularly in that cellar. Apart from anything else, it is a positive mess down there and anything could have fallen on you" Chummy continued firmly, seeing the message start to hit home. "To make it abundantly clear, Peter is my husband, he is a Police Sergeant, Freddie is ours and I will hear no more about it".

"Yes Sister" Josephine nodded. " Are you going to tell Alastair or Sophia?"

"No, not this time but rest assured whilst I am here to look after you Josephine" Chummy continued, "I do have it in my remit to return you straight back to your step sister or indeed your father if I see fit as I can tell them that I will not accept you here if your behaviour continues". She knew she was being sharp, but the girl had to know who was in charge, even though there was obviously much more to this than met the eye.

"No!" Josephine protested limply, eyes filling with tears. "Please don't! I can't go and live with either of them….!"

"Tell me why I shouldn't" the nurse challenged passing her a handkerchief from her desk, watching Josephine carefully as she summoned up the courage to speak, but no words would come. How she could see herself now...

Chummy just decided to dive in. "Is it because the father of your child someone close to you?" she began, keeping her voice gentle, knowing she had to gain her trust if she was to open up and any harsh words that needed to be said were now long gone. "Someone in your family?" It was a conclusion that was not far to jump to. Alastair? Another in law? A brother? Chummy hoped not.

Josephine sighed quickly and rather heavily. "No, Sister. No-one in my family. Really".

"So who? Does anyone in your family know?" Chummy asked, pressing the point wondering if this girl was alone and crying out for attention as she seemed to be, as the 'delightful' Mr McKenzie seemed to think she was, but in every which wrong way possible.

"Alastair knows who it is. He made me tell him". Oh, yes Josephine thought to herself, he certainly made me confess!

Chummy nodded her head; just once. So he wasn't telling her the truth after all and she should have known better than to believe anything that dropped from his mouth any more. He had already shown himself up to her once, so why would a second time or a third time surprise her?

"So do you think you can tell me?" Chummy asked, being careful and calm just as Patsy had suggested she be as Josephine looked up and Chummy could see in her breathing how nervous she suddenly was.

"Yes Sister. I'd like to…."