I'll Be Seeing You
Chapter 11
Blackheath, London
Thursday, 27th April, 1944
My dearest love,
I was so happy to receive your letter on Wednesday. I could hardly wait to open it and to breathe you in. It's the next best thing to having you near me.
I was so pleased and proud to read of your promotion to Third Officer. You really deserve it, my Joey. Please send me a photograph of you in your uniform. I want you next to my bed at night. You can watch over me then. For, my Joey, I fear someone will need to. I think I have got myself into something which I may find very hard to handle. It's to do with work and I wish you were with me right now, because Jo, I feel frightened and insecure about what I have to do. I can't discuss it with you or anyone, but just having you close would help me so much. I need some courage from somewhere, right now! I have to be away from home for a spell. I can't tell you where or when I will be back home. Oh God! I'm so nervous! Please think of me over the next couple of weeks. If I know you are thinking about me and loving me, it will help me with what I have to do, as horrible as it may be.
Even though I won't be able to read your letters until I return home, please send them regardless. (To Whitstable.) This is my last evening in Blackheath before returning home for the weekend. I will write to you as often as I can while I'm away.
Whatever the outcome of the job I have to do, Jo, I want you to know that I love you and need you and want you. I always shall. Please believe that.
God bless you my love,
Charlie.
Xxx
Joey read and re-read Charlie's letter. She frowned becoming worried at Charlie's tone. She sounded unhappy and unsure of herself; it was unlike Charlie to appear so uncertain when it came to her work. She chewed the tip of her thumb nail; wishing above all, she could be with Charlie and hold her, to give her the comfort she craved.
***
"It's lovely to have you home, Charlie!" Ruby cried excitedly.
"Not for long, Sweetheart. I'm afraid I'm going away again for a couple of weeks." Charlie said, sighing.
"Where?" Ruby asked indignantly.
"Can't say. Work stuff." Charlie said, trying to sound casual.
"When do you have to go?" Ruby whined.
"On Sunday."
"Oh Charlie!"
***
"You get a load of letters these days, Josie! You gotta fella in tow?" Helen asked suspiciously as she watched Joey re-reading Charlie's letter again.
"No. It's a letter from Charlie. I'm glad we're back in touch." Joey said, carefully placing the precious letter back in its envelope.
"I thort ya 'ad one t'other day." Said Helen, darning a pair of stockings.
Joey blushed but said nothing.
"She writes more than Chuck – in fact, I've 'erd nought from him since the day we left London! Do ya reckon he's lost our address?" Helen said, with a frown.
"Maybe. Or perhaps he wasn't very serious when he proposed to you?" Joey suggested tentatively.
"Proposed?"
"He did propose to you, didn't he?"
"No lass."
"Then what makes you think he's whisking you off to American as his war bride?" Joey asked placing her hands on her hips.
"You leave that one to me, Lass!" Helen replied, winking at her friend.
***
On Saturday morning, Charlie awoke to a loud ratter-tat-tat at the front door. She sleepily glanced at her bedside clock and groaned noticing it was only seven o'clock. Ratter-tat-tat, again. Obviously, no one else in the household was stirring, so she slipped out of bed, pulled on her dressing gown and yawned her way to the front door.
"Parcel for a Miss. C. Buckton." The Post woman announced, cheerily.
"Thank you." Charlie said, accepting the large flat package and closed the door. She turned the package over and saw familiar writing which stopped her heart from beating for a moment. Joey's writing.
She quickly began to undo the packaging. It had been carefully wrapped with thick newspaper under brown paper and string. Charlie gently took it all apart, revealing a seventy eight rpm record. She read the title on the record label.
'That Lovely Weekend'; the song Joey mentioned in her letter to Charlie. A note enclosed with the recording fell out of its sleeve.
My darling Charlie,
I managed to find a copy of 'That Lovely Weekend'. I wanted you to have it as a special thank you for walking back into my life and loving me again.
I hope when you play it, you will think a little of me and 'our' lovely weekend.
Ever yours.
Joey.
xxx
Charlie put her hand to her mouth as tears began to fall from her eyes.
"Who was that, Sis?" Ruby said, wandering into the kitchen, scratching her head.
"Postie." Charlie sniffed.
"What on earth's up with you?" Ruby cried.
"Nothing." Charlie said, carefully folding the note and placing it in her dressing gown pocket.
"A record? Where did you get that from?" Ruby asked, lifting it up and looking at the label. "Oh! I bet I know who sent this!" She said, with a grin and put a comforting arm around Charlie's shoulder.
***
"Blast!" Cried Joey, as the steam hissed from the boiler and scolded her arm.
"Ruth, pass me that spanner." She said, affixing a piece of rag to the leaky valve.
"There you go." Ruth said, passing the tool to Joey.
Joey tightened the nut and the escaping steam stopped.
"That's gotcha, ya bugger!" Joey said, rubbing her sore arm.
"Hey! Third Officer! We're crossing over to Goriston on Sea tonight. They've got a dance on at the Flora Hall. You coming? Ruth asked as she wiped her oily hands over her overalls.
"I don't know. I will if Helen's feeling better. She was sick this morning. I suppose it was those horrible sausages we ate for breakfast. They were foul!" Third Officer, Joey Collins grinned, wiping her forehead with her sleeve and smudging a blob of oil on her pretty face.
"Good-oh! A dinghy will be at our disposal at twenty hundred hours, sharp, if you're coming! It'll do you good. You've been as miserable as sin since your leave finished. Buck up!" Ruth called as she walked away.
"Aye, aye, Cap'n."
***
"Hello Ruby. Where's your sister?" Janet Leah, Ruby and Charlie's landlady asked in hushed tones.
"She's popped into town to buy one or two things. Why?" Ruby answered, finishing off some Geography homework.
"Good! Where's that bloody record?" Janet said, her eyes scanning the room.
"Record?"
"That new one. She's driving me bonkers; she's played it nearly non-stop since this morning!" Janet complained.
Ruby laughed. "That's because a special someone sent it to her!"
"Really?" Janet said, suddenly becoming interested in 'the record'. "Has she met someone? I did wonder why she was so miserable when she arrived home. I haven't seen her like this since..." Janet paused to ponder. "Well, since the Joey episode."
Ruby sat quiet. Sorry now she'd mentioned anything about 'a someone'.
"Well, come on, ducks; give me the low down, blow by blow." Janet prompted.
"I don't know. She just said that she'd met someone interesting, that's all."
Janet looked at Ruby through narrowed eyes. Ruby tried hard to concentrate on 'Australian landmass'and 'population density', pretending she had little interest in Charlie's love life.
"I wonder where she met him?" Janet continued with a grin playing on her lips.
"I really have no idea." Ruby muttered in reply.
"Oh come on Ruby! I can't believe you haven't given her the old 'Buckton' interrogation."
"Who?" A third voice asked from the door.
Janet and Ruby jumped in surprise as Charlie walked into the kitchen.
"Erm...We were just taking about your new record." Ruby said slowly.
"What about it? It's not broken is it?"
"No, but it might be soon if you keep playing it constantly!" Janet said, grinning and fastening her apron around her.
"Sorry! I have played it a lot haven't I?" Charlie said, glancing at Ruby who was a little flushed.
"You okay, Ruby?" She asked.
"Fine! I'm fine. What's the Capital of Australia?"
***
Joey, Helen and Ruth sat in a bunker listening to the air raid going on above. A bomb dropped nearby and the shelter walls shook and loose earth and dust crumbled from between the rafters falling onto their tin hats and making them cough. The lights dipped once or twice.
"You'd think by now they'd be fed up with all this nonsense, wouldn't you?" Ruth complained.
"Not them. I think Uncle Adolf likes to keep reminding us, every so often, that he's still there." Joey said, dusting down her overalls with her hands.
"Bloody old fool!" Helen muttered. "That'll be anoother 'ole to fill in!"
They heard several other blasts a distance away and a few minutes silence before the 'All Clear' sounded and swiftly, but cautiously, crawled out of their bunker, into the open, to view the damage.
"How are you feeling, Hel?" Joey asked, linking her arm through Helen's.
"U'm fine, thanks Lass. Think breakfast disagreed with me."
"That's two days running, though." Joey frowned, as they walked back to their stations.
"Don't fret, Josie." Helen said, cutting her friend short and walking off in the direction of her office.
Joey frowned as she watched Helen walk away.
***
"Charlie?" Ruby said, turning to face her sister as she relaxed on the sofa.
"Charlie, you haven't said much about you and Joey."
Charlie gave Ruby a quick look and dropped her eyes again.
"Well?" Ruby persisted.
Charlie sighed and joined her sister on the lounge floor where Ruby was pinning a paper dress pattern to some cotton material with tiny red rose buds printed on it.
"I'm sorry I haven't said much." Charlie said, quietly. "Jan and Vince have been about and I haven't wanted to talk about her in front of them. That doesn't mean I didn't want to speak to you about it, sweetheart."
Ruby smiled at her sister, hoping she would continue.
"Ruby, when I met Joey on the Embankment, that first day, I was shocked to tell the honest truth. After all that time, I never believed I would see her again." Charlie said studying her palm. "When she spoke to me, she seemed so cheerful and carefree; she made me feel very world-weary and provincial."
"What! Joey Collins?" Ruby cried in disbelief.
"Nineteen months has done a lot for Joey. She's matured and is quite breath-takingly beautiful! Not that I think she needed to change; not for me, at any rate." Charlie smiled. "But, I felt, oh! I don't know, hurt, I suppose. Hurt that she was so happy and I still felt like tuppence ha'penny!"
Ruby felt for her sister. Charlie, to her, was the most wonderful and beautiful person in the world and she hated that her sister felt that way about herself.
"I'm afraid I was a bit frosty at times and I know you're going to say it's typical of me, but all the emotion just bubbled up and poured out, I guess. Still, I got it off my chest and Joey didn't seem to hold it against me." Charlie smiled.
"I should think not!" Ruby said, indignantly. "After all, Joey was the one who wouldn't believe you and walked out!"
"I know, I know Ruby, but she had her reasons at the time and if it's any consolation, she didn't have such an easy time of it, either."
"Well, of course, as long as you're happy about the way things turned out..." Ruby said, shrugging her shoulders.
Charlie was silent for a while.
"Ruby. We fell in love all over again. I suppose we never really fell out. It was just circumstances got in the way. Please don't be angry at Joey. You promise me, Ruby?" Charlie said, pleading with her sister.
"How have you left things?" Ruby asked before committing herself to any promises.
"God willing, we'll be together again one day." Charlie said, quietly, praying that even after her 'special job' Joey would be able to forgive her.
"Assuming this war ever finishes." Ruby said, starting to cut around the paper pattern.
***
WPC Buckton packed her bags just as though she was going away on holiday. She had been given a travel warrant by DAC Woodford along with money and the promised firearm. Charlie completed the firearms course, and had done as she always did, extremely well and passed out with flying colours. All the same, carrying and handling a firearm was not her idea of pleasure.
She bid Ruby goodbye and left for the station with a heavy heart. She understood the task which lay ahead but this knowledge gave her little encouragement. She was well aware of her own capabilities when it came to doing a good job, but this time, there was a personal element to it. She liked Hugo, even if he was a dirty traitor, and he had been kind to her once.
Charlie tried not to think about the probability of having to sleep with Hugo in order to obtain what was needed. It didn't bear thinking of. But if it meant keeping Joey safe, she would gladly sacrifice her life and her all.