The Sun Will Shine Tomorrow (27 page)

‘Then out of the blue an American patrol turned up and they loaded everyone into their vehicles and transported us to some large town in Poland. I can’t remember its name but we were taken to a hospital where my leg was treated and dressed. I told the American captain I was British and he said I would be taken to Berlin and transferred to the British Army sector. But when the plane arrived it was scheduled to come to England so that is where I ended up. The American soldiers on the plane had a whip-round for me, they bought my train ticket in London and I arrived back in the sorry state you saw me in. They were my guardian angels along with Ma Ryan. If I hadn’t been thinking so strongly of her I don’t think I would have gone outside and I wouldn’t have survived the fire.’

Granny asked, ‘What caused the explosion Danny?’

Danny shook his head. ‘We never found out but some of the men said it was the old heating boiler. The hospital was an old army hut that was being used for casualties and when the fire started it spread rapidly. The boiler was in a room behind our ward and I can only think that was why the two wards caught fire so quickly. And the walls were wooden so that must have played a part in the terrible scenes we all saw that night.’

He looked totally drained and I was almost crying myself. He looked at Maddie. ‘The roads were full of people travelling with whatever they could carry on their backs, Maddie. It was awful. Most of the towns were bombed and even small villages had been devastated.’

Danny was still not able to go back to work as he had to attend the hospital to get his leg checked out. He was told it would take time for his leg to heal completely. The first injury had healed but the second one hadn’t, not properly, and he was told he would probably walk with a limp for a long time.

However, Maddie and Danny got ready to move back into their flat the following week but, before they did, Danny came to see me in the shop. He had just been to the infirmary and was on his way home.

Connie and Joe were delighted to see him but I knew he was worried about something. Connie had got into the habit of going home for a couple of hours in the late morning. I realised she wasn’t getting any younger and this was confirmation of my thoughts.

Joe was eager to hear Danny’s story but thankfully he knew he would have to wait till Danny was a lot stronger so they both wished him well before leaving the shop. After Connie left, I made Danny sit down on the chair. He still had a tired and ill look and I knew he was suffering from a lot of pain in his leg. I wondered why he had made the trip to see me.

He quickly came to the point. ‘We don’t think we can move back to Roseangle, Ann.’

I was totally surprised by his blunt statement. ‘But it’s your home, Danny.’

He passed a hand through his hair and I saw with remembered tenderness how it stood up like a small boy’s ruffled look.

‘It’s Daniel – he’s now screaming if I go near him. Maddie and the Pringles have told him I’m his daddy but he’ll not accept it.’ A spasm of grief showed in his bright but tired-looking eyes. ‘Mind you, I can’t blame the wee lad. After all, he never knew me till I turned up out of the blue. The photo he keeps looking at is a wedding picture and I look like a different person on that.’ He tried to smile but failed and instead he had a dejected look which broke my heart.

I had to agree with Danny about the photograph. He had lost his vibrant colour but then so had thousands of men. They had left this country in 1939 as young boys and returned as war-weary men – all except Sammy, it had to be said. He had returned as if he had never been away but then he hadn’t suffered a broken leg – and not just once but twice – nor had he been a prisoner of the Russians who spoke no English.

‘So what are you going to do, Danny? Stay with Maddie’s parents?’

He nodded. ‘We feel it’ll be better for Daniel to be in his familiar surroundings.’ His voice registered the deep grief he was feeling at Daniel’s rejection of him. Maddie had never envisaged this treatment. She had always thought Danny’s homecoming would be glorious, especially after the long anxious wait.

There was nothing I could say to him. No words that would comfort him. It was just a matter of letting Daniel get used to having his father back home – however long it took.

I felt so sorry for them. I was naive in thinking the war was over. It may have been on the battlefields but, for some of the returning servicemen, the war was still carried on their shoulders like an unwelcome raincoat in a heatwave.

I put my arm around him. ‘I hope everything works out for you all, Danny. It’s been such a long terrible time not knowing how you were and now all this worry over Daniel.’

He sighed and tried to smile. ‘Well, at least I’m back home and we’re all together – not like lots of people who have lost all their families. And I never got to say goodbye to Grandad. Did he have a long illness?’

I nodded, sadness washing over me at the memory of that time. ‘Maddie came and helped out and she was a great comfort to us, as was the doctor. Still, Granny said it was a blessing when he died because the pain would have got so much worse. In fact, it would have become unbearable and that would have been terrible for him.’

I was crying but then I always did when I thought of Grandad. I missed him terribly as did Granny and Lily and all the family.

Danny was upset as well. ‘Maddie also told me about Greg. We’re sorry it’s turned out like this for you, Ann.’

I tried to look unconcerned but my heart was hammering. ‘Och, well, it’s just one of these things that happen, Danny. He met someone else and they’re married now I expect.’

He looked at me as if he wanted to say some more but maybe thought better of it. Instead he said, ‘I can’t believe Dundee looks just the same as when I went away. The river and the bridge and all the buildings – exactly the same. There’s been such devastation in the world, Ann. I came through London on my way home and it’s razed to the ground in places. As for Europe, well, there are millions of displaced people and so many cities have been ruined. It’s a damned disgrace that one megalomaniac like Hitler could cause such devastation and mayhem.’ He sounded bitter.

I agreed with him. We had been lucky in our small corner of the world while others weren’t but, to change the subject away from the world’s woes, I tried to be cheery as I asked him, ‘Will you be going back to Lipton’s shop soon?’

‘Yes, I will but can I say something in confidence, Ann?’

I looked at him with apprehension. I hoped this wasn’t going to be another secret worry.

‘Well, I would really like to own a shop instead of working in someone else’s. It’s something I’ve always dreamed of and, if there’s anything this awful war has taught me, it’s to make up your mind to chase your dream. Looking at the poor people in the camps and the hospitals has made me realise that life is too short and that life can be snatched away at any time without warning.’

I was intrigued. ‘What kind of shop are you looking for, Danny?’

He gave it a bit of thought. ‘Something like a general store. I’ve spoken to Maddie’s Dad and he agrees with me that once the rationing ends, the shops will take off in a big way. Folk have some money now and they’ll be keen to buy all the things that have been missing from the shelves for years.’

‘Will Mr Pringle help with the money side?’

He nodded. ‘He says he’ll get me a loan to start off with and I have my eye on a shop in the Hawkhill. The owner is retiring and he’s not asking for a huge sum for the business because he let it run down during the war and the rationing. I think it has great potential.’

I was glad for him. When he was telling me about this new venture, I could see glimpses of the old Danny shining through.

‘But, until I get everything sorted out, I’ll return to Lipton’s.’ He didn’t sound morose, thankfully.

He was on the point of leaving when he turned back suddenly. ‘I almost forgot the main reason why I came to see you, Ann. Maddie wondered if you and Lily would go back to live at Roseangle until we get Daniel sorted out?’

‘But, Danny, you’ll all be wanting to stay there yourselves in the near future so it’ll not be long empty till you and Daniel get together.’

‘Well, until then, will you stay and look after the place? Maddie likes to keep it aired and lived-in so she’s hoping you and Lily can move back in again – but just if you want to. Maybe you’ve found a flat for yourselves?’

The thought of returning to the lovely flat was tempting. I knew Granny would never put us out of her house but she was getting older and she liked the place to herself although she would be the last person to admit it.

‘All right, Danny, we would love to move back. Will the weekend be fine?’

He gave me a grin that was so like the old Danny that it gave me hope for his well-being. ‘That’ll be great, Ann. Maddie will be so pleased.’

If Maddie was pleased, then Lily was ecstatic. ‘We’re going back to live there?’ she said with joy. ‘After us saying cheerio to it as well!’

‘Well, I’m sure it’ll not be for long, Lily. It’s just to keep it aired until Maddie and Danny get organised.’ I didn’t want to mention Danny’s problems with his son.

We moved in that weekend and, once again, put all the wedding presents away. Lily sat on the settee. ‘Hullo, bed settee,’ she said, ‘we’re back again.’

This time we didn’t have to put up any blackout curtains and we sat at the table by the window to have our meals in the company of the river. It was as if we had returned to an old friend.

Back at work, Connie seemed to get tired quickly and she spent most of the day at home, leaving me to run the shop. It meant longer hours but, now that Lily was almost fifteen, she was able to look after herself most of the time.

Joe kept popping in to give me the usual rundown on the world’s events. ‘I see Churchill has warned the world that the Russians have pulled down an iron curtain over the countries they control. That Stalin is as bad as Hitler – just another bloody dictator. And have you read about the Nuremberg trials with Hitler’s henchmen trying to pretend they’re bloody innocent. Innocent? Innocent?’ he spouted. Spittle landed on his lips and he wiped it away with a huge hankie. ‘Innocent when they murdered all those poor Jews and Gypsies and loads of other folk? I know what I’d like to do to them,’ he said darkly.

However, I wasn’t to know what his solution would be because Rosie and Jay appeared.

Rosie looked flustered. ‘Your dad has gone away to work without his dinner-time pieces, Ann. Do you think you can hand them in to him on your way home?’

I was just about to tell her I couldn’t leave the shop when Connie appeared. Joe, who was on his way out, quickly retraced his steps back into the shop. He looked like a faithful dog and, if he’d had a tail, he would have wagged it.

‘I’m just telling Ann about the Nuremberg trials, Connie.’

Connie gave me a look that said she wished she had stayed at home but it now meant I could go home for a couple of hours before coming back to do the evening papers.

I couldn’t get over how big Jay was becoming. He was starting school later in the year and it was unbelievable how fast the years had gone in. The warehouse was now fully back in business with its fruit and vegetables. Bananas had been imported into the country but they were still in very short supply. Dad, however, had managed to get one for Jay who had gazed at it for ages before eating it. It was something he had only ever seen in his picture book and it was such a treat for him.

All these thoughts were going through my mind as I hurried to the warehouse with Dad’s sandwiches, feeling a bit annoyed that he would sometimes hurry out of the house without them. He must have something on his mind, I thought.

I was almost at the warehouse door when I saw the figure emerge from the exit further up the lane. To my astonishment and horror, I saw it was Margot. It was so like my previous encounter with her in this same lane that I experienced a feeling of déjà vu. I stopped and gazed at her retreating figure. What was she doing here? Surely she hadn’t come to see Dad.

Then, to my dismay, a few minutes after she disappeared, Dad appeared out of the same door with a barrow-load of boxes. He was whistling cheerfully. Thankfully he didn’t see me as he pushed his load over to the building across the lane and went inside.

My mind was in a whirl. It had to be Dad that Margot was seeing but surely he wouldn’t be so daft to start anything with her again? Would he? I wasn’t so sure. Then I had another thought. What if Rosie had brought the sandwiches to him? Was this the reason for his forgetfulness? Margot?

I headed for the main warehouse and met Bill who worked with Dad. I handed over the box and asked where Dad was, trying to keep my voice even and unemotional.

‘He were up in the other store a few minutes ago, Ann,’ he said, pointing with a gnarled finger towards where I had seen Dad and Margot both emerge. ‘I’ve no idea where he is now but I’ll give him his pieces when I see him.’

I walked slowly down the lane but neither Dad nor Margot appeared again. To be quite honest, I had almost forgotten about seeing her last year. Where was she staying? I wondered. And was she hankering after a reunion with him? Oh, God, I hope not, I said silently. She had caused enough trouble in our family during her short reign and she was the last person I ever wanted to see again. And as for Rosie and Jay … well, it didn’t bear thinking about.

I walked quickly to the Overgate and told Granny about this new sighting. ‘She must have been talking to Dad. She came out the same door a few minutes before him. He must have seen her and he’s the only reason she’ll be hanging about there. And maybe she has been going to see him all this time. I mean, I don’t often go down with his dinner box.’

Granny sounded thoughtful. ‘I wonder if it’s money she’s after?’

‘Money,’ I said. ‘Where would Dad get any significant money? I know I gave him Miss Hood’s money but that was years ago and he used some of it to pay the household bills when he had his accident in the Home Guard. He might have some of it left but not in the amounts that matter to a woman like Margot.’