Despite the Angels - By Madeline A Stringer Page 0,85

against an open fire is even more nerve wracking. You see the result.” Dorothy smoothed her wrinkled dress and smiled up at Lewis. He leant forward and kissed her quickly, appreciating the relative anonymity of Dundee compared to their home town and silently promising to buy Dorothy a range as soon as he could.

“I do not know how you can work with those hot fires in the foundry, it makes me feel weak even thinking of them.” Dorothy grinned at him again, her blue eyes flashing mischievously. “It is a small miracle that we met. If I had had to come any closer to that furnace you would have had to pick me up off the floor in a dead faint!”

“Well, that would have been even better. I could have held you straight away, instead of having to wait for the ceilidh.” Lewis took Dorothy’s hand in his and they walked comfortably together down the gentle hill towards the riverfront.

They spent a while looking at the ships in the dock and, in plenty of time for the show, walked back across to the music hall and bought tickets for the cheapest seats. There was a gentle breeze blowing and on it came a most tantalising smell, unusual, but definitely delicious, as Lewis found his mouth filling with water.

“Can you smell that? What do you think it is?”

“Let’s go and see,” Dorothy was already moving in the direction of Greenmarket. “We have time before the show, I think?”

They soon joined a crowd outside a small tent, from where the hot sharp smell was emanating. They could not see its source, but there was a crudely lettered sign outside the tent: ‘chip potatoes, 1/2d’.

“Stop pushing at the back!” A voice roared from inside. “Plenty for everyone, wait your turns please!”

“Well love,” Lewis turned to his wife with the air of a grandee inviting a lady to a banquet, “Will we try these potatoes? I have a penny to spare.”

“Oh, yes please, Lewis. The smell is so good.”

And at last they had been at the front of the queue and had bought two portions of the fried potatoes, had sat on the simple boxes and enjoyed this new delicacy as though it had indeed come from the grandee’s kitchen. They had eaten with such slow appreciation, that they had missed the first half of the show in the music hall entirely, yet neither of them had resented the waste of money at all. One penny for chips and on later visits, extra for two portions of peas as well, was so enjoyable, better value than the theatre. Salt and vinegar are a fancy enough sauce, thought Lewis, when you are with someone you love. And now that little Dawn can join in and have a bit of mashed peas, well, we are as lucky as kings.

“Ladies and gentlemen!” The stationmaster’s voice cut into Lewis’s musings and he tore himself away from the delicious thoughts, back to the noisy cold station.

“Ladies and gentlemen, you are all advised to go back to your homes. The train will not be crossing the bridge tonight.” There was a bit of grumbling, but people could see that there was no help for it, they would have to return in the morning. The station emptied quickly and Lewis tucked his head down against the gale as he trudged his way back home. He hoped that Dorothy had heard that the train would not run to Dundee and was now sitting in her mother’s cosy house, not stuck in a draughty waiting room on the other side of the Firth.

Chapter 30

Earlier that evening.

The little station at Cupar was packed with people, some waiting to buy tickets and many here to see off their friends. Many were with fractious children, jiggling after their long exciting day. Dorothy followed in her mother’s wake, as the older woman pushed a way through to the ticket office. Rose Milne was a solid woman with a gentle manner. She had brought most of the population of Cupar into the world and many women had reason to be grateful to her. Her neat deft hands had lifted numerous reluctant babies out of their desperate mothers. She was recognised and greeted and space was made for her in front of others, but she did not like to take advantage of what she considered God-given talents, so they joined the end of the queue.

“I should have bought a return ticket, I do not know what I was thinking