streak about her as she started to tell her of all the things that she’d been doing in the country. And even though this made Julia a little sad, she pushed it from her mind, now there would be their whole family to greet her husband.
As they waited for the troop train to pull in, Maggie, with great excitement, caught Tom up with all the things in the country that he’d missed out on while he’d been in London. She also chatted away to Abigail and didn’t seem to be bothered that Abigail didn’t speak much back. She was still finding her feet in that regard and just nodded as she listened to Maggie telling her stories.
Many families were waiting up and down the platform, and there was a great excitement as the train arrived. Julia gripped Diana’s arm so tightly she was worried she would hurt her. As the train pulled to a stop with its hiss of steam, a great cheer went up at the station. Further down the platform, a group of relatives was singing a lively version of ‘We’ll Meet Again’, made famous by Vera Lynn as, slowly, men started to step off the train.
Julia sucked in her breath as she saw on their faces what the ravages of war had done to so many men. They looked battered, exhausted, wounded, all trying their best to smile, to put on a happy face for the homecoming.
Instantly she wondered if it had been the right thing to bring the children. What if John was not himself? Would it be too frightening for them, if he wasn’t the dad they remembered? Diana seemed to sense her fear.
‘He’s going to be okay, Julia. If he’s walking, he’s going to be fine. And they said he didn’t need to go to the hospital.’
The train completely emptied of men into the arms of mothers and wives. And all at once Julia thought maybe there’d been a mistake because John wasn’t getting off. She looked frantically up and down the platform that was now full of reunions but she couldn’t see the man with a shock of black hair anywhere.
Then all at once she saw him. His smile, that twinkle in his eyes. His arm was in a sling, and he hobbled off the train.
But it was her husband, her John.
The children automatically ran to greet him, and Abigail, not really understanding, followed them and threw her arms around him as well. As he did his best to stoop down and hug them all, he looked quizzically at Abigail.
‘We have a new one? Is there something you want to tell me?’ he joked with his wife. Then he shuffled to Julia and threw his arm around her. And there was that smell. The smell that was so familiar to her.
‘It’s a long story. And it’s been a long few months. I’ll have plenty of time to tell you all about Abigail, and my new friends Diana – who’s there, and Lizzie who I wrote to you about.’ said Julia, stroking the little girl’s hair.
He pulled back and looked at her then. And it was as if the others around them didn’t exist.
‘God, Julia, you can’t believe how much I’ve missed you. And your cooking,’ he joked.
Julia cried with relief, tears of happiness streaming down her face. And she held him so tightly she did not want to let him go. In fact, she probably would have stood there for an hour if the children hadn’t tugged on her skirt and his trousers.
The whole group of them walked along the platform with the kids running out in front, dancing around them as they made the way home.
It was on the way back that she told him the news about Agnes. She didn’t want him to see his childhood home and not know.
‘I’m afraid your mother…’
He stopped and looked at her.
‘A bomb.’ She added in the details. She hated to tell him.
The joy in his face crumpled into sorrow.
‘They say it was quick. She wouldn’t have felt anything. Unfortunately, we didn’t know when you’d be home, so we’ve already had the funeral.’
John nodded. ‘I’ll take some flowers to her grave. But I will miss her. My dear old mum.’
Julia swallowed down her guilt. That’s how she wanted him to remember Agnes. The truth: well, there was no need to burden him with that.
47
John had been home for nearly two weeks when Diana and Len got married. With no time to really look for a