A Sister's War by Molly Green (the reading strategies book txt) 📕

pulled a face at the scenes her imagination produced. Good riddance to the lot of them.

She drew back the blackout curtains. It had rained non-stop this past week but today, Monday, Ronnie was thankful that for once she could see the weak rays of the sun. She opened the window and put her head out, then heard a rumble. Surely that wasn’t thunder. She peered up at the sky to see a formation of aeroplanes and automatically flinched. Then she realised they were British planes. Raine had told them there would be hundreds of planes coming over to bring back the emaciated prisoners of war from captivity. Ronnie shuddered. Yet it was an uplifting sight to know that something good was finally happening to those poor souls.

She watched for a few more moments, then drew her head back in. At least it felt warmer, but the weather hardly mattered now that she and her sisters were together after so long. Raine had hardly delivered any aeroplanes in the last few weeks, so had been able to take some time off, Suzy had been home a fortnight now, and Mr Lincoln, the vet, had given Ronnie a few days’ holiday.

‘I reckon they’ll announce it on the wireless any minute now,’ Mr Lincoln had said, his face creasing into a familiar smile, ‘so off you go – you need to be with your family when it happens.’

‘What about you?’

‘Don’t worry about me – I’ll be happy enough with my own company upstairs in my room with my books and my music – having a bit of time off at last with Buster and the two imps.’

Ronnie chuckled. Buster was a mature dog at eleven years old but had been given a new lease of life by the two much younger dogs Mr Lincoln had saved from being put down.

‘But when it’s definitely over, will you come and have supper with us?’ Ronnie said.

‘That’s very kind of you – thank you.’

The war had taken its toll, even on those like Mr Lincoln who’d been too old to join up, Ronnie had thought, noticing his bloodshot eyes. Having to put all those healthy pets down was heart-breaking every single time, let alone not being able to save some of the very sick and badly injured animals. She was only grateful to be playing her part again, having slipped into her old job at the vet’s. She’d still be doing something she loved, training hard under Mr Lincoln’s watchful eye to become a qualified veterinary assistant … and keep an eye on Maman at the same time.

Although her hand had healed well it didn’t have quite the strength it used to, and when she’d thought about the grinding physical labour day in, day out, wielding the heavy boats and working the locks, helping to load and unload the cargo, sometimes ten or more hours a day, she’d reluctantly made her decision to leave the canals. But she’d always remember her time on the Grand Union Canal. Her first taste of freedom and responsibility. Where she’d met Michael. When she’d at last grown up.

Sally and May wrote now and again, and Jess had been to see her a couple of times. Ronnie glanced over to the wash bowl painted with roses in pride of place on her dressing table. Jess had given it to her the first time she’d visited when Ronnie had injured her hand.

‘From May and Sally and me,’ she’d said, laughing. ‘So you don’t forget us or your time on the cut. And Dora wants to be remembered to you as well.’

Dora … well, who could forget Dora? And her silver shoes?

Pierre had managed to come and see them, sometimes for a few days at a time, in the last year. Those visits completely transformed her mother into a more affectionate mother and loving wife until he’d have to disappear again, continuing his work with the Resistance, but now he, too, was here permanently as one of the family. Strange to think of him as her stepfather, but she couldn’t think of a nicer one, and she knew Raine felt the same. You didn’t even have to ask Suzy, Ronnie grinned to herself. Suzy never stopped smiling every time she looked at her father. They’d all got to know him really well and there was no doubt how happy he made Maman.

Thinking about Maman, if it hadn’t been for Dr Hall rushing over as quickly as he had … getting her straight into hospital … A shiver ran the length of Ronnie’s spine. But the doctor at the hospital had said she was definitely on the mend now and tomorrow they’d all be allowed to visit her. She couldn’t wait. Everything was going to be wonderful.

Later that evening Ronnie sat with her sisters in the front room, Rusty asleep at her feet. She watched as Suzanne knitted, her fingers flying over the needles. Ronnie smiled. Suzanne was always happy when she was making something. Raine was idly flicking through an aeroplane magazine, Pierre was in Dad’s armchair reading a book but she noticed he hadn’t turned a page in the last ten minutes. To Ronnie it felt as though the whole country was holding its breath waiting for the announcement to be made that the war in Europe was over.

‘Can you switch the light on, Ronnie?’ Suzanne said. ‘It’s getting too dark to see my stitches.’

‘Oh, while you’re up, Ronnie, will you put the wireless on?’

‘Anything else before I crawl up to my garret after having been up since five waiting on your ladyships,’ Ronnie said.

‘Give me a moment and I’m sure I can think of something else,’ Raine chuckled as Ronnie carried out her sisters’ demands.

The programme on the wireless was a comedy Ronnie didn’t much care for when suddenly there was a news flash.

‘This is the Ministry of Information.’

Pierre jerked his head up and Suzanne stopped clicking her needles. Raine flung her magazine down. Ronnie held her breath.

‘The three great powers