The Last Night in London by Karen White (reading list .TXT) 📕

here,” Eva whispered. She buried her face in his neck, smelling the scent that was uniquely his, now mixed with that of new wool. She wanted to stay there forever, to make Precious and Alex and the rest of the world disappear so that it was just the two of them.

Instead, she heard Alex crossing the room, felt Graham moving her aside, his hand firmly planted at her waist as he took Alex’s hand. “Pleasure to see you safe and sound, old man,” Alex said, his voice jovial. “We didn’t expect you back in London so soon.”

“Nor did I. I managed to pull in a favor and get one night’s leave.” Graham’s gaze flickered over to Eva’s stocking feet, before returning to Alex. “Tomorrow they’re sending me to another base for further training.”

“Where, Graham?” Eva asked. “Closer to London?”

He paused for a moment, his eyes never leaving hers. “I’m not at liberty to say.” He dropped his hand from her waist and looked at Alex. “I wasn’t expecting to bump into you.” He kept his voice light but there was something about the inflection that made Eva wince.

“I ran into him at Horvath’s Café. It was quite by accident.” Eva was babbling, and she wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was the guilt of sharing Graham’s letters with Alex. It wasn’t as if she’d had a choice or she’d planned on meeting Alex or she’d even wanted to. But something in Graham’s expression made her want to explain.

“I’m sure it was, Eva.” Graham’s voice was almost curt, although he continued to smile.

Eva’s heart fell. “When do you have to be back?”

“Tonight. I’ll have to catch the three ten from Euston.”

“But that’s not even a full day.” Eva felt horribly close to tears, although her heart sang with the knowledge that he’d come such a long distance just to see her.

Graham cut a glance toward Alex and Precious. “Sadly, yes. And if Germany ignores Chamberlain’s ultimatum, I’m afraid we will be at war.”

“We should all stay here and listen to the wireless,” Alex suggested. “We have less than an hour.”

Graham glanced at the small carriage clock ticking away on the mantel, a flicker of annoyance crossing his face. “So we do.”

“I’ll get refreshments,” Precious offered as she stood. “I made chess pie and sweet tea. I’m thinking sugar will top the ration list, so we might as well enjoy it.”

Eva jumped up, too, unwilling to sit still and listen to the clock tick by the wasted minutes—time she and Graham couldn’t spend alone, waiting for the news that would seal all of their fates. “I’ll help,” she said, following Precious into the kitchen.

As if feeling the same nervousness, Graham moved toward the wireless to turn it on. From the kitchen, Eva overheard the announcer describing the evacuation of London’s children, which was going on at that very moment, as if war were already a foregone conclusion.

When Precious and Eva returned, the men were standing by the wireless, an air of tension thick in the room, although both Alex and Graham retained their calm demeanors. Precious laid out the refreshments, and they all politely took plates and glasses that would remain untouched.

The minutes continued to tick by. Eva sat on the sofa and was immediately joined by Alex. Graham appeared not to notice; he took his own seat next to Precious in one of the two matched club chairs Eva and Precious had received as a gift from Sophia.

Restless, needing the fresh air and the blue sky, Eva jumped up again to open the casement windows at the front of the room. The sound of traffic below would prove that life was continuing as usual. Because surely it was too nice a day outside for a declaration of war. She kept the thought to herself, knowing how absurd it was, but all the same, she couldn’t stop herself from wanting to believe such a thing was possible.

A church bell tolled nearby, announcing the eleven o’clock hour. Still nothing from the prime minister as the minutes continued to tick by without anyone attempting conversation. And then the anonymous male announcer, his impeccable accent one Eva had studied night after night, said, “This is London. You will now hear a statement from the prime minister.”

Eva met Graham’s gaze across the room. She wished she were sitting next to him, holding his hand. Feeling the solidity of him against her side. She glanced at the clock. A quarter past the hour. As if by unspoken agreement, they returned their attention to the wireless, looking at it as if the prime minister had suddenly joined them in their drawing room.

“This morning the British ambassador in Berlin handed the German government a final note stating that unless we heard from them by eleven o’clock that they were prepared at once to withdraw their troops from Poland, a state of war would exist between us. I have to tell you now that no such undertaking has been received, and that consequently this country is at war with Germany.”

“God Save the King” began to play, and the foursome found themselves staring at one another in stunned silence. When the song ended, Graham stood and flipped off the wireless, his face pale. “And so it has begun.”

The air raid siren began to wail only minutes later. They were still in their places, their untouched plates of food in front of them. Graham moved first. “Quickly, grab your gas masks. We’ll go to Regent’s Park Underground for shelter.”

Alex looked as if he wanted to argue but stayed silent. With shaking hands, Eva slipped on a pair of shoes; then Alex, Precious, and Eva obediently followed Graham out of the flat, not even pausing to lock the door. Eva felt an odd stillness inside, as if everything were happening to someone else.

They rushed out of the building. The sirens continued to wail, and people emerged from the surrounding buildings, looking around in confusion as traffic on Marylebone Road slowed.

Eva felt Graham take her