and invite them all round for tea?’
Nancy reached across the table and squeezed her husband’s arm, feeling reminded as to why she’d married him. ‘That’s a lovely idea,’ she said. ‘Thank you.’
‘Ah, it’s nothing in the grand scheme of things,’ Bert replied, swallowing his last forkful of beef. ‘It will do her good and I know how much you love seeing all the kids play together.’
He was right. Nancy had always dreamt of having a houseful of children running around, getting up to mischief, but after Linda had come along, she and Bert had agreed two was enough. They had just enough money to live comfortably without worrying where the next meal was coming from and, despite always secretly craving holding another new-born baby for the very first time, Nancy felt lucky she had been blessed with a boy and girl.
‘Besides which,’ Bert added, ‘I think we are all going to have to stick together more than ever soon enough.’
‘What do you mean, luv?’ Nancy asked, although deep down she, like the rest of the country, had felt a sense of uncertainty for months now. ‘Do you really think it will happen?’ she added before Bert had a chance to reply.
‘Aye, I do,’ he answered, almost too quickly for Nancy’s liking.
She pulled her arms across her body as a cold shiver ran through her. An impending war had been the elephant in the room in the Edwards’ house all summer. Bert rarely spoke about the latest developments across Europe, knowing his wife, an eternal worrier, couldn’t bear to think about it. Nancy always avoided any conversation around Hitler and his power-hungry actions, all too aware Bert would be one of the first to offer his services to fight the German’s terrifying regime, always wanting to do the right thing. But with the rest of her family so far away, the idea of Bert disappearing as well was one worry too many for Nancy. She would have loved to have been more like Doris, who had endless strength and determination to carry on despite how hard life was and the trauma she had faced.
I couldn’t be that strong, Nancy quietly thought to herself. I know I would crumble.
That night, after Bert had taken himself off to bed earlier than usual in preparation for another early start on the trams, Nancy sat alone at the kitchen table, contemplating her thoughts.
In the darkness – pitch black save for the glimmer of a candle, due to the newly installed thick black fabric she and Bert had fitted to every window to act as blackout blinds to comply with the new regulations – Nancy nursed the last dregs of her lukewarm tea, unable to stop her mind from wandering. Poor Doris had already lost her husband and Nancy could see the devastating effect it was having on her; the last thing she now wanted was to say goodbye to Bert as he left to fight in a strange unknown country, hundreds of miles away, not knowing if she, or their precious children, who adored their daddy more than life itself, would ever see him again.
The thought of him never coming back was too much to bear.
How could I ever tell Billy and Linda their daddy had died? Nancy silently worried, scrunching her eyes closed, just the thought of it was too much to even contemplate out loud.
Bert had also been the breadwinner since their children had come along and seeing how much Doris was now struggling left her terrified.
If the unthinkable happened, she really had no idea how on earth she would manage to put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads.
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