Grace stopped daydreaming and gasped as the famous Salute came into view. The two marble domes with delicately intricate detailing was there right in front of her, and from the exact same angle as the first painting she had picked up in Connie’s storage unit. And it was breathtaking. And if Ellis’s theory was correct and Connie’s husband, who they now knew to be Giovanni di Donato, was the artist, then he had most definitely been here. And what if Connie had been sitting beside him as he painted? Whispering words of encouragement, with a flask of hot coffee on standby to sustain the talented artist at work. It thrilled Grace to think so as they drifted on past in silence, soaking up the atmosphere and sheer reverence of the place and all its possibilities …

Chapter 14

VE Day and the oddest thing happened as I joined the conga in the middle of Trafalgar Square with Bunty and Joyce from the factory. It was such a marvellous feeling to dance and celebrate now that Hitler has surrendered and the war is over. A few minutes earlier, and Giovanni had whooped and lifted me high in the air, swinging me round and round before bringing me back down to earth with a long, lingering kiss, full on the lips in the middle of the street, and I’ve never blushed so much in my entire life. But I really had no need to as Bunty and Joyce were each kissing men in uniform too, and they hadn’t even met them until today.

As everyone in the conga laughed and snaked through the crowds, I kicked my legs out side to side, gripping Joyce’s waist in front of me, and as I looked out into the throng of people all around me, that’s when it happened. I saw my darling Jimmy! Pale and ethereal almost, and with a vacancy in his eyes that I had never seen before. He was standing there and staring directly at me as if he and I were the only people in the world. It was the strangest feeling as my ears blocked out the noise of the crowd and I felt a floating sensation, all dreamy and slow as Jimmy lifted a hand, hesitated, and then turned and walked away. I watched as he faded, just like a ghost drifting back towards heaven.