‘Walter thought we might catch the train there this weekend. We could stay in a hotel overnight. That’s if Cook and Father think they can look after Holly for us?’

‘I don’t need looking after, I’m quite capable of looking after myself,’ Holly told them flatly.

‘Hmm, well just in case Cook and I are here to keep an eye on her,’ Gilbert added, grinning broadly. It was lovely to have some good news after all the bad things that had happened.

‘Perhaps things are looking up,’ he said cheerily and they all nodded, praying he was right.

Chapter Fifty

Walter and Ivy arrived at the military hospital on the outskirts of Plymouth early in the afternoon the following Saturday. Emma had decided to stay behind with the girls at her father’s house to care for Holly, for although she was now on the mend Emma was still concerned about her. And the girls would love helping to look after little Alice too.

Ivy had been abnormally quiet throughout the train journey and Walter guessed that she was worrying about how they would find Marcus. He had been through a great deal and they were both painfully aware that many of the young men who were lucky enough to come home from the war were never the same again because of the terrible sights they had seen.

The hospital was actually a large private house set in its own grounds which had been taken over for the duration of the war and the reception area was quite luxurious. Walter approached the desk where a young nurse sat while Ivy stood back, nervously chewing on her lip. She had bought a new dress and bonnet especially for the occasion and now her stomach was in knots.

‘I’ve come to see my son, I believe we are expected,’ Walter told the nurse. ‘His name is Marcus Dolby.’

She opened a register and smiled. ‘Ah yes, here he is. The patients have just had lunch. Would you like me to tell him you are here or would you rather surprise him? He’ll probably be in the day room.’

‘I think I’ll just go in to him,’ Walter answered. He and Ivy had already agreed that he should go in first for a few minutes.

The nurse nodded, then beckoned to another nurse who was passing. ‘Would you take this gentleman to see Corporal Dolby please?’

‘Of course.’

Walter turned to Ivy and after giving her a reassuring smile he advised, ‘You wait here, my dear. I promise not to be too long and then you can go in, and perhaps when you’ve had some time with him I could join you?’ He fully intended to spend every minute possible with his son although he appreciated that Walter and Ivy would want a few minutes alone.

He walked away as the nurse at the desk asked Ivy, ‘Would you like to sit down over there and perhaps you’d like a cup of tea? I’m sure you’ve come a long way.’