She nodded. ‘The ex-pat community is quite small, and Sybil was a shining light on the social scene. She and her girls were very popular, and they became close family friends. In fact, Reginald made sure they had somewhere to stay while they waited to catch a ship, and even managed to round up a few of their house boys to make their stay more comfortable.’

She blew smoke and then stubbed out her cigarette. ‘I don’t know what happened to the house boys, as they’d run off at the first sign of trouble, but I’ve heard since that their amah stayed on after they left and got kitchen work at Changi so she could be near Jock.’

She gave a deep sigh. ‘Singapore was a very different place back then, and I don’t think any of us realised just how pampered and spoilt we all were. The Japanese invasion came as a nasty shock to the system, I can tell you. We thought the place was impregnable.’

‘Is there really no chance of tracking them down?’ Jim edged forward in the chair. ‘They were both held in Changi for a while, and then sent to camps.’

‘I’ll go through the Changi prison records again and see if the administrators kept a list of where the prisoners were sent from there. But even if there are lists, they could have been sent unrecorded from one camp to another, right across Asia to the shores of Japan itself. It’s a rat’s nest of disinformation, and because the Japs destroyed most of their records the moment peace was declared, it’s like hunting for a needle in a haystack.’

‘I see.’ Jim dipped his chin, realising it was a hopeless task.

‘If they’re alive, they’ll be picked up,’ said Elsa, setting aside the dishes and reaching for a file. ‘There are teams already out there searching for the camps and liberating them. It’s a vast operation, Jim, and one that can’t be hurried if we’re to find everyone. You’ll just have to be patient and hope they’ve survived.’

‘Is it likely?’

She brushed her slender fingers over the cardboard folder and gave a sigh. ‘The odds aren’t good,’ she said softly.

He nodded and got to his feet. ‘I’m billeted at the Palm Hotel. Should you get any news of either of them, you can reach me there.’

‘Are you sure you wouldn’t like to come and help with all this admin, Jim? I really do need someone to lighten the load.’

Jim realised he had to say something, although the thought of being stuck in this poky office day after day filled him with horror. ‘I’ll talk to my CO and see what he has to say – but I suspect he might send me elsewhere.’ He reached out his hand. ‘It’s been nice meeting you, Elsa.’

Her warm smile made her look a decade younger than the tired, overwrought woman he’d first met. ‘It’s been a pleasure to meet you, Jim Reilly,’ she said, shaking his hand. ‘Thanks for the lunch.’