Sarah had become restless as the weeks rolled on with still no news of her father and Philip, and having seen the desperate need for help at the hospital, she’d eventually gone to the office and offered her secretarial services. She’d been snapped up immediately, and soon found herself wading through acres of paperwork that had been ignored for weeks due to the influx of so many patients.

Sybil, left alone in the bungalow with only Amah for company, felt more useless than ever, so Sarah encouraged her to go with her to the nearby convent where the nuns were looking after the orphaned native children. She’d been reluctant at first, for she’d never had much to do with nuns, wasn’t a Catholic and doubted she’d have anything to offer. Yet, upon meeting the Reverend Mother and seeing the wonderful work the nuns were doing, she realised she had something to give to those little ones who needed love and care. It wasn’t long before she became a valued and much-loved figure at the convent, and she happily spent her days there, coming home at night, tired but at last fulfilled.

Amah quietly kept her thoughts to herself as she watched these changes and saw how work was taking their minds off the terrible worries for their sahibs. She knew she didn’t have long to be with them, but to serve, to watch them grow spiritually stronger in the good works they were doing was enough. Her babies had grown and were beautiful young women with long lives ahead of them which she prayed would be happy – although she’d sensed that Sarah was hiding a terrible sorrow behind her smiles, and that worried her deeply.

As for Sybil, her transformation had been wonderful to see. Gone was the restlessness and the need to be entertained and amused, for she’d found a huge well of compassion, and a tireless energy to bring solace to those little children – which, in turn, brought her closer to her daughters.

Amah smiled to herself as she prepared the evening meal. Whatever the outcome of the search for the sahibs, Mem and her girls would always have each other, for the ties that bound them were strengthening by the day.

Jim had risen early that late October morning to the raucous sound of Jumbo’s snoring. His head felt as if it had been occupied by an entire band of drummers, and the shaft of glaring sun coming in through a gap in the bamboo blinds made him wince. He swallowed a couple of aspirin and then staggered out to the bathroom on the landing, hoping a cold shower might improve things.

Returning to the room some time later, he glanced at the sleeping Jumbo enviously, wishing it was his day off too and he could return to bed. The party last night had been riotous to say the least, for Myfanwy had accepted Jumbo’s proposal, and the main bar at Raffles had been taken over by the celebrations which had lasted into the early hours.