‘We won’t tell you anything,’ said Kirsty.

‘Just name, rank and serial number, eh?’ said the captain.

‘Supposing we … did know things,’ said Johnny. ‘It wouldn’t do you any good. And those things won’t help, either. They won’t make the war better, they’ll just make it different. Everything happens somewhere.’

‘Right now, I think we’d settle for different. We’ve got some very clever men,’ said the captain.

‘Please, captain.’ It was Tom.

‘Yes?’

‘They didn’t have to do all this, sir. I mean, they came and told us about the bombing, didn’t they? And … I don’t know how they got me down here, sir, but they did. ’S not right to put them in prison, sir.’

‘Oh, not prison,’ said the captain. ‘A country house somewhere. Three square meals a day. And lots of people who’ll want to talk to them.’

Kirsty burst into tears.

‘Now, no one’s going to hurt you, little girl,’ said the captain. He moved over and put his arm around her shaking shoulders.

Johnny and Yo-less looked at one another, and took a few steps backwards.

‘It’s all right,’ said the captain. ‘We just need to know some things, that’s all. Things that may be going to happen.’

‘Well, one thing …’ sobbed Kirsty, ‘one thing … one thing that’s going to happen is … one thing is …’

‘Yes?’ said the captain.

Kirsty reached out and took his hand. Then her leg shot out and she pivoted, hauling on the man’s arm. He somersaulted over her shoulder and landed on his back on the cobbles. Even as he tried to struggle upright she was spinning around again, and caught him full in the chest with a foot. He slumped backwards.

Kirsty straightened her hat and nodded at the others.

‘Chauvinist. Honestly, it’s like being back with the dinosaurs. Shall we go?’ she said.

Tom backed away.

‘Where do girls learn to do that?’ he said.

‘At school,’ said Johnny. ‘You’d be amazed.’

Kirsty reached down and took the captain’s pistol.

‘Oh, no,’ said Yo-less. ‘Not guns! You can get into real trouble with guns!’

‘I happen to be the under-18 county champion,’ said Kirsty, unloading the gun. ‘But I’m not intending to use it. I just don’t want him to get excited.’ She threw the pistol behind some dustbins. ‘Now, are we going, or what?’

Johnny looked around at Tom.

‘Sorry about this,’ he said. ‘Can you, er, explain things to him when he wakes up?’

‘I wouldn’t know how to start! I don’t know what happened myself!’

‘Good,’ said Kirsty firmly.

‘I mean, did I run down here or not?’ said Tom. ‘I thought I saw the bombing but – I must’ve imagined it, because it didn’t happen until after we got here!’

‘It was probably the excitement,’ said Yo-less.

‘The mind plays strange tricks,’ said Kirsty.

They both glared at Johnny.

‘Don’t look at me,’ he said. ‘I don’t know anything about anything.’