‘Good morning, Sergeant Trevelyan,’ she greeted him with that fixed smile of hers. ‘How are we this morning?’

‘I don’t know about you,’ he growled back, ‘but I’m still stuck in this bed with a hole in my side and a pair of near-useless arms.’

‘That’s why I’m here. I’m doing your therapeutic massage today.’

Sam watched in dismay as Dulcie set out her cloths and a bottle of oil. ‘Nurse Beck usually does the massage.’

‘Well, you’ve got me for a change.’ Her smile brightened. ‘And I’ve brought your newspaper.’

‘How many more times do I have to tell you, I don’t read them?’

Dulcie ignored him, setting the folded paper down on his bedside locker. ‘Right, let’s make a start, shall we?’

Sam grudgingly allowed her to help him off with his hospital gown. ‘I wish you’d pick on someone else,’ he grumbled.

‘What do you mean?’

‘I know why you’re doing this. You’re trying to impress Sister so she lets you move to the shell shock ward.’

She blushed, but didn’t try to deny it.

‘I suppose you want to be closer to Dr Logan?’

‘How did you guess?’

‘I can’t think of any other reason why you’d want to go there. And frankly, I don’t really care. Now why don’t you go and minister to McCray or Bennett? I’m sure they’d appreciate it more.’

‘Perhaps they would, but it has to be you, I’m afraid.’ Nurse Moore poured oil into her palms and rubbed her hands together briskly. ‘Sister has particular concerns about you, you see. She thinks you need drawing out.’

He had to admire her honesty, if nothing else.

‘And what if I don’t want to be drawn out?’

‘Oh, I don’t think you have any choice in the matter. Now, sit up, please.’

Nurse Moore’s massage technique left a lot to be desired.

‘Ow!’ Sam yelped in pain. ‘Do you have to be so rough?’

‘Do you have to be such a baby?’ she shot back. ‘Sit forward a bit more, I can’t reach your shoulder properly.’

As Sam leaned forward, he spotted something on the bottom of the trolley, half hidden by a cloth.

‘Is that a magazine?’

Nurse Moore ducked guiltily, covering it with the cloth. ‘Don’t tell Sister, will you? One of the VADs brought it in. It’s got some pictures I want to cut out.’

‘Pictures?’

‘Just clothes and hats and things.’

‘Can I have a look?’

She pulled a face. ‘I thought you didn’t like to read?’

‘I don’t like to read newspapers. Besides, I only want to look at the pictures.’

He held out his hand. Nurse Moore bent down and retrieved the magazine, then handed it to him.

‘I suppose you just want to make fun,’ she mumbled.

Sam flicked through the pages of Vogue magazine. It was full of colourful pages showing slender, aloof women in exotic-looking fashions, alongside advertisements for jewellery from Asprey and handbags from Harrod’s.

The prices made him whistle. ‘I didn’t know nurses were so well paid,’ he said.