‘It was his great-grandmother’s,’ said Maude, beaming proudly. ‘I told him it was too much, but he insisted. I felt ever so guilty, especially when I met his mam, but she said if it was what Stanley wanted then that was fine by her.’ She threaded her arm through Olivia’s. ‘I can’t wait to show you round Ramsbury – it’s like heaven compared to Shirehampton.’

‘Did Josie not join you, or is she holding a taxi for us?’ said Olivia, glancing expectantly towards the cabs lined up outside the station.

Maude gave an apologetic grimace. ‘I’m afraid she couldn’t come. She was given a forty-eight at the last minute – rotten timing, I know – and whilst she would have loved to see you …’

Olivia nodded her understanding. ‘She’d far rather be with Clive, and I can’t say as I blame her. You have to snatch every opportunity you can these days!’ She glanced at Maude’s hands. ‘How are they?’

Maude turned them over so that Olivia could see her palms where most of the burning had occurred.

‘They look fantastic!’ Olivia said. ‘I can’t believe how much they’ve improved.’

‘They’re certainly a lot less sensitive than they were,’ Maude agreed.

‘According to our flight sergeant, too many women have been laid off with accidents,’ Olivia said. ‘So our days as balloon operators are numbered.’

Maude hailed a taxi. ‘Do you think you’ll be sent for retraining, then?’

Olivia nodded. ‘Just a matter of time. Me and Beth have been talking about it, and we’ve decided we’d like to retrain as drivers.’

‘Oooh, me too!’ said Maude. ‘I like being a wireless operator until something goes wrong – it’s really upsetting when you get a darky.’

‘A darky?’ Olivia asked cautiously.

‘It’s when you’ve got to guide a pilot in using only radio control because something’s gone wrong with his kite. It’s the one call we all dread, because their lives are literally in our hands.’

‘I hope they need drivers over wireless operators,’ Olivia said.

Maude nodded darkly. ‘You can’t stop yourself from counting them going out and back in again. I’d far rather be back on the balloons.’ They climbed into the taxi and she addressed the driver. ‘RAF Ramsbury, please.’

‘But that’s enough about work,’ said Olivia. ‘When’s the wedding, or have you not set a date yet?’

Maude rolled her eyes. ‘Trying to get a date fixed so that everyone can attend is nigh on impossible, so we decided to take the first available date at Brougham Terrace, provided we can both get leave, of course.’

‘But Stanley’s not from Liverpool,’ said Olivia. ‘Didn’t he want to have the wedding in Enfield?’