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Chapters (52)
  1. Cover
  2. Margaret Dickinson
  3. Dedication page
  4. Contents
  5. Part One
  6. One
  7. Two
  8. Three
  9. Four
  10. Five
  11. Six
  12. Seven
  13. Eight
  14. Nine
  15. Ten
  16. Eleven
  17. Twelve
  18. Thirteen
  19. Fourteen
  20. Fifteen
  21. Sixteen
  22. Part Two
  23. Seventeen
  24. Eighteen
  25. Nineteen
  26. Twenty
  27. Twenty-One
  28. Twenty-Two
  29. Twenty-Three
  30. Twenty-Four
  31. Twenty-Five
  32. Twenty-Six
  33. Twenty-Seven
  34. Twenty-Eight
  35. Twenty-Nine
  36. Thirty
  37. Thirty-One
  38. Thirty-Two
  39. Thirty-Three
  40. Thirty-Four
  41. Thirty-Five
  42. Thirty-Six
  43. Thirty-Seven
  44. Thirty-Eight
  45. Thirty-Nine
  46. Forty
  47. Forty-One
  48. Forty-Two
  49. Sow the Seed
  50. Note
  51. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
  52. Copyright page

Kate watched in amazement as her mother stood in the middle of the yard, staring at her husband and wringing her hands in agitation. She could not remember having ever seen her so distressed. Angry, yes, many times, but the sight of tears in her mother’s green eyes shocked Kate.

Then, at Esther’s next words, Kate understood. Her mother had rushed towards Jonathan and was grasping his shoulders, looking up into his face, her eyes wide and afraid. ‘You won’t go this time, will you?’

Of course! That was it. Kate felt a moment’s pity for her mother, usually so strong and sure. For her to be so obviously frightened spoke volumes about the seriousness of the situation.

Jonathan put his arms about his wife and held her close. ‘I shouldn’t think so, my dear. I’ll probably be too old now.’

Esther was clinging to him. ‘You can’t go – not again. I couldn’t bear it. It’ll be bad enough all the young fellers having to go . . .’

Now fear clutched at Kate. Feeling sick, she turned away and walked out of the yard and across the lane to the dunes. Under the elder trees it was shady, the breeze rustling the leaves above her. She slipped off her shoes; the sand was cool beneath her feet. The prickly buckthorn bushes were laden with orange berries, bright splashes of colour against the silvery green leaves.

Kate climbed the dune and came out on the top above the trees. She stood and looked about her, her glance sweeping the land all around. It was so peaceful; the whispering of the leaves, the trilling song of a soaring skylark, the sudden cry of a gull and the soft splash of the sea were the only sounds to break an absolute quiet.

It seemed strange to be home again. She had been away for almost nine years; nine long years in which so much had happened and yet, perversely, nothing had changed. She had come home frequently; not so much at first when she had been trying to put time and distance between herself and Danny. But recently she had come back to Fleethaven Point more and more until, with war seeming inevitable, she had made the decision to come home.