‘Oh? I was hoping we could make an evening of it – go dancing or sommat.’

‘Sorry, I can’t, but we have the rest of our lives in which to dance, so don’t look downhearted. Hold my hand and let me help you up.’

When Alex lifted her, he took Daisy into his arms. His body began to sway to a tune he was humming. And there, deep in the hillside country of Singapore, they danced a waltz. She never wanted this moment to end – the afternoon would be etched in her memory. She was dizzy with love, and nothing could ever change or hurt that. Nothing.

Only the shiver that seized her body seemed to be saying otherwise. She dismissed it. Everyone felt these moments of anxiety. How could they not, with their lives in danger every moment of every day? And now the safe haven that she and Florrie thought they had found was in greater danger than most.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

London

Sibbie and Marjie

Feeling better after their bath, Sibbie and Marjie curled up on the sofa. They’d not been able to talk to each other about anything they either knew or speculated about, for fear of being overheard, but now at last they could.

‘Well, here we are, Marjie, this is the last leg. We’re in this flat now until they contact us and give us our orders. It’s scary, isn’t it?’

‘It is, but I sometimes think there’s many sides to us all, especially to women. And we can do a lot more than is normally expected of us. Look at how we have come through the same training as the men on our course. I try to hang on to that, as it tells me that although I am scared, I am up to whatever they throw at us, and that helps to give me confidence.’

‘Yes, you’re right. We did well, and for the most part, I enjoyed it. But that was training, and now there is the reality to deal with.’

‘I don’t seem able to. My main emotion is . . . well, it is going to tear me in two, seeing Wills again and then having to leave him. Do you think he will feel the same way about me as he did?’

‘Of course he will. I have told you, Marjie: he couldn’t contact you, it would be against the rules.’

‘I know. And yet, knowing him for just one day, I am so nervous about it all.’

‘You’re bound to be. I bet you he’ll be here any moment. Being one of our seniors, he knows exactly where we are at any given time.’

‘What? No – I am in my dressing gown. He can’t!’

‘Ha, you daft ha’p’orth. If anyone knocks on the door, I’ll go – curlers an’ all.’

‘You sound like your lovely Aunt Betsy.’