‘I don’t usually bother pulling it up … You’re never around until later.’

‘No school,’ Jae explained. ‘Some of the teachers have left. The Boche1 are on the march …’

Marc nodded as he buttoned his trousers and lobbed his work boots into the shed. ‘Did you hear the artillery shells earlier?’

‘Made me jump,’ Jae replied. ‘And the German planes! One of our maids said there were fires in town, near the marketplace.’

‘You can smell burning when the wind changes … Your dad’s got that swanky Renault. You should head south.’

Jae shook her head. ‘My mother wants to leave, but Daddy reckons the Germans won’t bother us if we don’t bother them. He says they’ll still need farmers, whether it’s French or German crooks running the country.’

‘The director let us listen to the radio for a while last night,’ Marc said. ‘They said we’re planning a counterattack. We could drive the Boche out.’

‘Maybe,’ Jae said uncertainly. ‘But it doesn’t look good …’

Marc didn’t need Jae to explain further. The government radio stations bristled with optimistic talk about fighting back and broadcast stirring speeches on turning points and the French fighting spirit. But no amount of propaganda could disguise truckloads of injured troops retreating from the front.

‘It’s too depressing,’ Marc said, buttoning his shirt as he smiled at Jae. ‘I wish I was old enough to fight. Have you heard anything from your brothers?’

‘Nothing … But nobody knows about anyone. The post has gone to hell. They’re probably being held prisoner. Or they might have escaped at Dunkirk.’

Marc nodded optimistically. ‘BBC France said over a hundred thousand of our troops made it across the channel with the Brits.’

‘So why were you in such a mood?’ Jae asked.

‘When?’

‘Just now,’ she smirked. ‘When you steamed out of the shed and kicked the bucket.’

‘Oh, that. I was all set to finish when I realised I’d left my shovel in one of the pens. So I reached in to grab it, the cow’s tail shoots up and VOOM. It shits right in my face – mouth was open too …’

‘EWW!’ Jae shrieked, stepping back in horror. ‘I don’t know how you work in there! Just the smell makes me gag, and if that went in my mouth I’d die.’

‘Get used to anything, I guess. And your dad’s all right in some ways. He knows it’s a filthy job, so I only have to work half as long as the boys in the fields and he gave me boots and some of your brothers’ old clothes. They’re too big, but at least I don’t have to go around stinking of slurry.’

After the initial shock Jae saw the funny side and she re-enacted the scene, flicking her arm up like the cow’s tail and making a noise. ‘VOOM – SPLAT!’