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Chapters (73)
  1. Cover
  2. About the Author
  3. Also by Anita Frank
  4. Note to Readers
  5. Dedication
  6. Part One
  7. Chapter One
  8. Chapter Two
  9. Chapter Three
  10. Chapter Four
  11. Chapter Five
  12. Chapter Six
  13. Chapter Seven
  14. Chapter Eight
  15. Chapter Nine
  16. Chapter Ten
  17. Chapter Eleven
  18. Chapter Twelve
  19. Chapter Thirteen
  20. Chapter Fourteen
  21. Chapter Fifteen
  22. Chapter Sixteen
  23. Chapter Seventeen
  24. Chapter Eighteen
  25. Chapter Nineteen
  26. Chapter Twenty
  27. Chapter Twenty-One
  28. Chapter Twenty-Two
  29. Chapter Twenty-Three
  30. Chapter Twenty-Four
  31. Chapter Twenty-Five
  32. Chapter Twenty-Six
  33. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  34. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  35. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  36. Chapter Thirty
  37. Chapter Thirty-One
  38. Chapter Thirty-Two
  39. Chapter Thirty-Three
  40. Chapter Thirty-Four
  41. Chapter Thirty-Five
  42. Chapter Thirty-Six
  43. Chapter Thirty-Seven
  44. Chapter Thirty-Eight
  45. Chapter Thirty-Nine
  46. Chapter Forty
  47. Part Two
  48. Chapter Forty-One
  49. Chapter Forty-Two
  50. Chapter Forty-Three
  51. Chapter Forty-Four
  52. Chapter Forty-Five
  53. Chapter Forty-Six
  54. Chapter Forty-Seven
  55. Chapter Forty-Eight
  56. Chapter Forty-Nine
  57. Chapter Fifty
  58. Chapter Fifty-One
  59. Chapter Fifty-Two
  60. Chapter Fifty-Three
  61. Chapter Fifty-Four
  62. Chapter Fifty-Five
  63. Chapter Fifty-Six
  64. Chapter Fifty-Seven
  65. Chapter Fifty-Eight
  66. Chapter Fifty-Nine
  67. Chapter Sixty
  68. Acknowledgements
  69. Extract
  70. Chapter One
  71. Chapter Two
  72. Chapter Three
  73. About the Publisher

When he finally bids them goodnight there is only moonlight to guide him across the uneven yard. He lets himself into the tack room and fumbles for the matches to light the candle, which is stuck upon a saucer with a dried puddle of wax. In its feeble glow, he strips off his clothes and slips his aching body between the bedsheets. The ticking-covered mattress surrenders without resistance to his weight. His head sinks into the feather pillow and he lies listening to some small creature skitter along the back wall. He permits himself a single thought of Jenny, then stretches over to blow out the candle. Its smoky trail fades into the darkness like a will o’ the wisp. He closes his eyes and, as he finally allows his weariness to possess him, he is surprised to discover his greatest sensation is peace.

Chapter Thirteen

Gwen

8th May 1945

Tom is getting tired and Gwen herself is exhausted from the intricate dance she has been performing all night, as she sidesteps questions about Jack, nimbly skirting the subject with ambiguous answers and a few downright lies. Her head throbs from trying to keep track of all the half-truths she’s told and who she’s told them to, ever mindful that local gossip might further spin the tales she’s spun.

It all puts her in mind of an incident from her youth, when she was caught trying to sneak out to a dance she had been forbidden to attend. She had facilitated her escape with an assortment of convoluted fibs that proved hard to keep track of. Her father had eventually fathomed out what she was up to and intercepted her en route, dragging her back home, banishing her to her room. She had flung herself upon her bed and sobbed at the unfairness of it all. ‘If you’re going to lie,’ Muriel had told her, having mustered a little sympathy for her suffering, ‘make up one simple tale and stick to it. Embellishments will prove your downfall.’

Muriel’s wise advice had fallen on deaf ears and now, years later, Gwen fears she has, once again, tried too hard and said too much.

Tom’s head is heavy on her arm. They are crammed into the bowed window seat of the lounge bar with Muriel, while Ted has taken one of the chairs on the opposite side of the table. Gwen gently tips Tom towards her housekeeper, then shuffles along the cushioned velveteen seat pocked with cigarette burns.

‘I’m going to find Nora, I think we ought to be heading off.’