They’d managed a very quick rendezvous the evening before, as the Liverpool train had got in just after Laura’s shift had finished. They’d hurriedly run to the nearest café, Kitty glad of an excuse not to spend any more painful minutes with Frank, even as she felt a pang when he’d turned his back and headed across the station concourse in the opposite direction. They’d been assigned to separate billets anyway. Laura had been her usual energetic self, full of news of Freddy’s recovery, but still no wiser about Marjorie’s fate. Kitty had looked at her friend keenly, recognising the signs of stress around her eyes. She wondered what the cause was.

‘Oh, honestly, it’s nothing.’ Laura had dismissed the idea, but then, recognising that Kitty knew her well enough to see through any defences, caved in. ‘It’s these damned bombs again. It was bad enough dodging the doodlebugs, but this latest lot don’t give you a chance. You don’t even hear them until after they’ve struck. It’s pretty annoying.’

‘I can see that.’ Kitty shuddered. ‘Have they caused much damage?’

Laura set down her mug of weak tea. ‘Here and there. The worst was Selfridges, can you imagine? That was very inconvenient of them. A visit there was one of the few perks of working in central London.’

Kitty raised her eyebrows. ‘That’s a real shame. I know we felt the same when Lewis’s got hit at home. Still, we’ve managed somehow.’

Laura nodded. ‘Of course. That’s what we do, isn’t it? We manage somehow. Sorry to rush you, especially as I’ve only just seen you, but I have to go – I’ve extra duties this evening, some visiting bigwig or other. But I’ll see you tomorrow for a proper chinwag, won’t I? After your big meeting?’

‘Of course,’ Kitty had said, and hugged her friend.

Now she felt her mind drifting to the evening ahead, and the promise of swapping gossip with Laura. Peter was back on active service, and they would have the whole time to themselves, which felt like a long-overdue luxury. Then someone spoke her name and she realised she was being addressed directly.