Peggy folded the letter and stared into the glowing fire, her heart aching for poor Jim who was really going through terrible times, and clearly utterly miserable and depressed. She couldn’t imagine how awful it must be to have to put up with those conditions day after day, all the while suffering from the after-effects of malaria and dysentery and never knowing what awaited him.

She gave a sharp sigh of annoyance and reached for her packet of cigarettes. Those in charge of the servicemen out there had to know how appalling the conditions were, for in the past there had been no fighting during the monsoon, and to her mind they were asking too much of men like Jim who’d already given their all – and then more.

But it seemed this latest jungle expedition heralded the final big push to get the Japs out of Burma once and for all – and at least they would be suffering the same deprivations and hardships as Jim and his men, which was some small consolation. Why the hell the Japs didn’t just accept they’d lost and call it a day, Peggy didn’t know, for it was obvious the war in the Far East was all but over.

She finished her cigarette and threw the butt in the fire before opening Jim’s second letter. This proved to have been written in much the same vein, with moans about the weather, the conditions, the half-rations and the terrible, mind-numbing boredom that had set in as they waited for their new orders to come through.

Jim was clearly feeling depressed, isolated and forgotten out there. The men had nothing to entertain them but the drum of the rain and the whine of mosquitoes. The one thing that had cheered them all was the first mention of the official demob plans – but it seemed they would have to wait until his unit had finished their current task and returned to HQ and a well-earned rest. He finished off: