Jim’s were too, and although he’d been resting for two weeks, he was still weary to the bone and troubled by the memories of that final one-sided slaughter. The mixed brigades had given no quarter and shown no mercy, but then, he reasoned, if the boot had been on the other foot, the Japs would have been just as merciless. It had been a case of kill or be killed, so there really had been no choice.

‘So what’s next for us, do you reckon, Jumbo?’ he asked through a vast yawn.

‘Malaya probably,’ Jumbo replied dourly. ‘There’s already a rumour going round that the Parachute Regiment are getting ready to go in there as soon as the monsoon ends in August or September. From there it could be into Thailand – or even an assault on Japan itself. It’ll all depend on whether or not the Japs see sense and admit they’ve lost.’

‘I won’t hold me breath,’ said Jim. ‘From what we’ve seen of them, they won’t give up until every man in Japan is dead.’

Jumbo set aside the hopeless task of repairing his bagpipes and gave a deep sigh. ‘Och, Jim, I’ve had enough of Burma and even Rangoon, although it’s very pleasant here. I’m weary, and sick of the heat, the flies, and the stink of the jungle. I want to be back home amongst my own people, at peace in my glen to tend the deer and be free to roam.’

‘Aye, I feel the same about Cliffehaven,’ agreed Jim. ‘The brass talk about demob plans but nothing seems to come of them, and my poor Peggy must think I’m never coming home. I hope to God we don’t have to fight again, because I’ve seen enough bloodshed and horrors, and I don’t have the stomach for any more.’

Jumbo nodded in agreement with that sentiment, and stuck his large hands into the pockets of his baggy khaki shorts as he went to stand by the veranda railings. ‘I ken you draw great comfort from your family, Jim, but I’m glad I didn’t have anyone to worry about during this war,’ he confessed. ‘Marriage and a family is not something I’ve ever really wanted or needed, you see. I’m content with my own company out in the glen with the animals where I can play the pipes and disturb no one.’ He glanced down at the ruined bagpipes and sorrowfully tugged his beard. ‘Though I ken I won’t be playing that set again.’