by Daisy Styles
‘It’s gorgeous!’ she cried.
‘While I was upstairs, I searched for anything vaguely resembling a veil, but I only found a silk scarf decorated with a fox-hunt print,’ Bella said with a giggle. ‘Not quite wedding material.’
In return for Mumia’s hard work, Ruby suggested they have a special supper party just for her.
‘Do you think she’ll like a proper Lancashire hotpot?’ Ava asked Maudie, who nodded eagerly.
‘She’ll love it,’ she replied.
‘If only I could get a crab from the fish shop in Wells, I could make crab cakes with mashed potatoes and onion,’ Bella said wistfully.
‘I’ll make her a nice egg custard with some of mum’s bantam eggs,’ Ruby announced.
‘And I’ll make an extra-big apple strudel that we can serve Mumia, and, use the next day for the trainees’ lunch,’ Maudie told her friends.
‘I’ll get a good bottle of Daddy’s red wine from the cellar,’ Bella promised, with a mischievous wink.
Mrs Fazakerly finished the bridesmaids’ dresses just before they had their supper. Ruby, who had set a large jug filled with bright yellow Norfolk daffodils on the table, beckoned to her to come and eat.
‘This is very kind of you all,’ Mumia said, as she took her place at the head of the table.
‘We want to thank you for everything you’ve done for us,’ Ruby said, blushing. ‘Done for me, in particular!’
‘It’s been a pleasure, liebling,’ Mumia said, raising her glass and sipping the fine Bordeaux Bella had supplied.
The supper went down a treat. Bella hadn’t managed to get a crab from the fishermen in Wells, but it didn’t matter. Mumia had two helpings of Ava’s delicious Lancashire hotpot, followed by two helping of Ruby’s rich custard tart and Maudie’s apple strudel, based on Mumia’s very own family recipe.
‘I couldn’t have done better myself!’ she cried appreciatively. ‘Thank you, lieblings,’ she said, her eyes sweeping fondly over Ruby, Bella, Ava and Maudie. ‘Please thank your mother for the fine eggs, Ruby,’ she added.
‘Mum also gave me something else,’ Ruby said with a twinkle in her eye. ‘Wait there. I’ll show you.’
Five minutes later, as Ava was pouring hot tea for everybody, Ruby swanned in, wearing Bella’s tiara and a long, floating veil. As she posed with a virgin smile before them, Ruby said, ‘Mum bought this for sixpence at a church jumble sale in Fakenham!’
Mrs Fazakerly clapped her hands in delight. ‘It will look perfect after it’s been washed and starched,’ she announced. ‘I’ll see to that before I leave tomorrow.’
Mumia completed all her tasks the next day. She sewed fifty tiny, silk covered-buttons down the back of Ruby’s wedding gown and left the washed and starched veil hanging from the wooden pulley in the sewing room.
‘I shall miss you all,’ she said, as she hugged Maudie, Ava, Bella and Ruby tightly. ‘Send me photographs of your wedding day,’ she added, as she pecked Ruby on both cheeks.
‘Thank you,’ said an emotional Ruby, with tears in her eyes. ‘I’ll never forget what you’ve done for me.’
‘You will make a beautiful bride,’ Mumia promised. ‘Rafal will be very proud of you.’
Smiling, she turned to her daughter. ‘Perhaps one day my Maudie will marry a fine young man and I will make her a bridal gown.’
Maudie laid her arms around her mother’s shoulders and, looking down into her kind eyes, she answered softly, ‘You know I’m not ready for anything like that, Mumia.’
Mrs Fazakerly gave her characteristic philosophical shrug. ‘Ah, my liebling, I wonder if you ever will be?’
17. Our Lady of Walsingham
It felt quiet after Maudie’s mum left. They all missed the cheery rattle of the treadle sewing machine and Mumia calling them into her room for a fitting. As the days lengthened out and buds appeared on the oaks lining the driveway, Ava announced one morning, ‘We’ve got to turn our attention from wedding clothes to the wedding breakfast. What are we going to eat and where are we going to eat it?’
Ruby laid the tray of dirty breakfast plates she’d brought down from the dining room on the kitchen table. ‘I’ve been talking to Mum. She said folks won’t expect much when there’s a war on; it’s more a question of making do,’ she said, quoting an expression the government had promoted.
Ava, Bella and Maudie’s startled expressions reflected their thoughts on Ruby’s words. Ava spoke first, and quite forcefully. ‘But that doesn’t have to stop us from trying to do something a bit special for you, does it?’
Ruby gave Ava a big, warm hug. ‘You are such a good friend!’
‘I always like a challenge!’ Ava retorted.
A loud male voice rang down the long kitchen corridor. ‘Anybody home?’
‘That’s Peter with the estate delivery,’ said Bella, and eagerly dashed out of the kitchen.
‘Let’s discuss the wedding later,’ Maudie added, as they disbanded to do their morning tasks.
‘After lunch, over a brew!’ Ava laughed.
‘So, I’ve been thinking,’ Bella said.
‘You do surprise me,’ teased Maudie.
‘Hold on, you two!’ Ava cried, as she brewed tea in the old brown teapot. ‘I’ve hardly had time to light up a fag!’
Looking flushed with excitement, Ruby set out mugs, milk and sugar, then sat down at the head of the table.
‘I’m in charge!’ she joked.
As Ava poured tea, Bella excitedly launched into what she wanted to say.
‘Spring’s a great time of the year!’ she exclaimed. ‘Peter will have some good seasonal veg by then, and he’s bound to have some fruit growing in the hot house.’
‘Let’s get to the meat and potatoes before we worry about the frills and fancies,’ Ava replied, lighting her cigarette and sitting back in her chair with a contented sigh. ‘I was thinking along the lines of mock-turkey, potato salad, fresh salad ‒ depending on Peter, of course ‒ pickles and chutneys. A cold spread. What do you think?’
‘Fantastic!’ cried Ruby. ‘We wouldn’t have to worry about heating anything up.’
Ava glanced at Bella, who looked seriously underwhelmed.
‘I’d love to get my hands on a lamb!’ Bella announced.
‘Here we go!’ Ava teased. ‘We’re only in the middle of a war, why not a herd of ostriches?’
Ignoring Ava, Bella continued to fantasize. ‘Imagine roast lamb, mint sauce, potatoes, seasonal local veg and rich, thick gravy,’ Bella murmured, her mouth watering.
‘That’s Plan B,’ Maudie retorted. ‘Until you find a lamb that you can buy with wartime rationing coupons, I suggest we stick with Ava’s Plan A – a tasty mock-turkey buffet.’
Bella nodded. ‘Over-ambitious, I know,’ she admitted. ‘But I’ve never cooked for a wedding party before!’
‘A wedding in wartime,’ Ava pointed out.
‘My family said they’ll donate their ration coupons towards the wedding breakfast,’ Ruby told her friends.
‘And we’ll donate ours,’ Maudie added.
Still on a roll, Bella said, ‘It would be nice to have hot soup for starters.’
Maudie nodded enthusiastically. ‘Peppery pea soup!’ she exclaimed. ‘With fresh poppy-seed rolls.’
‘Sherry trifle for pud,’ Ava said, topping up her mug with tea. ‘Jelly’s not a problem, there’s enough sherry in the cellar to float a boat, and we could scrounge cream from the estate dairy for the topping.’
‘What about the wedding cake?’ Maudie asked.
‘We’ll never be able to buy enough sugar for the icing, not if we’re to comply with the Sugar Restriction of Use guideline,’ Ava stated flatly.
‘It’s not a problem. I’d settle for a fake cardboard cake, like most couples do,’ Ruby answered realistically.
‘You really are the Make-do Queen!’ Bella teased.
‘We could compromise and make an iced cardboard cake,’ Maudie replied, tapping the table-top thoughtfully. ‘But we’ll
decorate it with something original.’ She clicked her fingers as she had a thought. ‘I could make a gingerbread bride and groom, Polish style, to go on top, and little gingerbread boys and girls dancing in a ring around the cake’s base.’
Ruby clapped her hands in delight. ‘Raf would love that!’
Ava checked the kitchen clock. ‘Before we start on tea, let’s talk about the reception. What are your thoughts, Ruby?’
‘Mum made enquiries about the village hall. The roof leaks a bit, but so long as there’s not a thunderstorm, it’ll do.’
Before anybody could speak, Bella said quite firmly, ‘I think it should be here.’
Ruby’s dark eyes shot wide open. ‘Her ladyship won’t be best pleased, hosting a servant’s wedding party in her stately home!’
Bella looked thoughtful as she replied, ‘I’m not quite sure, but I think that decision might lie with the Brig.’
Her friends, gathered around her, burst into laughter.
‘In that case, lassie, over to you!’ chuckled Ava.
Bella and the Brig met most evenings in the library. He always began by checking her homework, then went through any material she was having difficulty with.
‘Poem codes!” Bella laughed incredulously.
‘You’ll get the hang of it,’ the Brig said, smiling at her sweetly frowning expression.
‘Say it all again,’ she begged.
‘All right, from the top,’ he agreed. ‘This is how you create a cypher which the sender and the receiver agree on in advance – the poem you both choose is your cypher.’
‘A poem’s much simpler to remember,’ Bella said. ‘Saves the trouble of carrying around a cypher book.’
‘Pick a poem from the poetry book I gave you,’ he instructed.
As Bella flicked through the book the Brig advised her, ‘Don’t pick something predictable like ‘ “God Save the King” ’ ‒, anybody could easily break that code because the words are so well known. It’s quite a challenge to crack the code of a really obscure poem.’
Looking up, Bella said with a grin, ‘How about Browning’s “Home Thoughts from Abroad”? The poem that begins, “Oh to be in England now that April’s there”?’
The Brig nodded. ‘OK. Write out the first line on a sheet of paper.’
Bella quickly did as she was told.
‘ “Oh to be in England now that April’s there.” ’
‘Now, underneath each letter, and space, too, write out the alphabet. Write neatly so you can keep track of your changes, making sure each letter represents only one other letter,’ he advised.
Muttering out loud, Bella did as she was told.
When Bella had completed her writing, the Brig said, ‘So now you have your cypher,’ he pointed at the letters on the page. ‘You, the sender, and the receiver on the other end now know that O is A, H is B, space is C, T is D, then another O, so that’s A again, and another space, which is C again … so the next letter, B, has to be E, and so on. Keep going, darling. Once you know the cypher by heart, it’s as easy as riding a bike.’ The Brig chuckled as he lit his pipe, leaving a muttering Bella struggling on the task he’d set her.
It was only after she had successfully completed her assignment that the Brig poured them both a whisky. Bella always brought some to their evening ‘meetings’.
‘Well done, darling,’ he said, toasting her coding success. ‘From here on in, it just gets harder!’
‘Cheers!’ said Bella, with a cryptic smile.
Sitting side by side on the sofa, they laughed and chatted, kissed and cuddled as the crackling fire warmed the room.
‘You know, sweetheart, you could call me Charles occasionally,’ he said, as he stroked her soft, blonde curls.
Bella shook her head. ‘I love Brig,’ she giggled, kissing his earlobe. ‘Anyway, the title keeps me in my place!’
‘Which is right here beside me,’ he replied, in a mock-stern voice.
‘Do you think the new code girls have guessed we’re “walking out”?’ she asked.
‘They’d know right away if they walked in here and saw us canoodling on the sofa,’ he chuckled. ‘How would they guess during work hours, when you’re slaving away below stairs and I’m trying to dodge Miss Cox!’
‘She’s definitely guessed,’ Bella declared.
‘You’ve ruined her love life,’ he teased, pulling her close to his broad chest.
Bella suddenly pulled apart from the Brig as she remembered the task she’d be given by her friends. ‘Whose permission do we need for Ruby to have her wedding reception here in the hall?’ she asked.
The Brig took a sip from his Scotch.
‘Let’s see,’ he said thoughtfully. ‘The date falls during the official period of training, so I suppose, in theory, it’s down to me.’
Bella leapt to her feet and punched the air. ‘YESSSS!’
‘If it was in the gap after their training, before the next trainees arrive, it would be up to his lordship to decide. Same thing that happened at Christmas, when your parents took over the hall for their own personal use.’
Bella grimaced. ‘Ugh! Don’t remind me,’ she grumbled.
Laughing, the Brig pulled her back on to the sofa, where he playfully tickled her.
‘You look lovely when you’re cross!’ he teased, as she wriggled and jiggled underneath his fingers, helpless with laughter.
Gasping for breath, Bella came up for air. ‘I must tell Ruby right away.’
Pulling her to her feet, the Brig put his arm around her waist as he replied, ‘Come on, let’s both go and tell the bride-to-be.’
With the venue finalized, Ruby and Raf sent out the invitations.
‘It’s a shame Raf’s parents can’t come,’ said Ruby, as she and Maudie washed the supper dishes late one evening while Bella set the breakfast trays.
‘So, will he have no guests at all?’ Maudie asked.
‘He’s invited his pals from the base,’ Ruby replied. ‘English and Polish, and Captain Kit, too, as Raf calls him.’
Maudie’s heart gave an involuntary jump. ‘Oh, him,’ she answered dismissively.
Oblivious of Maudie’s reaction, Ruby rambled on, ‘He might not come, especially if the Lancasters arrive, but Raf would love it if his superior officer was there … bet you would, too!’ she added with a cheeky wink.
Maudie forced herself not to retort with a sharp comment like, ‘Make sure he doesn’t breeze in with Lady Diana in tow!’
She knew that would upset dear Ruby, who was as happy as a songbird these days. Fortunately, they were interrupted by Ava, who walked in with another load of dirty dishes.
‘If I carry on washing pots at this rate,’ Ruby joked, ‘my hands will be so chapped and swollen I’ll never get my wedding ring on!’
The four girls had their own individual tasks to focus on for the forthcoming wedding. Maudie made gingerbread whenever she could scrounge a bit of sugar from the week’s rations. She took great delight in decorating the little gingerbread boys and girls in traditional Polish costumes, icing these details on to the figures using a mixture of glycerine and flour. She made sure she kept the gingerbread figures in a tightly sealed tin in order to keep them fresh and crispy for Ruby’s wedding day.
Bella’s priority was meat! She asked the Walsingham estate shepherd again and again if there was any way she could secure a lamb. Ava, sticking with her Plan A, discussed at length with Peter what seasonal vegetables or salad he might have in late March. As for the Brig, he was planning how to decorate the dining room for the wedding breakfast.
Ruby, who’d planned to carry a simple bouquet of Walsingham daffodils, was stunned when Kit sent a message via Raf one night asking if he might be allowed to order a bridal bouquet for her from Covent Garden in London.
‘I can’t accept!’ she told her friends, after she’d rushed downstairs to share her surprising news.
‘Why not?’ Bella asked. ‘It’s a genuinely kind offer. He can’t exactly offer Ra
f a bouquet, can he!’ she joked. ‘It’s a sweet tribute to both of you.’
Maudie, who was working hard on really disliking the smooth-talking Flight Captain Kit Halliday, felt her heart skip a beat. What was happening to her? Why did she get goosebumps every time his damn name was mentioned?
When Ruby asked Raf if he thought a bridal bouquet from his boss was appropriate, he nodded with pride.
‘Sure, Rubee, Captain Kit is generous man, he ask what flowers are favourites for you.’
Unused to so much fuss and attention, Ruby flung her arms around her fiancé’s neck. ‘You choose!’
He traced a finger gently over Ruby’s soft, red, pouting lips before bending to quickly kiss them. ‘Red roses, red lips!’
So Ruby gratefully accepted Kit’s offer. After this, she and Kit regularly chatted when he was staying in the west wing ‒ about the wedding plans, the Lancaster bombers and the progress of the war. Maudie coolly circumnavigated the pair of them whenever she saw them together.
‘I don’t know what’s wrong with you,’ Ruby said one morning as she and Maudie set the breakfast trays with the usual rhubarb-and-ginger jam and marge. ‘He’s a nice man, but you treat him like he’s dirt.’
Maudie flushed as she replied, ‘Why should I want to talk to him?’
Seeing her friend’s cheeks grow pink, Ruby retorted in a teasing voice, ‘Who are you kidding?’
Furious at herself, Maudie answered sharply, ‘Don’t you realize he’s going out with Lady Diana?’
‘He is not!’ Bella exclaimed.
‘I saw them together. She was all over him like a rash, and he certainly wasn’t fighting her off!’
Ruby shook her head. ‘You must have got it wrong – he never even mentions her name.’
‘And what does that prove?’ Maudie demanded.
‘That he’s got his eyes on somebody else!’ Ruby answered with a sly smile. ‘I think you’re missing a great opportunity.’
Stung by her words, Maudie reacted crossly. ‘A great opportunity to ‒ what? ‒ mix with people better than us? Is that what you mean?’
‘Keep your political hat on, missus!’ Ruby replied light-heartedly. ‘I’ve not got an ulterior motive. I think he’s a genuinely nice man, and so does Raf.’
