The Girls of Victory Street: An absolutely heartbreaking World War 2 family saga (The Bryant Sisters Book 1)

by Pam Howes

  Basil came outside to greet them. A taxi had picked them up from Fran’s mother’s place, where the ENSA bus had dropped them off for a quick visit, just in time to begin the rehearsal for tonight’s show. Earl and several members of the Earl Franklin Junior band would be joining them shortly. The bus had gone over to Burtonwood to pick them and their instruments up.

  Bella was looking forward to seeing Earl again and singing with him. He’d asked if he could write to her and they’d exchanged a couple of letters, but travelling around meant that collecting post was, as always, a bit hit and miss. Even so, it had been lovely to read his chatty news and to learn that several more American servicemen had swelled the ranks of Burtonwood. Each day more arrived throughout the country and were proving popular with English women at the various dances organised by church halls and campsites to make the troops feel welcome.

  In his letters Earl had told Bella a little about his background. He’d been born and bred in New Orleans to South African immigrant parents and he was the middle son of five brothers, and one older sister whom he appeared to be very close to. His father was a jazz pianist who worked in local bars and clubs to support his family, and his mother sang alongside him. They had encouraged all their children to learn to play at least one instrument. Earl had written that New Orleans was the best place to grow up if you wanted to follow a musical career. One day, he told her, he’d like to take her there to meet his family.

  Bella had felt a little thrill run through her when she’d read his letter, but really, she hardly knew him and it would be unlikely that they would be able to get together here very often, never mind in America. This wasn’t the time to be making plans. Still, it was nice to have dreams and who knew what the future would bring. He’d finished his letters with ‘I can’t get you out of my mind and looking forward to seeing you again, All my love, Earl xxx’. She’d felt unable to confide in him about Bobby yet, but maybe one day she would.

  ‘Right, ladies,’ Basil said, breaking Bella’s thoughts. ‘Let’s get you inside and ready to rehearse.’

  ‘Is George Formby already here?’ Fran asked.

  ‘He’s in his dressing room,’ Basil replied. ‘He’s staying at the Adelphi Hotel up there.’ He nodded in the direction of the top of Lime Street. ‘We’ll all be staying there tonight, Hitler willing. Nice treat for you. There’s been a bit of damage to it but it’s safe and still open.’

  ‘Blimey,’ Edie said. ‘It’s proper posh in there. Grand folk like royalty usually stop there, not the likes of us.’

  Basil smiled. ‘When you’re next to the top of the bill at the Empire,’ he said, pointing at the poster, ‘I think you can safely say you’re as good as anyone else that walks through its front doors.’

  They laughed and followed him inside the theatre.

  Praying there would be no air raid tonight, Bella slipped her new dress over her head. Deep burgundy lace, with a sweetheart neckline, full skirt and long sleeves, it looked and felt fabulous. Fran and Edie’s were identical to hers. Their troupe seamstress had been given a bale of the fabric and she’d been hard at work, making their new outfits for this special night. The show was being put on to raise money for various good causes that would help the people of Liverpool who had been left homeless and with nothing but the clothes they stood up in. Church halls had opened their doors to provide temporary accommodation, but sleeping bags and blankets were needed as well as decent second-hand clothes and shoes. Every seat in the theatre had been sold and hopefully the money raised would help to provide some of the things needed to keep people safe and warm.

  A knock at the door made them jump. Basil popped his head around it as Fran called ‘Come in.’ He was accompanied by Earl, who gave a low whistle and grinned, his even white teeth gleaming against his dark skin.

  ‘You all look fabulous, ladies,’ Basil said, beaming.

  ‘You do indeed,’ Earl agreed. ‘And if that rehearsal was anything to go by, you’ll knock ’em dead tonight. If Hitler don’t do it first,’ he added and then held up his hands. ‘Only joking. You girls look wonderful. I’m proud to be working with you. You sure knock our Andrews Sisters into a cocked hat.’

  Bella smiled. That was praise coming from a Yank; they tended to hold the Andrews Sisters in high regard. ‘Thank you.’

  Mary helped to put the little boys to bed and then went back downstairs to the kitchen, where a mug of tea waited on the table for her.

  ‘Just poured,’ Ruth announced. ‘I heard you saying goodnight to them so knew you’d be down right away. Are you okay, Mary? You look a bit mithered.’

  Mary took a seat at the big scrubbed pine table and picked up her mug. She took a welcome sip and sighed. ‘I’m fine, chuck. Just hoping it all goes well tonight for my girl, Bella. She’s written to me to tell me she’s in a big show at the Empire Theatre in our city centre with George Formby. What I’d give to see that. I’m so proud of her and her pals. They’ve come such a long way since they used to sing together in the school choir. Who’d have thought it, eh?’

  Ruth smiled. ‘Oh, now that is something to be proud about.’ She pointed a finger at some envelopes on the table. ‘There’s a letter in that lot for you. Bertie’s just dropped them in. He’d been down to the village to take some eggs to the shop and Bessie was sorting through the day’s delivery. That’s the trouble with no regular postman now. All the young fellas from the village joined up and the women are too busy with families, farm work and evacuees to take on a post round. Still, we know where to go to pick them up so it’s better than nothing. We’re lucky we still get a delivery to the post office every few days.’

  Mary rooted through the envelopes. She recognised her friend Ethel Hardy’s writing and smiled. It was good to get regular news from the Wavertree area thanks to Ethel. She took the sheets of paper from the envelope and started to read. The first page was filled with Ethel’s usual gossip about people from work and the neighbours and how she was sick to the back teeth of rationing. But the last page shocked Mary to the core:

  I’m so sorry to be the bearer of bad news, Mary, but as you know the family, I thought you’d like to know that Fenella’s husband, Wing Commander Harrison, has been killed in a night-time air raid over London. Their son Robert was also on the flight and has been seriously injured and is in hospital with very bad burns and a leg amputation. They say his chances of survival are slim but I’m not sure how true that is as this news has been passed on to me by someone you and I are both acquainted with from the church.

  Mary dropped the letter onto the table and put her hand to her mouth.

  ‘Is it bad news?’ Ruth asked.

  Mary nodded, her eyes filling. ‘A friend’s husband has been killed and their son seriously injured. Young Bobby was Bella’s boyfriend for a while. I don’t know how I’m going to tell her this news. She’ll be heartbroken. It doesn’t sound good for him either. He’s lost a leg and has got serious burns.’

  ‘Oh dear. Poor lad. And what about the wife, your friend? Is she okay?’

  Mary realised she hadn’t given Fenella a thought, or Alicia come to that. ‘I don’t know. Ethel doesn’t say. She’ll be very upset of course. I’ll write back tonight and ask Ethel to find out how she is. I can’t write to my friend because she’s staying in Oxfordshire near to where the men were stationed at Brize Norton and I don’t have an address.’

  Ruth nodded. ‘You could always send a letter care of the camp to be forwarded to her.’

  ‘Now that’s a thought. I might just do that.’ Mary left the table and took Ethel’s letter up to her room. She’d write back later when she’d finished helping with the evening chores. She’d have to let Bella know about Bobby and that thought didn’t fill her with pleasure.

  The Bryant Sisters stood in the wings, anxiously awaiting their cue to go onstage. Earl and his band were currently warming up the audience with a couple of Glenn Miller instrumentals. The girls jigged and swayed from side to side to the melody of ‘Little Brown
Jug’. Then Earl was at the edge of the stage announcing them and they squeezed hands and ran on to a great cheer from the audience. Earl had introduced them as Liverpool’s own Andrews Sisters. They took a bow and as the band launched into ‘Don’t Fence Me In’, Bella felt all her concerns at performing in such an important show vanish and she gave herself to the music. This was a dream come true for her and momentarily she wished that Bobby could have been here to see her and to share in the trio’s success. But Earl’s twinkling brown eyes and smiles of admiration spurred her on and she pushed the thoughts away. Bobby had let her down. Hopefully Earl wouldn’t. When this war was over and they could pick up the pieces of their previous lives again, there might be some hope for all of them.

  George Formby closed the second half of the show and the audience went wild. He called the girls onstage to join him. He nodded at Earl, who was seated at the piano. Earl played the opening chords to ‘Leaning on a Lamp-post’ and George stuck his thumb in the air and picked up his ukulele. ‘Ready, ladies?’ They all joined in and then George suggested they finish the night with a Vera Lynn song. ‘You take lead vocals,’ he said to Bella. The audience sang along to ‘We’ll Meet Again’.

  Bella felt waves of emotion washing over her and gave the song her all. She couldn’t believe she was standing next to George Formby in her home city singing one of her favourite songs. Wait until she wrote to Mam and Molly with an update to tell them how the show went. She reached for Fran and Edie’s hands, knowing how much this song would mean to them until Frankie and Stevie were safely home. And once more Bobby’s face flashed into her mind. If only things could have been different.

  22

  The after-party at The Adelphi Hotel came to an abrupt end when the air raid sirens sounded loud and clear. The sky had been clear and starlit with a full moon, a perfect night for Jerry bombers to descend on the city. Grabbing their handbags and the ever-present gas mask boxes, the weary artistes shuffled to the air raid shelters in the basement of the building.

  At least it was more comfortable than the shelters on the streets and for that Bella was grateful. She hoped the planes droning low overhead now would avoid Wavertree and leave them with homes to return to eventually. The dull thuds that shook the city meant somewhere close by wasn’t so lucky. There wasn’t much left to destroy. The lovely buildings known as the Three Graces down by the dockside had miraculously escaped any major damage so far and Bella hoped they’d be missed tonight as well.

  Earl squeezed into the place next to her.

  ‘You okay, honey?’ he whispered. ‘What a way to spend the last few hours of a fabulous evening.’

  Bella nodded. ‘I’m fine thanks. But that’s just typical of Hitler. Always spoils the party.’

  Earl smiled. ‘You guys are sure getting some hammer in this poor city. I saw some of the damage as we drove to the theatre. Some beautiful buildings hanging in by a thread.’

  ‘I know. It’s such a pity you’re not getting to see it at its best. We have some lovely areas and parks.’

  Earl nodded. ‘I’m not going back to camp until late afternoon tomorrow and I don’t think you girls will be going until after we’ve been taken back and the bus is free. Why don’t you show me some parts that are still standing?’

  Bella smiled. ‘Okay, I’d love to. Maybe if there are trams running we can go over to my old home and I can check that it’s still standing. I promised Mam in a letter that I would do that if I could. There’s a lovely park over there and a little café nearby where we can get a cuppa.’

  ‘It’s a date,’ Earl said.

  ‘Is it?’ Bella looked at him. His face was serious for once.

  ‘It is if you want it to be.’

  She smiled. ‘Then a date it is.’

  Earl slipped his arm around her and pulled her closer. Bella leaned into him. It felt comfortable and he smelled nice. He was wearing cologne that smelled sort of woody and spicy. She liked it. Her eyes felt heavy and she struggled to stay awake. It had been a big day; she felt exhausted and the two schooners of after-show sherry had taken their toll too.

  Fran and Edie were chatting to some members of Earl’s band and no one was looking at her, so she snuggled in a bit closer and Earl’s arms tightened around her. She looked up into his eyes. He bent his head and dropped a kiss on the end of her nose. She lifted her face to his and his lips met hers in a gentle kiss. It made her tummy tingle and she responded, kissing him back. Earl kissed her again, harder this time, and Bella was glad they were surrounded by people as she just might have chucked her inhibitions to the wind, the feelings he was giving her. She pulled away and stared at him.

  ‘Honey, what are you doing to me?’ he whispered.

  She shook her head in reply, lost for words. She didn’t know, but whatever his feelings she was sure they matched hers.

  ‘I have to see you again, for sure. Tomorrow and on our own. Yes?’

  ‘Yes,’ she whispered. ‘After breakfast. Meet me in the foyer around half past nine. I’ll tell Fran and Edie I’m popping out on a bit of business for my mam. Otherwise, if I tell them I’m going home they’ll want to come along as they live close by me.’ As she finished, the air raid sirens sounded the end of the raid and, as people got to their feet, Earl stole another quick kiss and squeezed her tight.

  ‘I’ll be waiting.’

  Bella and Earl alighted from the tram on Picton Road and Bella led him towards The Mystery Park. He was intrigued by the name and she explained to him how it had received it.

  ‘Wow, so the guy just gave it to the town in secret? What a great thing to do. It’s pretty too. Look at all those flowers, beautiful colours.’

  ‘Daffodils and crocuses, spring flowers,’ Bella said. ‘I love this time of the year. Such a shame the air is tainted with the smell of burning. Somewhere close by must have copped it bad last night. Hope no one was badly hurt.’

  They’d had a quick stroll around part of the city, but a lot of streets were cordoned off where buildings were falling down or being demolished as they were beyond repair. She would like to have taken Earl across the Mersey on a ferry to New Brighton, but the docks had been damaged yet again last night and it wasn’t a safe place right now. New Brighton had also suffered a lot of damage, so it wasn’t in the best state to show it off. Maybe when the war was over he could visit England and then she would show him all her favourite places.

  ‘Let’s see if we can get a cuppa at the café,’ she suggested after they’d had a good stroll around. At one point he’d spotted the grand houses on Prince Alfred Road and said they looked nice. She told him a friend used to live in one and they were lovely inside. ‘I can’t make you a drink at home because there’s nothing in to make it with. Mam emptied the cupboards before she left.’

  The café was open but empty and Bella was glad about that. An elderly couple walking a small dog had passed them by and raised their eyebrows. Bella had turned round and spotted them staring after them. She wasn’t ashamed to be seen holding the hand of a man as handsome as Earl and to her it didn’t matter what colour his skin was. He was a really nice person and she felt comfortable with him. As they sat at a table near the window with tea and a slice of sponge cake each, he pulled out his wallet and took a postcard-sized photo from the back.

  ‘This is my family,’ he said. ‘Ma and Pa and’, he pointed at each one in turn, Monty, Levi, Ruby, me, Eddie and Scotty. Taken about five years ago, but it’s the only one with us all that I could bring with me.’

  Bella smiled as she looked at the family. All had their parents’ good looks and broad smiles, and those fine cheekbones and gleaming white teeth. ‘What a handsome family. Your sister is beautiful. I love her hair.’ Ruby’s long locks fell in tight ringlets past her shoulders. ‘Mam used to fasten our hair up in rags at night to try and get ringlets, but all we got was a headache and waves.’

  Earl laughed. ‘Ruby never stops messing with her hair. She’d love waves like yours but there ain’t no way that curly
mop will ever be wavy.’

  ‘Are you close to them all?’

  He nodded. ‘Ruby is my best pal. She’s my confidante.’

  Bella wondered if he’d mentioned her to his family in letters home yet. Would they approve of their son getting involved with an English girl? And also what would Mam say? The girls had all been given a copy of the photo that had been taken on Christmas Eve after the show at Burtonwood. Bella had to admit that they all looked great together, very professional; and Earl was right by her side and his expression as he looked at her spoke volumes.

  Mam would be sure to guess that there was an attraction between them. Her friend Ethel’s late husband Bernie had been from the West Indies and she’d always got on well with him until he was hit by a train while at work and died instantly. Mam wasn’t prejudiced, which was a good thing, but Bella decided it may be best not to send her a copy of the photo just yet. ‘Have you finished?’ she asked as he put down his cup. ‘Shall we go and take a look around my house now? Just to make sure everything is all right, then I can let Mam know when I write to her later.’

  Earl nodded. ‘Lead the way.’

  As they strolled out of the café Bella pointed to a bed of daffodils. ‘They’ve just reminded me, I know what else I’d like to do while we’re here.’ She grabbed Earl’s hand and led him away from the park and towards the row of shops near her home. Outside the greengrocer’s two metal buckets of water held a variety of spring flowers neatly tied in bunches. Bella chose a mixed bunch and went inside to pay for them, leaving Earl outside looking puzzled.

  ‘I would have bought you flowers,’ he said as she rejoined him on the pavement. ‘You only had to say.’

  She smiled. ‘They’re for my sister Betty’s grave. It won’t take us long to walk to the churchyard.’

  He looked sober and nodded as he took the bunch from her. ‘I’ll carry them. Pretty rainbow colours. Perfect for the little lady.’