the watching crowd to step back again. With an anxious upward glance, Leon followed Tom over the ruined wall and together the two men managed to lift the prostrate Mary and drag her towards the door. Outside, two more men were trying to break it down, while other neighbours had organised a bucket chain, but the water thrown through a smashed window hardly reached the fire and the only way out for the two men and the unconscious Mary was back over the remains of the wall.
At that moment an insistent clanging announced the arrival of a fire engine. Firemen leapt from their machine. Immediately taking in the situation and hearing there were folks inside, two of them grabbed axes from the cab and attacked the jammed front door. Moments later the door disintegrated and they were through the billowing smoke and inside the building, grasping Mary and carrying her out into the street. A third man had followed them through the door and now grabbed Tom and Leon, pulling them coughing and gasping from the burning pub.
‘Where’s Mary?’ cried Tom as soon as he could breathe. ‘Where’s my Mary?’ He ran to where the rescuing firemen had laid her on the pavement. One was on his knees beside her, giving her artificial respiration.
Lisa, standing with Naomi in the group across the street, watched in horrified fascination as the man, kneeling beside Mary, frantically pumped her chest. She could see Mary’s face was deathly white, and the tears sprang to Lisa’s eyes. Mary was Naomi’s best friend and had always been particularly kind to Lisa, somehow understanding, where others had not, how lost and lonely she felt being sent away from her family to an alien country, to live with strangers.
‘Mary! Mary!’ Tom was crying as he dropped to his knees beside her still figure. ‘Mary, it’s me, Tom! Speak to me, Mary! Open your eyes. Please open your eyes!’ His voice rose in desperation, but a fireman laid a hand on his shoulder.
‘Sorry, mate. There’s nothing we can do. She’s gone.’
Tom gave a bellow of pain and gathered his lifeless wife into his arms, burying his face in her hair, before suddenly raising his head again and looking round him wildly. ‘Fuck you, Hitler!’ he shouted. ‘Fuck all Germans! The only good German’s a dead German!’ His eyes came to rest on Lisa, pale and frightened beside Naomi, and with a look of vicious hatred he said, ‘You fucking Germans killed my Mary,’ he snarled, ‘and you all deserve to die. Every fucking one of you!’
Lisa blenched at the hatred blazing at her and Naomi, grabbing her hand, pulled her away. There was a murmur among the assembled crowd as it parted to let them through. Tears streamed down Lisa’s face now and Naomi put her arms around her, holding her close.
‘But I hate Hitler as much as he does,’ Lisa sobbed.
‘I know, pet,’ soothed Naomi, ‘but he’s just lost his wife to the Luftwaffe, and he’s not thinking straight. He doesn’t blame you!’
But Lisa knew he did, and in some way, she did herself.
No one else seemed to have been killed or injured in the raid. The Duke continued to burn, but once the firemen got a hose attached to a nearby hydrant, a powerful jet of water began to bring it under control. The sour smell from the sodden, blackened pub filled the air as the firemen continued to damp it down and check that the surrounding buildings were not smouldering, about to erupt into flame.
Mary’s body was removed on a stretcher, followed by a white-faced Tom, and now that the drama was over, the crowd of onlookers began to drift away to assess the damage to their own homes.
*
Daniel had been out in his cab when the sirens wailed their warnings. He was taking an RAF officer to the Air Ministry.
‘Drop me off as planned, please, cabby,’ the officer said calmly. ‘They won’t be here yet and there’s a shelter just round the corner.’
Dan did as he was asked, knowing the squadron leader was right. The sirens sounded as
At that moment an insistent clanging announced the arrival of a fire engine. Firemen leapt from their machine. Immediately taking in the situation and hearing there were folks inside, two of them grabbed axes from the cab and attacked the jammed front door. Moments later the door disintegrated and they were through the billowing smoke and inside the building, grasping Mary and carrying her out into the street. A third man had followed them through the door and now grabbed Tom and Leon, pulling them coughing and gasping from the burning pub.
‘Where’s Mary?’ cried Tom as soon as he could breathe. ‘Where’s my Mary?’ He ran to where the rescuing firemen had laid her on the pavement. One was on his knees beside her, giving her artificial respiration.
Lisa, standing with Naomi in the group across the street, watched in horrified fascination as the man, kneeling beside Mary, frantically pumped her chest. She could see Mary’s face was deathly white, and the tears sprang to Lisa’s eyes. Mary was Naomi’s best friend and had always been particularly kind to Lisa, somehow understanding, where others had not, how lost and lonely she felt being sent away from her family to an alien country, to live with strangers.
‘Mary! Mary!’ Tom was crying as he dropped to his knees beside her still figure. ‘Mary, it’s me, Tom! Speak to me, Mary! Open your eyes. Please open your eyes!’ His voice rose in desperation, but a fireman laid a hand on his shoulder.
‘Sorry, mate. There’s nothing we can do. She’s gone.’
Tom gave a bellow of pain and gathered his lifeless wife into his arms, burying his face in her hair, before suddenly raising his head again and looking round him wildly. ‘Fuck you, Hitler!’ he shouted. ‘Fuck all Germans! The only good German’s a dead German!’ His eyes came to rest on Lisa, pale and frightened beside Naomi, and with a look of vicious hatred he said, ‘You fucking Germans killed my Mary,’ he snarled, ‘and you all deserve to die. Every fucking one of you!’
Lisa blenched at the hatred blazing at her and Naomi, grabbing her hand, pulled her away. There was a murmur among the assembled crowd as it parted to let them through. Tears streamed down Lisa’s face now and Naomi put her arms around her, holding her close.
‘But I hate Hitler as much as he does,’ Lisa sobbed.
‘I know, pet,’ soothed Naomi, ‘but he’s just lost his wife to the Luftwaffe, and he’s not thinking straight. He doesn’t blame you!’
But Lisa knew he did, and in some way, she did herself.
No one else seemed to have been killed or injured in the raid. The Duke continued to burn, but once the firemen got a hose attached to a nearby hydrant, a powerful jet of water began to bring it under control. The sour smell from the sodden, blackened pub filled the air as the firemen continued to damp it down and check that the surrounding buildings were not smouldering, about to erupt into flame.
Mary’s body was removed on a stretcher, followed by a white-faced Tom, and now that the drama was over, the crowd of onlookers began to drift away to assess the damage to their own homes.
*
Daniel had been out in his cab when the sirens wailed their warnings. He was taking an RAF officer to the Air Ministry.
‘Drop me off as planned, please, cabby,’ the officer said calmly. ‘They won’t be here yet and there’s a shelter just round the corner.’
Dan did as he was asked, knowing the squadron leader was right. The sirens sounded as
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