‘Oh, my goodness! He never?’ gasped Fitz. ‘What happened?’
‘Well, he soon realised when the rudder wasn’t responding. Landed straight away,’ said Elsie. ‘Joyce held on for dear life. They both got in awful trouble for it.’
‘Oh, poor old Joyce. I’m glad she’s all right, though,’ said Fitz.
‘Don’t you miss flying?’ asked Elsie.
‘Of course I do,’ replied Fitz.
‘Then why don’t you come back?’ Elsie asked.
Fitz dropped her gaze. ‘I can’t.’
‘What do you mean you can’t?’ Elsie continued.
‘I don’t think we can ask,’ said Marjorie after a moment. ‘I don’t think Fitz is allowed to say.’ She looked at Fitz. ‘Am I right?’
Fitz nodded. ‘Sorry.’ She wished she could tell them about Mr White’s suggestion. She hated keeping secrets, but she knew they understood. ‘It will do me good to do something different.’
‘As opposed to flying?’ Elsie again.
‘Yes. Don’t get me wrong, I love flying. Always will, but I’ve been asked to do something else.’ She stirred her spoon around in her tea. ‘And it will mean I don’t have to think about Sam so much.’
‘Oh, yes. Poor Sam,’ said Elsie. ‘That was awful what happened.’
‘Honestly, I don’t even want to think about it,’ said Fitz. ‘It’s simply too upsetting. I think it’s the not knowing that’s the worst.’
She looked up at her friends who both had a puzzled expression on their faces.
‘Not knowing?’ repeated Elsie.
Fitz tamped down the little feeling of irritation. ‘Yes,’ she said. ‘Not knowing exactly what happened to him.’
Marjorie reached across the table, resting her hand on Fitz’s. ‘But we do know what happened,’ she said softly.
Fitz’s breath caught in her throat. ‘You do?’
‘Yes, we do,’ said Marjorie.
Fitz closed her eyes. She braced herself. Word must have got back to England. She thought of the graves in Josselin that Margot had taken her to. She hadn’t wanted to believe it was Sam lying there, but a lot had happened since then and she was prepared for it now. She was ready to accept it. She opened her eyes. ‘What happened?’
‘His plane went down,’ said Marjorie. ‘The co-pilot didn’t make it. Neither did the passenger they were taking. Sam survived.’
‘He did?’ Fitz gulped.
‘Yes. He was found by the French resistance, thank God. He was badly injured. He was treated out there and then two days later he was flown home after a supply drop.’
Fitz was sitting upright now. ‘He made it back to England? He’s … he’s alive?’ She could barely believe she was saying the words out loud. Her hands shook as she covered her face, taking a moment to catch her breath.
‘Yes, my darling,’ said Marjorie, taking Fitz’s hands from her face. ‘He’s alive. Here in England.’
‘No one told you?’ asked Elsie.
Fitz shook her head. ‘No. I haven’t really seen anyone. I was taken straight to a safe house in the middle of the night. Debriefed yesterday. Here today.’
Her friends exchanged a look which Fitz couldn’t quite decipher. ‘There’s something you’re not telling me,’ she said.
‘He’s at Goodwood House,’ said Elsie. ‘Just up the road from Tangmere. Westhampnett satellite airfield.’
