Where the Sky Begins by Bowen Rhys

Author:Bowen, Rhys [Bowen, Rhys]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Published: 2022-08-02T04:00:00+00:00

She saw nothing of Mike or the young airmen for the next week and decided not to push things ahead while Miss Harcourt recovered. The doctor was pleased with her progress. She was allowed to sit up in bed and have soup and egg custard. Then she was allowed to come downstairs and sit by the fire for a short while. The fire was another matter of concern for Josie’s plans. She would need coal for the fireplace in the drawing room, and they only had a small supply. She mentioned this when she went to the WI sewing circle on Thursday afternoon. The ladies were intrigued to hear about her tea shop. None of them could believe that Miss Harcourt had agreed to such a thing, and they looked at Josie as if she were some kind of magician.

“I might know where you could get your hands on some extra flour or fat,” one of the women said. Josie thought she was Mrs Hodgkins.

“Not your Johnny, Lil,” another of them said hastily. “Mrs Banks doesn’t want to find herself fined for dealing on the black market.”

“He’s not black market,” Lil said. “He just happens to know people. He’s a friendly sort.”

“People who find things that fall off the backs of lorries,” Annie Adams muttered, and the group chuckled.

“I don’t think you’d say no to a bottle of Scotch or a pair of stockings, Annie,” Lil said. “But no matter.”

“I’m hoping the airmen themselves might be willing to share some of their rations,” Josie said, sensing the tension. “Does the RAF keep their ration books?”

“Probably does,” they agreed.

Josie was beginning to feel discouraged and thought that she might not mind getting the occasional packet of black-market tea from Johnny.

“I wouldn’t mind coming myself for a cup of tea,” Annie said as they cleared up, ready to go home. “I didn’t get a proper chance to look around last time. And I could bake a few extra biscuits.”

“And if you like, I’ll bring you up a few biscuits or cakes when I next bake,” Nan Badger said.

The vicar’s wife waved her hands excitedly. “I’ve just had a thought. About your lack of coal. We had a tree blow down in last month’s storm. If we could get someone to come and cut that up, we’d have plenty of firewood. I haven’t managed to find any volunteers to do the job, but if you say you’ve got airmen coming to the house, maybe they’d be prepared to put in some muscle.”

“That’s a good idea,” Josie said. “I’ll have a little talk with them.”

“Oh, isn’t this exciting?” An elderly lady with wispy white hair nudged her friend. “Something new in the village.”

Josie walked home feeling energized and hopeful again. The village women had embraced her vision and were trying to help.

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