Blue Smoke (34 page)

‘Well, so he might, but don’t you dare ever say that to him, do you hear me, Henry?’

He nodded vigorously, and when he looked up he saw there were big, bright tears in his gran’s eyes. And then he felt like crying himself, because he hated it when people got upset.

He glanced over his shoulder as the front door opened, and whispered loudly, ‘Here they come.’

James and Lucy entered the parlour first. Lucy’s eyes were red and a little puffy, but James looked happy enough.

‘Well, the prodigal son’s home!’ he announced cheerfully, and moved aside to let Duncan in.

He was as big and as strapping as he’d always been, and came forward, smiling broadly. She gazed directly into his eyes for a long moment then sat back, profoundly relieved to see that he hadn’t really changed at all. His face was scarred and lumpy in places, and his features were blurred, but he was still Duncan. The tears came again, and she felt like getting up and giving Henry a good smack for upsetting her so much. But it wasn’t his fault; he’d only been a small baby when Duncan left for England, and probably couldn’t remember him any way.

But her tears didn’t want to stop, and when one trickled down her cheek, Duncan sat down next to her and gave her a hug.

‘Gran, please don’t be upset. It’s all right. I’m fine now, don’t worry.’

Tamar blew her nose. Why were her grandchildren so often saying that to her of late? It was her job to comfort them, not the other way around.

‘I’m sorry, darling. I’m so pleased to have you home at last. We all are.’ She gave one last honk into her handkerchief and brightened visibly. ‘Now, where is this lovely wife of yours? We’ve all been dying to meet her.’

Duncan shot out into the hall, and came back leading a rather attractive girl, with a lovely figure, lots of dark hair and a smattering of freckles across her nose.

‘Gran,’ Duncan announced, ‘I’d like you to meet Claire — Pearsall that was, Murdoch that is. Claire, this is my grandmother, Tamar Murdoch.’

Claire leaned down and kissed Tamar’s cheek. ‘Hello, Duncan’s told me so much about you. It’s lovely to meet you at last, Mrs Murdoch. I love your rose garden; you have some gorgeous varieties.’

Ana and Kathleen, who had been released from the WLS and the factory respectively almost as soon as the war had ended, clattered in then, and smothered Duncan with kisses. Kathleen started crying and Duncan said, ‘You haven’t changed much,’ and Kathleen replied, ‘Neither have you, you big bully,’ and they hugged. Five minutes later the volume almost doubled when Bonnie and Leila, who had been up at the stream taking Daisy for a paddle, arrived, followed by everyone else, and the introductions had to be made all over again.

Tamar took an instant shine to Claire, and not just because she obviously knew a good rose when she saw it. It was the way she
smiled at Duncan every time she looked at him, the way she stroked his face when she thought no one was watching and the way she disagreed with him when she felt so inclined. Tamar considered the last to be a particularly favourable portent of a well-matched couple and therefore a successful marriage. Claire was absorbed into the family with ease, because she was that kind of girl. And when it was revealed that she and Duncan were expecting a baby early in October, everyone was delighted. On top of that, Duncan had accepted his father’s offer of work in the orchard for as long as he wanted it — for the long term, in fact, if he wanted to consider a partnership at some stage — and Tamar had been as pleased by that as she had been by the news about the forthcoming baby. It seemed that James and Duncan had finally, truly, put the past behind them.

Kenmore, 1946

D
avid Leonard proposed to Ana in February, and although they were thrilled to bits for their cousin, Bonnie and Leila were miffed because it was likely that they would miss the wedding, which would not take place until the end of the year.

Jake and Danny had both written as soon as they had returned home, and requested formally that Leila and Bonnie join them in the US. The girls had had visions of just packing their bags and presenting themselves at the nearest port, but in reality it had all been a lot more complicated and frustrating.

First they’d had to apply in writing to the American authorities in New Zealand for permission to emigrate, which also involved presenting the letters from Danny and Jake, plus confirmation of the hefty bond required and their fares for the ship, and evidence that they had the personal means to purchase return fares to New Zealand if necessary. In response they were told they would have to present themselves for medical examinations at the nearest hospital, the results of which would be forwarded to the appropriate authorities, and agree to undertake a course of instruction in preparation for becoming American citizens. Unfortunately, no such course was available in Napier, which threw the girls into a temporary panic.
Worst of all, they were told that, as war brides, their names would be put on a waiting list for berths, but that the list was very long owing to the numbers of New Zealand women seeking passage. The wait could be as short as two months or as long as twelve, but they would be notified as soon as berths became available.

This was extremely frustrating, especially for Leila who was terribly concerned that Jake would miss out completely on Daisy’s early years. She was three years old already, and could well be four by the time her father finally met her.

But at the start of March, a letter came for each of them from the American Kiwi Club, an Auckland organisation sponsored by the YWCA and set up to offer advice, information, friendship and moral support to young women engaged or married to Americans and intending to emigrate to the US. The club, the letters said, was automatically informed when applications were made to the American authorities. Would Miss Bonnie Murdoch and Mrs Leila Kelly be interested in availing themselves of the club’s services?

Folding her letter and stuffing it back in the envelope, Bonnie said, ‘Well, that’s all very nice, but we don’t live in Auckland.’

Leila looked thoughtful. ‘But we could, though, couldn’t we?’

‘What do you mean?’

‘We could ask Aunty Ri if we could stay with her until we get berths!’

Bonnie pulled a doubtful face. ‘God only knows when that might be. We could be sitting up there forever.’

‘Oh, Bonnie, don’t be such a pessimist.’ Leila reached across the kitchen table and tapped the top off Daisy’s soft-boiled egg for her. ‘There, is that better? Now, remember not to put your spoon through the bottom of the shell, or the fairies won’t be able to use it as a coracle to paddle across the river.’

Daisy’s small pink tongue came out as she set about very carefully removing the contents of the shell without damaging it.

‘We applied nearly six months ago,’ Leila went on. ‘They said the waiting list could be up to twelve months, so that means we’ve only another six left to wait, at the
most
. By the time we get everything organised here we’d probably only be in Auckland for a few months, so why not? And that’s only if it takes that long. I’m sure Aunty Ri wouldn’t mind.’

Bonnie thought about it. She had to admit she was desperate to see Danny again, and all this waiting around was nearly driving her round the bend. At least in Auckland they would have something to do, and she did think that learning as much about America as they could before they got there was an excellent idea. And it would be fun to meet some of the girls they would be travelling with. Perhaps one or two might even be bound for the same destinations as she and Leila were. It would be lovely if they could make friends before they even got there.

‘We’d have to say goodbye to everyone early,’ she said, blinking back tears at the thought of it.

‘I know, but I’m sure Mum and Dad would come up to Auckland to see us off. And Henry would do anything for a ride in a train, you know that.’

And so Bonnie and Leila left Kenmore several months before they actually departed from New Zealand. Tamar especially was upset to see them go, because she’d become convinced she’d never see them again. Everyone told her not to be so silly, but Tamar privately thought that they were rather naive to expect anything else.

Bonnie and Leila said goodbye at the railway station on a warm March afternoon. The women all cried and cried, and the men stood about with long faces not knowing what to do with themselves. Claire was a great help, cheering Bonnie and Leila — who were having last-minute second thoughts in the face of the family’s collective misery — and assuring them that moving to
another country wasn’t really such an enormous ordeal, especially when you had a lovely man and a new life waiting at the other end.

The girls cried on and off for several hours after the train left the station, and so did Daisy, who did not understand what was happening but certainly knew that her mother and her aunty were upset about something. In fact she cried herself to sleep, which was a relief because it gave Bonnie and Leila an opportunity to talk about what lay ahead without little, impressionable ears listening in.

But by the time night had fallen they both felt better, having told themselves that they could, after all, come home if it all went wrong.

Riria was delighted to see them, as always, especially Daisy, whom she had not yet met. As soon as Leila set her down in the hall of Riria’s house, she wandered off towards the kitchen, reappearing a minute later with a tiny fluffy grey kitten in a stranglehold under her arm.

‘Kitty!’ she said happily. ‘Kitty-cat!”

‘Careful, sweetheart,’ Leila cautioned, ‘the kitty has to breathe.’

‘Yeees,’ Daisy replied in a tone that implied that only a complete idiot wouldn’t know that. ‘It is breathing, see!’ She held the kitten up to Leila, who could hear the little animal purring loudly.

‘So it is!’

‘I keep it? To take to ’Merica?’

Riria said, ‘Of course you can,’ at exactly the same time as Leila said ‘No, dear.’

They looked at each other, and Riria put her fingers to her lips contritely.

Leila said, ‘I’m sorry, sweetie, but I’m not sure if they let kittens on ships as big as the one we’re going on.’

Whipping the kitten away from her mother so sharply that its
little legs flew out and it squawked, Daisy said adamantly, ‘They do!’

Leila sighed. ‘We’ll see, shall we?’, hoping that Daisy would forget all about it by the time they received their departure date. It was unlikely, though — her small daughter could be extremely stubborn about some things.

Riria showed them to their rooms and helped them settle in, then Bonnie telephoned the number they had for the American Kiwi Club: there was to be a coffee morning the next day at which she, Leila and Daisy would be more than welcome.

They caught the tram into the city, and arrived at the appointed time, smartly dressed and with Daisy in a new frock and a pink satin ribbon in her dark shining curls. They were welcomed by a tall, cheerful, slightly horsey-looking woman from the YWCA called Mrs Kendall, and introduced to a group of around forty other young women, just under half of them mothers. The children ranged in age from babies to little ones about the same age as Daisy.

First there was coffee and cake, then a short slide show depicting various American scenes — the New York skyline, Nebraskan wheat fields, the Nevada desert, the Mississippi River, San Francisco and the Colorado mountains. The girls in the club seemed to be bound for all points of the US, although Leila met only one headed for Oklahoma, a girl named Marjorie Callaghan. Her husband, also a Marine, lived in Stillwater, some distance from Harper County where Jake lived. Marjorie also had a child, a son, although he was only two years old.

Amazingly, Bonnie met a girl who was going to Philadelphia, where Danny lived. Her name was Sally D’Antoni and they hit it off straight away. Most of the girls at the club were nice, although Bonnie spotted a good handful whom she thought were rather fast and somewhat common. But everyone seemed to ignore this, particularly Mrs Kendall, and they all seemed to get on fairly well.

After the slide show there was a lecture on American customs such as Independence Day and the Fourth of July, and a promise that at the next coffee morning there would be an introduction to, and a discussion of, the Amendments to the American Constitution. Leila thought this sounded profoundly boring, but Bonnie was quite looking forward to it, having decided some time ago that the best way to get on when she did reach America would be to learn as much as she could about her new country. And Danny had occasionally mentioned American politics to her, and she wanted to be able to talk to him intelligently and knowledgably.

They all swapped addresses and telephone numbers and made promises to catch up with each other between coffee mornings. Bonnie suspected that some women wouldn’t bother, but plenty of others seemed genuinely interested in forging real friendships before they left.

The next fortnight was spent attending lectures at the club three days a week, and shopping for the little bits and pieces they had been told they would need in the US, but might find it difficult to locate. Bonnie and Leila also shopped for New Zealand souvenirs for their American families. It was never said out loud in the lectures, but was certainly implied that if a girl hoped to get on in her new family, then it would certainly be prudent to start on the right foot with her husband’s mother.

Bonnie purchased a pure New Zealand wool rug for her new mother-in-law, while Leila invested in a pair of luxurious sheepskin-lined house slippers for Jake’s mother, and a bottle of whisky for his father, which, she joked, she could always drink herself if the going got rough. She also bought five new frocks, three jumpers, a dozen pairs of cotton knickers and half a dozen woollen singlets for Daisy, which prompted Bonnie to point out that there probably were shops in Oklahoma, and not to get too carried away. But Jake had told Leila that his family lived some way out of town,
and she didn’t want to run out of things, especially for Daisy.

Then, one morning at the club, the news came that berths were available on the
Robert E. Lee
, a former troopship departing Auckland for New York in seven days’ Time. There was a frenzy of excitement at the announcement, and Mrs Kendall had to clap her hands briskly and call, ‘Girls!
Girls
!’ To get their attention again.

The twins rang their parents that afternoon and it was agreed that Keely, Owen and Henry would come up on the train and spend a last night with Bonnie and Leila, before seeing then off at the wharf the following day. They also sent off telegrams to Danny and Jake, telling them when they expected to arrive in the US.

The week flashed past as they dashed about buying last-minute items. Leila finally decided that she was shopping as an antidote to her nervousness, and turned her attention to other things instead, such as attempting to force her and Daisy’s things into their two large suitcases. It had become quite evident over the last few weeks that of all of the girls at the club, Bonnie and Leila were probably in the most comfortable circumstances. Some of the women seemed to have very little to take with them, although others appeared to have packed the most inappropriate items, such as nothing but dresses and hats and high heels. The twins themselves weren’t exactly taking pots and pans and the kitchen sink, but they certainly had a few items that would contribute towards making a home.

By the time the day of departure arrived, everything was packed, their documentation was as it should be and they were ready. Owen ordered two taxis to take them all down to the wharf, and they were standing on the footpath outside Riria’s house waiting for them to arrive when Daisy started crying. She’d refused to eat her breakfast that morning and had been irascible ever since, and Leila was worried that the little girl had suddenly realised she would probably not be seeing her grandparents or Henry for a long time.

She picked Daisy up and gave her a huge cuddle. ‘I know it’s
hard, sweetie, but you’ll have a new Gran and Gramps in America. And don’t forget Daddy will be there too. He says there are lots of animals on the farm you can play with, and his sister has a little boy just your age.’

‘Don’t care!’ Daisy wailed. ‘Don’t want to go!’

Leila felt absolutely awful. She wiped the tears off Daisy’s cheeks with her thumb and said desperately, and with rather forced gaiety, ‘All right then, what sorts of things could we do to make it better for you, do you think? What about an ice cream when we get down to the wharf? Or, I know, what about that big toy pussy cat we saw the other day!’ To her father she whispered, ‘Could we stop off and get it on the way? It was in Queen Street.’

But before he could answer, Daisy bellowed, ‘No! Want a
real
cat!’

There was a short silence as Leila suddenly realised she was being shamelessly manipulated. Daisy risked a quick glance at her mother’s face, and saw that the game was up. Her distress became urgent and real then, and she began to sob in earnest.

‘Oh, God,’ Leila sighed resignedly. ‘Where is it?’ she asked Riria, who was looking on with amusement.

‘I will get her,’ she said, and disappeared inside.

She returned a minute later carrying a square wicker box with a handle on the top. Daisy wriggled to be put down, and as soon as her feet touched the footpath she squatted down and opened the lid. Inside — of course — was the grey kitten, looking placidly up at everyone as if wondering what on earth all the fuss was about. Bonnie couldn’t help laughing. ‘What are you going to call her?’

‘Vagina,’ Daisy replied without looking up.

Keely’s hand shot up to cover her smile and Owen went bright red.