Page 121 of Sisters Under The Rising Sun

‘I’ll bring him back to your hut; can your nurses look after him? I need to speak to the major a minute.’

‘Of course.’

‘Tell me, Sister, how many of you are there – I mean, here, right now?’

‘Twenty-four.’

‘But you were a party of sixty-five. Am I right?’

‘Not any longer.’

There is a long silence.

‘Thank you, Sister.’

The crowd disperses as Gillam and the nurses head back to their hut. Bates returns to the admin office with Nesta.

‘Major, I’d like you to send an emergency request to the Australian Army headquarters.’

‘Certainly, Bates. Write your message down and I’ll have it sent from their ops room.’

‘Do you know how many women are in the camp?’ Bates asks.

‘There’s around two hundred and fifty of us,’ says Nesta. ‘It used to be more …’

Bates nods to her and takes the notepad and pencil offered to him by Ah Fat.

He writes:

HAVE ENCOUNTERED AMONG 250 REPEAT 250 BRITISH FEMALE INTERNEES IN LOEBUKLINGGAU CAMP STOP SISTER NESTA JAMES AND 23 OTHER SURVIVING MEMBERS OF AUSTRALIAN ARMY NURSING SERVICES REMNANTS OF CONTINGENT A.A.N.S EVACUATED FROM MALAYA IN VYNER BROOKE STOP IN VIEW OF THEIR PRECARIOUS HEALTH SUGGEST YOU ENDEAVOUR TO ARRANGE AIR TRANSPORT DIRECT TO AUSTRALIA FROM HERE SOONEST STOP AM COLLECTING PARTICULARS MASSACRE OF A.A.N.S. AT BANGKA ISLAND FOR LATER TRANSMISSION

Reading the cable, Major Jacobs shakes his head in angry astonishment.

‘It’s beyond belief,’ he says.

‘And yet it happened,’ Nesta says.

‘Thank you, sir, Sister. We’re going back to the nurses’ hut, where Sister James’ nurses are looking after Gillam. And we thought we were coming here to look after them.’ Bates manages a small, tight smile.

‘The irony is not lost on me, Sergeant,’ says the major. ‘I’ll come and find you when it’s time to leave, as we have a lot to plan.’

‘Sister James,’ begins Bates as they head back to the hut. ‘Quite a lot has happened while you’ve been incarcerated in the jungle.’

‘I can imagine,’ Nesta says. ‘But we won, and that’s the main thing, right?’

‘Yes. But the cost to all was too high.’ Bates takes a breath. ‘Two atomic bombs were dropped on the Japanese by the Americans, effectively ending the war.’

‘Atomic bombs?’ Nesta says hesitantly. ‘But they’re … they’re …’

‘Catastrophic for those unlucky enough to live in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.’

Nesta feels a chill run up her spine.

Bates lays a hand on her shoulder.

‘Nasty business war, Sister James.’

But Nesta can only nod.