Page 128 of Sisters Under The Rising Sun

‘Mr Waggy was on the boat, I’ve lost him.’

‘That’s OK, my darling. We can buy you another Mr Waggy when we get home.’

‘Why don’t we take a walk,’ Ena suggests. ‘Just the three of us.’

‘That was a smart idea of Ena’s to take them both off,’ Margaret says, when they’ve gone.

‘Ken, you have probably already realised how close Ena is to June. It’s going to break her heart if she leaves, but if that is her father, that’s what will happen,’ Norah says.

‘I know, I’ve tried not to think about it as I’ve watched the two of them together. I’ve grown very fond of her myself and started thinking she was going to be part of our family.’

A short while later, June runs back to them. ‘I’ve found my daddy; he wants to take me home with him. Should I go, Aunty Norah?’

‘Yes, my darling. You should go with your daddy, he loves you very much,’ Norah tells her, biting her lip. This is a happy moment for the child, she shouldn’t confuse her with her tears.

‘Won’t you and Aunty Ena miss me?’

‘Oh, my darling girl, you have no idea how much we will miss you. Every single day, all day.’

‘Could you come and live with me and my daddy?’

‘No, but we will see you. We’ll come and visit, and you can come and visit us. How does that sound?’

‘Do you promise?’

‘I promise.’

Norah and John have made the long journey to England and then Belfast, to Sally, who they now know is safe with John’s family. Meeting them at the airport, John’s sister then takes them to her home to await Sally’s return from school. She has been informed that the parents she had been told were dead have survived and are coming to see her.

Now Sally’s parents are in the living room of John’s sister’s house, eagerly awaiting their daughter’s return home from school.

Norah can barely contain herself. She paces the living room, sits down, gets up again and paces.

‘Do you think she’ll recognise us, John? Do you think she’ll be happy to see us?’ she asks over and over.

‘My darling, we’re her parents. Of course she will,’ John reassures her. ‘She might be a little confused, a little unsure of us, but you’ll see. It will all come right. Will you sit down with me?’

Norah sits, but they both rise quickly to their feet when they hear the front door open.

‘Hi, Mum, we’re home,’ an adolescent voice yells. A school bag can be heard hitting the floor.

‘In here,’ John’s sister calls.

A gangly youth saunters into the room as Norah and John wait in silence for the girl whose footsteps they can hear. The boy looks at these gaunt strangers nodding a polite ‘hello’.

When Sally enters, she pauses for a moment, staring at Norah and John. She slides over to her aunt and reaches for her hand. At twelve years old, she is taller, fuller in the face, but Norah’s heart swells. She is still her little girl.

‘Hello, Sally,’ John and Norah say.

‘Hello,’ Sally replies, not making a move.

‘Sally, this is your mother and father, they are safe. They’re home, love,’ her aunt says.

‘It’s all right, Sally, I know we must look like strangers to you,’ says John. ‘It’s been a long time and I’m sure we’ve changed; you certainly have. What a beautiful young girl you are.’

‘Sally,’ Norah says. ‘It’s me, it’s Mummy.’

Sally moves behind her aunt, peering out at the strangers who are threatening to upend her life here. She last saw them as a little girl; in a few months, she will be a teenager.

Norah takes a step closer and kneels in front of Sally.

‘Go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep, pretty baby, go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep, baby girl,’Norah sings.

Slowly, Sally moves towards her, letting go of her aunt’s hand. She takes another step. Norah sees recognition light up in her daughter’s eyes. She spreads her arms, and Sally takes another step. When they finally embrace, Norah can feel her trembling. She holds her daughter away so she can look into her beautiful face. Sally’s mouth curls around one word.

‘Mummy!’