Page 61 of Sisters Under The Rising Sun

‘Just me or all of us?’ Nesta says.

‘I think all of you should hear what we have to say.’

The nurses stop what they’re doing. A feeling of dread permeates the room. What now?

‘Well,’ begins Norah. ‘We were curious about the new arrivals and took a walk to see who was being dropped off. And then a truck arrived – the last one, I’m guessing – and there were these women being helped down.’

‘You mean, dragged off, surely?’ Betty interrupts.

‘No. That’s the thing. Like I said, they werehelpingthem. And carrying their bags. The women were from Singapore, I’m guessing. They were smartly dressed and made up,’ Norah continues.

‘Naturally,’ Audrey adds, ‘we were curious, so we followed them. They were taken to the huts across the stream, which I suppose is where they’ll live.’

‘Who are they?’ Vivian asks.

‘We think they may be here toentertainthe officers,’ Norah says, trying to gauge the nurses’ reactions.

‘Really?’ Nesta says.

‘Obviously we don’t know for certain, but I think so. Why else would the Japanese be carrying their bags?’ Norah says.

‘And they were all young and very beautiful women, I think Singaporean Chinese. I don’t want to second-guess their previous occupation, but we saw plenty of ladies in Singapore who acted as escorts for the visiting colonials,’ Audrey asserts.

‘Why don’t we go and talk to Mrs Hinch? Let’s see if she can find out what’s going on,’ Norah suggests.

‘Ladies, thank you. This could be good news for us,’ Nesta tells them.

‘But maybe not so great for those women,’ Vivian adds, glancing at the four volunteers. They must know better than anyone what lies in store for these women, and, willing or not, it is anything but good news for them.

‘Inchi! Inchi!’ shouts Ah Fat, poking his head into Mrs Hinch’s house.

‘What do you want, Ah Fat?’ Mrs Hinch is in no mood for one of Miachi’s rants. She has just had to move house and there’s not nearly enough room for everyone to sleep.

The new arrivals have added to the stress of camp life. The houses are overcrowded, and language is a problem. The new­comers are mostly Chinese women from Singapore with limited English. Over the past few days, the internees sorted themselves out so they were more or less living with those speaking their own language. Food, always an issue, has become contentious, with fights breaking out over distribution. Lipstick Larry and Grumpy don’t have to look very far for reasons to berate and beat squabbling women.

‘The captain wants to see you.’

‘Why?’

‘Come now; the captain will tell you.’

‘I’ll be there shortly. Now run along.’

‘Inchi, come now.’

‘Shortly, I said,’ Mrs Hinch snaps. She doesn’t want him to think she’s at his beck and call, so sometimes being stubborn has its uses.

Crestfallen, Ah Fat trudges out of the house.

Mrs Hinch’s visit to Miachi brings both good and bad news. News spreads that a local trader is to be granted permission to come into the camp two days a week selling food, toiletries and various other small items that might come in useful. He is prepared to trade for anything of value. Naturally, this sends a shiver of excitement through the camp. The chance to buy food feels like a dream.

The following afternoon, Gho Leng enters the camp with his bullock-drawn cart. The women flock around as he displays bananas, mangoes, limes, peas and beans. There is tea, butter, flour and rice that comes with free protein-packed weevils. The women who were lucky enough to bring their luggage have money or jewellery to trade for goods. Everyone else looks longingly at the overflowing cart. Nesta can almost taste the mangoes, her mouth waters, but, somehow, she just can’t look away.

‘Well,’ she says, her eyes fixed on the ripe orange fruit, ‘if we don’t have any money, we’ll just have to earn it.’

Norah finds June curled up on her bed indoors instead of playing outside with her friends.

‘What’s wrong, my sweetheart? Are you feeling OK?’ Norah lays a hand on the little girl’s forehead. But she doesn’t have a temperature.