Free Diamonds in the Dust by Beryl Matthews Page A

look of sadness from his eyes. He’d lost a brother, seen goodness knows what horrors, and been injured. He had suffered, and was still suffering from the madness of war, but like other ex-servicemen, he never spoke about it. How she wished she could help …
    ‘What are you thinking?’
    The sound of his voice brought her out of deep thought. ‘Oh, nothing worth mentioning,’ she said, refilling his cup. ‘Did you find out anything today?’
    Stan took a mouthful of tea, swallowed, and then shook his head. ‘Nothing yet, I’m afraid, but Reg is widening thesearch. He’ll let us know immediately there’s news.’
    ‘How can someone just walk out of the house and disappear, Stan?’
    ‘There are many reasons, and some of them don’t want to be found.’
    ‘Mum would never leave us like this. And she certainly wouldn’t go without her clothes. She was always particular about looking smart.’
    ‘I agree. Your mother was always smartly turned out.’ Stan sighed quietly. ‘We won’t give up until we know what’s happened to her. That’s a promise, Dora.’
    ‘Thank you, and you must promise not to overtire yourself again.’ She clasped her hands together tightly as he nodded his head. ‘In the meantime we’ve got to deal with the situation we find ourselves in. You must rest more, and I must find myself another job.’
    ‘Don’t only look for a position as a maid, Dora. You might be able to find work in a shop, or something like that.’
    ‘I’ll try anything.’ Dora put the cups back on the tray and stood up. ‘I’ll wash these, and then I must get back to Tom and Lily. They’ll be anxious to know if there’s any news.’
    ‘Tell them everything possible is being done.’ Stan glanced casually at Dora. ‘How’s Lily? Did you manage to get the necklace off her last night?’
    The tension lifted from Dora’s face as she smiled fondly. ‘She wanted to sleep in it, but I told her it would break. I’ve put it back where we found it, and said she could have it when she was older.’
    Stan merely smiled.
    While she was washing up, the back door opened and Winnie walked in.
    ‘Hello there.’ She greeted Dora in a friendly manner. ‘I see you’ve beaten me to it with the tea. Is he all right?’
    ‘He seems to be now.’
    Winnie frowned. ‘Now? What do you mean?’ Dora told her what had happened.
    ‘I thought Reg was holding something back.’ Winnie was clearly worried about her brother. ‘If he keeps pushing himself like this, I’m frightened he might shorten his life. The strain on him is immense. He’s got other injuries as well as the leg.’
    ‘Oh, I didn’t know that.’ Dora was shocked.
    ‘The doctors told me they couldn’t be sure they’d removed all the shrapnel from his body.’ Winnie sat on a kitchen chair. ‘I’ve lost one brother and I don’t want to lose this one. He’s such a special man.’
    ‘Yes, I think he is,’ Dora agreed, and sat beside her. ‘I haven’t known him very long, but I’ve found out one thing about him. No matter how severe his injuries, he isn’t the kind of man who could live a half-life. I think he’d rather have a shorter, active life than a longer, lingering one.’
    Winnie stared at Dora in amazement. ‘My word, you have worked him out, haven’t you? You’re so observant. You’ve caught my brother’s character perfectly. I shouldn’t fuss, he hates it. But I love him, and I’m being selfish by trying to curb what he does.’
    ‘Well, I’m just as bad.’ Dora stood up to stack awaythe cups. ‘I’ve made him promise not to overdo it, but I expect I’m wasting my breath. He’s going to do whatever he wants, no matter what anyone says.’
    ‘How right you are.’
    ‘Tell you what,’ Dora whispered in Winnie’s ear, ‘we’ll leave him in peace for the moment, but soon we’ll gang up on him and get him to see a doctor again. Things change, and they might be able to do something for him by now.’
    ‘He’s never