‘Miss Rogers is perfectly capable of being left,’ he said in a firm voice. ‘And there is always someone around if she needs advice, or indeed any help. Me, for instance.’ He gave her what passed for a smile. ‘I’m sorry, Miss Linfoot, but I’m giving you notice. You have until the end of the week to hand over all your work to Miss Rogers and explain everything she needs to know. But for now, please give me your key to the filing cabinet. We wouldn’t want any nosy parkers let loose in my office, would we?’
He held out a pasty hand.
Raine could barely hide her fury as she returned to her office. Only Linda Rogers was there, frowning over a stack of files on her desk. She looked up as Raine stormed in.
‘Whatever’s wrong?’
‘Only everything,’ Raine said, biting her lip hard to stop herself from bursting into tears of frustration and anger. She caught Linda’s stare. ‘Foxy’s just given me notice to be out by the end of the week.’
Linda’s eyes widened. ‘Why? What are you supposed to have done?’
‘It seems I’m no longer required. That you’re perfectly capable of doing my job … as well as yours.’
As she was speaking she put the cover over her typewriter and retrieved her handbag that was tucked underneath the desk. She swung it on her shoulder and turned to Linda.
‘Right, then, I’m off. Best of British and all that.’
‘But you said the end of the week.’ Linda came round from her desk. ‘I can’t do the job without your help. And anyway, I don’t want to be stuck in this office on my own with hardly anyone around. When anyone does come in, they just dump stuff on the desk, give me a wink and a smile as though that’s all that’s needed to set me up for the day, then rush off.’
Raine felt sorry for Linda. She’d be leaving the girl on her own to face Foxy every day. But she couldn’t stay in this place a moment longer. Hartman had been abrupt enough, but he wasn’t unfair. And he didn’t make obnoxious passes, either. That was something she wouldn’t stand for.
There was no reason to stay to the end of the week, especially as Doug was no longer here. If only she knew where he’d been sent, but she’d drawn a blank with everyone she’d asked. Foxy would have known, she thought bitterly, but she wouldn’t dream of asking anything of that creep.
‘Sorry, Linda, I don’t want to hang around any longer. I need to decide what to do now. But I’ve enjoyed working with you and wish you all the luck. I mean it.’ She turned towards the door.
‘Raine, wait a minute …’
There was an urgency in Linda’s tone that made her stop.
‘Can we go to the NAAFI and have a cuppa?’ Linda said. ‘I need to talk to you about something, and I also want to know the reason why Foxy has sacked you.’
Raine hesitated, the image of Foxy’s eyes roving over her legs. Maybe she should warn Linda that he had a lecherous streak so the girl was prepared. Linda might only be seventeen but she was as well developed as any woman.
‘All right,’ Raine said. ‘I could do with one – and maybe treat us to a bun,’ she added with a thin smile.
They walked companionably but silently to the canteen and took their trays to a table in the corner.
‘I detest that Foxy,’ Linda blurted as soon as they sat down. Her eyes shone with indignation. ‘Whenever you’re out of the room he comes in and hangs over me when he asks me to type a letter. His hair oil stinks. It makes me feel sick. And yesterday when you went to the Ladies’ he came up behind me and put his hands on my breasts and told me to keep quiet or he’d get rid of me. He’s tried to touch me before but always pretended it was accidental. This time, there was no mistake – it was deliberate. With you not around he’ll be even worse.’ She looked at Raine, her eyes beseeching. ‘I need my job, Raine, and he knows it.’
So this was what Foxy giving her notice was all about. He wanted full access to Linda without Raine curtailing him. What a pig! This was far more serious than she’d imagined.
‘He tried it on with me when he first came to the section,’ Raine said.
Linda’s eyes were wide. ‘What did you do?’
‘Threatened to report him. And didn’t I pay for it … with my job.’ She looked at Linda. ‘What did you say to him?’
Linda swallowed some tea. ‘I asked him to please stop, but he gave them a quick pinch, which really hurt ’cos I had the curse, and just laughed.’
‘The filthy beast. I wish you’d told me earlier.’
Linda shook her head ‘What was the good? I wanted to forget it. But I feel sick every time I see him.’
‘Let me think for a minute.’ Raine spread some margarine on her bun and took a bite. ‘Ugh. I’ll never get used to marg. And now they’ve rationed that as well as butter.’ She scraped it off, then took another bite, slowly chewing, savouring the spicy flavour, all the while with Linda’s anxious face in front of her. Then she smiled. ‘I always think better with a currant bun.’
She noticed Linda hadn’t touched hers.
‘Okay, Linda,’ Raine said after a minute or two. ‘I have a plan. I’ll help you if you’ll help me.’
‘Anything,’ Linda breathed.
‘First of all, I’ll stay until the end of the week. It’s only four more days but we have things to do.’
The next morning when Flight Lieutenant Fox put his head in the door Raine was quietly at her desk working.
‘I’m pleased you’re conscientious about doing a proper day’s work in light of our conversation, Miss Linfoot,’ he said.
Raine looked up, keeping her expression neutral. ‘I couldn’t do anything else, sir.’ As he turned to go she crossed her fingers that Linda was keeping a cool head.
Half an hour later Linda came in, a grin plastered over her face, her thumb up.
Raine stopped typing. ‘You managed it, then?’
‘Yes. I asked him if he had any letters to dictate. I could see the letter you’re talking about already in the filing tray. So I picked up the files with the letter on the top and asked what I should write back. He told me to ignore it. “Not worth a reply,” he said. “We don’t have anyone here who would be suitable.”’
Raine clenched her fists. ‘Then what?’
‘As soon as he went out I copied the address. I have it here.’ She took a folded piece of scrap paper from her pocket and handed it to Raine. ‘Then I filed everything in the tray, including the letter which I put in a new file I made up called ATA, as I would have done normally.’
‘You don’t know what this means to me, Linda.’ Raine opened her bag and quickly tucked the scrap of paper inside the little pocket where she kept her mirror. ‘Miss Gower asked for a pilot with more experience than me, but I’m going to write to her anyway. Even if she puts me on a list. That way, if I can increase my hours I can approach her again.’ She glanced at Linda. ‘I can’t thank you enough.’
‘I enjoyed doing it,’ Linda said. ‘I felt like a spy.’ She giggled.
Raine smiled. ‘So that’s the first part of the plan carried out successfully. The second part we’ll do on Friday, my last day.’
‘You know, I’ve been thinking a lot since yesterday,’ Linda said. ‘I don’t even like office work but it’s bearable when you’re here. Now you’re leaving I’m giving in my notice. So Foxy will lose both of us at the same time. Serve him right.’
‘Are you sure you’re doing the right thing, Linda?’
‘I’m