While the Storm Rages, page 4
‘Should you not just wait a while before doing this? A few days even? It might not come to anything yet, you know.’
‘And Hitler might end up being the tooth fairy, Noah,’ she fired back. ‘Your mother’s just delaying the inevitable. Do you really think I want to put Clem or Frank through this?’
‘Then let’s go home,’ Clem interjected, pleading. ‘Please?’
‘We can’t. You know Frank’s old. His heart won’t take bombs falling all day and night. And what if there’s not enough food for us, never mind dogs. They’ll have to start rationing soon if the Germans stop food getting to us. I’m sorry, Clementine, but I’m not changing my mind. This is the kindest thing in the long run. No means no.’
She meant it as well, remaining tight-lipped despite the obvious pain it caused her daughter.
So they waited, largely in shocked silence. Shock at the sight of children walking past them in tears, their cat boxes empty, their dog’s lead dragging uselessly along the road. Noah felt his own emotions rise. If war started tomorrow or the next day, he’d find himself here again, and how on earth was he going to go through with it? It was painful enough watching his friend endure it. He doubted he’d be able to step foot inside the surgery, never mind hold Winn as the vet injected or shot her. How could he not launch himself at the man?
Noah couldn’t stand still. He moved from the line into the middle of the road, leaving Clem in the queue. He looked up and down the length of it. They’d moved a little in the hour or so they’d been waiting, but they were still nowhere near the front. And as for those behind them? Unless they’d brought a tent, then they were in for a long and uncomfortable night.
He scanned faces, every one a portrait of distress, and surprisingly many belonging to people he knew. There was Henry Williams from the year above, stroking the ear of his dog Murphy. Murphy was a shiny brute of a lab, little more than a pup, despite his bulk. Then there was Pam Grimes, clutching a box with holes punched in its side. Lord knows what pet was in there, but every few seconds Pam was left to cling on for dear life as the inhabitant made clear its displeasure. There were more children from school and Noah’s street, clutching cats and rabbits, picking up and putting down bird cages every time the queue shuffled along. No one made eye contact, not if they were a child. It was just too sad to share.
He didn’t want to be here any more, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave his best friend. His nerve was tested though when he spotted one last familiar face some distance behind them. Because there was Big Col, face scarlet with exertion.
‘What’s he doing here?’ Noah hissed to Clem as he dived back into the cover of the queue, pulling a surprised Winn with him.
‘Who?’ replied Clem, looking around blindly.
‘Big Bloomin’ Col. Since when did he have a pet?’
‘I don’t know. I can’t even see him.’
‘He’s there, towards the back. What’s he carrying, can you make it out?’
‘I don’t know. I told you, I can’t even see him,’ Clem repeated and leaned outwards, only to be pulled back by Noah.
‘Careful. Don’t let him clock you.’
‘Noah, he’s hardly likely to attack us here, is he? Not in front of half of London.’
‘I wouldn’t put it past him.’
Noah used Clem’s mum as an unsuspecting shield to get a better look. ‘What’s that slung over his shoulder? Reckon he’s really got a pet in there?’
‘God, imagine the animal he’d own. Probably some kind of huge wild cat, or poisonous spider from the Amazon.’
Clem finally caught sight of Big Col.
‘Blimey. If it’s a spider in that sack, then all of us had better start running, now.’
She wasn’t wrong. Big Col had turned around, revealing a huge bulge in his brown hessian sack.
‘No wonder he’s sweating,’ gasped Noah.
‘But what’s in there?’ Clem mused. Noah could see her curiosity had been well and truly pricked.
‘Forget it,’ he said. ‘We’ve got bigger things to worry about than that fool.’
He was right, the queue started to move again and poor Frank shuffled forwards, blissfully unaware of what he was moving closer to.
12
Noah could make out the lettering on the vet’s sign hanging above the doorway now, though it had taken a ridiculous number of hours to reach that point. He wasn’t sure of the time any more: daren’t bother Clem’s mum again after the twenty-seventh time of asking, but judging from the height of the sun in the sky, it was edging towards teatime. He should’ve been hungry, but wasn’t, the ever-increasing nausea put pay to any rumblings in his belly. They were getting closer and he didn’t have a plan to stop it. This wasn’t like him. He was usually the boy who could dream up a scam as quickly as drawing breath, but not today. The scheming side of his brain felt frozen.
Maybe together he and Clem could’ve cooked something up, but with her mum constantly in earshot, there was no chance of that.
Ma Parkinson was shuffling from foot to foot, craning her neck up and down the queue. With every movement there was a huff, or a sigh, and although she was irritable with Noah for repeatedly asking the time, it didn’t stop her checking her watch every minute.
‘What is it, Mum?’ Clem asked.
She shuffled and huffed some more.
‘I had no idea it would take this long. And I’ve a list as long as my arm of things to get for you before you leave on Monday. And tomorrow’s Sunday, so I can’t do it then.’
Noah saw his chance and seized it. ‘I can stay with Clem,’ he insisted. ‘I don’t mind. I mean, I’ve waited this long with her, haven’t I? And, it’s going to be another hour here at least. By then the shops will be shut.’
She stared at Noah, eyes narrowing at this unusually helpful behaviour. Noah responded with his widest, most angelic eyes.
‘Well,’ she said, ‘I could leave you here for a bit, I suppose. Just while I dash to get Clem some new underwear.’
Clem flushed and stared at the ground.
Noah cheered inside as Clem’s mum hurried away, vowing to return ‘in three shakes of a lamb’s tail.’
‘Now what?’ Clem asked.
‘We need to think,’ Noah said. ‘And think quickly.’
But for once, Clem was the impatient one.
‘Think? Time for thinking’s over. That ship’s sailed, Noah. We need action. Now.’
It wasn’t completely clear if Clem was cross with Noah or with herself, but it didn’t matter, as suddenly Noah sprung into life, moving so animatedly that it took Clem and the dogs by surprise.
‘That’s it!!’ he yelled, squishing Clem’s cheeks with joy. ‘You’re a flipping genius, you are. But you’re wrong. The ship hasn’t sailed at all. In fact it’s waiting for us exactly where it should be.’
And with that, he and Winn skipped out of the line, leaving Clem and Frank utterly bemused.
‘Where are you going, Noah?’
‘You wanted action, didn’t you? If you stay here they’ll kill Frank. Then in a day or two, they’ll murder Winn too. I’m not prepared to let that happen. Are you? Come with me. I’ve got a plan.’
Clem paused, the thought of her irate mum large in her mind. But she didn’t wait long.
Noah always did this to her. Led her into crazy adventures; making it hard to say no.
But today, he hadn’t made it hard. He’d made it impossible.
So, with one final look at the queue they’d spent an eternity in, Clem dashed after her friend. Frank’s arthritic little legs had never moved so fast.
13
‘Wait, Noah, WAIT!’
But when Noah did slow down, somewhere towards the back of the queue, it wasn’t because his best friend told him to.
It was because by then, he was convinced that his idea was not only going to save little Frank, but offer Winn the lifeline she would need when the world went to war.
As Clem and Frank panted to catch up, the plan developed still further.
When something is this good, Noah told himself, it shouldn’t be hidden away. It should be shared with others.
As he walked down the queue, he saw more and more young faces, creased in distress, and while he knew he couldn’t help all of them, he was damned sure he wasn’t going to walk away without coming to the rescue of some.
So, as he approached Pam Grimes, he quickly leaned into her.
‘You here with your mum?’ She clutched the box tightly and shook her head. ‘I’m on my own,’ she said confidently.
Noah leaned in closer still. ‘You don’t really want to kill your pet, do you?’
‘No!’ she said, firmly.
‘Then follow me.’ And Noah walked on, leaving Pam to stare questioningly at Clem.
‘Don’t ask me,’ shrugged Clem. ‘He thinks he’s the Pied Piper. We’re just the rats.’
The three of them walked on, and soon became four, then five, then six as Noah invited more children and their pets to follow him.
Clem felt increasingly baffled. ‘What are you doing?’ she hissed in Noah’s ear.
‘Trying to save lives,’ he replied matter of factly. ‘None of these kids have got adults with them, which means there’s no one to tell them they HAVE to go through with it.’
That didn’t help Clem understand any better. ‘But how can we help? We’re not Battersea Dogs Home, are we?’
Noah stopped dead, just as he reached another parentless child in the queue. ‘CLEM!’ He beamed. ‘I hadn’t got that far. But I have now, you... you double genius!’ And within seconds, their merry band had grown by yet one more.
Although the fine details of the plan were still forming in his head, Noah felt indestructible. He’d done it, steered Frank away from death and given others hope too. The only thing that affected his long, happy stride was spotting Big Col, whose eyes widened and fists twitched when he saw Noah approach.
He didn’t move though, the big lump; not even when he saw the rest of the disciples trot past, and it was only when they all turned the corner, without Big Col in tow, that Noah allowed himself to breathe out in relief.
‘Right, keep following me, everyone. It’ll be worth it, I promise. I know where your pets will be safe overnight.’
He led them through the streets, making sure to avoid the shops where he thought Clem’s mum might be, and though he had to slow down a little to allow the stragglers to keep up, he couldn’t stop his heart thudding with the excitement of what he was doing.
They passed their school, making assorted hand gestures as they went, and the police station too (a brave few continued sticking the V’s) through Wapping Woods and around Shadwell Basin, until Noah caught sight of the river in front of them. Just as well, as the first of the dissenting voices were beginning to filter through.
‘How much further is it?’
‘Where are we going?’
‘My mum will kill me if she finds out I’m here.’
‘Not far now,’ said Noah, cheerfully. ‘Clem? Quick, come here.’
Clem moved closer, Frank in her arms. He had long since refused to walk.
‘What?’ she said.
‘I need your help.’
‘Well, I can’t help when I don’t have a clue what we’re doing.’
‘Doing? We’re saving all these animals. That’s what we’re doing.’
’How? You DO KNOW what you’re doing, don’t you?’
‘Course I do. I’ve got the perfect place to keep them safe overnight. And tomorrow, well, that’s when your bit of the plan takes over.’
Clem stopped dead in her tracks. ‘Er, excuse me? My bit? Far as I remember, I haven’t suggested a thing?’
‘Course you have. You said it. Battersea. Dogs. Home.’
Clem’s face remained creased in confusion. ‘Oh right. And?’
‘And what?’
‘Well, we don’t just have dogs, do we? We have cats here too. And birds. And God knows what is actually lurking in Pam’s box, but whatever it is, it is flipping angry. What if Battersea won’t take them?’
Noah waved her away. ‘Of course they will.’
‘What are you going to do? Wrap a collar and lead around a budgie’s neck? Because I’m sure that’ll fool them.’
‘They’re an animal sanctuary, Clem. And there’s a war on. Nearly. They wouldn’t dream of turning a pet away, whatever it is. And they certainly won’t do what the vet was going to do.’
There wasn’t time for them to dwell any longer on that thought, as in front of them, finally, Noah saw their destination: the lock at Limehouse Basin failing to hide the bounty that lay behind it.
‘There she is!’ he yelled over his shoulder to the others, whose pace picked up in response.
They craned past him, eyes flitting along the dock, confusion on many of their faces.
‘What am I looking at?’ one shouted.
‘My cat can’t swim!’ said another.
‘Swim?’ beamed Noah. ‘Who said anything about getting wet?’ and he stretched out his arms.
‘So, here we are. Let me introduce you to your pet’s hotel for the night. This, my friends, is the Queen Maudie. The finest vessel to ever sail the seven seas.’
The crowd looked at Noah’s dad’s boat. Whatever they had been expecting, it clearly wasn’t this. They looked it up and down, at the patched-up hull and fraying rope that moored it to the bank. One lad walked up to it tentatively and stuck his entire fist through a rusty hole in its upper flank.
None of them was impressed.
‘That sieve couldn’t sail around our bath, never mind the sea,’ one yelled, spinning on his heel and dragging his dog with him.
‘Are you kidding me?’ Noah replied. ‘It’s better than nothing, isn’t it? You’ve seen the booklet they sent out. You’ve seen what they want to do to our pets. Is that what you want?’
Some shook their heads fiercely. Others walked away.
‘I know she doesn’t look like much,’ Noah went on. ‘I know she’s got rust, and I know she won’t be warm like your houses. But they’ll be safe here tonight, I promise you. And tomorrow? Well, tomorrow we’ll march them down to Battersea Dogs Home because I know they won’t turn us away. And they certainly won’t put our pets down.’ He said it like he meant it. Because he did, every single word. ‘So, who’s with me?’ No one moved, so Noah turned, and hoisted the piece of wood that served as their gangplank on to the deck. He stood on the plank, bouncing on it to show there was nothing for them to fear.
There were still frowns and smatterings of dissent. These children had believed they were marching their pets to some kind of promised land, when all they actually had walked to was a rusty tub, with the prospect of an even longer walk tomorrow.
For some it was too much. They’d rather face the wrath of their parents and turn up at home with their pets. Some had other reasons for taking their animals with them.
‘I can’t come back tomorrow,’ one shouted. ‘I’m on a train first thing to Wales and there’s no way my mum will traipse all the way to Battersea from here.’
Noah felt for the boy. He really did. And he didn’t stop him from walking away, as much as he might like to. He’d done his bit and given them a chance. The rest was up to them.
But just as he felt his confidence dip slightly, just as he started to feel the doubts creep into his own head, the most wonderful thing happened. Clem stepped up and proved, just as she had countless times in his life, why she was the greatest friend he could ever wish for.
‘I know it doesn’t look like much, this boat,’ she shouted. ‘It IS a bit rusty and old. But we’re not going to make the animals live here. It’s one night. One night, then we’ll give them all the best chance of staying alive that we possibly can. Will your mums or mine do that if we take them home now? I don’t know about yours, but I know mine won’t.’
There were nods of agreement.
‘I don’t want to leave Frank alone on here even for a night, but I know I have to. So I’m not thinking of this as a boat, tonight, this place is a sanctuary. An ark. And not just any ark either, cos it belongs to Noah.’
Without hesitation, she put Frank on the gangplank, watched him shuffle aboard and followed without delay.
Noah smiled a big, big smile as most of the others followed suit.
14
Noah wasn’t religious, but for the next hour he wished he’d actually read what happened to his namesake onboard his Ark. If he’d known how the other Noah calmed two types of every animal, then he might not have felt so hopeless.
The noise for a start was astonishing and there was no hiding from it. The Queen Maudie wasn’t a big vessel, far from it. Granted, it had a ten-foot deck at the front and a driver’s room (which was not much bigger than two police phone boxes), but the only other space was the cabin, which sat at the rear, just below deck, down three wooden steps. It was cosy enough, small in fact, with two portholes on either flank and a stove which kept it toasty warm when necessary.
The animals, however, did not find it homely in any shape or form. The cats hissed and arched their backs at the dogs who responded with howls and barks, which set off the birds, who disturbed the rabbits, kicking and rattling the bars of their cages.
The children ran from one animal to the next, but they only ended up in each other’s way, bumping and pushing and inevitably yelling at each other until Noah told all of them to go, and leave him and Clem to it.
‘Be back here at eight a.m. tomorrow,’ he told them firmly. ‘We’ll be marching to Battersea on the dot.’
After some reassurances and painful goodbyes, the other children left, creating more space in the small cabin without solving the racket. Carefully and sensitively, Noah and Clem moved between the animals, creating comfy spots on the shelves for the cats out of reach of the dogs. Noah lit the tiny stove and managed to settle the dogs in front of the flames, adding to their bliss with strokes and tickles beneath their chins. Bit by bit, the volume levels dropped, replaced by the crackle of the logs and the occasional snore which seemed to be coming from one of the five dogs.
