The Plantation - Di Morrissey [121]
‘It’s an Aussie thing, I’ve heard,’ agreed Babs. ‘You never give up. You’ve really kept a lot of us going, Bette. Sure, we have Gloria and June, who are great leaders, but it’s your spunk that fires us up.’
Bette pointed at Philip. ‘It’s the little bloke. I love him so much and I just can’t ever let him think we’re not going home. When someone has such utter belief and faith in you, what else can you do?’ she shrugged.
‘He’s a lucky little boy. I hope your sister knows that,’ said Evelyn.
Bette sighed. ‘I don’t know where she is, I pray she got back to Australia, but I have no idea what’s happened to Roland, Philip’s father, or the rest of the family. And poor Margaret probably has no idea where her son is. She must be frantic with worry. Those pathetic postcards the Japs made us fill in probably never made it home. But then, I’m not alone in this.’
Marjorie heard their conversation and came and sat next to her mother taking her hand. ‘Do you think we’ll ever get out of here? Will the war ever end and then what will happen to us? Can we go home then?’
The two women were silent. Evelyn was thinking of her husband. When it was all over, as surely it must end, what would they all be going home to?
‘Of course we’ll get out of here,’ said Bette. ‘I have no idea if things will have changed, but if we can adapt to this, we can adapt to anything.’
‘If only we could hear some news. Know what was going on outside,’ said Evelyn. ‘Has anyone heard anything from the men’s camp recently?’
‘I hope their radio hasn’t been found,’ said Bette. ‘And, you know, I think the Jap soldiers here are just as much in the dark as we are. This place is such a backwater in the big scheme of things. They’ve probably forgotten about us all.’
‘The soldiers have been as much prisoners here as we have, just better conditions,’ said Evelyn. ‘I wonder if they think it’s all been worth it.’
‘I wish I knew about my father and how he is,’ said Marjorie sadly.
‘It’s only been a couple of months since your mother had a message from him, so I’m sure that he’s still fine. Do you know the best thing you can do to help your father?’ asked Bette, taking Marjorie’s hand. ‘It’s to be strong, keep your spirits up, get through this and look forward to the rest of your life. You’re growing up. He’ll be so proud of you.’
‘Bette’s right,’ said Evelyn smoothing her daughter’s hair.
At that moment both women looked at Marjorie and saw, for the first time, that little Marjorie was hovering on the cusp of womanhood. She was now nearly fifteen, tall and pretty despite her thinness. She’d also been forced to grow up more swiftly than she might have done. Her protected and carefree childhood had been swept away. Evelyn and Bette looked at each other, both realising the dangers that Marjorie could face as she matured in the POW camp. Bette knew that one of the Japanese soldiers, who’d arrived a few months before, was predatory and arrogant. He’d spoken to another soldier in front of Bette, leaving her in no doubt that his comments about her had been lewd. Evelyn had the same thought. There’d been wild rumours from the time the Japanese had landed in Borneo of what they would do with women prisoners and there had been talk about brothels.
Evelyn fingered Marjorie’s hair, which was twisted on top of her head for coolness. It made her look sophisticated. Evelyn unpinned her daughter’s hair. ‘Why don’t you let me plait your hair? Easier to keep clean and it’s out of your way.’
‘Good idea,’ said Bette knowing that plaits would keep Marjorie looking more like a child. ‘Damned lice and bugs have been such a problem.’ There was one woman in the camp who had previously been a hairdresser, and she had used her skills to barter for goods. Bette had sometimes