It was a special event on a golden day they would never forget. Gonzague spent another day with Louise afterwards, and then left for Provence. The nurses were leaving in five days. Each moment seemed precious and fleeting in their final hours together.
They were all in Lizzie’s room with her the next day, when she was asked to come downstairs to the sitting room, and they all went with her, as though they sensed danger in their midst for a last time. An air forces commander was waiting for her, and she started to cry as soon as she saw him. She knew what it meant, and so did her friends. They had been through it too often. It didn’t seem possible that tragedy could strike again, but it had.
In the last great battle of the war in the Pacific, her brother Henry had been killed at the Battle of Okinawa. She had lost both her brothers to the war, and her parents had given both sons. It had happened to others and seemed unthinkably cruel. Audrey’s brother had been among the very first casualties, and now Lizzie’s brother was the last. She was her parents’ only surviving child now. Just like the Pommerys with Max. It was too much to give and too much to lose in a war that would leave none of them the same and had taken too much from everyone. She went back to her room, and cried all day, with her friends around her for support.
Lizzie spoke to her parents that night. She was coming home to them. They were devastated by another immense blow. She felt dazed during her remaining days in England, and her friends never left her for an instant. They took turns sleeping in Audrey’s empty bed in her room. She was going home to console her parents and Ed would be joining her soon. He comforted her in the loss of her brother, as he had with the first one. And now he was her future. Their losses had brought them closer, as it had dome for so many.
Five days after they received their medals, they were at the airport. Lizzie, Louise, and Alex were ready to leave, and ten other nurses were flying home on the same flight. There was a crowd of nurses from the air evacuation squadron who had come to say goodbye. There was hugging and kissing and tears and promises to meet again. Leaving each other was like leaving home again. They had become a family and were returning to an unfamiliar world with their losses as battle scars, and the bond they shared one of pure love. They had brought each other safety and comfort in a place where there was none.
This was the last time they would all be together. They were going home now, forever changed, forever different, and stronger than when they arrived, forever bonded to each other. Their comrades in war never to be forgotten, the experiences they shared a part of them, their memories treasured.
Alex, Lizzie, and Louise climbed the stairs together to the transport plane waiting on the tarmac. They waved to their friends and a cheer went up from the crowd. When the doors closed, the plane lumbered down the runway, and took to the skies. Their friends on the ground watched them until the plane disappeared. The Flying Angels were homebound at last, with their losses and all they had gained and learned from each other engraved on their hearts.
To my beloved children,
Beatrix, Trevor, Todd, Nick,
Samantha, Victoria, Vanessa,
Maxx, and Zara,
May the challenges and the hard times
in your lives
prove to be blessings
and bring you closer
to those you love.
I wish you courage, strength, wisdom,
good fortune, joy,
and lives filled with love
and good people to love,
protect, and comfort you.
With all my heart and love,
Mom / d.s.
By Danielle Steel
FLYING ANGELS • THE BUTLER • COMPLICATIONS • NINE LIVES • FINDING ASHLEY • THE AFFAIR • NEIGHBORS • ALL THAT GLITTERS • ROYAL • DADDY’S GIRLS • THE WEDDING DRESS • THE NUMBERS GAME • MORAL COMPASS • SPY • CHILD’S PLAY • THE DARK SIDE • LOST AND FOUND • BLESSING IN DISGUISE • SILENT NIGHT • TURNING POINT • BEAUCHAMP HALL • IN HIS FATHER’S FOOTSTEPS • THE GOOD FIGHT • THE CAST • ACCIDENTAL HEROES • FALL FROM GRACE • PAST PERFECT • FAIRYTALE • THE RIGHT TIME • THE DUCHESS • AGAINST ALL ODDS • DANGEROUS GAME • THE MISTRESS • THE AWARD • RUSHING WATERS • MAGIC • THE APARTMENT • PROPERTY OF A NOBLEWOMAN • BLUE • PRECIOUS GIFTS • UNDERCOVER • COUNTRY • PRODIGAL SON • PEGASUS • A PERFECT LIFE • POWER PLAY • WINNERS • FIRST SIGHT • UNTIL THE END OF TIME • THE SINS OF THE MOTHER • FRIENDS FOREVER • BETRAYAL • HOTEL VENDÔME • HAPPY BIRTHDAY • 44 CHARLES STREET • LEGACY • FAMILY TIES • BIG GIRL • SOUTHERN LIGHTS • MATTERS OF THE HEART • ONE DAY AT A TIME • A GOOD WOMAN • ROGUE • HONOR THYSELF • AMAZING GRACE • BUNGALOW 2 • SISTERS • H.R.H. • COMING OUT • THE HOUSE • TOXIC BACHELORS • MIRACLE • IMPOSSIBLE • ECHOES • SECOND CHANCE • RANSOM • SAFE HARBOUR • JOHNNY ANGEL • DATING GAME • ANSWERED PRAYERS • SUNSET IN ST. TROPEZ • THE COTTAGE • THE KISS • LEAP OF FAITH • LONE EAGLE • JOURNEY • THE HOUSE ON HOPE STREET • THE WEDDING • IRRESISTIBLE FORCES • GRANNY DAN • BITTERSWEET • MIRROR IMAGE • THE KLONE AND I • THE LONG ROAD HOME • THE GHOST • SPECIAL DELIVERY • THE RANCH • SILENT HONOR • MALICE • FIVE DAYS IN PARIS • LIGHTNING • WINGS • THE GIFT • ACCIDENT • VANISHED • MIXED BLESSINGS • JEWELS • NO GREATER LOVE • HEARTBEAT • MESSAGE FROM NAM • DADDY • STAR • ZOYA • KALEIDOSCOPE • FINE THINGS • WANDERLUST • SECRETS • FAMILY ALBUM • FULL CIRCLE • CHANGES • THURSTON HOUSE • CROSSINGS • ONCE IN A LIFETIME • A PERFECT STRANGER • REMEMBRANCE • PALOMINO • LOVE: POEMS • THE RING • LOVING • TO LOVE AGAIN • SUMMER’S END • SEASON OF PASSION • THE PROMISE • NOW AND FOREVER • PASSION’S PROMISE • GOING HOME
Nonfiction
EXPECT A MIRACLE: Quotations to Live and Love By
PURE JOY: The Dogs We Love
A GIFT OF HOPE: Helping the Homeless
HIS BRIGHT LIGHT: The Story of Nick Traina
For Children
PRETTY MINNIE IN PARIS
PRETTY MINNIE IN HOLLYWOOD