Jayson Bend: Queen and Country Page #9

You can get it now.

The Army allows you

to write one letter a week,

but you have to write it on an Army form

which has Shepton Mallet

Military Prison printed at the top.

I don't want my mum to know I'm in prison,

so I'll send the letters to you, Bill.

I want you to cut off the tops

and post them on in these stamped envelopes

to my mum

and she'll never know.

18 weeks' worth.

Why don't you just tell her?

'Cause it'd break her heart,

Dad being a war hero and all.

We've arrived at the station.

Someone we know is meeting us here.

Who?

- Hey! Come on.

- Hey!

- Look, there's your Uncle Billy.

- Robert. Linda. Look at you guys.

Hi.

- I'm your Uncle Bill.

- Hey.

Wow. Handcuffs.

Did they bust you, Uncle Bill?

They got you in the end, hey, Perce?

Well, Bradley, Redmond, me.

Bill's the last man standing.

- Still on the fence, Billy.

- Hmm.

Bill came through for me.

He's a better friend than I deserve.

- And he has a sexy sister.

- Yeah, 27, two kids.

Two beautiful kids.

I'm not going back to Canada.

May I come and see you after?

Please do.

All aboard!

- Oh!

Okay, we've got to go.

Come on, kids. Come on.

- Bye, Bill.

- Bye. We'll see you at Christmas.

Bye. See you soon!

Bye, boys!

- Bye, Uncle Bill!

- Bye, Percy!

Whoo!

- So, Dawn really got to you?

- Yeah. I'm a goner.

Sergeant Rohan delivering Private Hapgood.

Open the gates!

Well, Percy, see you in four months.

Long before that.

There must be some way

of breaking out of this place.

Come on! Come on!

And don't let Sophie

slip through your fingers.

Where are you gonna find tits like that

and a sense of humour all in one girl?

Thanks, Percy.

Come on, move it, you. Keep moving.

Sergeant Major Bradley?

- Wingate Ward, second floor.

- Thank you.

Hello, Sarge. It's me, Henderson.

- What are you in for?

- Frostbite.

You were right about the Korean weather.

Well, frostbite's not too bad.

Yeah, but then I stepped on a mine,

came back without my foot.

You were always larking about, Henderson.

Yeah, well, training was a bit of a lark.

But when they start shooting at you,

well, it wipes the smile off your face.

Yes.

We will continue with the therapy every day

and we'll see how you get on.

Sir. Sergeant Major Bradley?

He's in the end.

Bill Rohan, Sergeant Major.

I brought you The Telegraph.

For the crossword.

I just wanted to say...

There is nothing you can say

that is of any interest to me.

Your demeanour is slovenly.

Most slovenly.

Dismiss.

Dismiss, I say.

Post-traumatic stress syndrome.

They called it shell shock

in the First World War.

Half these lads suffer from it.

Bradley got a bad dose

in the Normandy invasions.

So living by the letter

of the Army law was...

Was his way of holding himself together.

- Thanks, Sarge.

- Take care of yourself, Henderson.

You know me, Sarge.

Always putting my foot in it.

I served up my time

and went home to the river,

the river my mother had left to after our

house was destroyed during the London Blitz.

Everything was different now.

Help! I'm drowning!

- Keep going, Sophie.

- Bill!

- Bill, help!

- It's really good.

Bill, help! I'm not acting!

Keep going.

Help me, please!

- Bill, I'm cramping!

- What?

Only kidding.

- Do you think that's funny?

- Yeah.

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