They walked to the village, and Dante joined the detachment of Avanguardista marching in the square. Villagers, encouraged by local Fascists, cheered them.
Later, Mario took Dante, still wearing the Avanguardista uniform, to a place in the hills. Through binoculars they watched troops moving west along minor roads. Back in Garbugliago, rumours had spread of armoured cars on the streets of La Spezia.
Dante did not share his grandfather"s excitement.
“Ah want to go home to ma Mum and Dad, and Graziella,” he told Old Mario, who just shook his head. Dante cried himself to sleep.
“For a while the war unsettled me,” Dante told Fred in the dugout.
Refugees from towns and villages near the front came to Garbugliago and nearby villages looking for a place to stay. Some people let rooms to thes
