Taid smiled grimly and then, to Mo’s astonishment, bent over and kissed his wife’s weathered cheek. ‘Don’t you worry, lass,’ he said bracingly. ‘Why do you think I’ve let these young people make themselves at home in our house, eh? It’s ’cos I knew in me bones we were going to need them.’

Nain gave a watery little laugh. ‘You always were a bit of a joker, Gethin Griffiths,’ she said. ‘You know very well that our visitors would have been welcome under any circumstances.’ She glanced around the kitchen. ‘I could just do with a hot cup of tea and one of those scones, and whilst someone’s providing me with that little snack you, Jimmy, can brush up all the mud and dung I see on the kitchen floor.’ She tutted. ‘There you are, I only have to turn my back and rules about taking dirty boots off go by the board. Why are you putting on your duffel, Sam? No need to go ringing for an ambulance. If someone can help me up the stairs to my bed I’ll be fit as a flea by morning. I don’t want you breaking your leg trying to telephone, because now I’m in the warm with folk round me I’ll be just fine.’

Taid began to protest, but Sam cut across him. ‘We don’t know what you’ve done to your leg, Nain, and you’ve a fine big bruise on your forehead as well, so don’t you go trying to stop me from either fetching a doctor or getting you to hospital,’ he said firmly.

‘The Evanses are newcomers but they seem kindly, and I know Mr Evans has got one of them baby Austin cars,’ Taid put in. ‘If an ambulance can’t get out to us, Myfanwy, I reckon he’d give you and me a lift to the hospital.’

As they talked Jimmy was struggling into his coat and winding a large, rather ragged scarf around his neck. ‘I’m going with you, Dad,’ he announced. ‘It’s a fair walk to the Evanses’ farm, and Nain’s accident should have taught us a lesson: it’s dangerous to go out alone when the weather’s so bad.’

‘I’ll go too,’ Mo piped up, but then she hesitated. ‘Only Nain didn’t fall through slipping on the ice, she fell because of me and the calf.’

Jimmy chuckled, but insisted upon donning his boots and following his father as Sam opened the back door and began to cross the farmyard. Mo rushed to the door to close it for him, shouting that they must be careful and to take Flush the sheepdog with them. ‘If you breaks your legs you can send Flush back with a message,’ she shouted. ‘Do you want a pencil and a piece of paper to write SOS on?’

Her father laughed and shouted back that it was not necessary, and then he and Jimmy disappeared into the lane, carefully shutting the five-bar gate behind them.