Hell’s teeth, he was a cad.

I despised him.

Even if Beverley didn’t like me, I don’t think he should be so mean to her.

When The Jones finished, people clapped and cheered. But not the Bottomlys. And not me. I folded my arms. Cain saw me and gave me his twisty smile.

And I gave him my very worst look.

That would teach him.

Folded arms and a worst look.

Then he did this thing, in front of everyone. In the spotlight. He looked straight at me and he put his tongue out and did a licking motion.

Oh my God.

He was doing licking off the hailstone.

The Bottomly sisters turned round. Dil rolled back her sleeves. Her arms are huge.

Flossie said, “I don’t know what that was about, but as Cain said, put your coats on, girls, we’re leaving.”

And that’s what we did.

We walked away from the gig all linked up. And as we looked back, Eccles, Dil, and Chas were standing in the doorway of the village hall. Eccles put two fingers to her eyes and then pointed them at us.

Honey said, “I don’t think they weally like us, those village girls. One of those wough village boyth bought me a dwink and a girl looked at me in a howwid way. Like thith.”

And Honey screwed her face up and wrinkled her nose.

I said, “That is definitely not a liking type of face. In fact it looks like Matilda’s face. It wasn’t Matilda in a frock, was it?”

We walked to where the path to Dother Hall started, and there was no sign of us being followed. Flossie started her Southern belle shenanigans again. “Why, I am sooooooo pooped with the goddam heat an all.”

I said, “It’s beginning to sleet.”

Flossie gave me a casual slap on the back of my head and went on. “And those young men, all gathering around … That Seth boy just a-bothering me with his sly ways.”

I said to Honey, “What were you doing with bat boy?”

Honey said, “He’s quite thweet weally. I was just giving him a bit of twaining.”

We all looked at her.

Flossie said, “What do you mean, twaining?”

Honey said, “Well, itth like Wuby thaid, thome boyth don’t know how to do thingth and tho you have to teach them. I didn’t have much time, but I took him outthide …”

I said, “Is that what you were doing? He looked like he’d been hypnotized.”

Honey said, “Yeth, I used my eyeth on him.”

“Cor,” I said. “You did hypnotic eyes?”

Honey fluttered her eyelashes and said, “Oh yeth. And then I taught him about tongueth tho that he doesn’t do the bat thing again.”

I said, “Did you tell him that I said kissing him was like having a little bat trapped in my mouth?”

Honey shook her golden hair about. “No, thilly, boyth like to know how to be good at thingth. I told him, ‘I will teach you about kithing pwoperly tho that girlth will like you.’”