‘Th-thanks, missus,’ Ruby mumbled and Mrs Bamber laughed as she clapped her hands together.

‘Excellent! There’s nothing like a good shopping trip to get you in the mood for Christmas. And please call me Maddie. Missus sounds so formal. Now, run along and get ready and we’ll set off in half an hour.’

Ruby quietly left the room, but as she approached the kitchen door, she heard raised voices and paused.

‘So why ain’t she goin’ to do the same job as me?’ she heard Nell ask heatedly.

‘That’s for Maddie to know, it’s nowt to do with us,’ Mrs Petty responded and taking a deep breath Ruby opened the door and entered the room. The talking stopped abruptly and she knew that they had been talking about her.

Nell was sitting at the table drinking a steaming cup of tea and she had the grace to blush as Ruby smiled at her tentatively.

‘All right, nipper?’

Ruby nodded. ‘Yes, thank you. Mrs Bam— Maddie is takin’ me shoppin’.’

‘That’ll be nice.’ Mrs Petty was just about to place a large leg of lamb in the oven. ‘An’ will yer both be back in time fer dinner, do yer know?’

Ruby shook her head as she fetched her down-at-heel shoes from the hearth where they had been left to dry. ‘She didn’t say.’

‘Well, it’s no matter. I can always keep it warm for you both.’

Ruby shrugged her arms into her old coat, painfully aware how small it was on her, then she sat down in the chair by the fire and waited silently for her new friend to fetch her.

It had been very dark when they had arrived the night before so when they set off down the street Ruby was surprised to see how many jewellers’ shops there were dotted amongst the houses.

‘Ah, that’s because this is the Birmingham Jewellery Quarter,’ Maddie explained when Ruby commented on it. ‘There are some of the finest jewellers and silversmiths in the world working here and the pieces they make are sent all over the globe.’

She paused as Ruby stared into one of the shop windows, blinking with wonder at the sight. There were necklaces and rings set with sparkling stones all the colours of the rainbow, but one in particular caught her eye and she pointed to it.

‘Look at that red one there,’ she breathed. ‘It’s almost the same colour as my hair!’

‘That’s a ruby, one of the most precious stones in the world,’ Maddie told her. ‘And that’s probably why your mother named you, because of your hair.’