‘We’re really brave, you know,’ Bineesh said. ‘If we break down, we’ll have to wait here until morning. If the generator runs out of power, your papa would be a real concern. And anyone coming by this way would be more interested in you.’

He stopped the vehicle and opened the rear door to check on the box. In the milky light, the man who had been known as Mattathil Kuriakose lay with his mouth open, displaying his teeth in what could be misread as a smile. Someone had tried to close his eyes that had frozen open in the intense pain he had experienced as he died. Dressed in the white mundu and full-sleeved shirt Neethu had bought, he looked more distinguished than he ever had in his life. Bineesh and the man who helped him at the mortuary had to cut the back of the brand new shirt open in order to put it on the cold, stiff body. Wiping the glass on the lid of the box for no particular reason, and touching the generator to check the heat, Bineesh climbed out of the van.

‘I’ll tell our kids not to keep me in a freezer no matter what happens,’ Bineesh said, back in the driver’s seat and starting the engine. ‘There were some other bodies in the mortuary—all shamelessly naked.’

‘Our kids?’

‘Yeah, the children we’ll produce, together.’

‘But we’re not going to get married.’

‘One night together is enough to produce children. How long can a cat sit quietly watching the sardine frolicking right in front of it?’

‘That happens only in films and the stories of Josy Vagamattam.’

In Hosur, Bineesh parked the vehicle behind a busy row of night shops. He stepped out after locking Neethu inside the vehicle, and came back half an hour later with a food parcel, three bottles of wine and bottles of mineral water. Neethu went to the rear of the vehicle to look in on her papa. Opening the lid of the box, she straightened his clothes, sprayed a little perfume, and lit the frankincense. She noticed with a sense of amazement that she did not feel like crying.

‘Your papa and I got drunk together once, at a wedding in Uzhavoor,’ Bineesh told her. ‘He was quite funny.’

They had resumed their journey, and the van was once again travelling through what looked like a forested area.

‘I told him all about how I tried to woo you while we were in school. He laughed so hard. Christian fathers are so laid-back and jolly.’

Neethu took a mouthful of the wine. ‘Like sweetened arrack,’ she said, and spat it out.

‘Don’t drink,’ Bineesh grabbed the bottle. ‘You girls make a mess when you drink. Or sleep like the dead.’

‘Pull over.’

‘The next stop is in Salem,’ Bineesh said, excited that they were finally on a good stretch of road. ‘We should fill the petrol tank when we get there.’

‘I have other needs,’ Neethu said. ‘Didn’t think when I drank a whole bottle of water.’