‘Oh no, wait a minute, the dead don’t have an opinion,’ Molly said. Vincent wasn’t sure what to do. He took a step back.

‘She wanted a basket, Ma,’ Grace said.

‘No, Grace, she wanted to live.’ Because she was choked up, Molly bit her bottom lip, and in taking a moment to gather herself she focused on the basket in front of her, touching it, really feeling it, and all the while with a disgusted look on her face. ‘A basket, Grace?’

‘Well, it was good enough for Moses,’ Vincent said in a light-hearted tone.

‘Moses was abandoned by his own in a river,’ Molly said in disgust.

‘To save his life,’ Vincent said with great authority.

‘Will this ugly greenish basket save my Rabbit?’ Molly asked.

‘No,’ Vincent said, and he slunk back beside Silent Ed.

Grace turned on Molly. ‘You promised.’

‘All she wanted to do was save us money, Grace, and all I want to do is spend every penny we have to honour her.’

Grace’s mother had a filthy mouth, a fiery temper, a steel core and a huge heart, and she knew how to win an argument.

Grace hugged her. ‘OK, Ma, I give up.’ Molly squeezed Grace hard and kissed her cheek. Grace looked up at the ceiling. ‘Sorry, Rabbit, I tried.’

Molly turned to Vincent. ‘I’m sorry, Vincent, sometimes I can be a real arsehole but I mean well.’ She raised her arms to heaven. ‘And I am what I am, so please bear with me.’

Vincent nodded. ‘It’s a difficult time.’

Grace followed her mother across the room and stood by her side.

‘It’s a lovely coffin, Ma,’ Grace said, exactly what I’d like. Jesus, Grace, stop it. You go looking for trouble, you find it. Balls. Stop. Get your act together. This isn’t about you.

Yeah, Grace, this isn’t about you. Besides, brown is not your colour . . . Her sister’s voice rang inside her head.

I’m warning you, Rabbit.

‘We’ll take it,’ Grace said.

‘Very good choice,’ Vincent said.

‘What’s a very bad choice?’ Molly asked.

‘Excuse me?’

‘You said, very good choice. What’s a bad one?’

Vincent looked like he was about to cry.

‘It’s the basket, isn’t it?’ she said.

‘There’s no bad choice.’

She patted Vincent on the shoulder. ‘It’s a good thing you’re in the funeral business, love, because you’d starve to death before you’d sell a fridge-freezer.’ She walked out, leaving a miffed Vincent in her wake.

In the car on the way home, Grace turned to face her mother.

‘Ma, do you ever get scared?’

‘I’m scared all the time, Grace.’

‘How come you never show it?’

‘What’s the point when it only upsets everyone else?’

Grace thought about that for a while. ‘I’m scared all the time, too,’ Grace said, and Molly nodded sympathetically.

‘Our secret.’

‘Our secret,’ Grace agreed.