A week went by and it was clear by now that two or three of the old people were suffering. Bob Larkin in particular was so weak one morning after a night of coughing that he could scarcely get out of bed. When Doctor Morrison was called to see him, he said that he had a chest infection, and must on no account go outside. He also insisted that Mrs Bellamy had to put a stop to all this before someone caught pneumonia. When Mrs Bellamy said she was powerless to do anything about it, Doctor Morrison called all the old people together in the sitting room. He gave them a severe lecture. “I respect what you are trying to do,” he said as he finished. “I admire your courage and your determination. But this has gone far enough. We’ve already got Mr Larkin sick upstairs. You go out there in this weather and you’re risking your lives. I can’t be held responsible if you go on like this.”

Miss Carter lifted her head slowly. “Maybe,” she said in a steely voice. “Maybe. But they’re our lives to risk, Doctor, aren’t they?”

Mrs Bellamy tried again to persuade them once the doctor had gone, but it was no use. She went outside after that and sat with Joe and Paddywack by the tent. “It’s you they’re rallying around, Joe,” she said. “You and Paddywack. I know you’re doing it for Marion. But she wouldn’t want this, I know she wouldn’t. She’d say what I’m saying, that you should call it a day. You’ve done all you could, Joe. No one could have done more.”

“Believe you me, Mrs Bellamy,” Joe replied, “there’s nothing I’d like better than to get back to my snug little barge and be warm again. It’s a long time since I’ve felt my feet. And I’ll be honest with you – there’s been plenty of times when I’ve felt like giving up. But it’s like Marion used to say: ‘You’re an obstinate old goat, Joe.’ I am too. I started this thing, Mrs Bellamy, and I’m going to finish it. Sitting out here with Paddywack, I’ve had a lot of time to think things over, and the more I think, the angrier I get. They’ve got no right to close you down, to ruin the lives of everyone up at Fairlawns, and I won’t let them. It’s a matter of principle, as I see it. We’ve got to look after our old people. They’ve earned it. They deserve it. So, unless the old people themselves tell me to stop, me and Paddywack we’ll sit this out. We’ll stay here till we make the Council change their minds. That’s all there is to it.”

Mrs Bellamy knew there was no point in arguing any more, that Joe had quite made up his mind. “All right,” she said, “but from now on, you will spend your nights inside, in the warm. I can’t sleep thinking of you out here all night. The cold air out here can’t be good for you, nor for Paddywack. No arguments now.”