‘Already done it.’ Aiden brushed his wet hair straight back over his head. ‘A ring Mum has never worn, as far as I know, and a solid gold wristwatch of Dad’s that’s also not needed. I’ve stashed them under my bed. You can have a look at them later, if you want.’

‘You can’t just take those things.’

‘Well, I did, sis. It was really easy.’

‘It’s wrong.’

‘Why? Dad’s got a whole collection of watches and he never wears any of them.’

‘Nobody wears watches, because they’re antiques,’ I said. ‘As you know. Dad’s a collector.’

Aiden snorted.

‘He’s a collector? Okay. Right. He collects valuable things to stick in a drawer where no one will see them, not even him. They have no use whatsoever, they cost a fortune and they’re not even decorative. At least the paintings Mum collects can be hung on the wall and admired. Their useless rings and watches won’t even be missed, yet if you sold them they could probably feed a family for years.’

‘Aiden, it doesn’t matter what you say. Stealing is a crime and it’s wrong.’

He hauled himself from the water and sat on the edge, reached back and grabbed a towel.

‘We have more than we know what to do with. Other people are poor and starving to death. No one is hurt by this. For Mum and Dad it’s a drop in the ocean. Probably less than that. For Xena it might mean the difference between life and death. How can that be “wrong”, Ash?’ He made the quotation marks in the air. ‘Explain it to me. Show me exactly how I’ve sinned.’

And maybe I would have tried, but I knew that he would run rings around me with words that sounded fair and right and just, but which were really just bright make-up, covering up the ugliness beneath. I couldn’t do it.

‘Cheer up, sis,’ said Aiden. ‘It’s not the end of the world. Hey, fancy a race? Two laps, freestyle?’ He jumped back in.

I didn’t fancy a race. I wanted to go to my room and cry. But I raced him anyway.

He beat me by three-quarters of a length.

11

11

Albert Street was just as deserted as last time but, if anything, I was more scared now. I remembered Ziggy suggesting a ransom. Maybe Xena had changed her mind and we’d be walking straight into trouble. It’d be our own stupid fault. What had she said last time? Stay in your own world, you wouldn’t like the real one.