Kathleen took a deep breath and it took all of her willpower and reserve as she looked at Maura and saw, as plain as day, Kitty standing at her shoulder and, on her other side, her first daughter-in-law, Nellie’s mother and Maura’s closest friend, Bernadette, her long red hair iridescent against her whiteness. They had come together and Kathleen knew instinctively that this was not a good thing that they had come to warn her, to help her. Kitty inclined her head towards Maura’s cup. She was urging her to read and Kathleen knew that the message contained within was from them.

The room was silent as Kathleen reached out and picked up Maura’s cup; Kitty gazed at her and waited. And from the moment she looked inside, Kathleen wished she hadn’t.

‘Oh, angels of mercy, why did we do this?’ She looked around the table at the women waiting on her every word with bated breath.

‘Why, what is it? What can you see?’ asked Maura.

Kathleen took a shuddering breath. ‘I can see water, deep water, black and deep,’ said Kathleen. ‘And I can see a new baby in here, too.’

Kathleen tipped Maura’s cup to the side. ‘Look, Maura, see, there’s a babby on one side of your cup and trouble all over the other – but it’s not for you. See those leaves there? They are a warning to us, to you.’ She tipped up the cup for everyone to see and they nodded in unison. Not one of them had a clue what it was she was talking about. ‘That’s the dockers’ steps, see, going down the side of the handle, there, and that crowd, that’s us at the top, and trouble. See that side,’ they all nodded, ‘that’s the water. There’s a dark cloud hovering over us and it’s waiting to do its worst. There is a baby and it’s not a baby to be – that would be a different sign – this is a baby that’s here. It’s a dark cup this is.’

‘Maybe one of the ships is going to sink?’ said Deirdre. ‘Have you seen the state of the Morry, it’s leaning over to one side.’

‘Good job all the men are sleeping in Malcolm’s and not on board in that case,’ said Biddy.

‘I know what it is,’ said Maura, ‘we’ve just crossed deep water to get here, the leaves are just a few hours behind, that’s all.’

Shelagh, with hand shaking, held out her cup to be read and with an effort Kathleen took it. She did not want to see any more bad news. They all waited with eyes wide as she stared into Shelagh’s cup. The only sounds were the clock ticking on the mantelpiece, the gentle hum of the kettle on the range and the coals shifting in the grate.