Through the hallway window, I could make out a body lying on the doorstep. A man with a gun limp in his hand and his throat torn out – Stuzzy, who had gone to ‘quiet the bitch’. I booted Paco’s head into the office and closed the door so the kids wouldn’t see it.

Celestina and the children ran into the living room where their brother was unmoving on the tiled floor. His mother rubbed his back and smacked his cheek to wake him. ‘Wake up, Davey, wake up!’ Mátilda yelled.

‘Is he dead?’ I said, leaning clumsily on the back of the armchair.

‘No, he’s breathing,’ said Celestina, cradling him in her arms. She gave Saúl an order and he ran to the kitchen to get a glass from the cupboard. He filled it at the sink and ran back with it, throwing it over David’s face.

David stirred, momentarily, but he couldn’t open his eyes. He groaned in pain – he had a head wound, a bad one.

‘He’s going to die,’ I said. ‘He’s going to die, isn’t he?’

Celestina rocked him in her arms and gabbled copious prayers to someone above. ‘No, he will be all right. We will get him help. I will call for help.’

Both Saúl and Mátilda cuddled their brother’s waking body. I was so weak I couldn’t stand.

‘We need to get that on ice,’ said Celestina, gesturing to my stump. She ordered the two little ones to look after their brother and hold up his head to keep taking sips of the remaining water. Her mouth and teeth were red with dried blood.

‘What did you do to Stuzzy?’ I asked.

‘Tore out his throat,’ she said, sitting me down on a cushionless chair and grabbing some clean tea towels from a kitchen drawer.

‘With your teeth?’

‘He gave me no choice. I had to get to my babies.’ It was then she saw my dangling hand still in the cuff on the fender.

‘I’m going to faint,’ I said as some feeling came back into my arm.

She wrapped my stump tightly. ‘Hold that on tight, don’t let it go. I can’t believe he did this to you. Un puto gilipollas! He chain you up to cut it off?’

‘No, I cut it off. I had to get to him before he got to them.’

‘You did it to yourself?’

‘He was going to kill them.’

She cupped my cheek, briefly, then sniffed. ‘Ugh, that animal. OK, we need to get you out of here.’ She went to get my hand. ‘We put this on ice, they may be able to stitch it back on for you. How long has it been—’

‘I really think I am gonna faint.’

‘Come on,’ she said, helping me to my feet. ‘You need some air. You’ve lost a lot of blood.’