For some reason the words and the nonchalant gesture made Marie even more furious. She’d spent so much time organising everything for the two of them, and so far Simon had done nothing to help. He hadn’t even said thank you. And now, just days before they were supposed to be leaving, he’d dumped her. He didn’t have the decency to apologise; instead, he was standing there telling her that what was done was done. She was suddenly overwhelmed by an intense desire to puncture that smug ‘prodigal child’ bubble, stick a pin right through it to make him feel the same pain that she was experiencing.

‘And is Aunt Elisabet OK with you taking off for Stockholm?’

‘Dad supports my decision,’ Simon replied, a little too quickly.

‘But not Aunt Elisabet?’

He refused to meet her gaze. ‘We haven’t told Mum yet.’

‘Marie laughed scornfully. ‘Because she wants you to study in Lund. Get your degree.’

Simon tried to sound as if he didn’t care. ‘I’m going anyway, whatever she thinks.’

‘As if,’ Marie snorted. ‘Your mother makes all the decisions. Just look at your dad, sitting in the house painting all day. He wasn’t good enough to be a farmer, so your mother and Klein locked him away at Tabor . . .’

‘Shut the fuck up.’

‘But why? It’s true. Everyone knows your dad’s not right in the head.’

‘At least he doesn’t interfere in my life like your father does in yours. And just look at your poor kid brother. Bengt doesn’t give a shit about Mats – you’re the only one who matters. Daddy’s precious little girl . . .’

‘You do know that your mother and Klein are having an affair? Screwing each other behind Karl-Johan’s back?’ Rage and drunkenness made the words fly out of her mouth, and Marie immediately realised she’d gone too far. However, it was too late to backtrack now. What was done was done, just as Simon had said. She raised her chin, met his eyes, but he didn’t react as she’d expected. Instead of exploding, he simply shook his head slowly and gave her a condescending smile.

‘It’s true!’ she went on. ‘Everyone knows that Aunt Elisabet and Klein set Karl-Johan up at Tabor so they could be alone. They’ve been together ever since they were young. Karl-Jo was a mistake – you were a mistake!’

Simon stared at her, then shook his head again. This time his expression was one of pity.

‘Marie—’

‘Hi!’ Tanya appeared from nowhere and took Simon by the hand. ‘I was wondering where you’d got to. Won’t you play a little more?’

Marie glared at her. ‘We were having a private conversation,’ she snapped.

‘No,’ Simon said. ‘You and I are done, Marie.’