I feel like I’ve won a huge victory, for about two seconds. ‘But I wouldn’t be doin any of this! You’re runnin around half-cocked with no idea what you’re riskin.’

‘Then tell me! Since when have we kept secrets in this family?’

‘Since forever, little girl, and you’d do well to remember that.’ Her stern voice backs me up in my chair. ‘There are things the old fullas will never tell you, things whispered about. And you aren’t old enough or mature enough to learn any of it. At the rate you’re goin ya might never be ready.’

That hurts my pride a little … or maybe a lot. Everyone says I’m the most mature of my generation.

‘You’re learnin too well the whitefulla’s way, my babe. Knowledge isn’t free and given whenever you want it, ya gotta earn it.’ Her hard stare pricks me.

‘You the one said to get a education!’

‘Yeah and maybe that was my mistake. Maybe I was so focused on whitefulla education I forgot to educate you proper way.’ She shakes her head. ‘Rhi, you better head home to your mother. We’ll finish this another night; I got some thinkin to do. Tace, you can take this food up to your grandfather.’

She motions to a plate over on the stove.

Horror fills me. ‘You expect me to go out? Like this?’

She grins. ‘Maybe I found a good punishment after all, ay?’

Walking up to Pop’s place I’m freshly showered and dressed in shorts and a hoodie. I’m sweating my ring off, but the hood covers most of my face, and I keep my eyes on the ground. Rhi borrowed the same type of outfit from me before going back to her mother’s. We’d taken off as fast as we could before the mob rolled in and saw our faces. I didn’t have time to think about what happened last night or what needed to be done. First I have to face Pop with my technicolour skin and no hope of hiding it.

Making it through his front gate I see him in his usual spot, out on the verandah in the shade.

‘Hey Pop.’ I keep my head low but still give the usual kiss to his cheek. I won’t look him in the face. ‘Want some tea?’

He grunts at me in a way that means ‘yes’, so I go about the routine of prepping it. I get the food all in front of him, make us both a cuppa and tuck myself in the chair near his with the least amount of sun on it.

‘It’s hot, ay.’ It’s lame but it’s all I can think of.

‘Hrmm,’ he agrees without touching his steak.

I can feel his eyes on me.

‘Look your grandfather in the eye, girl,’ comes his gruff command.