At twenty-one she was her mother’s full-time minder. She wasn’t sure exactly when this had come about, but it had. It seemed to Liselle that she had spent her life looking after her mother instead of the other way round. She even signed all the cheques these days because her mother was either unavailable or stoned out of her brain. Now Liselle froze off reporters, she confirmed Kerry’s singing dates, checked that her clothes were all looked after, that her mother remembered to eat, hid as much drink as she could, and all in all made sure her mother was presentable for her public engagements. It was getting harder by the day. As Kerry’s eyes began to glaze again she sighed mentally. At least she could sing OK on the pills. It was when she had had the drink that it got difficult, though her mother’s reputation was well known in the business.

‘Come on, Mum, eat a bit of scrambled egg.’

Kerry made a face.

‘I wouldn’t eat that crap if you paid me! I’ve had a bit of toast, that’ll do.’

‘Well, go and get dressed then, we’ve got to go in a minute.’

Kerry stood up.

‘You’re a right old bossy boots, Liselle, do you know that?’ It was said in a jocular manner but it hurt Liselle nonetheless.

‘Someone’s got to get you sorted out. If it was left to you...’

Kerry sobered up immediately. ‘I know. I know, love.’

Liselle watched her mother walk from the room and wished she could bite her tongue off. Her mum was a difficult charge, she really was. But Liselle loved her.

Going out to the hallway she looked in the big mirror by the phone. The face that stared back at her had deep circles under the eyes and her full lips were painted with a deep red lipstick. Her deep brown eyes were heavily made up and her thick blue-black hair pulled up on to her head. She often wondered how she had got so dark, her mother would never tell her about her father, only that she had loved him very much and he had left her. She’d daydreamed as a child that he was a Spaniard or an Italian. Her granny always said they had Basque blood in the family, maybe it had come from there? It was strange not to know your beginnings and lately it had bothered her very much. But it was pointless asking her mother or her aunts, they all clammed up as soon as it was mentioned.

She heard her mother’s footsteps on the stairs and picked up the keys to the car. It would all come out in the wash as her granny always said when gossiping about someone when she didn’t know the full story. It would all come out in the wash. Smiling at her mother they left the house.