Jonny came in as the red light was fading from the walls. He brought in a bottle of whiskey and two bottles of wine, but Liv wouldn’t drink, saying she felt sick. She told him about her father’s visit, constantly appealing to us for confirmation of this threat or that. Jonny made matters worse by telling her she had committed a criminal offense. Once her father went to the police, as of course he would, they would know where to find her and be able to prosecute her for driving over the permitted limit, leaving the scene of an accident, and endangering the lives of three young children. This last was an offense I believe he invented on the spur of the moment. Liv was terrified. Jonny told her the only way she could make sure of not being sent to prison or heavily fined and deported to Sweden was by coming back to Cricklewood with him. She lay on the floor and cried.

Jonny sat there, occasionally prodding her with his toe, and drinking neat whiskey. We were a pair of “fucking wimps” because we wouldn’t join him. I was desperate for a glass of wine but had to refuse it. We were going on the roofs. Of course, we wanted to go alone, but Silver, whispering to me in the bedroom, said he disliked the idea of going at all if it meant leaving Liv alone with Jonny.

“He could get her out of the house on his own if there’s no one around to hear her screaming. Or he could stun her first, he’s capable of that. You don’t know how often I’ve wished I’d never met him.”

“Then we’d better take him with us,” I said.

Would it have been better if we had? Or worse? Perhaps no different. We went alone because Morna arrived just as we were thinking of leaving. Sure, she’d stay with Liv till we got back, there was something she wanted to watch on television. Jonny was far from pleased to see her. He became antagonistic when she suggested she and Liv go and lie on Liv’s bed to watch the episode in her serial. He asked them if they were a “couple of lezzies.”

“And what I want to know is, what’ve you done with that two grand?”

I had been wondering that myself. Liv smiled at him. She had what I thought of as a dangerous way of behaving when defying him—when defying any man, I expect. She’d stand up, stretch her neck and drop her shoulders, thrusting out her breasts and pulling in her waist. Liv’s breasts were big and her waist tiny, so the attitude was highly provocative.

“It is where you will not find it,” she said, confident now she had big strong Morna to protect her.