Fran let out a breath. She was conscious of two other girls watching from a distance; Aoife and Ellen she thought, though she didn’t look over. She waited until Gavin disappeared up Rowanbrook Road, his sloped shoulders and stonewashed jacket fading in the distance. Fran really didn’t care who her brothers hung out with. But she might just say something about Gavin to her mother.

And then she gently squeezed Lily’s hand and they walked together towards Number Six for the very last time.

40

July 1985

WHEN MARY ARRIVED BACK that morning, she seemed distracted. Jittery. Fran noticed then that her eyes were red with dark circles beneath and her hand shook as she took her purse from her handbag to pay for the babysitting. Fran bit her lip. This had to be down to Eddie Hogan’s late-night visit. Mary must know why he was hammering on her door. God. What a mess. Should Fran say something? It wasn’t really her place though. And the whole thing was very awkward. She wondered too if she should say something about Gavin on the green just now. But what was there to say? Gavin Bowman was hanging around and behaving strangely – that wasn’t news to anyone. So in the end, she said nothing, took her money and left. As she walked away, Lily was asking Mary to go back out to the green. Determined, it seemed, to play a game of Hide and Seek.

There was nothing. No sign. No portent in the wide blue sky.

Just a normal, everyday midday in Rowanbrook. Warmer than usual, yes. And maybe that had something to do with it. Maybe if it hadn’t been so warm, Mary would have gone in sooner. Taken Lily in. But the sun on her skin reminded her of home and she needed it. More than ever, that morning, she needed it. So, she stayed. Listening to Della’s chatter. Half listening. Half watching, her eyes on the green in front of them, her mind somewhere else entirely.

A tall, blond boy darted from behind a tree, yelling ‘Caught you!’ at a crouching child. Skittish laughter. Sunlight dancing on small brown limbs. Another one bites the dust. The tall boy – one of Della’s twins – continued his prowl, parting bushes, crawling into spaces under low-hanging branches. A flash of red, dashing from the trees, heading for the half-built houses beyond the green. Mary watched from behind her sunglasses. Serene as ever on the outside; paddling furiously beneath the surface.

‘I wish to God they wouldn’t go into that building site,’ Della muttered, squinting, shielding her eyes against the sun. ‘It’s a bloody hazard.’

Mary nodded.

‘Where’s Lily?’ Della asked.

‘Cora’s with her, helping her hide. They’re somewhere in there,’ Mary answered, pointing towards the wooded area at the back of the green.

‘Hmm. Cora could really do with finding some friends her own age …’

‘I think she likes looking after the little ones. I guess she’d love a brother or sister.’