‘Oh!’ Zinnia sounded half-surprised Lily had picked up. ‘I rang to see how you are.’

‘Improving,’ Lily said fairly, as Isaac drove the minibus closer and closer to the Basel border-crossing into Switzerland, rumbling along, the road an undulating ribbon before them. ‘Not so swollen now.’

‘Thank goodness! Did you go on your trip?’ Zinnia went on.

‘Of course. Oh.’ Lily paused for thought. ‘You hadn’t hoped my injury would stop me travelling?’ She didn’t want to add ‘to meet my other brother’. Carola would hear and Lily was confident that Zinnia would follow Lily’s thoughts anyway.

‘No!’ Zinnia denied strenuously. ‘I’m really, really sorry. Honestly. If you hadn’t been able to go I was going to ask to come over and see you, that’s all. I’ve been thinking about my behaviour and I’m ashamed. I was just so knocked sideways when Mum and Roma said they were splitting up, finding them both crying, Mum packing … I jumped to the wrong conclusion. I hate the way things are between us, Lily, and I want to be friends again. I’m trying to understand about your brothers and I promise to stop being an arse.’

Lily felt herself thawing. ‘We’re both shocked about our mums. My stomach goes into spasms whenever I think about it.’

‘Yeah. It’s really horrible. I can’t imagine how things are going to be in the future.’ But then instead of sounding upset Zinnia made a self-conscious sound that was close to a giggle. ‘Actually, when I freaked I think I was hormonal.’

Lily was taken aback. Was Zinnia excusing her dangerous actions as being a result of PMT? Her left hand pulsed as if in protest. ‘I see,’ she said stiffly. ‘I’m afraid we’re nearly at the crossing to Switzerland so I need to go now. Thanks for wanting to mend fences but it’s probably better if we have the rest of this conversation face to face when I get back.’

‘Oh. Right. If you think so.’ Zinnia sounded uncertain.

Lily said bye and ended the call just as Isaac nodded at the windscreen and said, ‘Look!’ The teens began to cheer and Lily realised that the sky had lightened from dark grey to nearly white and what was hitting the windscreen now was snow – flakes that spread into crystals before the wipers thrust them away. Flakes were floating down, making trees and bushes look as if they’d been dredged with icing sugar.

‘Snow!’ the kids shouted, as if Lily couldn’t see it for herself. ‘Awesome! Snow already!’

Even Carola grinned. ‘Only the Brits can get so excited about snow.’

Isaac changed down the gears. ‘Luckily, most of Europe is better than us at keeping the roads clear so it shouldn’t hold us up, especially with the snow tyres.’