A branch of mountain ash tied over the cradle protects girls against fairy abduction, as according to ancient superstition the first woman was created from the mountain ash. A branch of the alder tree protects boys, as the first man was created from the alder tree.

Irish traditional

AUGUST 7TH
THREE WEEKS AND FOUR DAYS OLD
EARLY MORNING

The front door slammed and for a few seconds there was no sound. Then, the distant beeping of the car being unlocked, the car door opening and shutting, engine igniting in a low growl, gravel and grit twisted under tyres as Patrick drove away. The clock on Lauren’s phone told her it was seven thirty-nine, and those numbers meant only that it would probably be almost twelve hours until he returned. In the brief absence of noise, a particularly egregious phrase he’d used in a recent conversation occurred to her, rudely by itself: “Marketing requires networking, darling.” Going to a bar after work, in his world, was essential for business. She was too tired to argue.

A few nights before his return to work, he’d moved into the spare room. He hadn’t wanted to, he said, but he couldn’t sleep with the windows shut. She couldn’t sleep without them being firmly locked.

“If you insist on leaving the windows open, anywhere in this house, at night,” she said, “we’re going to need a lock on the inside of the bedroom door so that I know we’re safe in there, at least.”

He’d got in the car, driven directly to the DIY shop and brought her three to choose from. She chose them all.

“Three locks?” he said.

“Yes.”

Although he looked at her then in a way she couldn’t fully interpret, he fitted them without complaint.