Outside Lucky’s building, she parked and picked up the snake, holding it in her upturned palms as if it were a ritual offering. Which it was, in some sense. Delivering the snake here would solve a problem for Sophia, for Jamie, and for Lucky. Emily dropped the bag of mice in a bin on the street. They did smell bad; they had turned. Louis was right to refuse them.

‘Fuck’s sake,’ she said when he opened the door. ‘It was in the car with me for almost an hour.’

‘I’ve got him now,’ said Lucky, and he took Louis to the couch, placing the snake beside him. In this position, Lucky did not move, except to speak. ‘You talked to Sophia? What did she say? You can tell me.’

‘We talked about the Third of April. And then this happened.’

‘The snake belongs to me now? What do they eat? Cockroaches?’

‘Mice, which apparently come in various sizes and you’ll need to keep them frozen. Its name is Louis II. Sophia and Jamie are staying with a friend, and the friend would not be thrilled if she discovered the snake.’

‘The thing was a burden. I can help her with that. I’ll take care of it,’ said Lucky, as the snake moved behind his shoulders, going for the late afternoon sunlight at the end of the couch.

‘Can you ring Sophia and tell her you have Louis?’ said Emily. ‘I have to leave and make a call.’

‘This is the perfect gift,’ said Lucky with an interested smile. ‘They can come and visit and Jamie will play with his pet.’

Emily looked at the snake as it took a U-turn along the top of the couch, stopping to peer down at Lucky. Poor Louis II’s eyes looked like stones. Lucky lifted both his hands in surrender as the snake playfully swished down on top of him.

Emily didn’t ask about Wheel of Fortune, didn’t ask about the sum of money that had started the franchise. That would happen later. Her mind was elsewhere; she knew something was coming. In the car, parked near Lucky’s building, she called Michael.

‘I have something important to say,’ he said. ‘Therese is pregnant. We’re going to have the child.’

‘That’s that then,’ said Emily, after a terrible pause.