Cat starts to wail and cry. Then she abruptly snaps away from Michael, swiping at her eyes. ‘No. I won’t do this today. Not at your big party. No way. I gotta go, Micky. I gotta go home. If I don’t, I’m gonna drink and you know how that ends up.’

‘Danny will take you,’ says Michael. ‘He’s at the gate. Limo ready and waiting. Okay?’

‘Sure.’

Cat stumbles away, and Michael comes back to sit with me and picks up the guitar.

‘We’ve had a good day, right?’ he says. ‘Shall we leave things on a high and talk another time?’

‘Please, Michael.’

‘Did you see how upset Cat was? Do you get how heavy all this stuff is? I just can’t, Liberty. Another day, any other day. But not this day. Our perfect reunion day. I will remember this day for as long as I live. And I won’t have it ending with you upset.’

‘Can I stay here tonight, then?’

Michael looks up from the guitar. ‘Lorna will go crazy if you do that. I mean, like certifiably crazy.’

I look at my tanned feet in flip-flops, toenails painted black. ‘She already is crazy. Just … nobody admits it.’

We fall silent as Diane walks towards us carrying an earthenware plate of fresh focaccia bread sprinkled with rosemary and pink sea salt.

‘Liberty wants to stay the night,’ Michael tells her.

Diane tilts her head. ‘Do you think that’s a good idea?’

‘Please don’t send me home,’ I say. ‘I can’t go back to my mother tonight. She’ll lock me up and throw away the key and then I’ll never see you again. Please. I’ve been without a father my whole life. I’ve only just got you back. I need more time. And I want to find out more about my mother. I don’t want to leave without knowing everything.’

Music plays from the stage – an acoustic version of ‘Should I Stay or Should I Go?’ by The Clash.

‘Irony,’ says Michael. ‘If you go there will be trouble. If you stay there will be double.’

Diane shivers in the night air. ‘Well, I’d love you to stay over, Liberty. We have the turret room made up for guests. I’ll can take you up there now if you like. It doesn’t seem proper for a man to do it, does it?’

‘Um … I mean, my best friend is a boy. He holds the toilet door with the broken lock for me sometimes. And he’s gone to the school office to get me tampons before. But okay.’

‘Well, you know what I mean,’ says Diane. ‘And I fancy heading in, too. I’m not much of a party animal. I’ll show you the room.’

Michael stands to give me a hug. ‘Night-night, sweetheart. It’s good to have you home.’

‘Will you stay up much longer, Michael?’ Diane asks.