‘I suppose what I mean,’ he said eventually, ‘is you’re easy to talk to and never censorious. I’m never conscious of the age gap when I’m with you, and I wasn’t surprised when Matthew once mentioned you being the first one he told about him and Pete.’

Howard managed to laugh. ‘But how I feel now is like I did the time when I was still a kid and you went with me to the dentist. You’d come to Manchester for some family emergency – I was too young to know what it was, but I recall my mum not having time to go with me – and the dentist letting you hold my hand while he filled my tooth.’

Over the years there had been no shortage of such emergencies, Marianne reflected. Now, along with the rest, it was just part of the family tapestry woven by time and events, and another strand was about to be added.

The arrival of the drinks trolley interrupted their conversation and she was not surprised when Howard ordered a brandy, though he was not a drinker.

‘Tomato juice for me, please,’ she said. ‘One of us had better keep a clear head!’

‘Munich is an interesting city,’ Howard said when they had been served and were sipping their drinks. ‘Steeped in history.’

‘Some of which we could have done without.’

Howard put down his glass. ‘That’s the sort of remark I’d expect from my dad, not from you.’

‘Then I’m sorry to disappoint you, Howard, and I may as well tell you that only for you would I be on my way to where we’re going.’

‘Believe it or not there are plenty of good Germans, Marianne—’

‘I have never believed otherwise.’

‘My mother-in-law for instance,’ Howard went on. ‘If you met her and she weren’t German—’

‘The fact remains that she is,’ Marianne cut in, ‘and I can’t help my feelings. What sort of man is your father-in-law?’

‘Well, let’s just say that I’m now prepared to admit I’ve never felt comfortable with him – which helps me to understand how it’s been for Christina with our family.’

Klaus Schmidt watched Christina cut up the food on her child’s plate. As was his habit, he had closed his print shop for the lunch hour and was eating at home. But how could he enjoy the Bratwurst mit Sauerkraut his wife had put before him with his only child’s unhappiness before his eyes?

Christina had not heeded Klaus’s warning that for a German girl to marry a Jew, go to live with him in his country, among his family, would not be easy for her.