Jane has been sneaking a glance at Rat’s bare feet. “You wouldn’t happen to be Roma, would you?” she asks, very tentatively, as if she were afraid of offending them.

“What’s that?”

“Gypsies,” translates Charlie.

“Of course we’re Gypsies,” Rat replies. “What did you think we were?”

Jane beams. “I thought you might be, but I didn’t want to … I’ve had a number of Traveler students in my courses—English Roma. They are always very surprising and very … rewarding.”

“Downright pains in the ass is what she means,” Charlie says.

“Is your family nomadic?” Jane asks Rat.

“What’s nomadic mean?”

“Always traveling.”

“Nah—well, part-time. We live in Perpignan. We spend the winters in Perpignan, and then come spring, we hit the road.”

“Don’t Roma usually travel in a big gang?”

Rat’s enjoying this. It’s like opening up your voice and suddenly remembering you can sing. “We got left behind. My older brother Florian, he’s been detained by the police because he’d been a witness to one of the killings. You heard about the anti-Gypsy riots in Perpignan? Well, everybody scattered. Some families went to Montpellier, some went to Paris. Well, us, we were supposed to travel with my brother Florian, but … by the time Morgan and I made it to Paris, our cousins said, Hey didn’t you know, your dad and your mom and everybody went on to England. You see, there’s going to be this humongous Gypsy gathering outside London. We’re trying to meet up with the rest of our family. If only we can get across the Channel, we’ll be fine.”

“Hmmm. So what are you going to do now?”

“I thought maybe you could adopt us for the day,” says Rat, cheerfully. “That way—if we were in a car with grown-ups—we’d just slip right through customs unnoticed. Me, I’m fine, I’m fifteen, and we both have valid passports and everything, but Morgan’s still too little to get across without a parent’s say-so. So him, we could hide under your picnic spread or something. Looks like there’s plenty of space in your car. He’s little, but he can stay very quiet. And me, if they ask any questions, you can just pretend I’m your niece or something. Me, I’m perfectly legal.”

The woman obviously hasn’t followed a word, so Charlie translates. His tone is deliberately neutral; Rat can’t tell whether he thinks the request is preposterous or worth considering. Then he turns back to Rat and his manner is once more facetious.

“You want us to smuggle you into England in our car? You’re asking us to traffic in human bodies?”