Turning away from the mouth of the cave, she poured another mug of steaming pine and juniper tea for Jem and grabbed him some bread. She knelt by his side and, pushing a strand of hair from his face, gently roused him.

‘Good morning.’ She handed him the tea and bread as he sat up, still hazy-eyed with sleep. ‘It’s time.’

Jem smiled, wordless but grateful. He sat and ate, drinking his tea in intervals. Lily went to stand but he stuffed the remaining crust of bread into his mouth to free his hand and grabbed hers. ‘Wh-dd-y-do?’ he spluttered; mouth still full.

‘I think you might have to repeat that one.’

He finished chewing, his eyes glittering in the early morning light. ‘I said, what did you do?’ He was still holding one of her hands, the throbbing persistent through the makeshift bandages.

‘Ah, the usual.’

‘Again?’ he asked.

‘I don’t know what you mean.’

‘When you arrived, when you were still unconscious, after we’d made sure there was going to be no lasting damage to you from the water in your lungs, the next thing we noticed was your hands. They were in pieces then too, and they weren’t injuries you’d sustained from the boat.’

Lily was touched that he’d noticed such an insignificant detail, and also furious because there was pity in his eyes. She shrugged.

‘So … you’re not worried then?’

They locked eyes. Their expressions were mirrored on each other’s faces. ‘Of course I’m worried. I’m worse than worried. If I think about it too much I might actually throw that bread straight back up.’ Lily shrugged. ‘But we haven’t come this far to give up now. We can’t. We have two people who rely on us, and a whole bunch of people back home at the lighthouse who need us to come back in one piece. Jem’—she leant forward and took his hands in hers—‘it’s normal to be worried. But you’re strong. So strong that sometimes it completely floors me. You have more courage and goodness in a single strand of that stupid, beautiful hair than most people have in their entire bodies—’

‘You think my hair is beautiful?’ Jem interrupted, teasing.

‘That,’ Lily smirked, ‘is entirely beside the point. Anyway, I was being supportive. Would you mind not distracting me?’

Jem saluted and winked at her.

‘Grace needs you. But so does everyone back at the lighthouse.’

Frowning, Jem opened his mouth to say something, but closed it again when he saw the flash in her eyes.

‘What I mean to say is this: be strong, be courageous, be good, but do not, under any circumstances, risk the air in your lungs today. You. Cannot. Die. And I don’t say that lightly. You mean too much to all of them, to me, to leave us behind. No chivalrous sacrifices, all right? Promise me.’

‘I promise. I promise I won’t ever leave without your express permission.’

She rolled her eyes and nodded. ‘Quite right. Now, let’s be off, yes?’ Lily stood, still clutching Jem’s hands, and then pulled him to his feet. He squeezed her hands affectionately and then dropped them, gathering up their belongings.