‘I’m telling you I don’t need any new clothes,’ Maxie protested for what felt like the hundredth time. ‘I’m fine. I picked up this leather jacket just the other day. It’s all I need.’

Brooke looked Maxie up and down and sucked her teeth.

‘You can make a lot more of yourself, sister,’ she said.

‘More of myself?’ Maxie shook her head. ‘I don’t want any more of myself. I’m happy with what there is.’

Brooke laughed. ‘You know your mind, don’t you?’

‘I do now. Didn’t always.’

‘Is it safe in here?’ asked Ella, whom Maeve had brought along to try to cheer up. She had latched on to the older girl and wouldn’t let go of her hand.

‘Sickos never learnt how to get in,’ said Brooke. ‘Why would they bother? There’s nothing for them here. It’s full of, like, statues and old furniture, jewellery, paintings, pottery. It’s mad.’

‘Jewellery?’ said Ella, her eyes lighting up.

‘Yeah. There’s some sick stuff in here. You want some?’

Ella nodded, her lips pressed tightly together.

‘We’ll see what we can do,’ said Brooke and she led them out of the gallery and deeper into the cold, quiet museum.

‘This is stupid,’ said Maxie. ‘What do we want with jewellery?’

‘Ain’t there nothing you need in the world?’ said Brooke. ‘Nothing you want?’

‘Oh, I want a lot of things, Brooke, believe me,’ said Maxie. ‘I want a hot bath and a pepperoni pizza with extra mushrooms; I want a chocolate cake with whipped cream; I want my mum’s shepherd’s pie; I want my mum, and my dad, like they were before this all happened … I want Facebook, and music, and TV and the Internet. I want my friends back, all the ones who died. I want to be in the park with them, laughing, not scared of anything. I want to watch South Park again, and see them make jokes about the sickos. I want them to take the piss out of them and laugh at them, so that they’re not so scary any more. I want to rewind time. I want to be a little girl again.’

‘Well, I can’t help you there, girl. No way. But what about a new sword? I can swing that.’

‘What type of sword?’

‘Howzabout a katana? Would that do it?’

‘A katana? What’s a katana?’

‘Samurai sword.’

‘Now you’re talking.’

‘Right on.’ Brooke walked over to Kwanele, who was sauntering along, tapping a silver-topped cane on the floor. ‘Let’s head to the Japanese section, yeah?’ she said. ‘Then we’ll take Ella up to get some jewellery.’

‘Fine,’ said Kwanele and he turned to grin at Lewis. ‘We can get you some lovely Japanese robes while we’re there.’

Lewis made a dismissive noise and raised his eyebrows.

‘I ain’t wearing no dead Japanese swag,’ he said.