It was the next night, their final night, that they proposed the godmother holiday plan. After years of asking, they also persuaded Jeannie to share her bank account details. The excuse they gave was that they’d put money into it before each holiday, for Jeannie to buy Eliza any special items of clothing needed for the different destinations. They hoped it would be easier for her to accept their help that way.

They left early on the final morning, driving back towards the city together to catch their planes. They talked for the entire car journey. About Eliza, first. They’d both felt such a bond with her. They tried to imagine what her father might have looked like. Who he might have been. They talked about all they’d done with her over that long weekend, as well as the concert. They’d read with her, cooked, walked around the small town. They’d felt how proud she was to be walking down the main street with her godmothers, especially one who was a little bit famous. They hugged her tightly as they left and received big hugs back. ‘I’m so glad you’re my godmothers,’ she’d said.

Then they talked about Jeannie. With affection. Concern. About her restless energy. Her unpredictability. The elaborate stories. They tried convincing themselves that she was fine, that she was living life the way she wanted to live it. It was so clear how much she adored Eliza. How much Eliza adored her back. They were such a team. And no, it wasn’t a conventional life, but Jeannie had never wanted a conventional life, had she? And yes, she had drunk too much over the weekend, but if she couldn’t let her hair down with her two oldest friends, when could she? They’d drunk a lot while they were there, too.

The years had passed. They continued to salve their consciences with those bank deposits and the twice-yearly trips for Eliza. They had been no hardship at all. They’d both begun to earn more money than they needed. They also truly loved Eliza. That little earnest girl had grown into a lovely, clever, shy but curious teenager. She was so polite. Helpful. Eager to please. Too eager, sometimes.

Sometimes it worried them that she was so much Jeannie’s opposite. But they were always reassured by the obvious love between mother and daughter. They always got Eliza to ring Jeannie as soon as she arrived at her holiday destination, and to ring her the night before she left. Never in between. Jeannie insisted. She wanted to hear all the trip details when Eliza was home again, not drip-fed in daily phone calls. But even so, if they were staying somewhere with a fax machine or, later, a computer, Eliza would receive surprise messages from her mother.