“Thank you, honey.” As Ruby bent to take the socks, she caught an unmistakable odor coming from Leonie. “Hey, you need a change, baby?” Ruby picked her up and took her through to the changing table in the bathroom. She was getting to be quite the expert at nappies and feeding and all the other things she’d been helping with recently. She pulled up the little girl’s tights and set her back on her feet, let her lead the way through the door to where her mother was.

“All clean!” Leonie declared, thundering into the space, heading straight for the toy box.

In the living room, Constance was curled on the couch in her usual spot. Ruby tried to discreetly gauge how unfocused she was today, how vague she seemed, how distant. Sometimes it was as if the other woman couldn’t keep her eyes open. Other times she didn’t seem to be aware that Ruby was even there until she started playing her violin. Then, there were good days.

“Hi, Constance.”

It was a good day. Constance smiled. “Hi, Bee.” Her eyes drifted across to the seascape, but they came right back to Ruby.

Gregor leaned in the kitchen doorway, arms crossed, still in his yoga pants. The two of them had fallen into an almost easy friendship, punctuated with occasionally awkward moments when they accidentally touched, or she caught him gazing at her for a little too long. What had passed between them hadn’t gone away, but she thought they’d found a balance and that it was worth making the effort to keep it steady.

“Moosic, Mamma Bee. Pleeeease.” Leonie was tugging Ruby’s violin case toward her so that she’d play all the tunes Leonie loved to dance to. And Ruby loved to see it, the little hips swaying from side to side, arms pumping. Pure joy. She played “Molly Malone,” and Leonie’s favorite, “A Fox Went Out on a Chilly Night,” bending the notes just like on the old American bluegrass version she knew so well.

“I know a song,” said Constance.

She started to sing, a haunting melody, sad and moving.

Ionn da, ionn do ion da, od-ar, da.

It made Ruby think of the ocean and of the night sky, deep and mysterious. After a few times round, she joined in with her violin. Leonie swayed to the slow beat. Gregor didn’t say anything. His face was strangely blank.

“Beautiful,” said Ruby. “What’s it called?”

“It’s hard to translate,” said Constance. “It’s a cry of joy. ‘The Seal Woman’s Joy’? We sing it to each other. I mean, back home they do. They did.”