I mind she stared at me for a wee moment, then she seemed to get smaller in front of me, like the air had been let out of her. Then she got up and went to the wardrobe. It had no doors, just a rail inside with dresses hanging on it. They were plain auld things, not like the dress Esther had on her. They might have been white at one time, but now they were grey and raggedy. She lifted one down, then another, and helt them agin herself to see which would fit best. She chose one and set it on her bed.

I watched her as she undid a button at the back of her dress, at her neck, then reached up between her shoulders and felt for a zip. I didn’t know that was what it was called then. I’d never seen one before. Everything we had was buttons. She pulled it down and the dress fell off her shoulders, and I couldn’t breathe. She lowered it down to the floor and she stepped out of it and I couldn’t lift my eyes from her. The Mummies, when they got changed, I could see the bones of them, their ribs, their shoulder blades. Not Esther. Her body was full and her skin was white and she had no scars and no sores, only a lock of bruises from falling down the stairs. She was perfect. I don’t mind if I knew that word back then, but I know it now, and that’s what she was.

Just perfect.

She lifted her dress and she laid it on the bed, smoothed it out all flat, spread out the skirt of it, the arms. She ran her fingers over it, touched the hems and the stitching and the pleats. Like it was a precious thing, like a treasure. And then she noticed me watching her, and she covered herself up, like she was ashamed. I wanted to tell her not to be ashamed, not to hide, because she was perfect, but I didn’t have a breath in me. She gathered up the dress she’d taken from the wardrobe and pulled it on over her head. Then she looked down at herself and cried awful hard. I didn’t think she could have any tears left in her, but she did.

Says I, We should go up and get started before Daddy Tam comes looking us. He’ll be thran if he has to come and get us.