Liv released a breath, heavy from her chest. She could tell her mum about Essie making her dad late for the theater, but what good would it do? There was no way to turn back time or rewrite the story. Or predict what might have happened afterward.

Tomorrow was the official date of Essie’s death, when Liv would submit the finished manuscript to Marlon. Her mum should know the full story behind it.

Sharing Essie’s last wish with her mum, a day early, made Liv feel like she was breaking a bad spell.

She explained everything right from the beginning, starting with meeting a blue-suited solicitor in a café, who passed on a very strange last wish that Essie had made on her deathbed. Liv revealed that she’d stepped into Essie’s shoes in order to complete her last ever novel and had no choice but to cover up the truth. Everything had been like a huge truck with a broken brake pedal.

When she’d finished, her body crumpled, exhausted at keeping the secret for so long, and finally being free of it.

“Oh, love.” Carol shook her head very slowly. “I had no idea this was going on. I don’t know whether to be sad or happy. I’m just shocked. Does Jake know Essie’s dead?”

“Not yet. You’re the only one I’ve told. I wanted you to know about Dad.” She lifted her eyes. “Are you angry with me?”

“No. I’m upset you had to go through this alone. What on earth was Essie thinking?”

“She was dying. She was a storyteller with deep regrets.”

Carol shook her head, thinking to herself. “I thought your clothes looked smarter than usual,” she mused.

It was such a Mum thing to say, Liv couldn’t help laughing. “Thanks.”

“I mean, you always look nice but...”

“It’s too late. You can’t take it back.”

Carol sat thinking for a while. “So, when we went to that posh Italian restaurant, you used her name...” she said.

“I got carried away, about a lot of things. I’m not proud of it.”

“It’s not your fault, love. I’m still thinking about that strawberry tart.”

“It did taste really good.”

They smiled at each other.

Liv thought of how her parents’ relationship was one she’d always aspired to. Was it possible she’d never allowed Jake to live up to her dad’s superhero memory?

“I’ve spent too many years thinking about the past.” Carol set her cup down. “I’m darned if I’m going to do it any longer.”

Liv felt the same way. “Why don’t I stay here tonight? I’ll phone Jake and tell him I’ll be home in the morning.”

“That’d be lovely.”