She was wearing long silvery earrings and the reflection from the snow made it look like they were shimmering and dancing against her face. She had a really small face.

‘It’ll be fine,’ said Tom, with a wave of one hand. He wished he’d taken off his gloves. You wouldn’t catch the O’Gradys wearing gloves. Gloves were soft. ‘I’ll have to hang around for a while. But once they’ve had a couple of drinks, I’ll be able to escape. Don’t worry.’

‘And I’ll get out the window, no bother,’ said Conor, digging his hands deep into the pockets of his Christmas anorak. It was a genuine Lord Anthony with thick grey fur around the hood, not an imitation, like Tom’s.

‘Cool,’ said Tess, as she twirled away. ‘I guess I’ll see you then.’

‘And—’

She turned back, a grin splitting her face. ‘Don’t panic, Tom. Nina’s coming too.’

The Crossans’ house was big. Big and ugly, according to Tom’s mother, who was always talking about selling up and getting a nice modern bungalow with fitted wardrobes and wall-to-wall carpet. Tom’s dad had spent all his life in the grey detached house and wouldn’t hear of moving. If you were being kind, you might describe it as in need of some work. If you were being honest, you’d say it was dilapidated. Tom didn’t care. True, the ceilings sagged, water streamed down the walls and wind whistled through the windows. True, there were so many rooms that as soon as one was fixed up, another was calling out for repair. But how many people were lucky enough to live in a house where it was possible to hide? Where you could dodge interfering parents and annoying sisters for hours on end?

The back garden, too, was untamed. For large parts of the year, the grass came up to Tom’s waist. If he lay on the ground, no one could see him. Every now and then, his dad would be overcome by a fit of busyness, and they’d all have to go out the back and hack down the grass and weeds and briars. When they’d finished, his dad would hold out his arms and say, ‘Isn’t it a fine old place all the same?’ In no time, the garden would be as wild as ever.