‘You don’t know what it’s like, finding Kayleigh burning in her own shit every time I come in from school. Finding nothing for breakfast unless you’ve decided it’s worth coming by. Finding nothing hanging clean in the cupboard, only dirty clothes on the floor. Finding Ma exactly where I left her, day after day, night after night … I may as well be invisible. Finding nothing to do except pretend I like smoking fags with Rach, when actually they make me want to puke. And the worst part is I can still remember when it wasn’t like that, before that tosser told Ma whatever she needed to hear to hand over the keys to the fucking kingdom. Maybe I wouldn’t care so much if it had always been like this, but now Kayleigh’s here I have to, don’t I? Someone has to, right? And only since we met Matty and Tommo and those guys does it feel like anyone has actually given a shit…’

I cough as I wipe my eyes. I can’t believe I am finally crying. I know I’ve wanted to, in the half-light as Kayleigh dreams. But the tears never come, it’s like they know what might happen if they do. I don’t dare look up as the gravel path crunches, Jason walking back towards me.

‘Finished?’ A bright-white hanky appears in his hand, under my face. I blink at it. I don’t think I have ever even seen a hanky apart from in a magic show. The material scratches my nose as I blow into it before looking up. His eyes are blank.

‘Who was that guy?’ I ask again, staring up at him. ‘Do you know him? Like, properly know him? And where did this come from? We’ve barely even had tissues before. Is that how we’ve ended up with so much nice stuff recently? Because you’ve been helping him out?’

‘He runs operations,’ he says, after a minute. ‘Top-level intelligence. I can’t even tell you what, I don’t even know the half of it 72myself. But those units are the most important of all, especially now. He makes things run tidy … looks after people who have got injuries and that.’

‘Injuries? Like no legs and arms?’

‘Sort of,’ he says, looking at the floor. ‘The army owes them especially. We all owe them. I told you.’

‘Looks after them? Like how?’ I rub the hanky between my fingers. ‘You can’t seriously mean he’s there to make sure cripples can still get themselves off?’

I jump as he yanks me back into the shadows of Victory Field.