The last shreds of reserve she’d maintained through the worst days of her life dissolved in the salty torrent that gushed as fiercely as the river outside the window. Her hands reached out to the wall to steady herself as she swayed, unable to see, aware of a moan escaping from her mouth that sounded like an animal in pain.

Bee, out of breath from running up the stairs, threw her arms around her. As she clung on to her, she felt Mary Kate’s knees buckle. ‘Let it out,’ she whispered into her hair. ‘Let it all out. You needed to be here to let it go.’ She hugged her niece tightly to her breast, wanting to absorb some of her pain, knowing it was futile. She remembered what she herself had been through when her own husband had died out at sea and she’d known he was never coming back. She could share some of what Mary Kate was feeling. This would be her safe place, in Bee’s arms.

‘Shh, shh,’ she murmured as the sobs reached a heart-rending crescendo. ‘There now, there now,’ she whispered, stroking her hair.

This was the refuge and the comfort Mary Kate had been searching for. Mrs O’Keefe, Cat and everyone in Liverpool had been so kind, but their words had not eased her pain the way Bee’s were doing right now. Sarah’s blood ran through both their veins and even though they’d not seen each other for years, the invisible ties of family bound them together.

‘Shush now, don’t you be worrying any more. The journey is over. You are home and it will all be fine, we will sort everything.’

Mary Kate pulled back and gulped at the air. ‘Who will?’ she said.

Bee extracted a handkerchief from her front apron pocket and began to wipe at Mary Kate’s eyes and the strings of mucous dripping from her nose, just as she had when Mary Kate was a child. ‘Mary Kate, this is where you belong and everything will get a little easier now, I promise.’

It was only minutes they’d been standing there, but it felt like hours as Bee waited for the sobs to end and the shaking to subside. She didn’t speak until the last of the tears were spent.

‘Now listen here, I know you’re going to tell me you feel sick after all of that, but come on back down and I’ll make you another cuppa and fry those rashers. You have no strength, God love you.’

Mary Kate looked over her shoulder and into her bedroom, the room she had imagined was still waiting for her and missing her. ‘It looks like Peggy has taken my place.’

Bee shook her head and clasped Mary Kate’s fingers in one hand and her case in the other. ‘Sure, if we had known you were coming here today, we could have moved Peggy out, and who in God’s name could take your place anyway?’

She guided her down into the kitchen, took her by the shoulders and pressed her back down into her seat.