A thin, high wail escapes the blankets and Anna sees a tiny fist fly up, as if in triumph or protest. The woman turns away, crooning placations. She has another child, a daughter of about eight. The solemn-faced girl clutches a small dog with dark-fringed eyes and white fur the soft, curly texture of lambswool.

‘His name is Amandel,’ the child volunteers. She lowers the wriggling dog to the ground. ‘He’s always restless when there’s snow about.’

Anna squints up at the sky. The snow has held off for days, but the threat of it remains, the sun diffused behind a thick layer of dense cloud, the unmistakable scent, like mint or cinnamon, pervading everything. The expectation of the snow’s arrival has heightened the anxiety surrounding her departure. She has been both dreading and anticipating today’s journey, aware that by leaving Amsterdam behind, she is, in a strange way, abandoning her sister. Lijsbeth is already in the churchyard, in the section set aside for the penniless poor. She was buried along with four others on a day selected by Pastor Van Leersun for its unseasonal warmth. Workers were still digging the grave when Anna arrived. She managed to slip them a stuiver so they would bury her sister last. At least Lijsbeth will spend eternity staring at the sky, not pressed facedown against the body of a widow who had expired weeks ago and begun to leak.

Amandel has short, dowelling legs. He wanders over to inspect the hem of Anna’s skirt. She crouches and runs a firm hand from the crown of his head to the base of his spine. Squirming with pleasure, he rolls onto his side, exposing a tufted belly darkened by a single, almond-shaped spot.

‘He likes you,’ the child observes, and Anna’s chest tightens with guilt. Last week, she made the difficult decision to leave Wolfert behind. She’d pictured them strolling together through The Hague, Wolfert stopping to growl at the canal cats sunning themselves, teasing him with their long, bewitching tails. But it was soon clear he could not make the journey. Out of pity, Cornelis de Witt offered to take him in, and Maria promised to send her news.