‘Just dodgy old electrics,’ I laugh under my breath, one hand pressed to my chest. I turn to leave, to follow Rav into Mina’s room when I spot it, a glint of light reflecting back from the cream shell. A pearl. A single pearl, lying just to one side of the bathtub, as if spilled from a broken necklace. I stop to pick it up, feeling my back give a twinge, and hold it up to the bare bulb. It’s real, I can tell by the way its shape is imperfect, an almost round circle of off-white. I squeeze it between my fingers, wondering briefly where it came from before I tuck it into the pocket of my jeans. Maybe it’ll bring us luck.

I think of that other pearl now, as I wrap my fingers around this new one. It has to be a new one, the original pearl is tucked into the jewellery box my mother gave me for my sixteenth birthday. How strange. A vision pops into my head of a woman, dressed in dark clothing, pearls hidden against her skin, standing in the doorway to the cottage. It’s so real, my eyes flick towards the doorway, but it’s empty. Of course it is. Ridiculous. The sun dips behind a cloud, blocking the warm rays and making the bare skin on my forearms prickle. Shaking my head, I close my fist over the pearl, and just as I did with the first one, I tuck it into my pocket.

‘Daddy!’ Mina shouts, and I look up to see Rav striding across the lawn, his arms open for her to jump into. He scoops her up and brings her over to where I sit, leaning down to kiss me. He smells like sweat and the train, and I think for a moment as his mouth leaves mine, maybe a little like alcohol.

‘Sorry I’m a bit later than I planned. Aren’t you getting cold out here?’

I hadn’t realized that the sun has started to disappear behind the trees, the shadows from the branches long and stretched across the lawn. I scoop up the baby, his tiny hands cold after lying in the shade and pull him close to warm him up. Terrible mother. The words flash neon in my mind and I blink for a moment, feeling a little unsteady on my feet.

‘Allie? Are you all right?’ Rav’s hand is warm on my arm.

‘Yes. Sorry, just got up a bit quick.’

‘Let’s get you lot inside. I’ll give Mina her bath, shall I?’