‘The cake looks amazing,’ Heather told Rachel.

Rachel smiled. ‘I haven’t made Bluey before. But I like a challenge.’

‘Stephen’s birthday is coming up,’ Heather said. ‘I’ll have to get you to make his cake.’

‘Stephen likes mud cake,’ Pam said to no one in particular. She was still seated on her chair just a few paces away. They all looked down at her in surprise.

‘You’re right, Mum,’ Rachel agreed. ‘Chocolate mud cake is Dad’s favourite.’

Rachel and Tully squatted down in front of her. They moved carefully, hesitantly, as if they feared any sudden movement might break the spell.

‘What’s your favourite?’ Rachel asked her.

‘Glazed lemon cake,’ Pam said without missing a beat.

The girls laughed. ‘That’s right,’ Tully said. ‘You love lemon cake.’

As they started venturing into other foods – favourite breakfast, favourite snack – Locky wandered over and started playing too. You couldn’t have scripted a more lovely scene. Stephen was right, Heather realised. Of course this was the right place for Pam. She was exactly where she should be.

As if on cue, Stephen came over with a bright-eyed Miles still perched on his shoulders. ‘Is it time for the Bluey cake?’ he asked. ‘I’d like an ear, please.’

They all looked up, even Pam.

‘I want an ear!’ Miles cried.

‘There are two ears, baby,’ Tully said, getting to her feet.

‘And since you are the birthday boy,’ Stephen said, removing Miles from his shoulders and setting him back on his feet, ‘you can have first pick.’

Miles grinned and gave Stephen a high five.

Pam stared at Stephen, her nose scrunched, as if she’d smelled something that had gone bad.

‘Look out for that guy,’ she said, pointing at Stephen.

The warning was delivered in a quiet moment, when the music was between tracks and the lion’s share of the kids had gone inside to scavenge from the party food table.

‘What guy?’ Tully said. ‘You mean Dad?’

But Pam wasn’t listening to them; her gaze was still on Stephen. ‘He made my life hell,’ she snarled. ‘I should’ve left him years ago.’ She spat.

‘Yuck, Grandma,’ Miles said.

Stephen patted Miles’s head. ‘It’s all right, buddy. Grandma’s just a little confused.’

‘How convenient,’ Pam said.

Stephen opened his mouth, but before he could speak, Sonny appeared in his Bluey costume again and Miles let out a particularly shrill scream that had everyone wincing.

‘For Christ’s sake,’ Stephen said to Sonny. ‘Will you take off that bloody suit? You’re terrifying the poor kid.’

‘Go on, Sonny,’ Tully said, standing. ‘I’ll bring the rest of the kids in for pass-the-parcel.’

Everyone shuffled towards the house, grateful, Heather assumed, that they could move on from the awkwardness of Pam’s comments. But after everyone was inside, Heather noticed Rachel was still by her mother’s side, looking at her mother closely. After several seconds, she glanced back towards the house. She was staring straight at Stephen.

34

TULLY

‘What do you mean you took them?’ the lady behind the counter of the department store said to Tully.