He’d tapped his pencil on the cover of his sketchbook, wanting this information so he could draw it. His sketches weren’t simply the most important thing in the world, sometimes they were the entire world. Mum had made an effort. ‘Maybe a tidal wave? Your colours are… interesting.’

Now, she turned the page, finger pausing over Sean wearing armour. Fire, exhaled by graphite dragons, was the only colour on an otherwise grey and white page. Its flames curled in bright plumes of yellow, red, orange, tiny hearts of blue where they were hottest.

Dad coughed. ‘Did you study real flames to capture them so perfectly?’

‘Stephen!’ Mum screeched like she wanted to pretend everyone hadn’t wondered this. ‘Did you have a reason for drawing Sean, Caleb?’

Caleb glanced away. In those stories, Sean travelled the world, famous for daring deeds in every continent. ‘I wanted to make him walk again.’

‘He will love these,’ Mum said. She had stopped and went pale. ‘The book the police have, your original, that’s the one you went back for?’

‘I couldn’t let it be burned. I’ve already hurt Sean enough.’

‘Oh God.’ Mum’s face was white.

‘No one would believe me? And I owe him—’

Mum shook her head. ‘Fire has left us in a brave new world with no sense in it.’ She said strange stuff like that. ‘Why was it at the fossicker’s hut?’

‘I wanted Sean to see them.’

‘But he couldn’t get to the creek. He’s in a—’ Mum stopped.

‘Rosie won’t let me visit him. I thought I could carry him there.’

‘Carry him…?’

The plan had been crazy. Caleb knew it. But he’d needed to rescue those stories for Sean. ‘It was an idea, Mum.’

She frowned.

‘No one will believe me. I might as well have killed Sean. I have to live with this for the rest of my life. I want to get what I deserve.’

Mum thumped the table, frustration digging a groove between her brows. ‘You haven’t done anything wrong.’

Yeah.

Why did Mum bother? I don’t want to call this monster my brother, Kafka had made insect-Gregor’s sister say. We have to get rid of it.

In the courtroom, did the magistrate exchange eye contact with Mum? Share an understanding that Caleb couldn’t understand? Perhaps Nina Haynes was a mother, worried because Caleb looked so unhealthy. Mum kept asking him to eat properly, take vitamins. Caleb kept letting her down.