Ged went ballistic. ‘What the fuck are you involving him for? You’ve got a right gob on you. As if I need the school on my back. You know Dad’s getting out today and I just wanted to spend some time with him. His head’s been done in, he’s blaming himself for my attack, fuck knows why. He’s allowed here to see me, isn’t he, because if you say he’s not stepping over our front door again then I’m going.’

‘You’re not going anywhere. The doctors have told you that you have to rest. Ged, you were stabbed, all those stitches. You could have died.’

He looked at her, challenging her. ‘So, my dad is coming here, then?’ Clare swallowed hard, she was backed into a corner. If she said no, then Ged would be out of the house to go and see his old man. Her hands were tied. She paced about the room twisting her fingers.

‘He can come here, but Ged he’s not getting his feet back under the table. I’m telling you that now. I know him too well, he’s a piss-taker. A free-loader.’

‘I just want to see my dad. Stop dissing him and putting barriers there all the time. Just because he messed up a few times… He tried his best, Mam. He wanted to help us, you know, his family.’

Clare let out a sarcastic laugh. ‘Stop talking out of your arse. The man was always up to no good. He promised me the world and told me time and time again that he was on the straight and narrow. Bullshit, it was all bullshit. I can’t tell you how many times that man had me over.’

Ged hung his head; he’d heard this over and over. It was doing his head in. Maybe it was time to put his cards on the table and tell her how he felt.

‘I don’t care what he’s done. He might have messed up, but come on, Mam, how many times have you messed up? My dad told me about when you left him and hooked up with his best mate.’

Clare’s jaw dropped. What the fuck? How dare Kevin tell her son stuff like that. It was years ago. Ged seemed to be waiting for an explanation. She sat down on the bed beside him.

‘Your father had no right telling you stuff like that. It was before you were born, Ged. Your dad was out all the time and I was left by myself when he was doing whatever he was doing. He said he was talking business, but come on, Ged, you can’t believe a word that comes out of that man’s mouth.’

‘So, it’s true?’ he asked.