‘It was about the only thing I didn’t pinch,’ said Gina.

They went round the front and into the rose garden behind the hedges. It looked blowsy and end-of-season but still beautiful.

‘Let’s sit here,’ said Gina, choosing a bench.

They sat together but not looking at each other.

After a while Gina said, ‘I once sat in the vegetable garden and I overheard Uncle Tom and Mum talking. They love each other, you know.’

‘I do know, Gina.’

‘I think they should get married now Dad’s gone.’

‘Mebbe they will. I’d like that. I don’t know why they didn’t get married in the first place, all those years ago.’

‘Summat to do with Uncle Tom already going to marry that girl that was killed,’ said Gina. ‘Ask Mum about her.’

‘P’raps.’

A soft breeze wafted the fragrance of some roses that had been trained to climb alongside the bench, and each sister took a deep breath.

‘Heaven,’ murmured Gina.

‘Gina, about the so-called spells … did you try any others?’

‘Yes, yes I did. I tried one against Diana – she was so horrible I wanted to wipe the stupid sneer off her snooty face – and I tried an incantation to make James fall in love with me.’

‘And what do you think happened?’

‘Nowt with either of them. Probably it was me that did the falling in love, but I don’t think even that was real. Yet James told me to go and take the stolen things. He gave me a chance to get away and get some money for them. I thought he was panicking but now I think the police must have found summat in his lodgings that pointed to me and he was helping me. So he wasn’t entirely selfish.’

‘We heard there was a parcel addressed to you with some stolen stuff in it. It was obvious he was sending things to you. So mebbe he did care for you a bit and wanted you to get away,’ Ellen told her. ‘I don’t know if he was in love with you really, though, Gina.’

‘No, I reckon it was that I just wanted it to be real, to become a part of the Stellion family. I just wanted to be like them.’

‘But, Gina, you’re part of our family, the Arnolds. That’s good enough, isn’t it?’

‘It is now, Nell. I don’t want anything more than that now.’

They sat on in silence. After a while they heard distant footsteps. The sound grew louder – there were people coming up the drive – and Ellen took Gina’s hand.

‘Be brave, Gina,’ she said. ‘Remember, you’ve always got us – Mum and Uncle Tom and me.’

‘Yes, the Arnolds, my family,’ said Gina. She took Ellen’s hand. ‘My sister.’ She leaned over and kissed Ellen’s cheek and then stood and faced the policemen as Tom led them into the rose garden.